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MWC 2026 Updates: All the News, Reveals and Concepts Debuting in Barcelona

The world's most important mobile show kicks off on Monday and will show off wild phone concepts along with new devices launching later this year.

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MWC 2026 Updates: All the News, Reveals and Concepts Debuting in Barcelona

The world's most important mobile show kicks off on Monday and will show off wild phone concepts along with new devices launching later this year.

[Headshot of Mike Sorrentino]

Mike Sorrentino

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[Headshot of Abrar Al-Heeti]

Abrar Al-Heeti

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[Headshot of Andrew Lanxon]

Andrew Lanxon

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[Headshot of Patrick Holland]

Patrick Holland

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[Headshot of Katie Collins]

Katie Collins

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[Headshot of Jeff Carlson]

Jeff Carlson

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[Headshot of Vanessa Hand Orellana]

Vanessa Hand Orellana

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Mike Sorrentino

Abrar Al-Heeti

Andrew Lanxon

Patrick Holland

Katie Collins

Jeff Carlson

Vanessa Hand Orellana

March 1, 2026 11:11 a.m. PT

[The letters MWC stand in front the entrance to the building.]

The entrance to Mobile World Congress in 2025.

Tara Brown/CNET*

Mobile World Congress 2026 starts on Monday, teeing up a week filled with product announcements, robots and futuristic phone concepts. But there has already been news ahead of the official opening. The Leica Leitzphone by Xiaomi and the global version of the Xiaomi 17 Ultra made their debut. The keyboard case company Clicks shared that its BlackBerry-like Communicator phone will have different keyboard layouts for Arabic, English, French, German and Korean.

Our expectations for this year's MWC include upcoming phones we already know about -- such as the Nothing Phone 4A, which is set to launch March 5 -- along with launch events from companies like Xiaomi and Honor. Motorola's also attending, and given that the company revealed its upcoming Razr Fold at CES 2026, we'd expect it to provide more details about the book-style folding phone.

We've also historically seen concepts at MWC that have never made it beyond the development stage but are still so cool to see. That includes Motorola debuting a flexible phone concept you can wear on your wrist and Lenovo showing a solar-charging laptop.

And even though Apple isn't expected to attend MWC, it's quite possible the company will debut the rumored iPhone 17E over the course of the week. Apple has announced it will make new product announcements starting Monday in the lead-up to a March 4 event in New York, London, and Shanghai. We'll certainly be keeping an eye out in case a new iPhone is one of them.

We'll be covering all the reveals, concepts and fun highlights we find in Barcelona in this live blog. Keep checking back for more updates.

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54 minutes ago

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My Favorite Galaxy S26 Ultra Feature Keeps the Creepers Away

Abrar Al-Heeti

[image of a creepy man looking at a phone at MWC 2026]

I've only had the Galaxy S26 Ultra for a couple of days and have already found its Privacy Display quite helpful.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET*

Having a privacy screen protector always struck me as a paranoid measure, but the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra has changed me. Over the last couple of days, the S26 Ultra's new Privacy Display setting has quickly become one of my favorite features, thanks to its practicality and ingenuity. With the setting enabled, anyone looking over your shoulder won't be able to see what's on your screen. Crucially, unlike a $10 screen protector you can buy online, this built-in hardware feature is customizable, so you can turn it on for certain apps, such as your banking account or email. It works whether you're holding your phone vertically or horizontally.

You can also change the Privacy Display settings, so it only applies to pop-up notifications. This means only that part of your screen will be blacked out for anyone snooping. That flexibility makes for a more pragmatic approach, rather than the all-or-nothing privacy screen protectors you can slap on any phone. I don't need to be secretive all the time.

I was especially grateful for the Privacy Display setting on my flight to Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. As I wrestled with this article in the Notes app, I didn't have to worry about anyone watching me comb through half-formed thoughts. I browsed through my Gallery without feeling like I was putting on a presentation for any bored onlookers. I prevented people from engaging in the same second-hand entertainment I was indulging in as I glanced at the movies playing on the seatback displays around me. (There's only so much to look at on an 8-hour flight.)

Read my full story, My Favorite Galaxy S26 Ultra Feature Comes With a Side of Paranoia, to hear more about my first two days with the new Samsung phone.

Live

2 hours ago

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These MemoMind Memo One glasses will go on sale in April

Katie Collins

[Woman wearing glasses]

The Memomind Memo One AI glasses will be available from April.

Andrew Lanxon/CNET*

I'd describe myself as a smart glasses skeptic, but I'm always happy to try out new concepts in the hope that one will win me over. I popped the MemoMind Memo One specs by Xgimi at Showstoppers, a press event at MWC 2026, and was immediately impressed by how light they felt to wear.

A customizable head-up display lets you glance up to see information, such as stocks, if that's your thing. I tested the translation feature and found that it translated Chinese to English effectively. I also found the teleprompter feature easy to follow and could definitely see myself using it if I needed to present on stage or on camera.

Xgimi told me that the MemoMind glasses will be available from this April in the US and Europe, starting at $599 (that's $200 less than Meta's Ray-Ban Display Glasses).

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3 hours ago

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CNET is at MWC Showstoppers

Patrick Holland

[five cool people at MWC 2026]

CNET is on the ground at Showstoppers, a press event ahead of MWC 2026.

Angela Moscaritolo/Consumer Electronics*

MWC doesn't start until Monday, but we are getting a preview of some of the phones and gadgets at the Showstoppers press event. CNET is on the ground covering the event.

Live

4 hours ago

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What is Mobile World Congress? Here's why it's significant

Jeff Carlson

MWC 2026 starts Monday, March 2, but products are already being announced.

Getty Images/Viva Tung/CNET*

There's a good chance you're reading this on a smartphone, using technologies that debuted at Mobile World Congress an annual trade show focused on phones and wireless technologies. Features shown in Barcelona over the last two decades are like the cerulean colors of the fashion world, introduced with fanfare and then widely disseminated into phones like the one in your hand. (This year marks 20 years of MWC in Barcelona, but the show existed in other forms back in the early 1990s.)

MWC is all about the telecommunications industry, which might sound dry if you don't work for a telecom company. But now that most people carry smartphones every day, we're all affected in some way by what happens at the event.

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