A recap of the six cutting-edge technologies at MWC: Robot phones, detachable lenses, and AI sparking innovation in hardware.

In the sunny Barcelona, MWC 2026 (Mobile World Congress) officially kicked off.

As one of the most anticipated electronics exhibitions for consumer electronics enthusiasts, and also the world's largest and most influential annual exhibition of mobile communication electronic technologies, MWC brings together products, technologies, and concepts from around the world, showing us the possibilities and directions of smartphones and consumer brands in the next few years.

After traveling to CES 2026 earlier this year, this time Lei Technology sent a reporting team led by senior editor Dingxi and anchor A Lei to fly to Barcelona, Spain. They walked their legs off in the exhibition hall covering an area of over 240,000 square meters, just to observe, experience, and record these new things.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

In addition to the previously hyped 5G-A, 6G preview, and regular flagship phones, the biggest highlight of this year's MWC is that manufacturers are no longer satisfied with simply piling up performance. Instead, they have started to experiment with screen forms, modular splicing, and even crammed robot technology into mobile phones.

Now, let Xiaolei take you to take stock of the six black - technology products at MWC 2026 that make people exclaim "So strange, take another look".

Lenovo Legion Go Fold: The "Transformers" in the handheld game console world

In the handheld game console market in recent years, it has been a fierce competition.

From the Steam Deck to the ROG Ally, and then to Lenovo's own Legion Go series, everyone seems to be competing in terms of performance, heat dissipation, and battery life, while the product forms are becoming increasingly rigid.

But at MWC 2026, the Legion Go Fold that Lenovo presented can be said to have turned the tables.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

Yes, this is not just a handheld game console. It attempts to use a foldable screen to solve the two century - old problems of "the screen of the handheld game console is too small to read the words" and "you can't work if you bring a handheld game console".

In the unfolded state, it is an 11.6 - inch POLED large screen. When placed on the table and paired with a magnetic keyboard, it instantly turns into a mini - laptop running Windows 11.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

And when you want to play games, fold the screen in half, attach the controllers to both sides, and it turns back into a standard 7.7 - inch handheld game console.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

This solves the pain points of many business travelers: You no longer need to carry both a laptop and a Switch when going out!

In terms of hard parameters, Lenovo didn't use AMD this time but switched to Intel, equipping it with the Core Ultra 7 258V. This chip is a low - power architecture launched by Intel after careful consideration. According to on - site tests, the energy - efficiency ratio when running AAA games at 1080P resolution is quite amazing. Coupled with a huge 32GB of memory, it is obviously designed to feed the integrated graphics and possible future local AI large models.

However, Xiaolei also found some potential problems after on - site experience.

First is the crease problem. Although Lenovo claims to have used the latest hinge technology, when displaying dark - colored pictures, the reflection in the crease area still exists, which will somewhat break the immersion.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

Second is the battery life. There is a 48Wh battery in the body. For an 11 - inch large - screen device, this capacity is only barely enough. If you run "Cyberpunk 2077" in performance mode, you may need to find a socket in less than an hour and a half. This is still a considerable challenge for a portable handheld game console.

But anyway, the Legion Go Fold has indeed pointed out a new way for the stagnant handheld game console form: Since mobile phones can be folded, why can't handheld game consoles?

Transsion modular concept phone: Is it the rhythm to revive Project Ara?

To this day, old players may still remember Google's Project Ara back then, or the Moto Z series. The advanced modular design gave them far more plasticity than today's mobile phones, but they eventually disappeared because they were too thick, too heavy, and too expensive.

Unexpectedly, Transsion, the "King of Africa" from China, revived this concept in 2026.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

Transsion's idea this time is very ingenious: Since adding modules will make the phone thicker, then I'll make the phone thin first.

Yes, the body thickness of this concept phone is only an astonishing 4.9mm. It feels like a biscuit in your hand. There are 8 module areas marked by faint lines on the back. It uses a rectangular magnetic array + Pogo - pin physical contact for power supply. You can attach various functional modules like applying a band - aid.

