New Toys for a New World: Top 5 Devices from this year’s Mobile World Congress

Last week was an epic week for the mobile space, with players from the industry gathering in Barcelona for the Mobile World Congress to share information, discuss trends, and of course—release sweet new mobile devices. We were dazzled by what we interacted with (check out our pics!), and wanted to continue our coverage of the event by highlighting some devices and opening up the discussion surrounding their impact on trends in the mobile space. These are our top five picks:

HTC One X

All things considered, this phone demonstrated the best all-around experience to smartphone users looking for a high performance device: a quality camera, an impressive 4.7-in 720p display, a quad-core processor, and an attractive yet durable casing. Running the new and improved Sense 4.0 with Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich, the One X is lightning fast (just like Scandit), providing a superior experience to its users. We think HTC is headed in the right direction with this one…

Nokia 808 PureView

Perhaps the favorite of this year’s Mobile World Congress, this ridiculous device has a 41 megapixel camera! Our first thought was—41 megapixels!? What on earth can you do with that?! We found out not too long after—you can zoom into an image endlessly without pixilation. Want to see what the dust particles on your jeans look like? Now you can. Seriously though, the PureView produces beautiful crisp images that no other phone can compete with. Enough said.

Panasonic Eluga

Wouldn’t it be cool if you could spill your morning coffee all over your smartphone without worries?  Now you can with Panasonic’s new Eluga, a smartphone boasting waterproof capabilities, NFC, a sleek design and a beautiful display. The device was approved with an IP57 certificate proclaiming its waterproof and dustproof status after a test that submerged the phone 1.0 metres underwater for 30 minutes without taking damage.  Isn’t it about time we made devices that could handle the elements?

Samsung Galaxy Beam Projector Smartphone

Samsung is really serving up a unique use case here with their new Galaxy Beam Projector Smartphone. The new device includes a projector that can cast an image upwards of 50 inch on any flat surface, giving business users the ability to give presentations without hooking up a projector. And with its 2000 mAh battery enabling many hours of continuous use, the Beam gives casual users the opportunity to watch streaming movies together without a laptop or a television. This device will really appeal to the younger generation who has already embraced connecting their devices to larger displays  via HDMI.  Why deal with wires or carry an additional projector if you don’t have to!?

Asus Padfone

It’s a phone! It’s a tablet! No… it’s a Padfone? Asus wowed the crowd in Barcelona with this amazing new device that transforms your smartphone into a 10.1-inch display Android Tablet! The modularity of this device is unlike any other, allowing the user to simply slide their phone into a slot on the tablet accessory to complete the transformation. This new device allows users to utilize a single data plan for their phone and tablet, providing additional unique value. All in all this is one of those devices that will drop your jaw.

Our Synopsis: Geek Reality Check

Though these new devices boast futuristic technologies like built-in projectors, waterproof capabilities or a freaking 41 Megapixel camera—it’s important to reflect on a point made by Google’s Eric Schmidt during last week’s keynote—most of the world still lacks connectivity, and the aspiring majority of the world’s current users lack the means to access the latest technology.  Developers would be well served to remember this when designing their apps. A small group of us will always be the first movers who get to play with the snazziest new toys, but for most people a smartphone is an investment that must serve them for an extended period of time. Along these lines, we recently published a market study that shows over the past 18 months alone over 140 million newly launched iOS and Android smartphones don’t have autofocus cameras—and devices like these will continue to sell for several years. Although Google’s chairman speaks of an optimistic future where Moore’s Law eventually provides everyone around the globe with connectivity and affordable access to smartphone’s, we mustn’t forget the present we’re living in.