( CNN ) -- With so many flashy tablets and high-speed smartphones on display , it 's easy to forget the important role low-cost phones play at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona . But while headlines are grabbed by expensive devices crammed with high-speed processors , crystal clear display screens and eye-poppingly powerful cameras , many manufacturers are still focused on the basics . For mobile phone makers , real market expansion areas are now found in developing countries where mobiles have still to connect billions of people and offer life-changing internet access . Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt warned in his keynote address to the congress that for the `` aspiring majority '' of five out of seven billion global citizens , `` the web is still a scarce resource . '' `` For most people the digital revolution has not arrived yet . Every revolution begins with a small group of people . Imagine how much better it would be with another five billion people online , '' he said . Read more about Schmidt 's 'digital caste system ' warning . Ahead of the Congress , Dr Hamadoun TourÃ© , secretary-general of the U.N. 's International Telecommunication Union , told CNN that mobiles represented the `` best hope of accelerating progress '' towards global poverty reduction goals . `` With seven billion people 's needs to serve , information and communications technologies represent the single most powerful channel we have ever had to reach out to others , wherever they may live , whatever their circumstances , '' he said . Read more about how mobiles are changing lives in Africa . But while marketing mobiles to the developing world was a major theme at the event , there was no getting away from the head-turning technology on display . Gadget freaks were stunned by Nokia 's unveiling of a phone featuring a powerful 41 megapixel camera , a coup for a manufacturer that has seen its market share eroded by Apple and Android-based technology in recent years . Korean firm Samsung also won plaudits for its Galaxy Beam , capable of projecting images and videos onto walls . With Apple notably absent from Barcelona ( it prefers to stage manage its own product launches ) , its rivals were able to steal a march on its forthcoming iPad 3 by unwrapping the devices they hope will challenge it . So-called `` quad-core '' processors that potentially double the speed of current mobiles were big news , with emerging Chinese player Huawei among those pushing new superfast devices . Read more about trends at the Mobile World Congress . Quad-core is likely to be a major hit with the gaming industry , with phones and tablets able to support the graphics-intensive activities needed for high-end video software . Not everyone was convinced with the merits of quad-core , however . A senior executive from Microsoft -- which used the event to unveil a preview of its long-awaited tablet-friendly Windows 8 operating system -- decried a quad-core `` arms race '' that rarely resulted in better performance . There were also glimpses into a future in which so-called near-field communication technology will allow mobile phones to replace the cash in our pocket . The role mobiles will play in interacting with our cars was also highlighted by Ford 's unveiling of its new B-Max compact and RIM 's BlackBerry-integrated Porsche 911 . This also raised fresh questions about vehicle security and safety . Read more about cars at risk from hackers . Exploration of the future of mobiles , in which our devices continue to look after our health but also snoop on our lifestyles , also stirred debate over the increasing hold they now have over us . `` With our increasing addiction to our mobile phones , we are in danger of creating a monster that we are less and less able to control , '' argued technology skeptic Andrew Keen . Read more about Keen 's fear of 'Frankenstein 's mobiles ' But there 's bad news for anyone thinking about ditching their phone down the toilet : waterproof mobiles are the next big thing .
Supplying phones to emerging markets and connecting world 's poor seen as important theme at mobile event . Mega powerful camera phones , projector phones and super-fast processors among head-turning tech . Mobile World Congress also raised debate over future roles mobiles will play in our lives .