The Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, being the globe’s largest trade show for wireless technologies, gathers numerous manufacturers who display their most recent devices and innovations.
This year’s exhibits aim to impress attendees with an incredibly realistic human-like robot, phones whose colors can change dynamically, intelligent contact lenses, and much more.
'Ambient audio' in phone conversations
Mobile equipment builder Nokia and operator Vodafone say their "3D spatial sound" will offer users "truly immersive audio" on phone calls, with the person on the line sounding as if they are in the same room.
While present calls utilize just one audio channel to convey voices, the advanced system enables sounds to appear as though they are coming from various directions.
Labeled as "Immersive Video and Audio Services" (IVAS), this technology necessitates smartphones equipped with dual microphones.
This, coupled with the requirement for a speedy 5G network, suggests that the technology might take multiple years before it becomes available to the majority of consumers.
High-fidelity robot
Dressed in a black gown, a crimson jacket, with lengthy chestnut hair, the hyper-realistic human-like robot Amira is showcased by the Emirati telecommunications company Etisalat.
Although Amira replicates human characteristics with great precision, her motions still appear noticeably sluggish and disjointed.
Elliott White from Engineered Arts, one of the robot's developers, mentioned that the machine can be linked to various generative AI "large language models," enabling it to engage with humans.
Remote driving
At MWC, numerous connected vehicles could be found throughout the exhibition areas. However, attendees had the unique opportunity to remotely operate a car located 3,000 kilometers away in Finland from the GSMA-organized booth.
The configuration — featuring just a steering wheel and several displays — was developed by Elmo, an Estonian company. They have equipped the vehicles with specialized controllers as well as numerous cameras, working together with Nokia.
Chameleonic smartphone
A Chinese company called Realme has created a smartphone whose color alters based on the external temperature.
The exterior of its 14 Pro series, designed to resemble a seashell, incorporates thermochromic pigments that change to blue at temperatures below 16 degrees Celsius (61°F) and turn white when it heats up.
The company behind the smartphone acknowledges that this merely ornamental feature won't be relevant for long.
"As a result of regular usage, the temperature-responsive color-change feature will eventually diminish over time," according to Realme.
Smart contact lenses
The Dubai-startup Xpanceo plans to integrate advanced capabilities such as an "enhanced reality" screen, health tracking, and wireless charging into a bendable contact lens.
Models stationed at their display showcase demonstrations of concepts for every feature that co-founder Roman Axelrod states they aim to integrate into one single prototype device "by the end of 2026."
For now the devices are relatively clunky, with a large metal coil needed to receive the wireless power to light up a single pixel on one demonstration lens.
Axelrod mentioned that those components could be made smaller with the use of "two-dimensional materials... just one atom thick."
Those are the scientific insights that set us apart.
Solar-powered laptop
Chinese PC builder Lenovo has built solar panels into the lid of its Yoga Solar laptop to extend battery life.
Lenovo claims that its 84 solar cells can supply power to the device even without being directly exposed to sunlight.
The laptops will include a power management system designed to determine when the solar panel should be utilized.
Lenovo stated that this innovation enables the solar panel to capture sufficient direct sunlight within 20 minutes, which can then be used to support up to one hour of video playback on a PC.
"Cat Eye" for detecting cataracts
Spanish telecommunications company Telefonica has teamed up with start-up Edgendria Innovacion to develop their "Cat Eye" tool.
Individuals can perform an eye examination on their own to assess if they have a cataract severe enough to necessitate surgery.
An image of each eye taken with a basic photograph is processed using an AI-driven system for disease detection.
This indicates that physicians can "assign specific duties to their staff so they can step in at appropriate moments, thereby optimizing their own time usage," according to Telefonica.