What do you need to know about IFA 2019 in Berlin

IFA Berlin is the most-visited and one of the oldest industry exhibitions in Europe. This event provides the opportunity to explore emerging trends and celebrate the launch of new technologies and products in the electronics and electrical goods industries.

This year, IFA set a new standard by completely selling out 161,200 square meters of show floor space to 1,814 exhibitors, confirming IFA’s role as the leading showcase for the global technology industry. IFA 2018 has not only hosted more innovation and product launches than any previous event, but also presented more digital lifestyle products in one place than any other show worldwide.

If it's a consumer-tech focused company, you can bet your bottom dollar they'll be there, from Acer to ZTE and everyone in between. Some companies may host separate events away from the main Messe conference center in Berlin, but almost all will have a presence. The only big name missing will be Apple, which always chooses to skip IFA and CES.

The big names that usually exhibit include Acer, AMD, Dell, Fossil, Garmin, HP, Hisense, Honor, Huawei, Intel, Lenovo, LG, Motorola, Philips, Samsung and Sony.

As a trade visitor at IFA or IFA Global Markets, you can take part in free exclusive tours for trade visitors that focus on the latest trends. Each tour will take about two hours. Together with a guide, you will visit the stands of between three and five selected exhibitors. The groups are limited to a maximum of 15 persons. Headsets are proved for optimum communication. English and German tours take place simultaneously.

IFA 2019 will take place 06 - 11 September 2019 in Berlin. It opens daily from 10 am to 6 pm.

Tickets price start at 13,00 € - get your Presale Day Ticket here.

Some highlights from the show include:

IFA NEXT Showcase

This presents visionary products and solutions from young and established companies, institutions and startups. The IFA NEXT Innovation Engine brings them on stage – and gives you a great opportunity to touch base with creative visionaries.

For consumers

Due to popular demand in the past years, IFA will continue offering guided tours for seniors and for hearing/visually impaired visitors.

One highlight not to be missed is a visit to one of IFA's events and concerts. It is only during IFA that the exhibition grounds’ “green lung” may be used as a concert arena.

IFA offers a versatile youth and school program from A to Z: Action, cosplay, creativity, education, fitness, gaming, and Zumba – you'll find everything under one roof in the Young IFA Shared Flat in Hall 15.2. IFA also offers school groups perfect opportunities for a project day.

Or visit the legendary IFA Oktoberfest.

Companies to watch

Acer

Computing company Acer always puts on a show during IFA, and for 2019 it's even hosting a keynote session where we're expecting a large chunk of its upcoming line-up to be revealed.

Dell

We expect to see plenty of new products from Dell at IFA 2019. Dell could surprise us with another XPS product reveal or use this opportunity to catch its other product lines up to speed with current computing trends.

Fossil

Wearables continue to have a strong showing at IFA, and Fossil often announces new watches at the show. Could the Fossil Sport 2 make an appearance? If not, expect other brands like Michael Kors or Diesel to fill in that watch-shaped gap around your wrist.

Honor

The Honor 9X, 9X Pro and Honor Band 5 have just launched in China, so could IFA perhaps be their European debut? Regardless, as the company sits under the Huawei umbrella, expect the parent brand to do most of the talking.

Huawei

Last year, Huawei saved its big-hitting Mate 20 / 20 Pro launch for after IFA, but it did, however, introduce the range with the Mate 20 Lite in Berlin. We could see something similar here, with a mid-range handset launched, maybe with the Mate 30 name. You're unlikely to see a flagship launch though, with the company now favouring its own solo shows.

Keynotes

The keynotes demonstrate current and future developments of all relevant IFA segments: lifestyle, telecommunications & infrastructure, TV an entertainment and home appliances. They include: