As a good technology enthusiast that you are, you followed the 2023 Mobile World Congress very closely , which saw HONOR among the protagonists , a Chinese brand that broke away from HUAWEI in the now distant 2020, which presented three new interesting devices: Magic5 Lite , Magic 5Pro and Magic Vs.
The characteristics of these three devices have left you positively impressed but, before putting your hand in your wallet and buying one, would you like to have a clearer idea about their characteristics and how they work? Well, then you are right since in this article you will be able to read my review on the HONOR Magic 5 Series .
In the next few lines, in fact, I will be able to provide you with more details on the main features that make the aforementioned devices attractive for fans of the tech sector, so that you can be able to understand which of these can fully satisfy your needs. You just have to take the time to read this review and you will see that, after reading it, you will have much clearer ideas. Enjoy the reading!
Index
- Who is Honor
- The HONOR Magic5 Series
- HONOR Magic5 Lite
- HONOR Magic5 Pro
- HONOR Magic Vs
Who is Honor
Before we get into the actual review, let me give you more insight into who HONOR is . If you don’t know this brand very well, you should focus on this first part of the article before moving on to the next .
HONOR is a brand born in 2013 , formerly owned by HUAWEI , which deals with the development and production of smartphones, tablets, wearable devices, computers. Initially the brand was used by HUAWEI to market its moderately priced products to a young audience without compromising on quality. This has made HONOR a brand highly appreciated by users, especially by lovers of products with an excellent quality-price ratio .
However, something changed on November 17, 2020 , the day in which HUAWEI communicated with a short press release that the HONOR brand would be sold to Shenzen Zhixin New Information Technology (a consortium of Chinese companies completely independent from HAUWEI) to ensure the very survival of the brand following the enormous pressure to which it had been subjected due to the ban of Donald Trump , which targeted HUAWEI and its subsidiaries.
In the meantime HONOR has continued to launch several devices on the market, also entering the top-of-the-range sector (as the launch of the Magic4 Pro , presented in 2022 , clearly testifies ), also continuing to collaborate with brands of the caliber of Google, thus ensuring the presence of Google services on marketed devices , in addition to the presence of “made in the USA” hardware, such as Qualcomm’s Snapdragon SoC family , placing the devices on a large scale.
The HONOR Magic5 Series
Let’s now analyze the HONOR Magic5 Series in detail, getting to know the HONOR Magic5 Lite , HONOR Magic5 Pro and HONOR Magic VS more closely , presented at the MWC 2023 in Barcelona .
HONOR Magic5 Lite
Let’s start by talking about the HONOR Magic5 Lite . This smartphone, placed in the mid-range of the market and equipped with 5G connectivity , boasts among its main features an excellent battery life , a modern and up-to-date design , combined with lightness and good handling.
But let’s proceed in order by first talking about the battery. If what you are looking for is a device that can guarantee you excellent autonomy, even in the event of intense use of the device, HONOR’s Magic5 Lite can certainly be right for you, given that it has a 5,100 mAh battery, which with mild use , it can guarantee even more than a day of use with a single full charge! Really not bad!
Speaking of the battery, keep in mind that the device’s sales package does not include the power supply (sold separately), there is no support for wireless charging . Good fast charging , which supports the power of 40W .
Now let’s move on to the design . The device is beautiful, really beautiful! The curved display combined with some captivating colors in which it is marketed (such as Emerald Green and Titanium Silver ), certainly do not make it go unnoticed.
To this we must add the lightness of the Magic5 Lite which, given its large 6.67-inch diagonal , is somewhat surprising: it weighs 175 g and has a thickness of 7.9 mm .
Since I mentioned the display, know that it is a 6.67-inch curved AMOLED screen with a refresh rate of 120Hz , featuring ultra-narrow borders , with 93% body surface coverage , providing a visual experience totally immersive.
With regard to performance , the presence of 6 GB of RAM (with an additional 5 GB thanks to HONOR RAM Turbo technology ) and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 695 5G chip made with the 6nm production process , which moreover makes it less energy-intensive (a further point in favor on the autonomy side), gives the device good usability, in line with the mid-range.
To accompany all the excellent 64 MP camera on the back; there is also a 5MP wide angle and a 2MP macro , which offer their best especially if there are good light conditions, unlike the main sensor which, for better or worse, manages to obtain good photos in almost all situations.
There is also the fingerprint reader placed under the display , thanks to which it is possible to unlock the device and authorize purchases easily.
HONOR Magic5 Pro
Now let’s move on to the HONOR Magic5 Pro . If you are looking for a camera-phone instead of a battery-phone, this device is definitely preferable to the one I mentioned in the previous chapter .
Its photographic sector is, in fact, considerably developed. Its 50MP main camera with f / 1.6 aperture and a custom 1/1.12 inch sensor , is placed on the back, guarantees quality shots even in low light conditions and, given the wide focal aperture, allows you to take photos with a great bokeh .
