The Biggest Products Announced at Mobile World Congress 2014

Every year the tech industry’s biggest players gather in Barcelona for Mobile World Congress to debut and showcase their latest next-gen devices. As expected, Android smartphones dominated. Samsung stole the show before it even began after confirming the Galaxy S5’s arrival, along with two other surprises. Tablets garnered some shine thanks to strong contributions from Lenovo and Sony. Wearables continued to trend thanks to a handful of popular brands updating their product lines, where as Google surprised the crowd by bringing its secret mobile project overseas. Needless to say there was a variety of dope gadgets present on the international front. In getting familiar with the market's future offerings, let us put you onto The Biggest Products Announced at Mobile World Congress 2014.

The year’s most anticipated smartphone was finally unboxed and had the mobile world fiendin’ for Sammy to announce an official price and release date. When the announcement came we caught a glimpse of the GS5's upgraded design and all other premiums: including its gorgeous 5.1-inch Super AMOLED display with full HD, heart rate monitor, fingerprint sensor, and 16MP shooter with real-time HDR and 4K recording capabilities. April couldn't come any sooner.

Carving a niche with its waterproof designs, Sony’s gone on to revise its second-gen slate with an ultra-thin, impermeable chassis that houses monstrous internals. Under the hood lies a 2.3GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon chip, Adreno 330 GPU, and 3GB of RAM, which is the same horsepower found on its mobile counterpart. Still, the Xperia Z2 tablet earns top billing thanks to its 6,000mAh battery and beautiful 10.1-inch full HD display.

Now with wearables becoming the next big thing in tech, Bluetooth headsets are coming back in style with wireless pioneer Plantronics driven to resurrect the movement. Its newest earpiece balances style with substance by integrating a number of advanced communication features and stellar noise cancellation into a fresh, minimalist design. NFC circuitry means instant pairing with mobile devices and its chic battery case adds a touch of cool to the headset, while upping the Edge’s runtime from 6 to 16 hours.

Those who value their privacy more than there anytime minutes should find solace in this Switzerland-manufactured handset. The Blackphone specializes in taking users off the grid by protecting all mobile data, hence why its labeled the NSA-proof smartphone. It also offers a two-year subscription to Silent Circle, a service that guarantees encrypted phone calls and emails for up to three friends, plus anonymous Wi-Fi and cloud storage via Disconnect and SpiderOak. The Blackphone is powered by a quad-core and customized version of Android called Privacy OS. Good luck importing this one.

Rumors of Samsung stepping into the fitness tracker octagon proved to be true, as the mobile giant unveiled the ‘world’s first’ curved Super AMOLED wearable. Compatible with most Galaxy devices including the new GS5 and Galaxy Gear 2, the health smartband delivers fitness stats and features a heart rate sensor that works directly with Sammy’s S Health app to track your pulse.

Some are calling it HTC’s iPhone 5C. No knock on the company’s mid-tier device, but that’s exactly what it is, only with a little more flare. The Desire 816’s vibrant plastic shell retains the build quality and premium detailing showcased on HTC’s recent models, while tackling a solid spec sheet consisting of 5.5-inch (1280x720) panel, 1.6GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400 CPU, and dual-SIM support. HTC also made the right call of ditching its unpleasant Ultrapixel camera in exchange for a 13MP rear shooter and 5MP front-facing snapper with HD video recording for high-quality selfies.

Where the Galaxy S4 failed with its Smart Scroll eye-tracking feature, this little accessory looks to excel. Attaching the small infrared light emitter to the microUSB port of any Android phone enables users to interact with their handsets just by looking at it. The company’s mobile leader Anders Bo Pedersen went on to demo the Eye Tribe by playing Fruit Ninja, chopping apples and bananas using his eyes, plus scrolling through menu options with a glance. Insane.

No one thought the day would come when Nokia launched its own Android-powered smartphone. Guess you can say hell froze over on the mobile front. The X line features a Windows Phone-like UI with identical tile presentation that runs on a forked version of Google’s operating system, though it only provides access to Microsoft and Nokia’s online services. That’s not to say you can’t sideload Android apps from APK files. Despite its mid-tier spec sheet, the XL has aspirations of balancing both OS’ and doing it well at a cost-efficient value.

Dropping the ball with its predecessor, Lenovo’s gone on to upgrade the shape-shifting Android tablet by plastering a stunning full HD display (1,900x1,200) onto the front of the device. The Yoga retains its aluminum, ultramodern design, while launching with a new app suite called DOit that offers up a variety of productivity programs compatible with Android 4.3 (and higher). With battery life maxing out at 18 hours, the Yoga 10 HD+ makes a strong case for hottest Android tablet in the $350 price range.

It may not have been present on the MWC 2014 show floor, but Google’s 3D-mapping smartphone drew tons of attention after The Verge launched its exclusive hands-on coverage with the device. Project Tango comes equipped with advanced 3D sensors to track motion and builds a visual map of rooms using 3D scanning. This will allow people to detect objects from several distances, with Google hoping to open new lanes for indoor navigation and immersive gaming. The future has arrived.