Honor Magic V5 Review Slim Design Huge Camera Bump
The foldable phone market is currently witnessing a spec war, with manufacturers fighting over fractions of a millimeter to claim the title of 'thinnest foldable.' Honor has entered the ring with its Magic V5, boasting an impressive 8.8 mm thickness when folded. However, this claim comes with a significant, camera-bump-sized catch.
Image Credits: Ivan Mehta
Design and Display A Mixed Bag
While the phone's slim profile feels great in the hand, the ergonomics are compromised by the large camera module. Holding the phone requires a conscious effort to avoid the bump, which can feel uncomfortable. This adjustment can take a few days to get used to.
Image Credits: Ivan Mehta
When placed on a flat surface, the phone sits at an angle. This is manageable when folded, but once you open it up, the device wobbles, making it difficult to use on a table.
Image Credits: Ivan Mehta
In its unfolded state, the frame is just 4.1 mm thick, which is impressively thin, even when compared to competitors like the Oppo Find N5 and Huawei’s triple-folding phone.
The Phone’s thickness compared to the Pixel 10 Pro. Image Credits: Ivan Mehta
Apart from the camera bump, the hardware is solid. The device is powered by the top-tier Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite processor. The displays are a key highlight:
- Cover Display: 6.43-inch screen (2376 x 1060 resolution)
- Main Display: 7.95-inch screen (2172 x 2352 resolution)
Honor has reinforced the inner panel with carbon fiber for better fall protection and applied an anti-scratch material. The screens are incredibly bright with a peak brightness of 5,000 nits, making them excellent for reading articles and emails. Both displays support LTPO technology, allowing the refresh rate to dynamically switch between 1Hz and 120Hz for buttery-smooth navigation. While most apps adjust well, some games like “Diablo Immortal” had distorted resolution on the main screen.
Image Credits: Ivan Mehta
Build, Battery, and Performance
The build quality is sturdy, featuring IP58 and IP59 ratings for dust and water resistance. The second-generation Honor Super Steel hinge mechanism feels solid and reliable.
The foldable packs a massive 5,820 mAh silicone carbon battery, which comfortably gets you through a full day of use, even with some gaming. It supports 66W wired charging and 50W wireless charging, with the 66W wired charger included in the box. The company claims you can get a 50% charge in just 16 minutes.
Camera System and AI Features
The Magic V5's prominent camera housing features a versatile triple-sensor setup:
- Main Camera: 50-megapixel, f/1.6 aperture
- Ultrawide Camera: 50-megapixel
- Telephoto Camera: 64-megapixel with 3x optical zoom
The phone also includes two 20-megapixel selfie cameras, one for each screen.
The camera takes good photos in various conditions, capturing fine details with generally accurate colors, though its computational algorithm sometimes boosts red tones. A very capable super macro mode allows for detailed close-up shots.
Photo Gallery
Honor leverages AI for its 100x super-zoom mode, which uses generative AI to enhance details. While it can make distant text legible, the results on other objects often look clearly AI-generated, unlike the more natural output from competitors like the Pixel 10 Pro.
Honor 100x Zoom. Image Credits: Ivan Mehta
Pixel 100x Zoom. Image Credits: Ivan Mehta
The phone also includes a suite of AI editing tools, though their performance is mixed. The AI eraser to remove objects or people can be hit-or-miss, as shown in a Wimbledon photo where it removed part of a player's torso.
Original Photo. Image Credits: Ivan Mehta
AI-Edited Photo. Image Credits: Ivan Mehta
Other features like AI cutout, which lets you move an object in a photo, can leave behind artifacts. An image-to-video function powered by Google’s Veo 2 model is also included, but the results are often uncanny.
Software and Availability
The Magic V5 runs on Honor’s MagicOS 9, which is based on Android 15. The software is not overly cluttered but does include some unnecessary pre-installed Honor apps. A standout software feature is the on-device call translation, which supports six languages and processes data locally for privacy.
Honor is releasing the Magic V5 in Europe, APAC, and the Middle East. The 512GB version will start at €1,999 in Europe, positioning it as a strong competitor to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold series and a compelling option for those interested in the growing foldable market.
