What to expect at MWC 2019: new flagships from Sony, LG, and Chinese companies, foldable phones from Huawei and others, return of HoloLens, and a lot of 5G hype
5G's early steps will continue, and the Galaxy Fold could get some competition — In the next few days …
Context & Ripple Effects
This is the latest installment of The Verge's annual MWC preview series, following the 2016 edition that centered on the Galaxy S7 and the 2017 roundup led by LG G6 and Huawei P10. What changes this year is the headline act: instead of incremental flagship refreshes, the show is framed around two new categories at once — foldable screens and early 5G devices.
The foldable storyline was set weeks ago when Huawei's own MWC invite teased a foldable 5G smartphone for February 24, putting it on a direct collision course with Samsung's Galaxy Fold. The preview also marks HoloLens returning to the show floor, extending Microsoft's mixed-reality push beyond its usual venues.
First-order effects
- Huawei's foldable debut puts it head-to-head with the Galaxy Fold at the same show, turning what was a Samsung-only category into a two-horse race from day one.
- Sony, LG, and Chinese vendors face a crowded flagship window where foldables and 5G claims compete for attention against conventional spec upgrades.
Second-order effects
- If multiple foldables ship in the same cycle, display suppliers gain leverage as the scarce component, and pricing pressure shifts from processors to panels.
- Rival 5G announcements will be judged against Huawei's foldable-plus-5G combination, forcing other vendors to bundle their own 5G messaging with a marquee device rather than standalone demos.
Third-order effects
- A repeat of this pattern would cement MWC as the launch venue for unproven form factors and network transitions, with the foldable-and-5G device class carrying straight into the CES 2020 lineup of 5G phones and foldable laptops.
- HoloLens's return suggests mixed reality is being positioned as a recurring enterprise track at carrier-centric shows, diversifying MWC beyond phones.
The trend: Mobile trade shows are shifting from annual flagship refreshes toward debuting whole new device categories — foldables and 5G handsets — as vendors race to define them first.