The Top Trends of Mobile World Congress 2018

The GSMA Mobile World Congress (MWC) is the world’s largest gathering for the mobile industry, and this year’s Mobile World Congress 2018 just wrapped up. We’ll get into MWC 2018 highlights soon, but before that let’s talk about what MWC is for those who aren’t familiar. MWC is an annual event where anyone who’s anyone in the mobile world gets together to show off their latest and greatest gadgets. Everything’s on display — next-gen AI solutions, state-of-the-art mobile accessories, everything — and it’s the perfect place to whet your mobile appetite.

This year, Mobile World Congress 2018 trends focused on:
● The Fourth Industrial Revolution
● Future Service Provider
● The Network
● The Digital Consumer
● Tech in Society
● Content & Media
● Applied AI
● Innovation

And more than 2,400 companies were able to showcase cutting-edge products and services, a GSMA and Brosmind partnership was concocted to illustrate the unique role mobile is playing in supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), immersive demonstrations of the latest mobile-enabled products and services were featured in the GSMA Innovation City, 25 companies were awarded 38 GLOMOs (Global Mobile Awards) for their advances in technology, and much much more.

Mobile World Congress 2018 Highlights

That being said, let’s take a look at what you missed out on if you weren’t able to attend!

Galaxy S9 and S9+

source: wccftech.com

As we all know, Samsung is a staple of the smartphone market, so it’s not surprising that they showed off their latest handsets. At first glance, you may think that the Galaxy S9 and S9+ are quite similar to their predecessors (S8 & S8+), but they actually have some pretty cool upgrades and improvements. For example, they use Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 845 CPU and a new mechanical variable aperture rear camera sensor that improves performance by letting it (camera) switch between f/2.4 and f/1.5 apertures based on the environment. 

Xperia XZ2

source: en.letsgodigital.org

Sony, another tech giant we’re all familiar with, unveiled the Xperia XZ2 as a pleasant departure from its previous squarish design. New and improved, the Xperia has a mixed material chassis with a 2.5D curved glass back and is packed with the latest Sony technologies to deliver an entertainment experience that touches your senses in a whole new way. Like the Galaxy S9 and S9+, the Xperia XZ2 boasts of a Snapdragon 845 CPU for improved use, a larger battery, a revamped camera, much louder speakers, and the world's first 4K HDR movie recording in a smartphone.

Nokia 7 Plus

source: nokia.com

With 64GB of storage, a Snapdragon 660 CPU, 6-inch 18:9 Full HD + resolution display perfect for our media consumption, and an added bonus of running on Android One, the Nokia 7 Plus is already a fan favorite. Apart from an upgraded screen, more power, and greater functionality, this phone also has excellent battery life and enhanced Dual-Sight rear sensors with ZEISS optics that create a wide-angle camera that excels in low light and extra bright environments.

Nokia 8110 “Banana Phone”

source: techprolonged.com

Famously featured in The Matrix, the Nokia 8110, AKA the Banana Phone, is back. Like many upgraded models in MWC 2018, the 4G 8110 is new and improved and brings back the iconic slide design with new features like an app store with where you’ll find favorites like Facebook, Google Search, Google Maps, Twitter and more. As for the slide design, want to answer the phone? Slide. Want to hang up? Slide. What more can you want?

Lenovo Vital

source: ubergizmo.com

The Lenovo Vital is one of the coolest health trackers you’ll come across. As the latest Moto Mod for Motorola’s Z line of smartphones, this device works as a biometric scanner that can measure blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, oxygen, and temperature. It’s also very simple to use — all you have to do is place your finger in the protruding dock, slip it into a rubber seal and click on the onscreen start button you’ll find in the app.

Land Rover Explorer Outdoor Phone

Closing our list today, the Land Rover Explorer Outdoor Phone is the one and the only phone those who love the great outdoors need. For one, it can survive anything — drops water submersion (including salt water), extreme temperatures, rapid temperature changes and more. Second, apart from being an indestructible phone, it also has all the features you want as an explorer like topographic mapping options, AR Skyline navigation, and instant access to a dashboard that has weather information, sensor data, and an SOS light toggle.

Wrap Up

As all the excitement dies down, we have to come to grips with the fact that we have to wait for more than we’d like for the next MWC to come around. It’s not all bad though — in the meantime, we have all the cool gadgets and services that were unveiled this year. Enjoy!