Technologies

MWC Is Where Cutting-Edge Phones Shine. Too Bad You’ll Probably Never Buy Them

Commentary: The mobile industry doesn’t suffer from a lack of innovation, but from a lack of mass adoption of fresh designs.

For years, people have decried the monotony of smartphone design. With each annual release, companies tend to recycle the same features — when they’re not borrowing from each other — with minimal upgrades and hardly any aesthetic changes, resulting in an uninspiring sea of sameness and predictability.

That’s why at every tech event I’ve attended over the last several years, the most eager crowds cluster around phones that defy hardware limitations. This year’s Mobile World Congress was no exception. I wiggled my way through hordes of people pushing to get their hands on foldable, flippable and ultraslim devices.

Some of these phones are already available to purchase, like Samsung’s Galaxy Z Trifold and Huawei’s Mate XTs. Others are still concepts, like Tecno’s superthin Phantom Ultimate G Fold and its modular phone. A handful of others I saw are on the way to store shelves, like Honor’s Robot Phone and Motorola’s book-style Razr Fold.

As our smartphone options have expanded, our collective tastes have remained largely the same. Global foldable phone shipments hit a record 14% year-over-year growth in the third quarter of 2025, according to Counterpoint Research. But their share of the overall smartphone market was just 2.5% that quarter, keeping foldables firmly in the niche sector. Thin handsets like Apple’s iPhone Air and Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge have reportedly been underwhelming, with marketing buzz not matching up to real-world adoption. Even at a tech conference like MWC, I rarely saw attendees toting anything other than a standard slab phone.

“Just because something looks great, doesn’t mean you want it at the end of the day,” IDC Senior Research Director Nabila Popal told me in December.

Novelty and adoption remain two separate spheres in the world of mobile design. It’s refreshing to see phone manufacturers branch into more ambitious form factors, but those configurations have yet to graduate from spectacle to staple. And perhaps that’s by design; something can only be buzz-worthy if not everyone owns it. But the argument that there’s a lack of interesting phones loses merit with each passing year of hardware innovation — even if flagship devices continue to feel like copy-paste versions of their predecessors.

Much of the gap between niche phone hype and adoption boils down to their needing to be more practical. Foldables, for instance, have come a long way with improving camera quality and battery life, but they still lag behind what you’ll get on high-end flat phones. The same goes for thin phones like the Galaxy S25 Edge and iPhone Air, which have scaled back specs in exchange for lighter builds. Until sleekness can fully coexist with function, most people will keep choosing the latter.

Prices for unique phones are also prohibitive. Book-style foldables cost around $2,000, and a trifold will set you back around $3,000. Even with their more limited capabilities, slimmer and lighter phones tend to linger at the $1,000 mark.

Perhaps we’re creatures of habit. I’m guilty of this myself. After testing some of the most cutting-edge phones on the market, I always flock back to my plain old slab phones. They have everything I need — namely, great cameras and long battery life — without any frills. For most of us, one screen is more than enough for everyday tasks.

Sure, the phone in your pocket may look strikingly like the one you used 10 years ago. But does that really matter if it’s still serving you well?

It’s great that mobile companies are looking for ways to stand apart — not only from one another, but also from their existing products. And I hope they continue to push those limits and break away from more predictable designs, if only to give consumers more choices.

But until more people actually choose to branch out beyond the familiar, fresh mobile designs will remain firmly in the realm of feverish trade show fanfare and the occasional pocket.

Technologies

Passengers and crew foil co-pilot’s apparent attempt to crash FlyDubai flight to Israel

One of the pilots on a FlyDubai flight headed for Israel stabbed the second pilot, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

On-duty flight crew and passengers managed to foil a pilot’s apparent attempt to crash a FlyDubai flight, after reports emerged of a fight in the cockpit.

The incident on flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv happened when a co-pilot stabbed a pilot, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who praised the victim’s quick thinking.

“Despite being stabbed and seriously injured, he fought back, resisted, opened the cockpit door, and enabled passengers and crew to overpower the attacker — preventing a catastrophic mid-air disaster. He saved the lives of 174 people, including Israeli citizens and other nationals,” Netanyahu wrote in a post on X.

FZ1073 was diverted to the Tabuk airport in Saudi Arabia, the airline said, after being successfully secured and diverted by flight crew.

FlyDubai in a statement said that an “altercation” occurred on the flight deck of the plane, but did not mention a stabbing.

However, the airline added that the underlying reasons and motives for the clash is currently unknown, urging all parties to refrain from speculation.

The injured pilot was identified by Netanyahu as Indian national Smit Machchhar. No details have been released on the identity of the attacker, except that he was being interrogated by Saudi authorities.

The Indian embassy in Riyadh said on X that Machchhar is in a hospital in Tabuk, and is reported to be in stable condition.

The Israeli Prime Minister also identified the passenger who broke into the cockpit as Yaniv Hayun, calling him a “hero” and adding he deserved “a global medal of honor.”

Flight data from tracking site FlightRadar24 showed that the plane had experienced extreme altitude fluctuations before broadcasting a “general emergency” squawk code.

FZ1073 had dropped from over 14,000 feet in just 29 seconds, and FlightRadar24 also added that vertical speeds ranging from approximately -30,000 to +10,000 feet per minute were observed from the transponder data.

