Barcelona was again the epicenter of mobile tech last week when some 100,000 visitors attended the 2019 Mobile World Congress at the Fira Barcelona exhibition center. Foldable phones and 5G capability grabbed the spotlight, flanked by new multimedia applications and car updates. 5G foldable phones Two major smartphone brands presented headline devices: Huawei and Samsung. The Chinese manufacturer showcased the Huawei Mate X, a 6.6-inch device when used as a phone that expands in to an 8-inch tablet-like device. Despite its popularity, it comes with a sky-high price and will retail for $2,600 when it launches later this year. Mate X feeds off the company’s Kirin 980 processor and is 5G-compatible thanks to its multi-mode modem Balong 5000, marketed as the first chipset that supports Vehicle to Everything communications, providing low-latency and highly reliable solutions for connected vehicles. Additionally, the Mate X has backwards compatibility with 4G and 3G networks. The internal storage provides 512GB, expandable by up to 256GB through the card slot. Mate X is equipped with a massive 4,500mAh battery, which will get the phone charged up to 85 percent in just 30 minutes. Considering that 5G will consume more power than 4G, the boost in power will be more important than an upgrade. The device will include a three-camera array for the rear camera with 40, 16 and 8 megapixels, and one for the front camera. The foldable display is made of plastic, which brings some novelty to photographers. The setup means subjects will get a live preview of photos as they are being taken. A potential issue is the fact that Mate X wears its large screen on the exterior of the device, unprotected. Even though Huawei claims the hinge and the screen are durable, and that a special protector will keep scratches off the screen, skeptics will need convincing. Samsung’s Galaxy Fold is wrapped in mystery (and kept inside a glass case). The $2,000 device was introduced in London during the company’s Unpacked event, where nobody was allowed to touch it. Tech fans hoped that the MWC environment will enable them to get closer to it and maybe get their hands on the shiny device. But Samsung’s protectiveness remained the same, which led critics to project that perhaps Samsung rushed the launch of this revolutionary concept. Samsung’s foldable smartphone has a 4.6-inch HD+ Super AMOLED display which turns it into a 7.3-inch tablet. It is powered by a 4,380mAh battery—needed for the 5G network—also with fast charging capability. Galaxy Fold packs 12GB of RAM and a Qualcomm 855 processor and internal storage of 512GB, which cannot be expanded. Galaxy Fold sports six cameras—three on the rear, one with 16 megapixels and two with 12 megapixels, a 10-megapixel selfie camera on the front and two above the 7.3-inch display inside the fold with 10 and 8 megapixels. When folded, the device looks chunky, perhaps a better fit for a shoulder bag than a pocket. This leads to one big question: do these foldable phones really give us the best of both worlds? Are these devices innovative enough to make people want to spend thousands for a convertible phone? Or will consumers continue to purchase two devices for communicating and in-depth reading and browsing? Mobility, AR, AI Tech giant Hewlett Packard and automotive supplier Continental have partnered in the development of a new platform for sharing vehicle data. Built with blockchain technology to attest data security and transparency, the application will help OEMs and other automotive players trade better and monetize their data, in addition to differentiating their brands. HERE Technologies and Volvo have also partnered. HERE will provide map data for off-board cloud services that provides the location of cars and other geographical info. Volvo is developing these services in its own cloud environment and plans to deploy them to enhance the driver experience. Microsoft released Hololens 2, a gadget designed for commercial clients...
Resurrected
Nokia 3310 Makes a Comeback
Mobile World Congress is in full swing in Barcelona this week. Strangely enough, the most popular device is far from being the smartest or most innovative, instead it is all about nostalgia. Yes, Nokia 3310 holds the spotlight once more, 17 years after its original release. If I asked you to close your eyes and remember your first cellphone, a midnight blue and grey device might pop up in front of your eyes. Chances are you’re picturing a Nokia 3310, a device originally presented to the world in September 2000. Obviously, the model presented at MWC is a remake, but not much was really redone. The dumbphone is limited to 2G connectivity for calling and texting, has FM radio and MP3 player for music, 16MB storage (yes, megabytes, this is no typo) expandable up to 32GB through a MicroSD card slot, new UI with plenty nods to the original model and that massive battery life coming from a removable 1,200mAh battery. More precisely, it offers up to 22 hours talk time and up to a month of standby time, 10 times the original’s capabilities. And how can one spend all that juice? Playing Gameloft’s updated version of the original Snake game, of course! Its design is also pretty similar to the Nokia 3310 launched at the millennium. They’re roughly the same size, but the new one has a 2MP camera with flash and a bigger display—a 2.4-inch QVGA with a resolution of 240×320 pixels. The 2017 model has slimmed down over the last 17 years, just like most models. In case you’re wondering what operating system keeps it going, it’s Nokia Series 30+. The new model boasts more rounded edges, subtler buttons—eye-candy for the retro phone fans. And it sells for just $52. The...