The modules on display at the scene are very rich: there is a 4.5mm - thick magnetic power bank, a professional photography module with a periscope telephoto lens, a sports camera module, and even an external speaker tuned by JBL.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

The most amazing thing is that when you attach these modules, the overall thickness of the phone becomes 8 - 9mm, which is similar to the current mainstream flagship phones.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

I have to say that this design logic is much smarter than Motorola's back then.

In the past, we could say "Normal phone + module = Brick", but now Transsion has "Ultra - thin phone + module = Normal phone", which makes modularity no longer a burden.

Of course, limitations still exist.

First, Transsion has not officially disclosed the product configuration. Leaving aside the processor and imaging, the important thing is how large a battery capacity can be stuffed into the 4.9mm body, and whether the phone will turn into a "hand warmer" when running high - performance tasks for a long time under the condition that the internal heat dissipation space is extremely compressed.

Second, the Achilles' heel of modular phones has never been the hardware, but the ecosystem.

Currently, this modular phone is still in the early stage of showing off skills. Some of the kits are not in a fully usable state, only providing the magnetic function for display. If Transsion cannot attract enough third - party manufacturers to develop modules within the next year, then this system will most likely end up as another concept phone with no follow - up.

Honor Robot Phone: The AI phone has become a robot

If the first two products are still in the category of traditional digital products, Honor's Robot Phone has a touch of science fiction.

From the front of the phone, the Honor Robot Phone is no different from an ordinary phone.

But when you turn to the back, you will find that its camera module is not fixed on the back of the phone but installed on a miniature robotic arm gimbal. The size of this camera is so large that it should be almost as big as Xiaolei's DJI Pocket 3.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

According to the official introduction, the camera of the Honor Robot Phone consists of a three - axis mechanical anti - shake gimbal and a 200 - million - pixel sensor, claiming to have the strongest anti - shake ability in the current mobile phone industry.

In the demonstration by the staff, even when facing a dancer who is constantly moving, the Honor Robot Phone can still automatically follow the person and always keep them in the center of the frame. The violent hand movements and the dancer's unrestrained dancing do not affect its tracking effect at all.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

Of course, if it were just an upgrade in imaging, this phone could at most be called a Camera Phone, which has nothing to do with Robot. Therefore, this camera also has a unique AI interaction method, which can generate corresponding conversations in real - time according to the external scene, making the phone truly have vision.

Moreover, it can enter the rhythmic mode with the change of external music. In this mode, the camera gimbal part will dance with the rhythm. Although it may seem a bit funny at first glance, in this process, you can clearly feel the high sensitivity of the Robot Phone's gimbal.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

But as a digital enthusiast, Xiaolei has to pour a bucket of cold water on this exciting point:

As we all know, the more mechanical structures there are, the higher the probability of failure.

Remember the pop - up camera phones back then? The reasons for their disappearance were not only the difficulty in waterproofing but also the fact that the mechanical structures were prone to getting dusty and jammed. The mechanical arm structure of Honor's Robot Phone is more complex. If it is dropped on the ground or gets sand in it at the beach, can this precise mechanical arm still retract? This will be the biggest challenge in terms of durability.

Lenovo AI Workmate: A visible desktop AI assistant

In addition to the foldable handheld game console, Lenovo has also come up with a powerful product in the field of AI devices - the AI Workmate.

Don't be deceived by its name. It doesn't look serious at all. Its shape can instantly make people think of the cute mascot at the beginning of Pixar animations. It is basically a round head with simulated eyes displayed on it and a very flexible base.

(Image source: Lei Technology)

This is actually Lenovo's correction of failed products like the Humane AI Pin: Since it is inconvenient to wear AI on the body for heat dissipation and battery life, it's better to put it on the table.

Lenovo officially claims that this little robot is essentially an always - on desktop AI assistant that can process voice control, gesture operations, etc. locally through the edge - side AI model.

It is equipped with a high - definition camera and a projector, which can scan the documents beside you at any time. For example, if you have written a bunch of drafts on paper, just point at it, and it can immediately digitize them and synchronize them to your computer. It can even project auxiliary information directly onto your desktop, allowing you