March Madness! MWC 2023 roundup

Given the name, let’s get a glimpse of the mobile phones that were either confidently announced or playfully teased during MWC this year.

Smartphones

Mid-range masters seem to have been dominating the stage at MWC 2023. Definitely coming the consumer’s way are the Xiaomi 13 and Xiaomi 13 Pro. Partnering with Leica, these smartphones are putting imaging first. The 13 Pro will run the same processor as all flagships this year - the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 mobile platform. 

Realme GT 3 is here to put an end to all your charging woes. The company is going to be packing in a charging speed of up to 240W which would have the 4,600 mAh battery fully ready to go in under 10 minutes.

realme GT 3

OPPO had on display the OPPO Find X5 series, which continues the collaboration with Hasselblad and is powered by an advanced camera system - the MariSilicon X. 

TECNO made its debut at the MWC this year with a smartphone designed to win Gen-Zs over. The TECNO SPARK 10 Pro features a 32MP ultra-clear front camera with dual flash, so nothing goes uncaptured even in low light. 

Nokia by HMD continues to tread the sustainability path with its new set of smartphones. The Nokia G22 is the first Nokia smartphone designed with easy repairability at its core. The company has collaborated with iFixit which helps users access quick-repair guides, and affordable spare parts to replace a damaged display bent charging port, or a flat battery on the Nokia G22.  

Getting a lot of tech enthusiasts raving is the OnePlus 11 Concept - with their new Active Cryoflux cooling technology. The cooling mechanism shows up at the rear panel with luminescent blue cooling pipes placed internally. 

OnePlus 11 Concept 

Flip & Fold 

Here to compete with the Samsung Fold series, the Tecno Phantom V Fold sports a 7.85-inch display, unfolded, with a virtually invisible crease.

Phantom V Fold Launch Officer, Olivier Mas, reveals the details of PHANTOM V Fold at the smartphone’s launch event during MWC Barcelona 2023.

OPPO showcased the Find N2 Flip, a device I’m currently in the process of reviewing. Without sharing much details OnePlus announced that it will also launch its first foldable this year. 

Laptops

This Shenzhen-based brand made its debut at MWC this year, and is all set to launch a whole new set of products in the Indian market. The TECNO MEGABOOK S1 sports a 15.6-inch IPS display with a 120Hz refresh rate. The laptop has been equipped with the latest 13th-gen Intel Core processor, and weighs less than 1.5kg. 

I’m sure more than a couple of tech geeks had to pick the jaws off the floor after seeing this new concept - Lenovo’s  rollable laptop. The concept laptop has a screen that rolls up to become longer than it originally seems with its 12.7 inch display. 

Wearbles

Ready to change the way you view the world are a host of wearables launched. Xiaomi Wireless AR Glass was one such. A concept pair of wireless smart glasses, this one connects to your smartphone or tablet and lets you engage in the ever-growing world of augmented-reality. 

Similarly, OPPO Air Glass 2,weighing only about 38g, will let you make phone calls, conduct real-time translation, provide location-based navigation, convert voice into text for people with hearing impairments, and provide many more smart experiences. 

The final word

Considering all the launches at the mega tech exhibition this year, it’s safe to say that alternate form factors on smartphones are here to stay. And, what a refreshing change that’ll bring to ages of carrying around the same form factor. More competition in this specific genre will also likely offer the consumers more affordable price tages on foldables. The interest and work going into making augmented reality accessible on an everyday basis continues on, and hopefully soon it will be an everyday part of our increasingly virtual world we live in. 

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