MWC 2016

Mobile World Congress 2016 is coming to a close, and this year it's been more than just smartphones making their pitch as virtual reality in all shapes and sizes carve out a chunk of the mobile space. Devices and platforms that blur the distinction between what's real and what's digital are finally - with the help of potent processors and innovative hardware - reaching the point where they're convincing enough, not to mention affordable enough, to make a splash in the mass market. Read on for SlashGear's Best of MWC 2016 award winners.

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Today we have a look at the Sony Xperia X, a replacement for the company's Xperia Z hero phone lineup. These Sony Xperia X and Sony Xperia X Performance smartphones take a unique approach - and one that makes a whole lot of sense. While companies more invested in the smartphone game need to reveal devices that are distinctly different from their predecessors, Sony is still small enough (in smartphones, anyway) to release a device that's just ever-so-slightly different from the one that came before it.

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For a company which doesn't officially sell its Android smartphones in the US or Europe, there's an astonishing amount of buzz around Xiaomi here at Mobile World Congress. The Chinese firm has made a name for itself with surprisingly well-specified phones at impressively competitive prices, and the Xiaomi Mi 5 is shaping up to be no different.

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Jolla's hardware plans may have crashed and burned, but the company's strategy of licensing its Sailfish OS has borne fruit here at Mobile World Congress. The first smartphone to run Sailfish 2.0 has been revealed, the handiwork of Indian phone maker Intex Technologies, dubbed the Aqua Fish.

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At MWC 2016 earlier today, popular Chinese manufacturer Xiaomi officially unveiled the Mi 5, its newest high-end flagship smartphone. Following the announcement of the new Mi 4S, the Mi 5 features an impressive list of specs, including everything from the processor to the cameras, as well as a new body design with curved edges on the backside reminiscent of Xiaomi's own Mi Note. Make no mistake, this is a phone that will make other Android heavyweights take notice, from a manufacturer known for its bargain pricing.

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Released in 2014, Xiaomi's Mi 4 was an incredibly popular phone for the Chinese OEM, selling well over 15 million units. Just like any manufacturer would do, now that enough time has passed, Xiaomi has an updated, improved model. The Mi 4S may seem like a small upgrade over its predecessor, but that fact that it keeps all the good aspects and bumps up the specs, including the processor, means that it still has something to show.

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Chinese OEM OPPO might not have a new smartphone to show off at MWC 2016 but it is definitely not lacking in things to boast about. For one, it just revealed its Super VOOC fast charging technology that, OPPO claims, can charge a smartphone in just 15 minutes. Now it is making a similarly huge claim but this time in the area of photography. Calling it the SmartSensor, it is claimed to be the world's first sensor-based stabilization technology for smartphones and also the smallest OIS for any device, smartphone or not.

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It seems that smartphones and especially tablets are no longer the darlings of the silicon industry. Chip makers, like Intel, Qualcomm, and even MediaTek are now vying for more embedded products, particularly wearables and the so-called Internet of Things. To sweeten the pot even more, at least on the ARM side of things, ARM Holdings has released the design for a new Cortex-A32. Like the Cortex-A35 it announced last November, this "ultra-efficient" chip is designed for embedded and Iot devices. The difference? It's even more efficient than that and is only 32-bit.

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This week we're taking a look at the successor to one of the finest (and most surprisingly fine) budget smartphones of last year. This is the Alcatel Idol 4S. This device keeps its 5.5-inches screen from last year with the Idol 3, but this time (with the 4S) we're working with a full 2K resolution instead of just 1080p. This device employs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 and 3GB of RAM as well as 32GB of internal storage - there's a microSD card slot here as well, of course.

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Gear VR is everywhere at Mobile World Congress, but the picture you've probably seen - and maybe laughed at - is the sea of Samsung-visor'd journalists blissfully unaware Mark Zuckerberg is strolling past. After all, it's easy to scorn those deep in the virtual reality experience, or point out that wearing a head-mounted display can leave you looking silly.

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LG Rolling Bot provides what may be the most enticing cat-person device yet made. We've had the opportunity to go hands-on with the LG Rolling Bot this week at MWC 2016 using the new LG G5 smartphone as a remote, and let me tell you: it's not just strange. It's inspirational. This isn't just what the BB-8 by Sphero could have been in a different dimension, it's what you, cat person, can experience here in this dimension. Soonish!

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Today we've had our first look - up close, that is - at the HTC Vive consumer edition. It's not all that different from the headset that's already been out and visible before now, that being the developer version, but it does have its tiny tweaks. The developer version also went by the name "VIVE PRE" - now we're seeing the version consumers like yourself will be purchasing not too long from now for a cool $800 USD.

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