MWC 2018 is less than a month away and we have a good idea of what we might see.
Update: We now know more about several of the devices that might land at MWC 2018, including the Samsung Galaxy S9, Sony Xperia XZ Premium 2 and Samsung Galaxy Tab S4.
MWC (or Mobile World Congress to give it its full name) is one of the biggest events on the mobile calendar, with 2017’s Barcelona show bringing us the LG G6, Sony Xperia XZ Premium and Huawei P10 among dozens of other devices.
With the next show running from February 26 to March 1 we’re only weeks away, and rumors about the phones we’ll likely see are pouring in. You’ll find all the latest news below, along with a wish list of what we want to see.
So have a read, see if you agree, and let us know in the comments if there’s anything else you’re really hoping for at MWC 2018. Cut to the chase What is it? The biggest phone show of 2018 When is it? It all kicks off on February 26,2018 Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus
The Samsung Galaxy S9 is likely to be one of the highlights of MWC 2018. This upcoming flagship has been confirmed for the show, or rather for February 25, one day before MWC officially starts, and it’s sure to land alongside the Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus.
The Galaxy S9 and its larger sibling are rumored to have a similar design and screen to the Galaxy S8 range, meaning a metal frame, a glass back and an almost bezel-free curved display, but with the fingerprint scanner likely moved from beside the camera to below it.
Speaking of the camera, that’s rumored to be heavily upgraded, with two lenses in the case of the S9 Plus and a variable aperture in the case of the S9.
This could be the Samsung Galaxy S9. Credit: dbrand
The camera, whatever form it takes, is likely to be one of the highlights of the pair, as upgrades to it have been teased by Samsung.
The S9 and S9 Plus are also rumored to have new chipsets and an improved iris scanner, which might be better able to recognize your eyes and may scan your face at the same time.
Other aspects of the pair may not be so upgraded though – their batteries are rumored to be the same size as that of their predecessors (3,000mAh and 3,500mAh for the S9 and S9 Plus respectively), and the standard S9 may have just 4GB of RAM – though there are rumors of 6GB in the S9 Plus. Sony Xperia XZ Premium 2
With the Sony Xperia XZ Premium announced at MWC 2017 there’s a good chance we’ll see the Sony Xperia XZ Premium 2 at MWC 2018.
This could be a real powerhouse, with rumors of a flagship Snapdragon 845 chipset, 6GB of RAM, a dual-lens rear camera and front-facing stereo speakers.
We’ve also heard that the Xperia XZ Premium 2 might have a 5.7-inch 4K display, a 3,420mAh battery and – perhaps most excitingly of all – a whole new design, with smaller bezels and there’s some talk that the fingerprint scanner might even be built into the screen.
It might also have a new name, with some rumors pointing to the Xperia XZ2 Pro .
This might be an early look at the Sony Xperia XZ Premium 2 and XZ2. Credit: Vortex.ge Sony Xperia XZ2
As the Sony Xperia XZ1 only arrived in September you might not be expecting the Sony Xperia XZ2 for a while, but a recent rumor suggests it’s actually coming soon, so an MWC launch is possible.
As with the Sony Xperia XZ Premium 2 we’re expecting a whole new design from the Xperia XZ2, which likely means less bezel than past Xperia handsets.
The specs will probably be slightly lower end than on the Premium 2 though, with current rumors pointing to a Snapdragon 845 chipset, 4GB of RAM, dual 12MP rear cameras, a 3,130mAh battery and a 5.5-inch 4K screen – though we’d think 1080p or QHD is more likely given that Sony has so far reserved 4K resolutions for its Premium range. Nokia 9
MWC 2018 might be where we see the first real Nokia flagship since HMD Global took over the brand. Because as good as the Nokia 8 was, it struggled to stand out from the competition.
For the Nokia 9 there are rumors of a 5.5-inch QHD OLED screen, a water-resistant metal body, tiny bezels and dual-lens cameras on both the front and back of the phone.
The Nokia 9 could be light on bezel. Credit: 91mobiles/Weibo
Of course, it will be powerful too, with a Snapdragon 845 chipset and anywhere from 4GB to 8GB of RAM rumored, and it could have a big 3,800mAh battery and an iris scanner.
We don’t know for sure that the Nokia 9 is headed to MWC 2018, but HMD Global has claimed to be “super busy” planning for the event, so something’s sure to be announced. Huawei Watch 3
This is a long shot, as we haven’t heard much about it yet, but as the Huawei Watch 2 was announced at MWC 2017 there’s a chance we’ll see the Huawei Watch 3 at MWC 2018.
So far there’s not much to go on other than a couple of patents, but the features they point to are definitely exciting.
One details a system whereby sensors would detect gestures you make on the back of your hand, so you could for example sketch a letter with your finger and have it appear on the watch screen, or make double tap and long press gestures, allowing you to interact with the watch without touching it.
You might not have to touch the Huawei Watch 3. Credit: WIPO/LetsGoDigital
Another patent talks about a watch with touch-sensitive bezels divided into eight sections.
So you could tap any one of them to perform an action, but you could also touch multiple sections at once to do something different, and these interactions could extend beyond app shortcuts to things like scrolling through menus or zooming in and out. Other possible announcements
We’ve covered the major likely announcements above, but there are sure to be loads of other phones unveiled at MWC 2018, as well probably as wearables and tablets.
Many may be a complete surprise, but some likely announcements include the Nokia 7 Plus, which we’ve recently started hearing rumblings about.
Rumored specs include a 6.0-inch 18:9 screen, a mid-range Snapdragon 660 chipset, 4GB of RAM, a dual-lens 12MP and 13MP rear camera, a 16MP front-facing camera and an aluminum build.
Could we also see the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4? A slate believed to be the Tab S4 has recently been benchmarked with a 10.5-inch 1600 x 2560 screen, a 2.3GHz octa-core chipset and 4GB of RAM, which would make it a high but not quite top-end slate.
We haven’t heard that it’s landing at MWC, but the Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 landed around a year ago, so it’s possible that another flagship slate is on the way soon. What we probably won’t see
There are a number of flagships approaching a year old that probably won’t get refreshed at MWC 2018.
For example there’s the LG G7, which probably won’t show as the company has confirmed to Tech Advisor that it’s not holding a press conference at MWC this year.
Separately we’ve heard that the company might have recently ditched its work on the LG G7 and started from scratch, which could be the reason for its likely absence at MWC, and means we probably won’t see it for another couple of months at least.
There’s also the HTC U12, as an ” inside source ” has apparently said to expect the phone at a separate event in March or April. This wouldn’t be a surprise, since HTC didn’t unveil a flagship at MWC 2017 and since the HTC U11 Plus only landed fairly recently.
And we probably won’t see the Huawei P20 at MWC 2018 either, as we’ve received an invitation from Huawei for an event on March 27, and we’ve also heard a rumor that the P20 won’t land until after the show.
Though with Huawei’s VP of Handsets Product Line, Bruce Lee, previously telling Android Central that the company will “probably launch devices at Mobile World Congress” in future we can’t completely rule out an MWC launch. What we want to see
With little yet confirmed for MWC 2018 we’re free to dream of all the things we might see, or at least hope to see. The following are among our most wanted.
