MWC19 roundup – the future of mobile technology

MWC, the world’s largest tradeshow for the mobile industry, has wrapped up for another year and, like every year, mobile technology manufacturers have come together to launch a plethora of intelligent and innovative mobile products.

This year’s show was titled ‘MWC19 Barcelona: Intelligent Connectivity’ and it showcased some of the most advanced technologies the mobile industry has seen. Foldable phones, 5G, AI and IoT enabled devices, as well as all of the other usual suspects made an appearance. But who were some of the stand out players this year and what does their technology mean for the mobile industry going forward?

Huawei Mate X – the future of phones

Although Huawei has faced a wealth of criticism over the past few months, the launch of their foldable phone was a key highlight at MWC. The Mate X features an enormous 8-inch wrap-around AMOLED screen as well as 5G capabilities and being only 11mm thick.

The fold-out screen is particularly impressive as it has an 8:7.1 aspect ratio and resolution of 2480x2200. Moreover, this phone has two batteries inside that deliver 4,500mAh capacity and new 55W charging technology which claims to deliver 80 percent power to the phone in 30 minutes. Fast charging and long battery life ahoy!

However, this futuristic phone does not come cheap. With a ￡1,977 price tag, it’s likely that we won’t see many of these being used on the daily commute any time soon.

Sony Xperia 1 – a binge-watchers delight

With its super-tall 21:9 display, Sony’s Xperia 1 is a phone for watching videos and playing games. The device has a 6.5inch 4K OLED screen which makes this phone perfect for binge-watching movies or TV shows on the move. Plus, as Netflix now supports this format, perhaps the Sony Xperia 1 will be the phone of choice for those who travel and use their phone for entertainment.

Not only is the bigger screen a great feature but the Sony Xperia 1 has a triple rear lens camera which contributes to improved zoom and the ability to shoot with a wide-angle camera.

Of course, the phone comes with a host of new features that you would expect with any smartphone in 2019 but as with any new technology, there is a hefty cost - ￡849 to be exact. So, will this extra tall phone become the mainstream for binge-watchers and gamers alike? We’ll have to wait and see.

Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 – the 5G era

Ok, so Xiaomi is not the first smartphone manufacturer to launch a 5G phone. Samsung unveiled its 5G phone during its Unpacked event in San Francisco ahead of MWC and as we’ve mentioned, Huawei launched its Mate X phone with 5G capability.

This year at MWC, 5G was the primary topic from most vendors, but Xiaomi has managed to launch a 5G phone at a (slightly) more reasonable price. The phone will cost around ￡513 and contains Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 855 processor and its X50 5G modem.

5G promises to speed up the connection and responsiveness of wireless networks, running between 10 and 100 times faster than connections today. And with the Mi Mix 3 price point being significantly lower than competitor 5G phones, maybe we’ll see Xiaomi break out of the Chinese market and make its way to the UK.

Nokia 9 PureView – inspiration from an insect

One of the more usual phones we’ve seen launched at MWC19 is the Nokia 9 Pureview. This smartphone features a whopping five, yes five, cameras on the back. The phone is able to capture unprecedented levels of detail with up to 240-megapixel resolution.

Due to the five cameras on the back of the phone, the design looks more housefly than smartphone, but for any photographers than prefer shots on a phone rather than a camera, perhaps this is the phone for you. And in terms of smartphones on the market, the Nokia 9 PureView is a mid-range phone priced at ￡540.

It’s clear than MWC19 was the year for 5G technology and the race among vendors to produce the best 5G phone is well underway. However, with no 5G networks in existence today, there need to be some big steps from network providers, if we’re to see the full functionality of these phones being used! However, we’re excited to see how this technology develops and whether 5G phones will be commonplace by the time MWC 2020 rolls around.

So, there you have it. A quick roundup of our favourite products from MWC19. We’re excited to watch how these products and technologies impact the mobile industry over the next year and are looking forward to seeing what new innovation MWC 2020 will bring.

 Originally published on the Firefly Communications blog.