Best of MWC 2025: Affordable Phones and Cool Camera Concepts

Yahoo

04-03-2025

2025's Mobile World Congress has once again witnessed the tech world flock to the busy streets of Barcelona to tout their latest, greatest innovations. And we've seen plenty in our time here, from quirky concepts through to products you can actually buy. Of course, we've also eaten our weight in tapas and maybe tried a few local beers.
But as the show draws to a close, we wanted to take a look at our top products we saw. While not all of them are things you can go and spend your money on, they're all innovative in their own way, offering a design, an idea or even just a price that makes them stand out from the crowd.
Here then are CNET's top picks from Mobile World Congress 2025.
London-based tech firm Nothing is best-known for its affordable Android phones that light up on the back and the new Phone 3A and 3A Pro don't stray from that format. The two models share most of their key specs, including a decent Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 processor, vibrant 6.7-inch display and 5,000mAh battery.
And while both have 50-megapixel main cameras, the 3A Pro has a more advanced autofocus system and has a periscope camera for better-looking zoom shots. I put it to the test around Barcelona and I got some pretty cool images.
Crucially though, both phones are also affordable, starting at just $379 for the 3A or $459 for the 3A Pro. Not bad for phones that pack in Google's Gemini AI tools and offer six years of software and security support.
We can't talk about affordable phones without also talking about Samsung's new Galaxy A series. The company took the wraps off the latest additions to the range, including the $300 Galaxy A26, the $400 A36 and the $500 A56 (why is there no A46, I wonder?).
While all three have the same 6.7-inch display and 5,000mAh batteries, spending more on the higher-end models will secure you more powerful processors, more RAM and slightly more potent camera setups. Of course, AI features baked into Samsung's One UI -- as well as Google Gemini and Circle to Search -- are available on all three.
While Xiaomi's 15 Ultra with its awesome rear cameras might really be the best phone of the show, it's not that far removed from last year's 14 Ultra and I had my eye on something else from Xiaomi.
Its "modular optical system" as Xiaomi calls it, is essentially a camera lens and large sensor that attaches to the phone, giving you a pro-quality imaging setup, but still using your phone as the brain to take advantage of instant editing and social sharing. It's not dissimilar to Sony's QX10 from 2013, which was arguably ahead of its time, but I really liked it as an idea.
Sadly, Xiaomi's lens is very much being shown off as a concept, but I really hope this one makes it as far as the shop shelves. As a professional photographer, I love the idea of having something that lets me get higher-quality images than my phone, without the added bulk of carrying a full-sized camera and lens setup.
While we normally talk about which phones have the most power, or the best camera or the longest battery life, HMD's Fusion X1 serves a very different purpose. It's aimed squarely at young teens and allows the parents to limit access -- or screen time -- from their own phone in order to help them develop a healthier relationship with technology and social media.
"Whereas most phones with parental controls either rely on an app that can be deleted or bypassed, the Fusion X1 combines app-based controls baked deep into its version of Android OS." CNET's Katie Collins explains in her hands on with the device. "This creates a locked-down safe space where kids can still have limited access to Snapchat, WhatsApp and TikTok -- if their parents agree."
The HMD Fusion X1 will be available in May for £229 (about $290 converted).
Projectors tend to be bulky items you'd usually mount to your ceiling and leave in place. The Aurzen Zip is a different beast altogether. Utilizing a folding mechanism that makes it look a bit like a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6, the Zip can stand on a surface and project your movies up to 80 inches in size and then fold down into something small enough to fit in your pocket.
It works over Apple AirPlay, allowing you to stream Netflix videos from your iPhone, though an HDMI adapter will also be available if you want to plug in your laptop to stream other content. Its battery provides up to 1.5 hours of use, so watching Dune 2 will require you to plug it in, but it features fast charge to get the juice back quickly.
While its 720p resolution won't suit enthusiastic cinemaphiles, its small size makes it great for taking round to your friend's place for a movie night, travelling with, or simply for those of you who don't have room for a full-size projector in your apartment.
Following its successful Kickstarter launch, the Zip will go on general sale later this month from $300.
While rumors suggest Samsung's teased Galaxy S25 Edge may be just under 6mm thick, Tecno's Spark Slim concept takes that even further. At just 5.75mm it purports to be the world's slimmest phone and in person it really does look almost bizarrely skinny.
Often, slim phones compromise on battery life, simply due to the nature of there being less space to fit all those cells. But somehow, Tecno has managed to squeeze in a whopping 5,200mAh battery, along with 50 megapixel main and ultrawide cameras.
It's very much still a concept, so some of these specs should be taken with a pinch of salt. Still, I'd love to see a phone like this that really focuses on being easier to hold -- and easier to slide into the pocket of my skinny jeans. My only concern with it being quite so thin is how easily it might bend, especially if I sit on it with it in my back pocket. It'd be a nasty way for any phone to go.
Lenovo had a host of concept devices at the show this year, including some neat-looking screens you can attach to your laptop's main screen to extend your workspace. But our favorite is the solar-powered laptop which features an array of solar cells on its lid.
Lenovo reckon that these cells are especially efficient and can provide enough power for an hour of video playback after just 20 minutes of direct sunlight. Still, as CNET's Josh Goldman points out, it's less about powering the laptop entirely off solar, and more about extending the battery life when you can.
It's certainly a neat idea, though I can't imagine it being especially practical in everyday use. For one, who wants to work on their laptop in bright sunlight? And crucially, when you're working on your laptop, the back of the screen will likely be angled down, away from the sunlight, so it can only really recharge when it's closed and not in use. Still, we're always super keen to hear about ways that tech firms are making use of renewable energy, even if it's sticking solar panels on a poncho.