Smartphones in 2020: the big reveals expected at CES, Mobile World Congress

Huawei to use Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas to unveil international version of its Honor V30 Pro, which won’t have Google core apps due to US ban
Another Chinese brand, Oppo, could hog the headlines at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona with rumoured launch of Find X2; Realme, LG launches also set

Smartphones

Ben Sin

Published: 6:00pm, 27 Dec 2019

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The global rise of Chinese phone brands has thrown a monkey wrench into the smartphone business. They have breakneck release schedules, are willing to push industry trends, and tend to offer higher-specification handsets for less money than legacy electronic brands.

Sony, HTC and Motorola have become almost non-factors in the phone market; LG is losing relevance by the year; and Samsung has had to dilute its Galaxy branding with a string of budget A-series phones aimed at Southeast Asia and eastern Europe.

And what of Apple, the biggest legacy phone brand of them all? Slowing sales have forced the company increasingly to branch out into other businesses such as providing content services.

The changing tide will be particularly noticeable at the first two trade shows of 2020: Apple will make an official appearance at January’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas for the first time in 28 years. But it’s not there to show new hardware; rather, the company’s senior director of privacy, Jane Horvath, will speak on the importance of consumer privacy – something to which Apple has pivoted to distinguish itself from rivals.

Apple will have a formal presence at the Consumer Electronics Show for the first time since 1992 when it senior director of privacy, Jane Horvath (pictured), gives a speech about the importance of consumer privacy. Photo: courtesy of Facebook

While CES has traditionally not been a phone-heavy trade show, two major Chinese players will make a splash: Huawei sub-brand Honor will launch the international version of its V30 Pro, and OnePlus will unveil a concept device at the event, which runs from January 7 to 10.

The former is notable because the Honor V30, like Huawei’s Mate 30, cannot run Google’s core apps because of an export ban imposed by the United States government. That Honor is going ahead with a global roll-out implies the company is not going to wait around for the US authorities to throw a lifeline; instead, the Chinese tech giant will move forward with its plan to convince the world to use its Huawei Mobile Services instead of Google Mobile Services.

A 5G exhibition at CES 2019. The next-generation mobile working standard will be on many people’s lips at CES this year and at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona as companies unveil 5G-ready handsets. Photo: AFP

Little is known about OnePlus’ concept handset, other than what company chief executive Pete Lau has said – that the handset will be a “very special device”. Some believe we may see a prototype foldable phone.

That’s about all that can be predicted about mobile phone brands at CES. If this sounds underwhelming, that’s because everyone is holding out for the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, which – as the name suggests – is a far more smartphone-centric show.

Every major smartphone manufacturer bar Apple will have a stage at MWC. The headlines may belong to Oppo that week, as credible rumours say the Chinese brand will launch a follow-up to its late-2017 Find X handset at the event; Oppo sub-brand Realme has already confirmed it will launch a 5G handset at the show. Realme’s phone will probably be a 5G version of the X2 Pro. Given Realme’s aggressive pricing, this should be the most affordable 5G phone yet.

The LG G8X smartphone with snap-on second screen. The Korean electronics giant could launch its V60 smartphone with snap-on second screen at the Mobile World Congress. Photo: Ben Sin

Oppo’s sister brand Vivo has also sent out “save the dates” invitations to media for the February 24-27 event – although I don’t expect Vivo to launch new hardware there.

As one of the world’s largest telecommunications players, Huawei has always had a major presence at MWC, and 2020 will be no different, as the company continues to push ahead with 5G expansion.

There are suggestions it may unveil a new flagship handset, the P40, at the show too (predecessors the P9 and P10 were launched at MWC). Personally, I wouldn’t bet on it. In my opinion, Huawei has grown too big to launch a flagship handset at a crowded trade show; it would rather have the spotlight all to itself in a stand-alone launch event, just as it did when it launched its P20 and P30 handsets.

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi is expected to return to the Mobile World Congress but is unlikely to show new hardware. Photo: AFP

That logic applies to Samsung too; I doubt we’ll see the Galaxy S11 – of which the talk is that is will use Samsung’s new 108-megapixel camera, but optimised much better than in the recent Xiaomi Mi Note 10 – at MWC, although there may be teasers.

However, we will probably see a new phone from the other South Korean chaebol, LG. The speculation in South Korean media is that LG will unveil its V60 handset, which, like the V50 and G8X, is intended for us mainly with a snap-on second screen.

Xiaomi, which made its MWC debut last year, is likely to return, but it’s not likely to introduce new hardware.

If I had to wager a guess, I would say that Oppo’s much hyped Find X2 will be the hardware star of MWC 2020.

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