MWC 2025 is officially in the books, and Wareable was on the ground in Barcelona to hunt down the best wearables on show.
It’s fair to say it wasn’t a vintage year at the Fira, with most brands focusing on AI software announcements and less on new product releases. However, that didn’t stop us from testing new glasses, smartwatches, and wearables concepts from industry giants and startups, respectively.
Here, we’ll provide a quick overview of the top wearables at the show.
Honor Watch 5 Ultra
Honor kicked off MWC festivities with a 90-minute keynote mainly consisting of AI-focused announcements. Yet, it did helpfully save 15 minutes at the end for some product reveals, including the all-new Watch 5 Ultra.
If we’re honest, it’s a slight stretch of the ‘Ultra’ moniker, but it’s also true that this is by far the most premium watch Honor has produced. It features dual-frequency GNSS, ECG capabilities, a surprisingly light titanium case, and plenty of battery life.
It looks to be a bit of a steal at €239 (full pricing details are still scarce), but we were also a bit underwhelmed by the software during an extended bout of hands-on time.
We would have loved to see this one running Google’s Wear OS. However, we’ll reserve full judgment until we’ve put the review unit through its paces over the next week or two.
- Read more in our Honor Watch 5 Ultra hands-on review
Xiaomi Watch S4
While not strictly new, Xiaomi’s Watch S4 was introduced to the global market at MWC this week.
The latest model features many of the same specs as its predecessor—notably, the 1.43-inch, 466 x 466 resolution display and a 486mAh battery. The design is also still defined by the novel interchangeable bezels, though these have been updated this time to include more traditional watch details.
However, Xiaomi has pumped the AMOLED’s specs from a fairly paltry 600 nits peak brightness to a whopping 2,200 nits at its peak. I can’t say this massively helped in the bright sunshine on Barcelona’s main beach strip, as shown above, but initial testing does show some promising signs of improved heart rate tracking accuracy.
- Read more on the Xiaomi Watch S4
Mibro GS Explorer S, GS Pro 2, and GS Active 2
Lesser-spotted Mibro splashed at MWC with three new sports watches: the GS Explorer S, GS Pro 2, and GS Active 2. Each model caters to different fitness needs—from outdoor adventurers to triathletes to runners—with a strong emphasis on affordability.
The GS Explorer S is essentially an updated version of the outdoor-focused GS Explorer Wareable’s expert tester Mike Sawh reviewed last year. However, Mibro has only added Bluetooth calling to its list of features and slightly tweaked the design, which feels a bit odd.
Meanwhile, the GS Pro 2 and GS Active 2 are less rugged and more pointed towards runners, rather than outdoor users. We were told all three will be landing soon. And though no price information was available, either, I expect this trio to follow the ultra-budget approach we’ve come to expect from the brand.
- Read more on the Mibro GS Explorer, GS Pro 2, and GS Active 2
Tecno AI Glasses Pro
Tecno has found fame for its budget-friendly tablets and smartphones in recent years, but it became the latest to join the smart glasses game this week with two releases.
The brand’s AI Glasses Pro was the more impressive of the two, thanks to the AR-ready features. The design features a central 50MP camera with a 100-degree field-of-view, with the browline style (available in the titanium-ish color shown above or black) feeling relatively close to a pair of ordinary glasses.
Like others on this list, the pricing and release dates for these glasses is yet to be firmed up. However, when they do eventually land, users can expect real-time language translation, AI-driven navigation, and fitness tracking from the Pro model.
- Read more from our time with the Tecno AI Glasses Pro
Xpanceo’s smart contact lens
Ukrainian-founded (and UAE-based) smart contact lens startup Xpanceo showed off its concept this week at MWC, and we were impressed by the ambition.
Designed as an unburdened way to experience all the same benefits of glasses, the brand had an early prototype of its technology on its stand. There’s still no way to properly try it out—or, at least, there’s no hygienic way for Xpanceo to supply demos—but we did get a brief glimpse and run-through via its monocle on a stick (shown above).
The brand is gearing up to launch its first consumer lens in 2026, with its miniature built-in display potentially ready to deliver real-time health monitoring, AR prompts, and vision improvements for colorblind people.
- Read more on the Xpanceo smart contact lens
TCL RayNeo Air 3S (and the X3 Pro & V3)
The TCL stand was consistently packed during our go-arounds at the Fira, and we think plenty of that had to do with the brand’s trio of RayNeo smart glasses. We tried two of these at CES, but the all-new Air 3S was the star of the show in Barcelona.
The top-end X3 Pro model and entry-level V3 glasses (above) were given their full European debut. Like at CES 2025, we weren’t totally convinced by the technology, but each pair of glasses is certainly among the more convincing designs.
Unfortunately, we only had a brief demo of the more closed-display Air 3S before the battery died. However, these appear to be very promising updates to the Air 2S that arrived last year. Only $259 and launching in April, these 76g glasses are less about delivering AR or AI features.
Instead, they’re more on the wearable display end of the glasses spectrum, boasting the equivalent of a 200-inch screen.
We don’t make a habit of covering these kinds of glasses here at Wareable, but they do represent a strong signal of intent from TCL to offer a broad array of smart glasses.
Honorable mention: Samsung’s ‘Project Moohan’
After first breaking cover at Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked event back in January, the ‘Project Moohan’ Android XR headset took a turn on the catwalk at MWC this week.
No mega-exciting details were shared about the device, but it was showcased on the stand, and Samsung confirmed at the show that it will launch later this year.
Unfortunately, there’s not much more to say about this one right now, given nobody was allowed to hold or try a demo of the headset.
However, it’s very clearly the brand’s answer to Apple Vision Pro, featuring a very similar ski goggle-like design, four cameras on the front, and control strips on the halo.
