Need a new smartphone? You'll find it at Mobile World Congress
Mobile World Congress starts next week in Barcelona. The largest wireless party on the planet, MWC is famous for showcasing new smartphones and wearables that you'll actually be able to buy.
Mobile World Congress takes place at Barcelona's Fira Gran Via conference center
In the yearly calendar of technology trade shows, Mobile World Congress stands out for two very important reasons. Firstly, it focuses entirely on mobile and wireless gadgets (which it makes it very cool already), and, secondly, it showcases new products that are far closer to reality than the pie-in-the-sky concepts on show at CES. In other words, most of the gadgets that make their debut at the show will go on sale sometime this year.
Now in its permanent home of Barcelona, Spain, Mobile World Congress has grown far beyond its smartphone roots to include pretty much anything that doesn't need a wire. That includes tablets, appliances and the quickly growing world of wearable tech. What's more, almost every big player in tech ( sans Apple, of course) is there. So, naturally, a full CNET team from four countries (and writing in two languages) is currently winging their way to Barcelona to cover the show inside and out.
The big events
Though the show floor doesn't officially open until Monday, March 2, there's plenty going on this weekend to follow. Sunday in particular will be a long day packed to the gills with press conferences and meetings. We'll be covering two events with live blogs and plenty of photos and video. Here's what you need to know:
The HTC One M9 should have a sturdy metal skin like the One M8 (pictured).
HTC
Sunday, March 1, 4:00 p.m. in Barcelona (calculate to your timezone)
HTC should use this occasion to roll out the next version of its HTC One series. Rumored to be the HTC One M9, the device should have a metal body (naturally) and HTC's BoomSound speakers. For a full (presumed) preview, check out our HTC One M9 rumor roundup . Besides that phone, the company may spill more devices, but we'll have to wait and see what happens on Sunday. Catch it all on our HTC live blog hosted by Roger Cheng and Andy Hoyle.
Samsung Unpacked
Sunday, March 1, 6:30 p.m. in Barcelona (calculate to your timezone)
A Samsung Unpacked event can mean only one thing: a new Galaxy phone. Samsung hasn't confirmed anything, of course, but a Galaxy S6 device in Barcelona would come right on schedule (the Galaxy S5 debuted at the 2014 Mobile World Congress). And according to the latest gossip, we may see a second device based on the Galaxy Note Edge . Check our Galaxy S6 rumor roundup for everything (we think) we know so far. To see what Samsung spills, follow along in our Samsung Unpacked live blog hosted by Roger Cheng and Jessica Dolcourt.
The new Moto E
And everything else
Rest assured, there will be much more to Mobile World Congress. LG got a jump start on the show by revealing two smartwatches, the LG Urbane and the LG Urbane LTE , and four phones, the Magna, Spirit, Leon and Joy . We'll get our hands on them once we arrive in Barcelona so stay tuned for more. We also might see new devices from big players like Lenovo, Alcatel, Acer, Huawei, and ZTE. Sony already pushed out one announcement, the Xperia E4G , but the company should have more up its sleeve. Meanwhile, Motorola decided to send us the new Moto E even before we left for Barcelona.
Whatever happens will bring you all the news as soon as it comes complete with gorgeous photos and hands-on videos. Our Mobile World Congress package will have everything, so go ahead and bookmark that link now. See you Sunday!
