THE shiny new iPhone 5s is protected by clever new fingerprint sensors so only the phone’s owner can unlock it.

And maybe this technology is a vision of when we might unlock our front doors and make purchases with a swipe of a finger.

And the iPhone 5s again shows how the word “smartphone” is surely a bit misleading now. Today’s smartphones are nothing less than pocket-sized computers, capable of doing nearly everything their desktop counterparts can do – just on a smaller screen.

The 5s, though, also comes with this new biometric fingerprint security system called Touch ID, making it even more secure than its predecessors – fingerprint security can be broken by determined bad guys, but it will certainly keep most casual thieves out.

Apple is keen to stress that the fingerprints it senses are kept securely on the device, they’re never shared over the net.

For the time being, Touch ID’s features are limited. You can unlock your phone, and access your iTunes account, with your finger. But what happens if – or more likely, when – other apps are granted access to the same system?

Well, hands up if you hate remembering passwords – with a 5s, or one of its ancestors, you might not need to. Tap your phone to authenticate your identity, and you could log into any website, approve any purchase, perhaps even unlock your front door or access your bank account.

Plug this tech into your mobile web browser, and now the internet is basically an extension of your thumb. Perhaps it won’t be long before a smartphone’s user-facing camera is smart enough to scan your retina too.

Right now this is new, and expensive, technology. An unlocked 5s will cost you about £550. But we all know that expensive tech soon becomes cheap tech.

This stuff will be everywhere before long.