mwc2018
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Jolla's alternative Sailfish OS is coming to more phones
It's been a long time since we've covered Jolla on Engadget, and with good reason — the company has had a tumultuous time of late. The Jolla Phone — the first hardware running its alternative Sailfish OS platform — failed to take off and its tablet was cancelled after heavy layoffs in 2015. Somehow, though, the company survived. And today at MWC, it's announcing that Sailfish OS will soon be compatible with a bunch of new devices including the Sony Xperia XA2, the upcoming Gemini PDA, and a tablet by Russian brand Inoi. In addition, it will support feature phones later this year.
The Morning After: This is the Samsung Galaxy S9
Welcome back! We kicked off MWC 2018 in Barcelona, in style, with the launch of Samsung's Galaxy S9 -- and the S9 Plus. That's not all: There's a ridiculous Huawei laptop with a hidden webcam and Nokia's latest smartphone range as it continues to reinvent itself. You'll be able to find all things MWC right here.
Lenovo's Yoga 730 is a cheaper 2-in-1 with Alexa support
Mobile World Congress, for obvious reasons, isn't really known for its laptop announcements. Lenovo is bucking that trend today, however, with three mid-range convertibles sporting the Yoga name. The most exciting is the Yoga 730, a sleek 2-in-1 that sits below the company's flagship Thinkpad X1 line and the popular Yoga 920. It will be available in 13- and 15-inch variations, sporting similar designs but slightly different upgrade options. They'll be joined by the Flex 14 (which will be marketed as the Yoga 530 outside of North America) a cheaper alternative with a near-identical form factor.
Sony will sell its wireless 'open-ear' buds in the US
There was a time when it wasn't clear if Sony's Xperia Ear Open Style Concept buds would even become a real product, let alone reach the US, but they're most definitely real -- and a US launch is relatively close. Sony has announced that the finished product, the Xperia Ear Duo, will go on sale in the US this May for $280 with both black and gold designs. That's a while to wait, but Sony is betting that the unique 'open-ear' listening experience will reel you in.
The Xperia XZ2 is Sony's fastest, strangest flagship phone yet
Sony has longed to find lasting success in the smartphone market, but none of the devices it released in the past few years have done the job. It's clearly time for a change, and Sony knows that — that's why the new Xperia XZ2 and XZ2 Compact are notable steps away from the company's smartphone norm. They're fast, fascinating and pretty (to me, anyway), and it seems obvious that Sony wanted to strike a balance in these devices between immersive media consumption and powerful content creation. After a little bit of hands-on time with the XZ2 and its little sibling, I don't think Sony hasn't gotten everything right, but at least these things are pleasantly strange.
Watch Nokia's MWC 2018 event in under 10 minutes
It's good times for Nokia. Or rather HMD Global, the Finnish company that now owns the beloved Nokia brand. After a successful holiday season the phone maker has marched into Mobile World Congress with a bevy of new devices in tow. The Nokia 8 Sirocco is a stylish-looking Android flagship, while the Nokia 8110 Reloaded is a throwback to the classic 90s slider. For the average consumer there's also the entry-level Nokia 1, mid-range Nokia 6 and 6-inch Nokia 7 Plus. For a full rundown of the company's announcements, check out our 10-minute press conference supercut.
After Math: Calls for alarm
While the survivors of the Stoneman Douglas shooting provided the nation with a master class in how to effectively articulate policy reform demands and ruthlessly drag talking heads of the political class, the tech industry had some communication issues of its own. Like the 1,600 911 calls a set of iPhones at a California repair center made, or the Tinder security flaw that enabled account access with only a phone number, or how the FCC is getting sued (again) for trying to roll back Net Neutrality rules. Numbers, because how else are you going to see how savagely the NRA is getting ratioed?
Samsung's updated DeX desktop experience uses the S9 as a trackpad
When it launched last year, Samsung's first DeX dock was the latest in a long line of attempts to blur the line between phones and traditional PCs. And you know what? It worked surprisingly well, even though the value for most people wasn't particularly clear. That didn't stop Samsung from trying again, though: the company unveiled a new version of its DeX hardware alongside the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus, and it's much different from the dock we got last year.
Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ hands-on: The devil is in the details
Getting to know the Galaxy S9 is like unwrapping a present you think you've already opened. On the surface, it looks familiar, but once you peel back the layers, you'll notice the contents are new. That's not to say that the changes between the Galaxy S9 and the Galaxy S8 are insignificant. There's a ton of them, and you'll have to look carefully to spot them all, but when considered as a package, this update feels more incremental than monumental. At least, based on our brief time with it.
Watch Samsung's Galaxy Unpacked 2018 event right here!
Samsung's getting ready to unveil its next flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S9, at MWC 2018 in Barcelona. You can watch a livestream of the Unpacked 2018 event in the video below, and don't forget to follow the action on our liveblog, as well -- where we'll have colorful commentary from our senior editors Cherlynn Low and Chris Velazco. It all starts at 9AM PT/12PM ET, so you have a few minutes to grab a drink and a snack before finding out what the Galaxy S9 looks like.
