MWC Recap: The 5 Most Impressive Gadgets

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Mobile World Congress is officially over and we’re back in TechnoBuffalo headquarters recovering from the travel and all of the fresh gadgets. That means we have time to reflect on the trip, everything we saw, and bring you a list of a few of our favorite devices on display during the show. In no particular order, they are:

The HTC One

Hands-down, the One was the most impressive device on the show floor this year, in our eyes. You may be wondering why, especially because it was announced a few weeks ago, but we think that’s largely because HTC, Samsung and other companies have started to deviate from the show floors to instead hold individual press conferences. The One was still on display, though, and its amazing 1080p display, beautiful all-aluminum design and huge booth were among the most stunning on the show floor. That’s good news for HTC for now, but Samsung’s Galaxy S IV is set to be announced on March 14 in New York City.

ASUS PadFone Infinity

The ASUS PadFone Infinity still stands out because it’s such a compelling idea and we love that ASUS is pushing forward with the tablet/phone hybrid product. The latest version combines a 10.1-inch tablet with a phone, the PadFone device itself, which packs a quad-core 1.7GHz Snapdragon 600 processor, 2GB of RAM, up to 64GB of internal storage and more. We were particularly surprised by how thin and light the phone was, and how seamlessly it turned the tablet into a fully-functional slate.

SITA NFC Airport Check-in Kiosks

NFC was a major trend at this year’s Mobile World Congress, which was good news because it has been around for a few years now. One of the most impressive gadgets that takes advantage of the technology was SITA’s new airport check-in terminals. Instead of requiring travelers to present a QR code on their mobile device, which is the current trend among several airlines, SITA’s technology relies purely on NFC. That means you don’t need an Internet connection, and it even works if your phone dies. It’s a perfect scenario for a traveler who uses mobile ticketing in a foreign country where he or she might not have a subscription to the country’s local wireless carriers, or whose phone died during the trip. The technology works seamlessly and allows you to simply drop your phone on a pad for approval to board the plane. That means you’ll no longer have to fumble with those red laser scanners.

ZTE Grand Memo

The ZTE Grand Memo is truly a beast. It packs a huge 5.7-inch 1080p display (that’s 0.2-inches bigger than the Galaxy Note) and some of the most powerful hardware currently on the market. It’s equipped with a Snapdragon 600 (or Snapdragon 800, as the company’s booth claimed) processor – one of the most powerful currently on the market, Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, a microSD card slot for expandable storage, and a really attractive body. It measures just 8.9mm thin, despite all of the technology, and packs other goodies such as a 13-megapixel camera, Dolby Digital Plus Surround Sound and more.

Sony Xperia Tablet Z

Sony’s Xperia Tablet Z was one of the most impressive tablets we’ve ever seen, let alone on the MWC show floor. It’s amazingly thin and light, and interacts with your Android smartphone and other gadgets through its built-in NFC technology. It’s also water resistant to the point that you can literally spill an entire glass of water on it, or use it out in the rain, without issue. You’ll also find a quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro processor inside, an 8-megapixel camera, a full 10.1-inch HD display and more.

Wrap-Up

There was a ton of other amazing technology on display at the show, including awesome new devices from Nokia, LG, Samsung and other companies, but the gadgetry above stood out as our favorite devices on the show floor.