Robot phones, foldables and ultra cameras: What stole the show at MWC 2026

Just two months ago, the tech world gathered in Las Vegas for Consumer Electronics Show (CES), one of the industry’s biggest trade shows. Now it’s March, and the action has moved to Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain—arguably the most important smartphone showcase of the year.

Where CES is dominated by TVs, computers and the latest developments in AI, MWC has traditionally been the stage for smartphones. That said, the show floor also features tablets, wearables, laptops and a host of devices that don’t always make their way to the US market. With brands such as Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo, Honor and Nothing Technology Limited competing for attention, here are some of the most interesting announcements and concepts from this year’s show.

Honor’s Robot Phone

Honor turned heads with one of the most unusual devices at MWC: a concept smartphone featuring an AI-powered motorised camera. The device had briefly appeared at CES earlier this year, though it wasn’t functional then.

At MWC, however, the company demonstrated the working prototype. A small robotic arm extends from the back of the phone, carrying a 200MP camera module that doubles as a stabilised gimbal once deployed. The camera can track subjects automatically, follow conversations and even “dance” along to music played on the phone. In effect, it combines elements of an action camera with a flagship Android smartphone. While the concept appears closer to reality than before, Honor hasn’t announced a release timeline yet.

‘Ultra’ flagships go global

Both Vivo and Oppo used the MWC stage to confirm that their upcoming “Ultra” flagships will expand beyond China.

The Oppo Find X9 Ultra is being positioned as a camera-centric device developed in collaboration with Hasselblad. Although the phone itself wasn’t demonstrated on stage, Oppo emphasised its imaging ambitions.

Meanwhile, the Vivo X300 Ultra made a surprise appearance, featuring an upgraded telephoto extender kit developed with Zeiss. Vivo has also confirmed that the device will launch in India.

Xiaomi 17 series

Xiaomi introduced its new global flagship lineup—the Xiaomi 17 series—with three models: the Xiaomi 17, Xiaomi 17 Ultra and the photography-focused Xiaomi Leica Leitzphone, developed in collaboration with Leica. An India launch for the series is expected later in March.

The Leitzphone is essentially the international version of the China-exclusive Xiaomi 17 Ultra Leica Edition. It comes with a photography kit, a large 6,000mAh battery, and a single configuration with 16GB RAM and 1TB storage.

Under the hood is Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, paired with Xiaomi’s HyperOS 3. The phone features a 6.9-inch LTPO HyperRGB OLED display with a 1–120Hz adaptive refresh rate. Its triple-camera setup includes a 1-inch 50MP main sensor and a 200MP telephoto lens with variable focal length. A rotating physical Leica camera ring allows manual adjustments for zoom and exposure.

The standard Xiaomi 17 will likely be the most relevant model for India, offering the same Snapdragon chip, a triple-50MP Leica-tuned camera system, a 6,330mAh battery and a 6.3-inch LTPO OLED display.

Nothing 4a

Nothing Technology Limited previewed its upcoming Nothing 4a smartphone on the MWC show floor, displaying it in four colour options: black, white, blue and pink.

The official launch is scheduled for March 5, followed by an exclusive drop at the company’s newly opened Nothing Store in Bengaluru on March 7 at 6pm IST.

The phone introduces a redesigned Glyph Bar and features colour-matched side frames. The Essential Key sits on the left side, while the power and volume buttons remain on the right.

Tecno’s modular phone concept

Tecno showcased one of the more experimental ideas at MWC—a modular smartphone concept reminiscent of Project Ara and Moto Mods from a decade ago. The base device is a remarkably thin 4.9mm smartphone with a display, basic cameras and magnetic pogo-pin connectors. From there, users can attach additional hardware modules depending on their needs.

The system relies on what Tecno calls “Modular Magnetic Interconnection Technology,” allowing accessories such as a power bank, action camera, telephoto lens, grip clips and lanyard connectors to snap onto the phone. Two concept versions were on display—the ATOM edition with a silver aluminium finish and the more playful MODA edition.

Tecno also demonstrated the Pova Neon concept, which features a rear chamber filled with ionised inert gas. When the back panel is touched, the gas produces lightning-like patterns that follow the user’s finger.

Motorola Razr Fold

After teasing the device at CES, Motorola officially unveiled the Moto Razr Fold at MWC. The foldable will be available in Pantone Lily White and Pantone Blackened Blue.

The device enters an increasingly crowded foldable market and will run on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chipset. However, it is expected to be one of the heavier book-style foldables at 243g and carries an IP49 rating. The cover display measures 6.6 inches with a 165Hz refresh rate and a 21:9 aspect ratio, while the internal screen expands to 8.09 inches with a near-square 8:7.2 ratio and a 120Hz refresh rate.

Motorola also announced a partnership with the GrapheneOS Foundation aimed at building smartphones for privacy-focused users. The collaboration will bring compatibility with GrapheneOS—a hardened, security-focused operating system based on the Android Open Source Project—to future Motorola devices. The first phones built around this partnership are expected to arrive around 2027.

Honor Magic V6

While the Robot Phone drew the most attention, Honor also introduced the powerful Honor Magic V6 foldable.

The device runs on the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip and packs a large 6,600mAh battery. It measures just 4mm thick when unfolded and 8.75mm when folded, thanks in part to a redesigned Super Steel Hinge.

The phone features a 7.95-inch AMOLED main display and a 6.5-inch cover screen. Honor says the crease depth has been reduced by 44%, and the external display now includes an anti-reflective coating.

The rear houses a triple-camera system with a 50MP main camera, a 64MP telephoto lens and a 50MP ultrawide sensor, while dual 20MP cameras handle selfies.

6G and Wi-Fi 8

Even though much of the world is still adopting 5G and Wi‑Fi 7, the industry is already looking ahead to the next wave of connectivity.

At MWC, Qualcomm announced a coalition with industry partners to accelerate the development of 6G, with commercial systems targeted around 2029.

The company also introduced the FastConnect 8800 platform, designed to support Wi‑Fi 8 and Bluetooth 7.0 on smartphones, tablets and laptops.

The chip features a 4×4 Wi-Fi radio configuration and could deliver up to twice the performance of the previous FastConnect 7800. In Qualcomm’s internal tests, peak speeds reached 11.6Gbps—nearly double the earlier platform—while also extending wireless range significantly.