A showcase for innovations of all kinds, the Mobile World Congress (MWC) takes place from February 26 to 29 in Barcelona. This annual event enables manufacturers to unveil their upcoming products and innovations, even if they're still only at the prototype stage. Which devices made the biggest impact at the show, and which could revolutionize our habits in the years to come? Here's an overview.
1. Thinkbook Transparent Display Laptop Concept: a transparent PC prototype
Described as "the industry's first laptop with a transparent micro-LED display," this 17.3-inch PC prototype features a borderless screen as well as a transparent keyboard and trackpad. This, according to its creator, Lenovo, "opens up new possibilities for collaboration and enables interaction between physical objects and overlaid digital content." To ensure that the screen blends naturally into its surroundings while guaranteeing optimum visibility, both indoors and out, the company is said to have combined high color saturation and 1000 nits of brightness. Aimed at graphic artists and designers, this PC allows users to deactivate the keyboard to use the lower part as a graphics tablet.
2. Adaptative Display Concept: the wristband smartphone prototype
Already spotted at Lenovo Tech World last October, Motorola's Android-based smartphone caused quite a stir at MWC. And with good reason: it's equipped with "an FHD+ pOLED screen that can be bent and shaped into different forms according to users' needs," describes the company, and thus wraps around the wrist. The device has a 6.9-inch screen and can be used like any other smartphone. Wrapped around the wrist, it adjusts and offers "a more compact form (...) on a 4.6-inch screen," explains the company. Data and applications are displayed at the top of the screen, allowing the user to use it as a connected watch. According to journalists at the show, however, the prototype has one major drawback: its weight.
3. Samsung Galaxy Ring: the connected ring
As promised, the South Korean manufacturer has lifted the veil on its connected ring concept. The Samsung Galaxy Ring, whose launch date has not been announced, is expected to come in several sizes and colors and could be released in the second half of the year in certain markets. It is equipped with multiple sensors serving a simple objective: to evaluate, in real time, the wearer's state of health by monitoring heart rate, blood sugar levels, or sleep cycles, for example. The ring is also expected to be powered by artificial intelligence, although no further details have been released.
4. The AI Pin: the pin's smartphone
Designed as a case that attaches to clothing, this device developed by Humane, a company founded by former Apple executives, aspires to convert the palm of your hand into a smartphone screen. Activation of the device, which could legitimately be described as "disruptive," is by touch, voice, or gesture. Powered by AI, it could, according to its creator, be exploited for multiple uses, such as making a phone call, sending messages, or translating a speaker's speech. It will be available in several colors starting in March, starting at $699.
This is the Humane Ai Pin https://t.co/ytUSGF3y55 pic.twitter.com/Zrcoaf49u7
— Humane (@Humane) November 9, 2023
5. T-Phone: the app-free smartphone
It doesn't yet have an official name, but it could well revolutionize our habits. Designed in collaboration with Brain.ai, an American start-up specializing in artificial intelligence, this smartphone prototype by German telecom giant Deutsche Telekom aims to replace all your applications with an AI assistant, which would do all the work for you. Based on the T-Phone model, this smartphone could, for example, organize a trip or book a table in a restaurant. "The product presented testifies to Deutsche Telekom's belief in the imminent integration of broad, multimodal language models (LLMs) into devices, with the aim of enriching and facilitating the lives of its customers," the company said in its presentation of the tool, Reuters reports.