MWC 2023: screens, satellites, the moon and everything we saw in Barcelona

Each year, Mobile World Congress (MWC) opens its doors to companies in the growing field of telecommunications technology to showcase innovations that aim to become trends. NIUSGEEK RPP was in the corridors Gran Via Fair in Barcelona to find what innovations could be the “next big thing” in the tech sector.

MWC 2023 numbers

The GSMA, the organizer of the event, announced that the 2023 Mobile World Congress registered over 88,500 participants from February 27 to March 2, days when the fair was held in person. More than 200 countries were represented at this forum.

In total, over 2,400 participating brands participated in the event, creating 7,400 part-time jobs in the city of Barcelona and generating €350 million in revenue in industries related to the event, such as tourism, accommodation, transport and food, among others.

NIUSGEEK was one of over 2,400 journalists who attended MWC 2023 to cover the event. In addition, the GSMA ministerial program allowed 196 country representatives to attend the event, including 70 state ministers and over 100 regulators.

The GSMA highlights the presence of over a thousand speakers at the events, over 10,000 meetings held each day at the show, over a million viewers in various scheduled sessions, and over 800 brands participating in the 4YFN or “For Four Years” event. ”, a meeting place for startups and which is the “little sister” of MWC.

Communication on the Moon

Nokia Bell Labs has unveiled achievements for the IM-2 mission in collaboration with Intuitive Machines and Lunar Outpost, which will officially launch later this year to bring 4G/LTE technology to space. As part of a NASA initiative, Nokia aims to demonstrate that the same cellular technology that is used to connect our 4G smartphones on Earth can be used to provide mission-critical communication and connectivity for future lunar missions.

Satellite communication outside the coverage area

In collaboration with satellite company Iridium, Qualcomm announced in January the first satellite communications system that enables two-way emergency communications in uncovered areas and that will enable the use of 5G smartphones from the 8 series to the 4 series Snapdragon. built in 2023 – take advantage of this advantage. Now, at this MWC 2023, the agreement includes the first construction brands: Honor, Motorola, Vivo, Nothing, Oppo and Xiaomi.

WiFi 7 as the new standard

MediaTech and Qualcomm showcased commercial equipment under the new WiFi 7 connectivity standard, a wireless network that uses the 6GHz spectrum to improve stability and increase data transfer speeds over current WiFi 5 and 6. In our tests, we were able to get up to 13400 Mbps on equipment that MediaTek demonstrated at the MWC booth.

Screens of any shape

We had the opportunity to play with the Moto Rizr, a flexible panel concept that Motorola presented at this MWC and it certainly caught our attention. We’re talking about a panel that can range from 5″ to 6.5″ with a little system that “unfolds” the panel from the base when we’re using an application that deserves it. For example, when switching from portrait to landscape mode on YouTube, the panel expands itself. This allows you to use the screen on the back cover for other purposes. For now, Motorola has allowed the trade press feedback to improve the capabilities of this new device.

More folding world

Following the market consolidation led by the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4, other brands have decided to join the trend. After the appearance of Honor Magic Vs internationally, xiaomi showcased his recent Mi Fold 2, which was partnered with Leica and Tecno Mobile introduced Phantom V less than $1,000 and Processor MediaTek 5G. Together with the Oppo Find N2, the offer of flexible panel hardware is increasing.

space for concepts

In addition to Rizr, One Plus demonstrated an under-case cooling system that mimics the behavior of PC systems. clean introduced its conversion chip for wireless networks, which will allow devices that integrate it to receive data through light in the environment. Lighting company Bioo showed us a power system that extracts electrons from microorganisms to generate enough electricity to power light bulbs in small gardens.