Mobile World Congress is the event where the most significant releases of the mobile industry take place. The show runs in Barcelona, Spain from February 22 to February 25 at the Fira Gran Via convention center, where Samsung, LG, HTC, Sony, and other big-name tech brands showcase their smartphones and other gadgets.
This year, we expect some excellent technology and incredible innovation from the big brands, as well as a bunch of intriguing new tech from relatively obscure firms.
Here are the details of what you can expect from the event in the smartphone category.
Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge
Samsung is known to put on a big show at MWC for its latest Galaxy smartphone, and this year will be no different; rumors about the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge have been all over the Internet for months. There were rumors earlier that indicated at Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Plus not being launched, but this time, instead, the S7 Edge will have a larger screen.
The overall spec sheet is also quite impressive. Recent leaks hint at a sleek waterproof design, a Samsung Exynos 8890 or a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chip, 4GB of RAM, a 5.1-inch Quad HD screen, a 12-megapixel camera and microSD memory expansion revival.
LG G5 and more
Earlier, LG used to wait for Samsung to take the spotlight in the MWC and then used to release their devices in a separate event. However this year, they have decided to take Samsung head on. They have been teasing its G5 smartphone ahead of MWC, going so far as to reveal a flip-cover case for the device and hints about its design.
Rumors say the G5 will be all metal for the first time, but it will still offer a removable battery via a crazy new slider design. The G5 is said to have a secondary screen, substantially enhanced cameras, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, 3GB of RAM, and 32GB of storage. The main screen may measure 5.3 inches and sport a Quad HD resolution. Although the screen size would be smaller than the G4’s 5.5-inch screen, the second screen might make up the difference.
Huawei P9 and more
Huawei has definitely taken the market by a storm. They have been releasing devices in all the segments, including smartphone, smartwatch and now even in laptops. The P9 is rumored to include two cameras, 6GB of RAM, an octa-core Kirin 950 processor, and a 5.2-inch Quad HD screen.
There may be Lite and Max versions of the P9, too. We have seen some bands like the TalkBand or perhaps a new smartwatch. Mid-range devices are also a possibility for Huawei and there is hope that the Chinese giant will announce a U.S. launch partner for some of its smartphones.
Xiaomi Mi5 and more
The much awaited Xiaomi Mi5 is going to be launched at MWC and according to the rumors, we can expect a powerful device. The Mi5 is said to feature Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor and 3 or 4 GB of RAM. It may come in two operating system specifications; Android 6.0 Marshmallow and Windows 10 Mobile, which would be very interesting indeed.
As far as design goes, the Mi 5 allegedly has 2.5D glass, which curves subtly on the sides and a slim, oval-shaped home button on the front. It looks more or less like the Galaxy S6.
Several other players like Microsoft and its partners, Sony, BlackBerry, and Nokia, may also make huge announcements in the show. Lenovo has recently teased about a full metal device, so this may be an interesting time to release it. Maybe we may hear more about the Google Project Tango partnership in the event as well.