Pocket-lint's awards for this year's top tech

Summary

Mobile World Congress (MWC) is an annual trade show where tech companies show off new devices and conceptual products.
For 2025, MWC spanned March 3 through 6, in Barcelona, Spain.
Pocket-lint was on the ground at MWC 2025 — here’s our picks for this year’s top new tech.

Another exciting Mobile World Congress (MWC) trade show has come and gone, and 2025’s event didn’t disappoint. The show floor was packed with exciting new tech releases, prototype devices, and outlandish hardware concepts.

Pocket-lint was on the ground at MWC this year, checking out a diverse range of products from a dizzying number of consumer technology brands. Below is a collection of our favorite things from MWC 2025, spanning everything from phones and laptops, to electric vehicles, and more.

ZTE’s latest phone ships with a digital camera crown, and I love every bit of it

ZTE’s new Nubia Focus 2 Ultra doesn’t just have a camera hump – it has a full-blown camera crown.

Nothing Phone 3a Pro

Nothing’s unique design language takes on a mind of its own

Nothing Phone (3a) Pro

The Nothing Phone 3a Pro is a mid-range handset with a 6.77-inch display, the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chipset, and a uniquely designed rear triple camera design.

Nothing’s latest mid-range phone series is dominated by the Phone 3a Pro, both regarding mindshare and in terms of camera module design. The handset’s translucent rear panel, glyph interface, and strange camera array all make for a unique hardware identity. When mixed with the clean and attractive Nothing OS software skin and the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chipset, the Phone 3a Pro is dressed to impress.

Samsung foldable handheld game console concept

Samsung’s latest concept is the Galaxy Fold and Steam Deck crossover I didn’t know I wanted

Samsung is showcasing a handheld gaming system concept at Mobile Word Congress 2025, but with a twist: the console folds in half.

Xiaomi 15 Ultra

The point-and-shoot camera phone reborn

Xiaomi 15 Ultra

The Xiaomi 15 Ultra is a high-end flagship phone that is co-engineered with Leica, and offers a physical design reminiscent of a point-and-shoot camera.

Xiaomi’s 15 Ultra is the talk of the town right now, and for good reason. Aside from the usual high-end specifications fitted into the handset, Xiaomi has designed the exterior to loosely resemble a point-and-shoot camera. We’ve seen this sort of thing before (think: Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom), but Xiaomi appears to have balanced retro design undertones and in-hand practicality this time around.

Lenovo’s new ThinkBook 3D laptop concept is like a Nintendo 3DS, but for Zoom calls

Lenovo is showing off a laptop with a glasses-free 3D display at Mobile World Congress 2025, and it feels a lot like a supersized Nintendo 3DS.

Honor Pad V9

An excellent bang-for-your-buck Android tablet

Honor Pad V9

The Honor Pad V9 is an 11.5-inch Android tablet that ships with a speedy 144Hz refresh rate display, and offers a slim 6.1mm thin chassis.

There’s a lot to love about Honor’s latest mid-range tablet, the 11.5-inch Pad V9. For the cost of entry, you’re getting a lot of hardware: a 144Hz refresh rate display, a downright skinny 0.24-inch (6.1mm) chassis thickness, a metal build, and more. The Android tablet market — particularly in the mid-range — is devoid of options, and Honor appears ready to jump in and fill the void.

Nothing is turning heads again with its new Phone 3a Series

Nothing has officially unveiled its mid-range Phone 3a Series at Mobile World Congress 2025, but leaks spoiled much of the surprise factor.

Lenovo ThinkBook 3D Laptop Concept

Glasses-free 3D lives on

Lenovo ThinkBook 3D

The ThinkBook 3D is a conceptual laptop from Lenovo, which features a glasses-free 3D display that can display both 2D and 3D content at the same time.

We’ve seen glasses-free 3D concept PCs in the past, but Lenovo’s latest crack at the idea is genuinely compelling. An array of face-tracking sensors and Directional Backlight 3D screen technology enable parts of the panel to display in 3D, while simultaneously displaying other sections in 2D. The concept even comes with an AI smart ring for gesture navigation and for manipulation of 3D objects in real-time. In many ways, the ThinkBook 3D is the Nintendo 3DS all grown up.

Honor MWC 2025 new hardware being announced

Honor’s latest devices are now official, and AI is at the forefront

Ahead of Mobile World Congress 2025, Honor has unveiled four new devices: the Earbuds Open, the Watch 5 Ultra, the Pad V9, and the MagicBook 14.

Tecno Spark Slim

The thinnest smartphone of them all

Tecno Spark Slim

The Spark Slim is a concept handset from phone maker Tecno, with a super-slim 0.23-inch (5.75 mm) chassis and a 144Hz AMOLED display panel.

Super-slim is in this year, and phone maker Tecno is at the forefront of shaving millimeters of depth off of its latest handset. The company’s Spark Slim is currently the skinniest phone in existence, measuring in at a whopping 0.23-inch (5.75 mm) thin. In hand, the phone feels worryingly light and slender, with hardly enough room for the USB-C port or buttons to flank its petite frame.

Honor announcing its Magic series OS update pledge

With its new update policy, Honor joins the ranks of Google and Samsung

Honor has pledged to support its flagship phones with 7 years of Android OS updates, matching high-end Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy handsets.

Xiaomi SU7 Ultra

An EV supercar concept that spares no expenses

Xiaomi SU7 Ultra

THe SU7 Ultra is a high-end prototype electric vehicle from Xiaomi, which is capable of 578 ps of horsepower and a top speed of over 217 mph (350 km/h).

It wouldn’t be an MWC trade show without some electric vehicle action, and this year, the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra takes the cake. This EV supercar has a striking design with a prominent spoiler, bright yellow paint, and carbon fiber accenting. Impressively, the prototype car can reach 0 — 62 mph hour (roughly 0 — 100 km/h) in just 1.97 seconds, with a top speed of over 217 mph (about 350 km/h).

Honor Alpha Plan being unveiled on stage

Honor’s Alpha Plan is a bold AI strategy that might just pay off

Under new leadership, Honor is trekking forward with what it calls the Alpha Plan – an aggressive push to solidify a leading position in the AI space.

Lenovo ThinkBook Codename Flip

Foldable laptops might just become the next big thing

Lenovo ThinkBook Codename Flip

Lenovo’s ThinkBook Codname Flip is a concept PC with a flexible OLED display, which makes the device capable of form fitting into various unique postures.

Lenovo always goes all out with its PC concept devices at MWC, and the ThinkBook Codename Flip is one of the most excentric laptops I’ve ever seen. Using foldable OLED screen tech, Lenovo has crafted a prototype that can seamlessly switch between form factors such as laptop mode, vertical monitor mode, tent mode, and more.

TCL Nxtpaper Plus tablet on blue background.

TCL’s newest phones can turn into a Kindle-like E ink device with the push of a button

At MWC 2025, TCL showcased its latest TCL 60 XE NXTPAPER 5G smartphone and NXTPAPER 11 Plus tablet. Both will be available in the U.S.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge

The S25 Edge remains mysterious yet intriguing

Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge

Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge is an upcoming smartphone that hones in on providing a slim and lightweight form factor, and comes with a dual rear camera array.

After teasing the super-slim Galaxy S25 Edge late last year at an Unpacked event, Samsung gave us another glimpse of the illusive product at this year’s MWC show floor. The device is slick, with a clean design and a thin frame. The S25 Edge remains mysterious, which is equal parts frustrating and intriguing.