Hotline: will platforms become the metaverse?

Most mainstream phone options are kind of the same, year in and year out — but that doesn’t mean there’s no innovation to be found. The Verge’s Allison Johnson is at Mobile World Congress, and joins the show to report on all the modular phones, robot phones, small phones, big phones, and (alas) 6G phones set to hit the market this year. After that, The Verge’s Jess Weatherbed explains the phenomenon of the gadget strap, and makes the case that they’re an increasingly useful accessory as our phones become even more important to our daily lives. (Yes, even if you have pockets.) Finally, The Verge’s Jay Peters helps David answer a question from the Vergecast Hotline (call 866-VERGE11 or email vergecast@theverge.com!) about whether the metaverse, however you want to define it, is ever going to be realized.

Further reading:

• Oh great, here comes 6G 

• Honor claims its Robot Phone will launch later this year 

• Lenovo made a Franken-laptop with modular ports and a second screen 

• Vivo’s next phone will launch with a professional camera rig 

• Tecno’s latest concept phone is lit by neon 

• Honor’s Magic V6 is the first foldable with an IP69 rating 

• The Motorola Razr Fold is shaping up to be pure flagship

• Xiaomi’s super-slim power bank costs extra in orange. 

• Honor’s thinnest tablet doesn’t come cheap. 

• Peak Design has wearable gadget straps for people who hate bags 

• Apple’s misunderstood crossbody iPhone strap might be the best I’ve seen 

• Meta confirms Reality Labs layoffs and shifts to invest more in wearables

• Meta’s VR metaverse is ditching VR

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