Earlier this week, I spent a few days walking about Barcelona and Mobile World Congress‘ venue, the Fira Gran Via. I headed back to the hotel after the first day of the actual show with strongly mixed feelings. For one, this being my first international fair meant that I could just not let go of the excitement, and the energy and passion so many people bring among those booths is tangible.

On the other, I had to do my job and check out all the new smartphones announced in these past few days, and this is where things got a little uglier. The P10 I first previewed proved to be a big red warning sign of things to come, and although I am not entirely dissatisfied, I definitely can’t say that the products matched the enthusiasm and vibe of the place itself…

Expand
Expanding
Close

I want to put a disclaimer at the very top of this post: I have used the Xperia XZ Premium for about twenty minutes in one of Sony‘s booths at Mobile World Congress, and everything that follows is just a brief recap of my experience combined with my quick chat with the company’s reps. It therefore isn’t meant to give a final judgement by any means — but we know that the product may be of interest for more than a few, so I’m here to tell you what my very first impressions were…

The thing that immediately struck me about the Xperia XZ Premium is… Sony’s philosophy behind it. There were other OEMs are trying to push design boundaries (like LG and most likely Samsung) or deliver overall compelling packages with a few standout features (like Huawei‘s P10 or even BlackBerry‘s KeyOne). Sony, reluctantly, is simply keeping its own path, seemingly looking at the competition uninterested, from afar.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain has been in full gear all week, and that means almost all of the biggest Android OEMs are getting together to show off their latest phones, tablets, and other gadgets. Now that things are winding down here in the last couple days of the show floor being open, let’s take a look at all the devices that were announced by Samsung, LG, Sony, Huawei and others…

Expand
Expanding
Close

We know that Android, as it is right now, is a formidable smartphone OS. However, when stretched up to tablet sizes that go beyond 7 inches, things don’t really scale up gracefully. With its just-announced Tab S3, Samsung is trying to break that infamous spell, but I am honestly not sure whether it’ll be able to succeed… 
Expand
Expanding
Close

Although today marks the first official day of Mobile World Congress, we saw most of the noteworthy announcements take place over the weekend. So while there are a bunch of different options to choose from, what was your favorite announcement from MWC?

Expand
Expanding
Close

While Lenovo’s strategy for high-end devices hasn’t convinced me, their idea of what a midrange or budget phone should do and be (and, most importantly, cost) is still more than valid. After all, it’s not too distant from the original Moto G’s philosophy, which was good and hasn’t changed much since.

So here’s what I learned by playing a little bit with the just-announced Moto G5 and G5 Plus in Barcelona…

Expand
Expanding
Close

Today at MWC 2017, ZTE has unveiled two new mid-range smartphones from its Blade series ─ the Blade V8 Lite and the Blade V8 Mini. Both offer similar designs to the Blade V8 Pro which was unveiled at CES, but with lesser specifications and price points.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Between all the “X” and “Z” phones released in the past year or so, we all got a little confused. Sony‘s strategy, in particular, seemed everything but clear in regards to its devices’ hierarchy. However, using Barcelona’s MWC as a platform, the Japanese firm announced what it explicitly labels as its “flagship”: the Xperia XZ Premium.

More info after the jump…

Expand
Expanding
Close

One of the few solid Android tablets we saw in 2016 was the Yoga Book from Lenovo and as we enter 2017, the company isn’t holding back. We already saw the debut of the Yoga A12 earlier this month, and now at MWC, the company is debuting four new tablets that are actually pretty compelling…

Expand
Expanding
Close

The Android world has been in a bit of a drought over the past year or two in regards to tablets. While we still get a handful of mid-range tablets from time to time, we rarely get any high-powered flagships. Today, though, Samsung is changing that — for now — with the debut of the Galaxy Tab S3.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Late last year, Finnish brand HMD Global signed a licensing deal to release Android devices that carry the Nokia brand. At MWC today, the devices were launched to a global audience along with a throwback of the Nokia 3310 from the early 2000s.

Expand
Expanding
Close

Following a number of leaks, including specs, hardware, and even the retail packaging, Lenovo finally announced the Moto G5 and G5 Plus today at MWC 2017. The Moto G5 continues the company’s successful G series of affordable smartphones, now bringing even more premium features like a metal design and a fingerprint sensor previously found only on the G Plus and Z series.

Expand
Expanding
Close

It’s official; LG has announced its latest flagship smartphone, the LG G6. The new device supersedes the LG G5 in a number of ways, and we got take an early look. Let’s dive in and check out LG’s newest device, with its almost-bezel-less 18:9 display, Google Assistant, and more…

Expand
Expanding
Close

Huawei has today announced the Huawei Watch 2, its followup to the largely-successful Huawei Watch which originally launched in 2015. But the Chinese company is actually launching two successors to the Huatch today: a sportier model with silicone straps and LTE, and a “Classic” model that will serve the crowd looking for something more like its predecessor…

Expand
Expanding
Close

At MWC 2017, Huawei has just announced the P10 and P10 Plus. A particular big focus of the two devices are design and the camera, with Huawei partnering with numerous companies in both areas.

Expand
Expanding
Close

After a plethora of leaks, LG has today made its 2017 flagship smartphone official. As the Korean company’s long-awaited followup to the LG G5 (which, as we all know, didn’t do so well), the LG G6 has a lot to make up for. Based on what we’re seeing so far, though, it might just accomplish that…

Expand
Expanding
Close