Chinese language smartphone maker Tecno is channeling Challenge Ara with its newest Modular Cellphone idea, previewed forward of MWC 2026.
It seems like a lifetime in the past that the dream of a really modular smartphone died, and whereas Google ultimately pulled the plug on the formidable Challenge Ara almost a decade in the past, the concept of a “build-it-yourself” handset has been revived. Ahead of MWC 2026, Tecno is the most recent to attempt its hand at this imaginative and prescient with what the corporate is looking the “Modular Magnetic Interconnection Expertise idea.”
The core thought from Tecno is a “Modular Smartphone Ecosystem” that depends on ultra-thin magnetic structure. Not like the admittedly chunky early prototypes of the previous, Tecno is aiming for one thing a lot sleeker. Whereas now we have but to see the smartphone in operation, the bottom system measures simply 4.9mm thick. Even if you snap on the 4.5mm energy financial institution module, the overall footprint is roughly the identical as an ordinary flagship telephone you would possibly carry right this moment.
Though the magnetic attachment isn’t the identical, the tactic of snapping on modules is eerily much like the Challenge Ara days. Whereas Google had a body with slide-in and pogo-pin connectors to mean you can swap out virtually every part from the processor onboard to the digital camera module and every part else in between.
Tecno’s idea telephone affords a distinct degree of modular functionality. Utilizing magnetic attachments that successfully “pair” with the core telephone utilizing Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and mmWave to attach with the added modules. In that regard, it’s extra accent fairly than core performance that you simply’re including with these modules.
Tecno is displaying off two completely different design languages for this modular telephone idea. There’s the ATOM version, which encompasses a silver-aluminum physique with crimson accents, and the MODA version, which leans right into a extra “geek-inspired” aesthetic – which is an odd technique to describe a colorway. The again of the system is split into eight modular zones to assist information the place you place your equipment.
The small ecosystem at the moment contains about ten completely different modules. There’s an Motion Digicam for creators, a Telephoto Lens that makes use of the telephone display screen as a viewfinder, and even off-grid communication instruments. Very similar to the promise of Ara, the purpose is to permit customers to hold solely the {hardware} they want for a particular day fairly than being caught with a hard and fast set of manufacturing unit specs.
As with most MWC ideas, there isn’t any phrase on a particular launch date or pricing for a business model of this system. Tecno is framing this as a “long-term design pondering” undertaking. Whether or not or not it ever involves a future system stays to be seen, but it surely’s an fascinating reimagining of “modular” than we’ve seen earlier than.
We’re hoping that we will become familiar with it in Barcelona with MWC proper on the horizon. Relaxation assured, we’ll be sharing our ideas ought to now we have that chance, as we’ll be scouring the halls for cool tech within the coming days. Keep tuned.
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