Hands-on with the Honor Magic V5; coming to the UK late summer!
Honor just launched the Magic V5 foldable in China today, and following the unveiling of the Honor Magic V5, we got the welcome news that the V5 is on the way to Europe and UK too.
I attended a pre-briefing to get hands-on with the new device, where Honor also shared the key specifications for the global edition Magic V5 that is due to be launched in the UK soon.
A full review will follow in time for the launch, along with the eagerly-awaited pricie information.
Honor didn’t allow us to talk about the software, as the final build for the global models is still in development and much of the feature set was missing on these devices.
However, the hardware is final and so you can see below what it looks like, and how it compares to the current model.
The key changes over the already fantastic Honor Magic V3 are a further strengthened hinge design, upgraded cameras, a more powerful chipset – and perhaps the most important of all; a vastly increased battery capacity (up from 5,120mAh to 5,820mAh).
If Honor can maintain the same or similar pricing of the Magic V3 (complete with promotional offers, such as interest-free credit) then it is sure to have a winner on its hands.
Honor’s Magic V5 is the natural progression in a journey that started in 2022 with the first Magic V. The Magic V2 really stepped things up, but when the Magic V3 arrived with water resistance, vastly upgraded cameras, plus wireless charging – as well as being much thinner – it really gave the competition something to worry about.
My thoughts
Of course Honor couldn’t just stop there as others caught up (and even beat Honor’s record for thinness) so now the Magic V5 enabled Honor to regain the crown for being the world’s thinnest foldable smartphone.
Honor seems confident it will hold this record for some time, which is important as the device won’t hit UK stores until around two months after its Chinese launch.
Improving the cameras now brings the device closer to the specs of the non-folding Magic 7 Pro, complete with 100x digital zoom that utilises Honor’s unique AI enhancements. All of the other AI features on recent models will be found here, potentially with some new ones, while Honor is continuing to work closely with Google by utilising Gemini AI features.
While the Magic V5 doesn’t offer faster charging than the Magic V3, it has been given a big jump in overall battery capacity – up from 5,120mAh to 5,820mAh. The V3 already lasted an entire day with relative ease (and without the need to turn features off to cripple the functionality and usability), so this capacity increase should further reduce any remaining battery anxiety – although with fast charging support, you’re not going to need to wait long to top up if the need ever arises on the go.
The hinge upgrade (demonstrated by Honor with a Magic V5 strapped to a shelf and supporting the weight of a bag full of Coke cans) brings major upgrades that should further reduce failures – although Honor told us at the briefing that only 1 in 1,000 devices sold in the UK get returned for repairs.
The phone will be available in black, bronze (with a gradient) and white. All models will also come with a colour matched case with integrated stand. Pricing and final software information was not revealed at the briefing and will be saved for the global launch event taking place in London later this year.
Key Specifications
| Honor Magic V5 | |
|---|---|
| Thickness (open/closed) | 4.1mm / 8.8mm – world’s thinnest so far! |
| Weight | 217g |
| Battery | 5,820mAh with 66W SuperCharge wired charging & 50W wireless charging |
| Cameras (rear) | 50-megapixel Wide camera (f/1.6) with OIS 64-megapixel Periscope telephoto (x3) (f/2.5) with OIS 50-megapixel Ultra Wide camera (f/2.0) Studio Harcourt Paris enhancements |
| Camera (internal and outer screen) | 20-megapixel (f/2.2) |
| Display (inner) | 7.95-inch OLED 120Hz LTPO with 4,320Hz PMW Dimming Up to 5,000 nits peak brightness 1.07 billion colours, 100% DCI-P3 Dolby Vision 2,352×2,172 pixels (403 PPI) Stylus support Honor Super Armoured inner screen + 10x anti-drop, 15x anti-scratch, 3x wear-resistant, 20x impact-resistant, foreign object detection |
| Chipset/RAM/Storage | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite (3nm) 16GB RAM 512GB Storage |
| Hinge | Super Steel Hinge with IP58 and IP59 2300Mpa weight |
| Other | Stylus Support Support for Google Gemini AI + Honor AI apps |
| Colours | White Black Bronze (graduated) – Colour matched protective case included with each device |
Hands-On Photo Gallery
