At the MWC the old innovate, Xiaomi hurricane over Barcelona | hd rewind 9

Here we are with a new one hd rewindthe appointment in which we tell you the most significant news and curiosities of the week in a different key. We are in the ninth week of 2023. Although it is a summary, the resulting article is often not short. So here is an index to comfortably juggle the various topics.

As expected it was the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona that took the stage this week. The Catalan event opened its doors on Monday, but the first presentations reserved for the press were already staged on Sunday. The beginning was “in medias res” to put it like the Latins, the interesting material was not long in coming. Xiaomi stood out for the number of announcements: for those who follow the news, the Xiaomi 13 high-end line is only half new, given that it has been official in China for a while and at the MWC there was “only” European availability at stake, then a slew of accessories between earphones – the Buds 4 Pro – and smartwatches – the Watch S1 Pro – e especially vehicles for electric micro mobility, many vehicles.

Only one in its own name, the Electric Scooter 4 Ultra (a very interesting product which unfortunately, at least initially, does not arrive in Italy), the others – an electric scooter and an electric kart, and the beauty of 8 scooters! – on behalf of the subsidiary Segway Ninebot. In short, Xiaomi has not denied itself: the product category will also change, but as happens with smartphones, it ended up overwhelming the market with many products, also creating a bit of confusion because inevitably the lines of demarcation between the different models end up being a little too blurred. News also for Xiaomi customers who do not plan to purchase new products: the arrival of the Xiaomi 13 has “unlocked” the MIUI 14, here is the list of more and less recent products that will receive it by the end of the month.

The announcements of the Xiaomi hurricane did not end with those of the Mobile World Congress, because if it is true that it is not the most “tidy” company in the world it is its commitment to research and development is concrete. Xiaomi has been at the forefront of fast charging for years, and this week it took it one step further by announcing that it has the technology in its pocket. 300 watts For bring a 4,100 mAh battery to 100%. in just… 5 minutes. Exactly five, certified by a “scary” demonstration video that you find in the article or below. There is little to say about the progress of technology in this sense, of Xiaomi in this case but Realme and others could also be mentioned.

However, in my opinion, this is not the point, it is not Xiaomi with its 300 watts. There would be to wonder How much And self we need such fast top-ups. Why not, someone already objects. Well the reason is simple: like any solution, even the one that appears better or even perfect, always has pros and cons. It is undoubtedly convenient to go from 0 to 100% in 5 minutes, but it is so in a limited number of circumstances. I mean, most people will not often have to fully recharge the battery in 5 minutes, most of the time even 10, 20 or 30 minutes are fine.

Xiaomi, Realme and company will be able to say what they want – in this specific case Xiaomi he did not say – but the sworn enemy of the current batteries, the number one accelerator of wear, was, remains and always will be heat – reason why for example electric cars that recharge faster have a air conditioning system designed to avoid to the battery pack the excessive temperatures that it would otherwise reach during the violent loads of electric current.

The point, I repeat, is not Xiaomi with its 300 W, but the use of watts by the entire sector

On smartphones it’s another thing, God forbid, but the obvious trend for months has been pushing the speedometer of power further and further. No one is forced to recharge at hundreds of watts, of course, but the average buyer uses the charger that he finds in the package. Will it be possible to keep batteries and smartphones cold while recharging even when it’s 40 degrees outside (I’m writing from Sicily) or will we end up having to fish from the accessories list of mini fans? But above all, do we really need 3-4-500 watt recharges on smartphones?

To stay on topic and close with Xiaomi, one cannot fail to reserve a passage on solid-state batteries, another example of how much the company is engaged in research and development. Unfortunately, however, there is still nothing that can be defined as concrete or ready for commercialization, but the tests are giving encouraging signs. A revolution that will take place, let’s just hope it’s imminent. Meanwhile, some concrete signs of innovation on the battery front have come from Honor, which seems to have implemented silicon-carbon ones in the Chinese version of Magic 5 Pro, a product that has literally enchanted the DxOMark photography experts.

Yes, they are during the week two of the oldest mobile telephony companies stand out with interesting innovations. Motorola has perhaps brought the most fascinating solution of all to the MWC, showing another way forward thanks to foldable displays. It doesn’t have a name yet because it’s a prototype, but many (I’m here too) would already like to have it in their hands smartphone with the display that rolls up and unrolls: 5 inches in the most compact form factor, 6.5 inches at full extension. I just say wow.

The other veteran to have brought something interesting to Barcelona it’s Nokia, which also announced a restyling of the historic logo (it was 60 years old!) to which long-time enthusiasts will have to get used to. Of the three novelties, the most evident bears the name of Nokia G22, the Nokia’s first smartphone that can be repaired directly by the user. And as consumers we have to celebrate, because everyone at their own pace, some slow like Samsung, some quicker like Nokia, all manufacturers are getting used to the concept of the right to repair which the customer is entitled to, to save resources ( productive, economic, of all kinds) and pollute less.

At the Mobile World Congress, to close the review, we saw all the best pieces of Samsung displays which in the future could lead to concrete products and it emerged – but it was already understood quite clearly – that the Nothing’s next smartphone will be a real top of the range complete with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. Nothing this year is called to maturity, and despite being a startup with a startup structure Carl Pei and his team are very ambitious. Apple, which almost never participates in these events, has nevertheless entered, indirectly: iPhone 14 Prolike it or not, was awarded smartphone of the year by spitting it on the Google Pixel 7 Pro, Nothing Phone (1) and Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Galaxy S22 Ultra.

Among the extra MWC news there is one particularly relevant for sportsmen. Garmin made it official new range of Forerunners, real references for runners who gain the AMOLED display with always-on without giving up the great autonomy that has characterized the line up to now: up to 15 days for the 265 series and up to 23 days for the top 965 range, the data declared . Moving from hardware to software, indeed firmware, Microsoft has released Windows 11 Moments 2: Here is our guide to what’s new.

Scorched earth around TikTok, both in the US and in Europebut the suspicion will always remain that the social network is a functional tool for the tensions between the West and China, which unfortunately have worsened since the war in Ukraine onwards: this week it was the White House that opened hostilities against TikTok by imposing the ban within 30 days on all government devices, followed the day after by a similar decision by the European Parliament, which aligned itself with the European Commission and Council.

Thanks to Filippo Vendrame’s “wrist” for the selection.