Screens that fold or project into the hand and other curiosities from MWC 2024 | Technology

In any edition of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, ​​​​there are small technological quirks that arouse the astonishment of visitors. 2024 is no exception; It’s easy to come across a small autonomous vehicle gliding through crowded corridors and a robotic dog stomping on an exhibitor’s floor, although this year the MWC’s most striking eccentricities come in the form of a display.

The cameras and flashes They accumulated on the Lenovo screen, around its transparent laptop and also, very closely, around the prototype of smartphone flexible from Motorola. But if there’s one panel that catches the eye, it’s the one projecting the AI ​​pin.

A smart device in your fist with an AI pin

Founded by former Apple executives in 2018, the to start up Humane only unveiled its first product late last year. This is the highlight of AI and at MWC we were able to see for ourselves how this technology works. It is an electronic device that attaches to clothing, at chest height, and is intended to perform the functions of a smartphone.

The pin integrates artificial intelligence, specifically OpenAI’s GPT-4 model, to facilitate user interaction. This way you can ask the device to play music, translate a conversation, take a photo or simply give us ChatGPT type responses. In additional mode, it projects a green phosphorescence screen onto your hand or another surface. There you can read texts or access an interface controlled by gestures. By moving your hand to one side or the other you navigate through the menu and by clenching your fist you enter the selected option.

A Humane spokesperson notes that the AI ​​pin is not intended to replace smart phones completely, but to do so in certain circumstances. If a user is going on an excursion and does not wish to take their smartphone, the new device could be an alternative. It has 4G connectivity, although processing of AI tasks is done locally, so it has some latency. At the moment, outside the US it can only be purchased online, priced at $699.

A laptop with a transparent screen

Lenovo presented at the show a functional prototype unique to date. It is ThinkBook Transparent Laptop Concept, a 17.3-inch laptop. Each of its surfaces is transparent. Only five units of this product were produced and they were made virtually by hand, as they were assembled by hand.

Aiguo Zheng, CEO of Lenovo and head of the project, explains that the transparent screen has a real purpose. For professionals who design objects, this laptop allows them to see how 3D digital models look in a real-world scenario. Simply point the computer at the location where the designed objects would be placed, such as a library or the living room of a house. Additionally, the panel enables a greater immersive experience in digital entertainment.

It still needs to refine certain aspects if it wants to launch into the market. The device should have stronger glass to avoid damage. Also, with the transparent material of the screen, you don’t get much resolution, only 720p. But here Zheng runs into a problem: the more pixels he inserts into the panel to increase the resolution, the less transparent it becomes. And then there is the big obstacle: today, it is too expensive.

An electric car made by a mobile brand

It’s not one of the most spectacular devices – if you can call it that – but the Xiaomi SU7 fits perfectly into the definition of Mobile curiosity. This is the first time that a company widely known for selling smartphones has entered a sector as complex as the automotive industry. And this comes, of course, with all the strength of the brand image that the mobile phone provides.

The Xiaomi SU7 is an electric car with an ambitious design. This is reminiscent of Tesla and probably, just as it is about imitating Apple in smartphones, Elon Musk’s company has been the benchmark for this vehicle. It promises a range of 800 kilometers and its power reaches 664 horsepower, with a maximum speed of 265 km/h. Inside, it has a 16-inch screen and 3K resolution.

Motorola’s flexible mobile phone

Motorola’s new adaptive display prototype is also part of Mobile’s extravagances. That’s not a smartphone folding. To do this, it would need to have a hinge that would allow it to be opened and closed like a book. Instead, this device folds, so much so that it can be attached to your wrist and become portable devices. Equipped with a 6.9-inch pOLED screen, the terminal is currently only intended for display. No commercial product has yet been developed with this technology. This is just a glimpse of what could happen in the future.

A coffee machine in an autonomous vehicle

The Italian company Rhea, which specializes in coffee vending machines, has developed a prototype that radically changes its typical product. The company calls it “barista on demand” and it’s an autonomous vehicle containing all the machinery needed to brew and serve coffee. The idea, as the company explains, is to make the most of the flow of people. A static machine can have a high throughput and serve a lot of coffees at a certain time of day, but very few at other times. Rhea’s vehicle drives around looking for caffeine-hungry customers.

The autonomous driving system is developed by the Chinese company Neolix and the rest is Rhea’s work. The Italian company emphasizes that its vehicle will start operating at Shenzhen Airport (China) probably within the next two months. It is in these types of environments, with the movement of people, that this particular truck will perform best. College campuses or parks are other favorable scenarios for autonomous coffee distribution.

The electronics go down to the rings

Another curiosity of Mobile was the ring presented by Samsung. Even though it’s not yet a final product, the Galaxy Ring made the rounds of the show – or rather, it made the rounds of its display case – to give some glimpses of its capabilities. From the finger, it allows you to measure different physiological parameters, such as heart rate, respiratory rate or even sleep latency.

With the data obtained, which is sent to the smartphone and are mostly analyzed locally, conclusions can be drawn about personal health and well-being. These are incentives to change habits and behaviors, if necessary. The Samsung ring – which invited Barcelona to EL PAÍS for the MWC – aims to attract new users who have not acquired others portable deviceslike smart watches or bracelets.

You can follow EL PAÍS Technology In Facebook And X or sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter.