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 MWC 2026 officially gets underway on March 2 and will continue through March 5, but the announcements are already coming ahead of its start. We can always count on the annual tech event to bring tons of new phones, laptops and tablets, and we're expecting to see some robots and other gadgets too — plus plenty of AI news, of course. In addition to the announcements, MWC is our chance to get hands-on time with some of the most interesting new devices, like the Xiaomi 17 Ultra.
We'll be updating this story as the week goes on to keep you in the loop on everything that caught our attention, so keep checking back here for the latest MWC news.
Xiaomi x LeicaXiaomi kicked off MWC this year by announcing the global launch of its 17 Ultra smartphone, which debuted first in China back in December. It's unclear if the phone will ever come to the US, but it's now rolling out in Europe. Xiaomi teamed up again with Leica to make a photography-focused smartphone, and the 17 Ultra sports a 1-inch 50-megapixel camera sensor with a f/1.67 lens, a telephoto setup with a 200MP 1/1.4-inch sensor, and a 50MP ultrawide camera. There's also a manual zoom ring around the camera.
Check out our hands on for our first impressions of what it's like shooting with the
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 China's biggest phone makers continue to relentlessly forge ahead with high-spec phones that you may never see in the US. With the Xiaomi 17 Ultra this year, the company has continued its pattern from previous iterations by focusing on powerful camera sensors, huge batteries and… being selective about global availability.
Xiaomi's 17 series is launching across multiple European territories months after its Asia debut, but at the time of writing, no word yet on US availability. Another logistical point of interest? When we last checked out Xiaomi's devices, it was the 15 series, and the company has decided to skip 16 and leap straight to 17, conveniently matching Apple's latest number.
Storied camera brand Leica has been involved with Xiaomi's phones for a few years and its newest flagship doesn't disappoint in that regard, because this is another Xiaomi device dedicated to photography.
Image by Mat Smith for Engadget
The 17 Ultra has a huge 1-inch 50-megapixel main camera sensor with a f/1.67 lens, and a telephoto setup with a 200MP 1/1.4-inch sensor and going up to 4.3x optical zoom. Xiaomi claims it's capable of up to 17x "optical-level zoom," but quality doesn't measure up to, say, the Oppo Find X9, with its dedicated telescopic lens add-on. There's also a 50MP ultrawide camera to round things out.
The main camera
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At the outbreak of a new war, Altman is closer than ever to the Pentagon.
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If your wine rack is anywhere near your oven, it's time you find it a new home.
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Google will finally be able to provide real-time driving and walking directions in South Korea, The New York Times reported. The company has received permission from the nation's Transport Ministry to export geographic data out of the country, which will allow it to provide GPS services as well as detailed listings for restaurants and other businesses.
"We welcome today's decision and look forward to our ongoing collaboration with local officials to bring a fully functioning Google Maps to Korea," Google's senior executive Cris Turner told the NYT in a statement. However, the approval is contingent "on the condition that strict security requirements are met," a spokesperson from the Transport Ministry said. Those conditions reportedly restrict Google from displaying sensitive military sites and longitude and latitude coordinates.
South Korea has generally restricted the export of 1/5000 scale map dat
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This week, we're diving into the big changes at Xbox and what it all means for Microsoft's gaming future. Phil Spencer, the longtime face of Xbox, announced he's retiring last week. He'll be replaced by Microsoft's former CoreAI CEO Asha Sharma, instead of his longtime deputy Sarah Bond, who plans to leave the company. Will this change actually help the beleaguered Xbox division, or is it another example of Microsoft shoving AI into everything?
Also, Samsung held its latest Unpacked event this week to announce its new Galaxy S26 family. They look pretty much the same as last year, but the Ultra model includes a unique privacy feature that can instantly make the screen unreadable to bystanders. It's one of those features we expect to see in every phone eventually.
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 Apple is expected to unveil up to five new products next week, including a lower-cost MacBook, and a few more details about the laptop surfaced today.
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