For context, vertical speeds during normal operations rarely exceed plus or minus 4,000 feet per minute, it added.

Technologies

South Korean President Lee Reins In Alaska LNG Project Participation Following Trump’s Endorsement

South Korea’s proposed $200 billion U.S. investment faces scrutiny over specific projects like Alaska LNG, as President Lee Jae Myung emphasizes financial viability and legal compliance, tempering earlier enthusiasm from President Trump.

South Korea’s proposed $200 billion investment in the U.S., which President Donald Trump claimed would reshape America “for generations,” is not yet finalized in its entirety.

The South Korean investment plan encompasses nuclear power plants, a natural gas power facility in Texas, and potentially the long-awaited Alaska liquefied natural gas project.

Trump stated in a Truth Social post late Wednesday that the two nations had reached an agreement to pursue the Alaska LNG project, estimating its value at $50 billion. In response, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung cautioned on Thursday that involvement in certain projects still hinges on commercial considerations.

Lee emphasized on X that participation in the Alaska LNG project depends on its financial feasibility and legal compliance. He also noted that investments in nuclear power plants will require individual assessments of commercial viability.

The U.S.-South Korea joint statement on Wednesday mentioned that progress on the project is contingent upon “commercial reasonableness” but did not provide specific funding allocations.

The Alaska LNG project aims to transport natural gas approximately 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) from fields on Alaska’s North Slope to the state’s southern region for liquefaction and export to markets such as Asia, according to Yonhap. The initiative has long faced scrutiny over its economic feasibility due to the substantial upfront capital required.

Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan labeled the project “high-risk” last year, stating that involvement would be challenging without ensuring adequate cash flow.

Overall, the investment package includes $22.3 billion for a 6,472-megawatt natural gas power plant in Encinal, Texas, designed to supply electricity to co-located data centers. The project will be spearheaded by developer Related Cos. and U.S. energy company NextEra Energy.

Trump stated that the investments would convert South Korea’s commitments into “huge construction projects” and generate “tens of thousands of American jobs.”

“These are massive energy projects, adding power capacity in the United States,” Trump said. “This is new construction, new manufacturing, and great jobs for American workers.”

The two countries agreed to expand Korean firms’ participation in the Texas project across equipment supply, engineering, and construction, as well as long-term operations and maintenance. The U.S. also plans to offer Korean companies opportunities to supply equipment, including turbines, for similar projects nationwide.

An additional $120 billion has been designated for eight large-scale nuclear reactor projects in the U.S. Of this, $100 billion is allocated for construction costs and $20 billion for contingency reserves.

The nuclear agreement was signed by both governments along with Westinghouse Electric, Korea Electric Power Corp., and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power. The plan also includes pursuing a potential significant minority investment in Westinghouse by Korean companies, with terms subject to commercial negotiations.

Technologies

SEC Advances Crypto Custody Rules as Major Legislation Languishes in Congress

The SEC has proposed new crypto custody rules for investment advisers and funds while comprehensive legislation remains stalled in Congress, creating a regulatory pathway for digital asset holdings.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has unveiled proposed regulations designed to simplify the process for investment advisers and regulated funds to maintain cryptocurrency holdings for clients, as American regulators move forward with crafting digital asset rules following the stalling of comprehensive legislation on Capitol Hill.

The proposal, revealed Thursday, would create a specialized framework governing how registered investment advisers, investment companies, and business development companies maintain custody of crypto assets.

The modifications aim to update decades-old custody requirements and eliminate regulatory obstacles that the SEC says have restricted advisers’ capacity to provide crypto-related investment options.

Under the proposed regulations, crypto assets could be held in self-custody under “certain circumstances,” while state trust companies could also function as custodians for crypto assets belonging to clients and regulated funds.

The changes could also grant regulated funds expanded authority to offer investors crypto-related investment strategies, according to the SEC.

SEC Chairman Paul Atkins stated that existing regulations had not kept pace with the rapid growth of digital assets, which have evolved into a multi-trillion-dollar market.

“Today’s proposal would provide a clear regulatory framework for the custody of crypto assets, giving investment advisers and funds a compliant pathway where none existed before,” Atkins said.

The proposal arrives as U.S. regulators advance the construction of a crypto rulebook under their existing authority after the Clarity Act, a comprehensive crypto market structure bill, stalled in the Senate in September.

This represents another step in the SEC’s broader initiative to reshape the U.S. regulatory framework for digital assets under Atkins, and will be open for public comment for 60 days following its publication in the Federal Register.

With broader crypto legislation stalling in Congress, regulators are exercising their existing powers to address individual segments of the market, said Jeff Ko, chief analyst at blockchain infrastructure service provider ViaBTC.

“What we’re increasingly seeing is the SEC using the authority it already has to solve individual bottlenecks one by one, issuance, tokenization, trading exemptions and now custody,” he told Verum via email.

The changes could also intensify competition among crypto custodians, potentially reducing the cost and complexity of investing in digital assets, he said, adding that institutional custody has historically been concentrated among a relatively small number of providers.

The regulatory push also coincides with crypto markets showing signs of renewed momentum following a volatile start to the year. Bitcoin has rebounded over 40% from its July low, as improving risk appetite has helped revive demand for digital assets.

The recovery follows a prolonged downturn from late 2025 into the first half of 2026.