1. An apparatus comprising: a computing device configured to: receive a reference set of data samples, each data sample in the reference set of data samples being an output of a respective fingerprint image sensing element in a one dimensional linear array of fingerprint image sensing elements, oriented to capture one line of a fingerprint image at a time, each line later used to reconstruct an identifying fingerprint image and to receive a next successive set of data samples, each data sample in the next successive set of data samples being a subsequent output of the respective fingerprint image sensing element in the one dimensional linear array of fingerprint sensing elements; determine the existence of a difference between a data sample from the reference set and a corresponding data sample from the next successive set, which difference exceeds a selected threshold value, for each data sample from the reference set and the corresponding data sample from the next successive set; count the number of times the difference exceeds the threshold in comparing the reference set to the next successive set; and identify the next successive set of data samples as redundant when the number is less than a selected count.