Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2023 is upon us. Like, physically upon us. That’s because the convention is showing a strong return to form after taking a short sabbatical back in 2020, and a rather muted online-only event the following year. With the show kicking off yesterday in Barcelona, we’ve still got three days of announcements – whether they be great, meh, or downright terrible – to get through.
We’re sure all those downright terrible announcements will make it into another article eventually. So far though, the show has been a success, despite us only seeing a sliver of what the show has to offer. From the very few announcements and demos we have seen, there’s been a couple of familiar faces. Honor’s appearance brought a new foldable, Xiaomi showed us what true charging is, and Tecno… Well, Tecno introduced a colour-changing phone.
Let’s get into the highlights of the event’s first day, shall we?
Making a cold call
OnePlus rocked up to the event with one goal in mind: showing off a phone that will probably never make its way to South African shores. It might never show up in any market. But that doesn’t mean we can’t stare longingly, right?
Enter the OnePlus 11 Concept. Those beautiful glowing blue lines on the back? OnePlus claims that they aren’t just there for show. That’s the company’s own “Active CryoFlux” liquid cooling technology at work.
Unlike other manufacturers that have made use of real, spinning fans, OnePlus’ device should theoretically net better performance and charging speeds with the help of real liquid cooling. According to tests (by OnePlus), liquid cooling bought the device three or four more frames than it would usually see, plus a 30- to 45-second increase in overall charging speeds. Whether that’s worth it or not doesn’t really matter. It’s a concept phone. OnePlus’ goal was to show that it could make a liquid-cooled device. It succeeded.
There’s no word on when, or even if, the OnePlus 11 will ever make it to market.
Xiaomi makes a 300W splash
While OnePlus’ “Active CryoFlux” technology can only promise to improve charging by around 45 seconds, Xiaomi’s MWC demo showed what can be done in the charging field with the right tech. 300W fast charging, to be specific. When you consider that the previous best thing was Realme’s 240W charging, it’s no surprise everyone is getting excited.
Xiaomi’s presentation included a Redmi Note 12 Pro+, modified to hold a 4,100mAh battery. As you can see in the video above, Xiaomi’s 300W charger – which is the same size as its previous 210W charger (thanks to Xiaomi’s design that allows for better heat dissipation) — manages to fill the battery in less than five minutes.
Yes, Xiaomi has made history in the mobile industry. But maybe that’s all it was doing. The demo needed a lot of help from the modified battery – including more powerful cells, new carbon materials, a better electrolyte formula, and a souped-up design to make this all work. Xiaomi failed to discuss the battery’s charge cycles during the presentation, which could point towards the tech being damaging to the battery.
Still, this isn’t the last we’ve seen of 300W charging. Xiaomi could still include it with a future device. When, or if, that’ll ever be the case is still a mystery.
Read More: MWC 2023: Here’s what we are expecting
Honoring the foldable market
Honor had a busy first day of the show. It wasted no time in announcing the next in its flagship series – the Magic 5 Pro, a sequel to the Magic 4 Pro (a device that we quite liked). Then there was the announcement of the company’s first-ever foldable to make it out of the Chinese market – the Honor Magic Vs.
If you’ve seen Samsung’s line of foldables such as the Galaxy Z Fold 4, you’ll immediately notice a few similarities. It’s essentially a tablet that folds up to resemble a regular old smartphone. The internal screen here is 7.9in with a 90Hz refresh rate, while the external display is 6.4in with has a 120Hz refresh rate.
Inside is last year’s Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor, with a 5,000mAh that uses 66W charging. The three rear sensors feature a 54MP main camera, 50MP ultrawide, and an 8MP telephoto. Flip it around, and you’re looking at a 16MP selfie cam.
The Honor Magic Vs arrives in the UK sometime in June, with a launch price of €1,600 (roughly R31,000) for the 12GB/512GB model. Honor didn’t go into detail about a larger global launch, only confirming that the device would be released globally. If you’re left scratching your chin wondering about a South African release, your guess is as good as ours. Considering Honor’s history in South Africa, we’re likely to experience some sort of launch of the Magic Vs. Eventually.
Qualcomm’s Satellite Communication
Who else remembers all the hype surrounding Apple’s iPhone 14 announcement? Much of that was due to Apple’s inclusion of satellite-based communication, effectively giving users a way to communicate when they’re away from civilization.
Well, now Qualcomm wants in on that action. During the company’s MWC presentation, it announced that it would be bringing the same functionality to a bunch of other brands; Xiaomi, Nothing, Honor, Oppo, Vivo, and Motorola. None of these companies has given any explicit dates as to when we might see satellite communications in their devices. We only know that it’s coming. Hopefully, soon.
The announcement is indicative of MWC’s obsession with satellite communication. This particular announcement feels as if it were a last-ditch attempt to be one of the first companies to bring out the tech. Sure, Apple won that race months ago. But if rumour is to be believed, MediaTek is also expected to unveil some form of satellite comm tech at this year’s MWC.
In the same vein
We certainly weren’t expecting satellite communications to be such a big part of this year’s MWC. That doesn’t mean we’re complaining. Especially after Bullitt’s presentation which brought us the Motorola Defy Satellite Link. The main purpose of this gadget is to turn your iPhone or Android device into a satellite-communication device.
If the lack of this tech was stressing you out in Samsung’s latest flagship line-up, or you just didn’t want to spend thousands on an iPhone 14, you’re in luck. Bullitt’s device only costs $100 (roughly R1,800) and won’t force you to break the bank on a phone you didn’t really want. There is a single caveat to contend with – the device’s requirement of a $5/m (R92) subscription fee that’ll give users access to SOS Assist and messaging between loved ones.
According to the device’s makers, the keyfob’s 600mAh battery lasts for days on a single charge. The IP68 waterproof and dust rating is just a bonus that’ll make this a handy addition to any hike or camping trip.