Samsung sets the tone for high-end folding smartphones but Honor’s Magic Vs has opted for a similar book-style fold for its entry. Which, yes, looks similar to the South Korean giant’s device but that’s impossible to avoid. Unless you fold it diagonally or something. Nobody wants that.
Stuff got a chance to check out Honor’s China-only (for now) Magic Vs handset and it’s a solid entry into the world of foldable smartphones. Will it make Samsung sweat? Sure, in a few places. If we can get it here at the same as overseas pricing, then in more than a few places. Here’s what you need to know.
Mind the gap
Amazingly, Honor’s Magic Vs smartphone manages to be both thinner and lighter than Samsung’s Galaxy Fold 4. There’s a little engineering sorcery at work here, since the hinge and fold get together to create a gapless device — until you open it up. It feels a fair bit like a regular phone until you do that.
The build is all metal and glass, which is normal for headlining smartphones in 2022. The rear panel is somewhat textured, a welcome change from utterly slick (and probably doomed) folding smartphones. The camera module will also do its part to keep Honor’s device from falling to the floor too. It’s awfully sticky-outy.
Honor’s hinge design is great. A combination of strength and a total absence of seam gap make for an attractive device. It feels good in hand too. Honor says the hinge will stand up to 400,000-lifetime folds (or ten years, whichever comes first). But don’t expect folding phone miracles here. There’s a screen crease. There will probably always be a screen crease in designs like this.
Also included? A side-mounted fingerprint sensor. Not included? A 3.5mm headphone jack. There is a dual-SIM slot to play with but you can only use SIM cards in it. There’s 256GB of storage in this phone. Hopefully, that’s going to be enough for you.
Phone first, tablet second
Honor’s got a priority for its folding smartphone, even as it is giving users options. The outer screen — you know, the traditional smartphone one — is clearly superior to the inner one. The ‘proper’ display features 1,200 nits of brightness, a 120Hz refresh rate, and makes use of an excellent OLED panel. You’ve got no cause for complaint here.
Inside, on the 7.9in inner display, matters take a slight step down. There’s a 90Hz refresh rate and brightness is limited to 800 nits. But the folding panel looks and feels better than some we’ve tried, which is always a plus. View angles and colours are both excellent to boot. Both displays support HDR10+ video and stylus support is also a thing, in case you’re feeling scribbly.
But Samsung’s Galaxy Fold, this phone’s obvious competition, absolutely has it beat in the screen department. But Honor has a chance at beating the South Korean giant in the price department, so maybe it’ll all work out.
Playing with the big boys
The Honor Magic Vs has everything going for it right now. But like every phone released towards the end of a cycle, that’s not going to last. There’s a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 inside and it’s currently the best mobile chipset you can find in an Android. But South Africans won’t be allowed to buy this one (if at all) until some time in 2023.
By then, there’s going to be a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 floating around. Samsung’s almost certainly going to use it for its Fold 5 smartphone, sometime around the middle of the year. If all you care about is speed, it might be worth waiting to see how much Samsung’s folding phones cost next year.
That said, this should still be plenty speedy when it becomes available outside of China. Depending on the price, a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 might even be the more attractive option going into next year. Don’t expect any slowdown unless you’re really rough on your multitasking and even then, it’s going to take a massive effort to dent the Magic Vs.
Bigger is (usually) better
Honor’s folding smartphone is packing a 5,000mAh battery. That’s in line with non-folding flagships (and more than a few mid-range devices) but it also means that the Magic Vs is capable of lasting out the day without letting you down. This is a good thing, obviously.
But there’s a small fly in the ointment. If you’ve become used to the ease of wireless charging, you’re in for a disappointment. There’s none here. Instead, there’s 66W wired charging but at least Honor’s decided that you’re worthy of another power brick. It’s included in the box. It’ll charge to full in under an hour. A third of that time will get you to your next charge stop easily enough.
The eyes have it
Honor’s supposed to be making improvements to how the Magic Vs handles its cameras. These software tweaks will turn up where we can’t get to them but we can make an educated guess as to how it’ll all perform. The main 50MP f/1.9 lens and Sony sensor should capture loads of light. When it’s bracketed by a 50MP f/2.0 ultrawide lens and an 8MP f/2.4 telephoto with 3x optical zoom, you can expect loads of versatility from this folding smartphone’s camera setup.
There are another two cameras stashed away in the phone. Two 16MP sensors, one on the outer display and one on the inner, are set up for video calls and the like. Without exploring the possibilities the form factor provides, the Honor Magic Vs should have what it takes to satisfy most camera needs. Now just to see what software improvements are due next year.
Honor Magic Vs initial verdict
Honor’s Magic Vs could just prove to be a serious contender in the still compact folding smartphone field. It’s got the look down, it’s toting some serious cameras, and battery life is better than you’d expect. Samsung should watch its back and everyone else… well, they’ve got a bit of road to travel.
Honor has come some way from its perception as Huawei’s low-budget smartphone option. It’s jumped past entry-level all the way to a premium brand. More or less. There are a few missing pieces to the puzzle.
Samsung’s water resistance rating and wireless charging features would go a long way toward making Honor’s phone competitive. But it’s got a little time. Perhaps a lot of time, since a South African launch isn’t a done deal yet. But Chinese buyers can expect to pay about R19,000 for access to one of these phones, which isn’t a bad price at all. It could well make Samsung’s Galaxy Fold 4 nervous unless there’s a decent price drop incoming for Samsung’s foldables in 2023.
Honor Magic Vs technical specifications
Screen 7.9in, 2272×1984 folding OLED w/ 90Hz, HDR10+
6.45in, 2560×1080 OLED w/ 120Hz, HDR10+
CPU Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 octa-core
Memory 8GB RAM
Cameras 50MP, f/1.9 main w/ PDAF + 8MP, f/2.4 telephoto w/ OIS, PDAF, 3x optical zoom + 50MP, f/2.0 ultrawide rear
16MP, f/2.5 front / 16MP, f/2.5 inner
Storage 256GB on-board
Operating System Android 12 w/ Magic UI 7
Battery 5000mAh, 66W wired charging
Dimensions 160x142x6.1mm (unfolded) / 160x73x12.9mm (folded), 261g