4 Exciting Smartphones We Can't Wait To See At MWC 2024
This year's MWC Barcelona — Mobile World Congress — is almost upon us, running from February 26 through February 29 at Fira Gran Via in Barcelona, Spain. Organized by the GSM Association, it's an annual trade show in the mobile phone space that's supplemented by additional annual events in Las Vegas, Shanghai, and Kigali, Rwanda.
Besides the many keynote speeches and panels, one of the main attractions of MWC is the array of Android phones that get announced and otherwise featured at the conference. Though the big manufacturers have been relatively tight-lipped about what each is showcasing in Barcelona, there are various handsets that are known to be in the pipeline that seem likely to be featured at the trade show.
Let's take a look at which phones we're hoping to get a look at in Spain, some of which have been officially announced, and some of which are just rumored at this time.
Motorola Glory
If you're a Verizon Wireless customer, then there's a carrier-exclusive phone expected to be showcased at MWC 2024 in the form of what's codenamed the Motorola "Glory," a foldable follow-up to the Razr 40 Plus/40 Ultra. MSPowerUser broke the news of the upcoming handset in January, complete with an exclusive render of what it will look like.
This is a continuation of the renewal of the Razr line with foldable phones, as it had previously been the name of Motorola's flagship flip phones before the smartphone boom and Lenovo's acquisition of the Motorola Mobility smartphone brand. The MSPowerUser report also added that improved performance and battery life should be expected from the Glory thanks to Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon SoC processor.
In its current incarnation under Lenovo, Motorola Mobility is probably best known for its budget and mid-priced phones — like the Moto E and Moto G lines — more so than its flagships. Despite the phones generally being strong performers for their price categories, particularly when it comes to battery life, they don't always come recommended due to Motorola's poor history of keeping its devices updated.
At least for Motorola's flagships, that's improved as of 2023, with three years of major Android version updates and four years of security patches released every other month.
OnePlus 12 and 12R
Also expected to be showcased at MWC 2024 are a pair of phones dropping around the time you're reading this: The flagship OnePlus 12 ($799.99, which came out on February 6) and the mid-priced OnePlus 12R (dropping on February 13 for $499.99). Reviews for both have been incredibly positive so far, with our own review naming it a SlashGear Select 2024 pick.
Engadget was also impressed by the OnePlus 12, noting that it's comparably spec'd to the Samsung Galaxy S24+, while retailing for $200.00 less. Though it praised the overall performance and battery life, as well as the inclusion of an IR blaster so you can use the phone as a universal remote, Engadget did cite some clear negatives. Specifically, the OnePlus 12 has suboptimal water resistance — IP65 as opposed to the temporarily submersible IP68, something that multiple professional reviews took issue with. OnePlus's continued insistence on using its own proprietary quick charging technology was also a pain point.
Both our own SlashGear review of the OnePlus 12R and HowToGeek, meanwhile, raved about the mid-priced model; dubbing it a return to OnePlus's roots marketing its phones as affordable "flagship killers." Offering top-notch tech at an affordable price, this was a category that OnePlus had largely abandoned in favor of full-scale flagships, but there's an argument to be made that they should bring the branding back for the 12R.
Huawei Pocket S2
Chinese mobile phone giant Huawei is expected to unveil its latest foldable "flip" style phone — the Pocket S2 — very soon, with hopes that it may be showcased at MWC 2024. Per GizmoChina, the phone is likely to feature a Kirin 9000S chipset and a 4,520mAh battery supporting 66W fast charging, in addition to carrying over the design elements from the initial Pocket S, like the secondary screens on the back/folding shell of the device.
English language reviews of the original Pocket S appear to be difficult to come by, but the same cannot be said for its more powerful cousin, the P50 Pocket. Reviews were fairly positive, with the likes of Tech Advisor, GSM Arena, Trusted Reviews, and Android Central praising the design and cameras, while bemoaning the lack of 5G support and Google services.
5G compatibility would likely make the newest version a lot more palatable, but it's entirely possible that Google services would still be left out of the package.
Nothing Phone 2a
Another phone that's expected to be shown off at MWC 2024 is the Nothing Phone 2a, which Nothing officially announced as "coming soon" in a YouTube video released on February 1.
"With Phone 2a, we've really doubled down on the core user needs — performance, camera, you name it — some of the most loved features of Phone 2 while ensuring it delivers on a clear upgrade compared to Phone 1 on every single front," explained Nothing co-founder and marketing chief Akis Evangelidis in the video. However, for now, that's the extent of what we know about the 2a.
Evangelidis and Nothing CEO Carl Pei had previously been at OnePlus before launching their current company in October 2020. In our SlashGear review of the Nothing Phone 1, two years later, we praised the 120Hz screen, the customized software, fast hardware, and attractive industrial design, while panning the camera and the limited size/scope of the phone's release.
Later, in our review of the Nothing Phone 2 last July, we liked the commitment to improving the product line, the cameras, the software, and, once again, the design, while expressing frustration at the price being double that of its predecessor.