The 50MP ultra-wide-angle camera with f / 2.0 aperture and a 122° field of view is also a significant plus: thanks to this sensor, in fact, it is possible to take interesting shots by capturing a large portion of the scene. The ultra-wide-angle camera is also capable of taking macro shots with a minimum focus of 2.5cm .
Also on the back is the rear camera housing for the 50MP telephoto lens with Sony IMX858 sensor , capable of guaranteeing an optical zoom of up to 3.5 x (being an optical zoom there is no loss of quality) and a digital zoom up to 100 x which, thanks to the computational optical algorithm (called Ultra Fusion Computational Optics ), allows you to obtain sharp and quite appreciable shots. The telephoto lens can also take macro shots with a minimum focus of 30cm .
As for video recording , thanks to this somewhat “bodied” camera sector it is also possible to count on an excellent cinema mode , as well as the possibility of recording in 4K at 60 FPS with EIS stabilization (electronic stabilization) and OIS (optical stabilization) .
Always staying in the photo and video field, I’m talking about the front camera . It is a 12MP sensor with f / 2.0 aperture with fixed focus and 3D face recognition , to unlock it in total safety (for the record, there is also the fingerprint sensor under the display), as well as to get perfect selfies .
In relation to photography, I want to tell you about the Falcon feature . What is it about? Basically it is a mode that, using a proprietary algorithm, takes pictures of moving subjects in a much sharper and clearer way than in the past. This allows you to create decidedly interesting and particular shots in many situations: whether it is to immortalize your dog while running in the park or to photograph your child while playing football with his friends, the final results will certainly be appreciable.
As well as the HONOR Magic5 Lite, the Pro also boasts a design of sure visual impact , with well-defined and at the same time soft lines, thanks to the large 6.81-inch curved screen (in this case it is an LTPO panel from 1312 x 2848 pixels and variable refresh rate up to 120Hz ), which covers a large part of the body surface.
Still remaining on the subject of the display, this makes use of PWM technology at 2160 Hz , thanks to which flickering is limited in low brightness situations. Furthermore, the panel is 10-bit , supports HDR10+ and the peak brightness in HDR is 1800 nits , offering excellent visibility even in non-optimal light conditions (for example when you are outdoors on a very sunny day ).
To complete the data sheet there is the 5,100 mAh battery which guarantees good autonomy , the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC + 12GB of RAM and 512GB of UFS 4.0 storage , which offer excellent performance and fluidity .
HONOR Magic Vs
We conclude “in beauty” by mentioning the HONOR Magic Vs , the first HONOR foldable marketed in the Old Continent. In relation to this, I would like to focus on two aspects in particular: the design and its particular hinge .
In relation to the design , just see it to understand that it is a huge step forward compared to the devices of its competitors: when the Magic Vs is closed , in fact, it looks like a “classic” smartphone, resulting compact and easy to handle, despite its 12.9 mm thick , also thanks to the fact that, unlike the other foldables on the market, it has both sides perfectly parallel , thus making its aesthetics more pleasant; when open , on the other hand, the thickness of only 6.1 mm is reached .
The “finesse” relating to the parallel closure of the two sides of the Magic Vs is also due to the particular hinge present on the device. In fact, it is a hinge without gears , which reduces the number of structural components of the previous generation: from 92 we have gone to just 4 structural components! Speaking of the hinge, from tests conducted by HONOR, this one is able to withstand up to 400,000 folds (if you fold it 200 times a day, therefore, it should last at least 5 years).
The weight is 267 grams , also justified by the presence of a battery of no less than 5000 mAh , one of the most capacious ever to land on a folding bike, which guarantees more than sufficient autonomy . When closed, the device measures 160.3 x 72.6mm , while when open it measures 160.3 x 141.5mm .
Returning to the aesthetic beauty of the device, this is conferred not only by the hinge, but also by the two large displays on it. The external one is a 2560 × 1080 pixel FHD+ OLED with a 6.45-inch diagonal , an aspect ratio of 21:9 that covers 90% of the device surface with HDR10+ , DCI-P3 color gamut and brightness up to 1200 nits .
Opening the device, on the other hand, the excellent 7.9 ″ OLED folding panel in FHD + resolution (2272 × 1984 pixels) with an aspect ratio of 10.3: 9 , a refresh rate of 90 Hz , HDR10+ , DCI-P3 color gamut and brightness up to 800 nits .
Concluding with a roundup of the other specifications of the Magic Vs, I mention the presence of the triple rear camera with a 54MP IMX800 main sensor , a 50MP Ultra-Wide & Macro sensor and an 8MP 3X optical zoom telephoto lens and the good performance offered from the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC , Dual-SIM and e-SIM support .