GSMA Mobile World
Internet of Everything
Once again, Barcelona hosted the GSMA Mobile World Congress, a global showcase where some of the industry’s biggest names displayed their latest toys. This year’s event featured over 1,800 exhibiting companies, more than 85,000 visitors from 201 countries, a new record, reflecting again how pervasive mobile has become. The four-day conference and exhibition became the meeting spot for executives from mobile operators, software companies, equipment providers, internet companies, and automotive, finance, and healthcare industries, topped by government delegations from all over the world. More than 4,500 CEOs, including Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and IMB’s Virginia Rometty held keynotes, followed by CEOs and senior executives from companies like Alcatel-Lucent, América Móvil, Bitcoin Foundation, Cisco, Citigroup, Connecthings, EMC Corporation, Etisalat Group, Ford Motor Company, Isis, Jasper Wireless, Kakao Corp., KDDI, Lookout, Millicom, NTT DOCOMO, Raspberry Pi Foundation, Shazam Entertainment, Shhmooze, SingTel, SK Planet, Tele2 Group, Viacom International Media Networks and WhatsApp. The Connected City attracted over 17,000 visitors over the four days, and presented mobile solutions for services like education, health, retail, transport, smart cities and more. The Internet of Things describes the phenomenon of network-connected sensors incorporated into devices that in the past were standalone appliances. An even broader term, ‘The Internet of Everything’, includes smartphones and other mobile computing devices, as well as Internet-connected appliances. Remember Google’s move earlier this year, the $3 billion acquisition of Nest’s smart thermostat and smoke alarm technology. A wide variety of vendors showed or announced services and products that fit the concept. The automakers announced connectivity technology this week, to meet consumers’ expectation of having the same connected experience with their cars as they have with their mobile phones. Deutsche Telekom announced a deal with PayPal through which it will enable the possibility for the mobile users to purchase...
Mobile Goes Global
2013 Mobile World Congress
Europe hosts the world’s premiere mobile event, a supersized tech fair that recently brought together over 72,000 participants from more than 220 countries and over 1,700 companies. Held this year in Barcelona, the Mobile World Congress is where the latest innovations in the mobile ecosystem are revealed, with emphasis on the technology behind the scenes such as networks, support systems, connected spaces, and more. This is the ultimate event for any technology fan, featuring exciting phones, tablets, back-end solutions, applications, and accessories. At this year’s event, over 50 percent of the attendees were C-level executives. Keynote speakers included Dr. Paul Jacobs, Chairman & CEO – Qualcomm, Stephen Elop, President & CEO – Nokia, Gary Kovacs, CEO – Mozilla, Mitchell Baker, Chairman – Mozilla, Dennis Crowley, Founder & CEO – Foursquare, Drew Houston, Founder & CEO – Dropbox, René Obermann, CEO – Deutsche Telekom, Axel Dauchez, CEO – Deezer, Randall Stephenson, President & CEO – AT&T, Franco Bernabè, Chairman, GSMA, Chairman & CEO – Telecom Italia Group, and Vittorio Colao, Chief Executive – Vodafone. There were many big announcements and unveilings. Highlights included: Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 600 SoC (system-on-chip) phone lacks a competitive peer. The company makes the world’s most sophisticated 4G modems, advanced radio frequency connectors, and can roll a mind-blowing applications processor to boot. It’s truly impressive how Qualcomm managed to fit 4 “Krait” cores, Adreno 320 graphics, and an on-die LTE modem into a phone; it wouldn’t come as a surprise if they will be taking on more of Samsung’s business. Nvidia and Intel have made good progress on the mobile SoC branch, but not good enough to consider themselves competitors. Neither has the capability to deliver an integrated LTE modem with apps processor sooner than the end of 2013. This year Qualcomm runs unopposed. Nokia announced to everyone’s delight that they’re making a wireless...