Nokia's new affordable smartphones prioritize design
Generating hype around the Nokia brand with retro-inspired feature phones is all well and good, but that doesn't necessarily result in people opening their wallets. And to best cash in on any interest, you need a little something for everyone. To that end, HMD Global has announced a number of new Android smartphones at MWC beyond its pricey flagship. There's the Nokia 1, the company's cheapest entry-level device to date; the second-gen Nokia 6, which is going global after debuting in China last month and the Nokia 7 Plus, a bigger version of the China-exclusive 7, which was released last fall.
The Nokia 8 Sirocco edition is 95-percent glass
HMD brought a Nokia phone for all tastes to this year's MWC. Just as some people might want a retro feature phone or an entry-level smartphone, others want the best that money can buy. HMD's latest offering to these flagship fiends is the Nokia 8 Sirocco, which is pitched as a special edition of the Nokia 8 that launched last summer. Make no mistake, this isn't merely the same phone in a new funky color. It sports a completely overhauled design consisting almost entirely of glass.
The Nokia 8110 Reloaded is HMD's latest retro feature phone
Many companies descend on the annual Mobile World Congress event to plug their first smartphone launches of the year. It's an established routine, but HMD Global undeniably stole the show in 2017 with, of all things, a new feature phone. Flexing its newly-acquired license to the Nokia brand, HMD put on a marketing masterclass by announcing a re-release of the iconic Nokia 3310. This year, it's attempting a similar trick, preying on '90s nostalgia with the new Nokia 8110 Reloaded.
Live from Samsung's Galaxy S9 event at MWC 2018!
Today is the day Samsung will be unveiling its highly anticipated Galaxy S9, the company's latest flagship smartphone. As we discussed earlier this week, you can expect an improved, smarter camera on the handset, as well as an answer to Apple's Animojis, animated emojis that will use face recognition technology to make your phone more interactive when you message friends or family. We'll learn all about the Galaxy S9 in the next few hours, so stay tuned to this post to keep up with the action as it happens. The event kicks off at 12PM ET/6PM Barcelona time. Enjoy!
Huawei's MateBook X Pro crams a pop-up webcam into the keyboard
When Huawei unveiled its first true laptop barely a year ago, it was a slightly more useful MacBook lookalike. While the MateBook X looked a lot like Apple's device, it offered some minor changes that alleviated common grievances, including the MacBook's solo USB-C port and its barely-there key travel. At MWC this year, Huawei is unveiling the next generation of the series, called the MateBook X Pro. It's a larger, more powerful notebook with a better display and impressive audio tech, but one quirky new feature could prevent it from being a good option for professionals.
Huawei's MediaPad M5 is the first tablet with a curved glass screen
You'd be forgiven for thinking that premium Android tablets were on the way out. While you'll see occasional high-end entries like the Galaxy Tab S3, many are low-cost slates that don't exactly push the boundaries of design. Huawei, however, wants to keep that torch alive -- it's unveiling the MediaPad M5, which promises a few flourishes you don't usually see in tablets. Its 8.4- and 10.8-inch variants are reportedly the first tablets to tout "2.5D" curved glass screens. That promises both improved viewing and a "great hand-feel," according to Huawei, although it certainly doesn't hurt that they're posh-looking at the same time.
LG’s V30S ThinQ is the AI-fueled phone the V30 should’ve been
In the midst of a tricky fiscal year, LG decided to run with a new strategy: cook up interim smartphones to sell between its major flagship releases. The plan was based in part on the surprising success of phones like the X cam, and since the company needed to try something different, it pressed on with its experiment. And lo, the LG V30S ThinQ was born.
Alcatel crams flagship features into its affordable smartphones
When I first saw its 2018 phone lineup, Alcatel was clear: Its plan for this year was to make premium smartphone features available for much less than typical flagship prices. In this case, Alcatel means giving 18:9 screens, fingerprint sensors, and elaborate camera setups to as many people as possible. Based on some hands-on time here in Barcelona, Alcatel seems to have done a fine job democratizing these features; the real question is how the phones will stand up to the rest of the impressive low-cost devices we expect to see as the show goes on.
We're live from MWC 2018 in Barcelona!
Spring season is right around the corner, and that means it's time for Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the world's biggest phone show. This year, you can expect to be introduced to Samsung's next flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S9, as well as a slew of other handsets from big-name companies like BlackBerry and Nokia. Yes, you know you love BlackBerry and Nokia. Of course, we'll likely also come across a bunch of other tech products, such as wearables and others things that could be revealed at the show -- Facebook has a press conference, for instance. We're on the ground for the next week, which means you need to keep your eyes peeled to the site so you won't miss a thing from MWC 2018.
Android Go phones will be available soon
Android Oreo had quite the interesting feature lurking in its software: Go Edition, which was designed for smartphones with 1 GB of RAM or less. Today, the company announced that the first set of Android Oreo (Go Edition) phones will be unveiled next week and be available for purchase soon after that.
