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MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS 2023 As we do every year, pandemic permitting, the staff at Android Advisor descended on Barcelona with thousands more from the global tech community for 2023's Mobile World Congress trade show. MWC usually serves up a plethora of new smartphones but there's plenty more to see from the biggest technology companies. Though Samsung launched its Galaxy S23 series before the show this year there have been plenty of big launches from competing Android brands, announcements from others, and a whole load of new products to get our heads around. Here are the new products that stood out to us. 1. HONOR MAGIC VS Honor didn't really reveal the Magic Vs at MWC this year. Its presentation focused on the more powerful, but less exciting Magic 5 Pro.…

REVIEWS Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip has long reigned (well, for a couple of years) the king of the foldable clamshell phone. But now, with the European launch of the Oppo Find N2 Flip, it may finally have to give up that crown. Oppo's first flip phone - and third foldable overall - takes closely after Samsung's latest Z Flip 4. But an improved hinge, more capable camera, and larger cover display make this a more practical option for most, helped by a more affordable £849 price tag - at least in the UK. The Z Flip 4 still has the edge on software, and a certain je ne sais quois visual flair, but the gauntlet has been laid down - and Samsung has a lot of work to do to…

BUYING GUIDE It has been a great few years in the world of mobile gaming. While mobile games were once limited to the likes of Candy Crush and Angry Birds, the mobile gaming scene has truly taken off in recent years with AAA game releases like PUBG Mobile, Call of Duty Mobile and Fortnite. Even better, with the release of cloud gaming services like Nvidia GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming, you can play PC and console games on your smartphone. That's all welcome news, but let's be honest, touchscreen controls can be frustrating - especially when it comes to fast-paced shooters like Call of Duty where split-second response times are the difference between virtual life and death. That's where third-party controllers come into play. Android users have been able…

FEATURE If there's one thing we Android users take for granted, it's just how good we've got it when it comes to typing out text on our pocket-sized phone machines. It's all too easy to lose sight of over time, but typing on Android is an absolute delight. And all it takes is 10 seconds of trying to wrestle with the on-screen keyboards on iOS to appreciate our advantage. We've got plenty of exceptional keyboard choices, but Google's Gboard keyboard has really risen up as the best all-around option for Android input as of late. That's in large part because of its top-notch typing basics and its seamless integration of tasty Google intelligence, but it's also because of all the clever little shortcuts it has lurking beneath its surface. 1.…

Price: £1,249 from fave.co/3FnUYbl When the Galaxy S23 Ultra was announced, I said it showed Samsung doesn't have to try anymore because the phone is so similar to the Galaxy S22 Ultra from 2022: see Android Advisor 108 page 12. I stand by that. This phone looks and feels like the one that came before it in the range. But that doesn't stop the newer S23 Ultra being one of the best phones ever made and one of the best phones you can buy. If you want a device with every conceivable smartphone feature crammed into a glass block you can (just about) fit in your pocket, then you probably don't need to look any further. The best screen on a phone, a stylus, a 200Mp camera, and the latest…

REVIEWS Never let it be said that former Huawei sub-brand Honor doesn't learn its lessons. Last year's Honor Magic4 Lite offered a competent if deeply unremarkable mid-range smartphone package with outstanding battery life, but it was somewhat unwieldy, its display lacked pop, and its cameras weren't much cop. The Honor Magic5 Lite returns with a thoughtfully refined offering even more impressive stamina in a smaller form factor, and with the benefits of an AMOLED display. Its camera system has also received a subtle overhaul. Not everything speaks to progress, however, with an identical Snapdragon 695 chip to its predecessor ensuring similar performance to the Magic4 Lite. The lack of a bundled-in charger and support for a slower charging standard is another notable backwards step. Meanwhile, Honor has been unable to…

AUDIO The Philips TAA6606 bone conduction Bluetooth sports headphone make it easy to listen to music while you're running or engaging in other types of exercise, but audio performance takes a back seat to two other goals: Ensuring a secure but comfortable fit even while you're moving around, and maintaining situational awareness while outdoors. Unlike conventional on-ear, over-ear, or in-ear headphones, you wear the Philips TAA6606 like a laurel around the back of your head, wrapping hooks over the tops of your ears. Rather than positioning speakers outside or inside your ear canal, a bone conduction headphone such as this rests its speakers in front of each ear and transmits sound through the bones in your skull. This design leaves your ears completely unimpeded from hearing sounds in your environment,…

REVIEWS After a name change and the reintroduction of a Pro model last year, it’s more of the same for Xiaomi at the start of 2023. At MWC in late February, the company launched two new flagships globally: the 13 and 13 Pro. An even more capable Ultra model is expected at some point, but Xiaomi has confirmed that there’ll be no half-step ‘S’ update later in the year. From testing the 13 Pro, it's hard to imagine a non-gaming phone which could be more capable than this perhaps only the Galaxy S23 Ultra. With Qualcomm's latest silicon, a main camera equipped with a huge 1in sensor, and some of the fastest charging around, the device is almost unmatched when it comes to hardware. But familiar frustrations remain on the…

BUYING GUIDE Gaming on phones has been popular since the days of Snake, long before the likes of Candy Crush Saga took over our commutes. But these days smartphones are becoming viable gaming devices for more than simple distractions on the go, and mobile gaming is a giant industry in its own right. Eventually cloud streaming will level the performance playing field, but until then committed mobile gamers need to pick up smartphones designed for the purpose. The best gaming phones deliver maxed out performance, great displays and audio, and often designs that incorporate extra trigger buttons or other gaming-specific features. The big brands here aren’t the same ones you’ll see elsewhere. Asus ROG undoubtedly leads the pack – so long as you’re happy to pay a premium for the…

AUDIO Judged by specifications alone, you'd think the Earfun Air S true wireless earbuds would cost substantially more than their list price. They use Bluetooth 5.2, support the aptX and AAC codecs for higherresolution audio, promise active noise cancellation (ANC) to reduce ambient environmental noise, and are rated to last six hours on a charge. Wise shoppers, however, know not to buy a product based on specifications alone. The good news is that these affordable buds deliver the essentials: They're handsomely designed and comfortable to wear. They're also capable musical performers - at least when you're indoors. In a relatively sedate setting, the Air S deliver wellarticulated sound with whistle-clean highs, a warm and willing midrange, and a reasonably hefty, reasonably welldefined bottom end. Wear them outdoors, and their performance…