Hands-on: Honor Magic V2 changes the paradigm for foldable phones

Foldables have been mainstream for just a few years now, and whereas they now function lighter hinges and extra sturdy designs, they’re nonetheless heavier and never as straightforward to make use of as conventional telephones. Honor is aiming to alter that narrative with the Magic V2. The foldable launched in China again in July, and made its debut in world markets at IFA.There’s a variety of pleasure across the Magic V2, and it comes down to 1 factor: design. The foldable weighs simply 231g — 22g lower than the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and 3g lower than the Galax S23 Ultra — however that is not its greatest achievement; the place it actually excels is the svelte profile. Coming in at a thickness of 9.9mm when folded and an insane 4.6mm when unfolded, the Magic V2 is in a league of its personal on this explicit space.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)To offer you some context, the Magic V2 makes the Galaxy Z Fold 5 look outdated; Samsung’s newest foldable feels too heavy and cumbersome to make use of subsequent to it, and the hinge articulation is not as easy. The better part is that the Magic V2 has a bigger 6.43-inch outer display that mimics the texture of a standard cellphone — in contrast to the too-narrow cowl display on the Z Fold 5 — and the 7.92-inch interior display is likely one of the largest of any foldable.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)Honor was capable of do all this and nonetheless carry the general weight right down to 231g, and that is no small feat. More than every other foldable, the Magic V2 feels good in-hand, and whereas the load definitely has loads to do with it, the skinny profile additionally goes a great distance in making the texture nearer to a daily cellphone. Sure, it is just a few millimeters thicker than the S23 Ultra, however that does not actually have an effect on usability.Image 1 of 4(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)In truth, I did not really feel the necessity to unfold the system more often than not. But that does not imply the interior display is not pretty much as good — removed from it. Both the interior and outer screens function OLED panels and go as much as 120Hz, they usually measure as much as the Galaxy Z Fold 5 each by way of coloration vibrancy and brightness ranges.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)Honor additionally made a variety of modifications to the hinge, together with including extra titanium and utilizing fewer elements in its development, and the result’s instantly evident. The articulation is among the many smoothest of any foldable I’ve used, and it affords a function much like Samsung’s Flex Mode the place the interior display stays locked at varied angles between 45 and 130 levels — a giant uptick over the Magic Vs.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)The hinge system is touted to final 400,000 instances, and within the little time I used the Magic V2, I did not discover something that will make me doubt its sturdiness — the construct high quality is on par with the most effective foldable telephones. The crease can also be barely noticeable, and whereas it is not fairly as invisible because the Find N2 collection, it’s higher than that of the Z Fold 5.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)I additionally just like the design modifications that Honor made with this technology; the again encompasses a vegan leather-based end that feels nice to carry in-hand — I want it to the glass again of the Magic Vs — and the perimeters do not have flat sides anymore. This makes unfolding the Magic V2 considerably simpler, and at the very least in my utilization, that is the most important enchancment.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)While Honor launched a number of design modifications for the higher, the one space the place the Magic V2 lags behind the Z Fold 5 is ingress safety. It does not have any official IP ranking, and this function continues to be unique to Samsung’s foldables. Rounding out the design, the digital camera housing on the again is sort of similar to the magic Vs, and the rectangular design homes a trio of sensors — a 50MP most important lens, 50MP wide-angle, and 20MP zoom lens with 2.5x optical zoom.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)The Magic V2 is not lacking any options on the {hardware} aspect both, with the foldable outfitted with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and 16GB of RAM as customary. The base model has 256GB of storage, and there is 512GB and 1TB editions on sale — there’s nonetheless no point out if the 1TB mannequin will debut exterior China. You get Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, dual-band GPS, and world 5G connectivity.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)One space the place the Magic V2 blazes forward of its rivals is battery life. There’s a big 5000mAh battery underneath the hood — 600mAh greater than what you get on the Z Fold 5 — and it simply delivers the most effective battery lifetime of any foldable system at the moment. There’s loads to love on the charging entrance as nicely, with the cellphone providing 66W charging tech.I can not discuss digital camera high quality or software program options my unit was working pre-production software program, however the model that may go on sale globally has Magic OS 7.2 primarily based on Android 13 out of the field. Honor ensures three platform updates for the Magic V2, and whereas that is one lower than what you get with the Z Fold 5, it’s a good begin.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)To sum up, the Magic V2 seems like a technological breakthrough in foldable design, and I can not fairly get previous how mild the foldable is — the svelte design and easy hinge completely make a distinction in each day use. Without getting too hyperbolic, the Magic V2 takes away one of many greatest hurdles on the subject of foldables: usability.(Image credit score: Apoorva Bhardwaj / Android Central)The system is simply as mild and simple to make use of as conventional telephones, and that makes it rather more alluring than what Samsung and Xiaomi have to supply in the mean time. While Honor did not formally reveal what the Magic V2 will value globally, it’s slated to be in keeping with final 12 months’s Magic Vs, and which means it is going to undercut the Galaxy Z Fold 5. The solely query left is when you may get your palms on the Magic V2. That’s nonetheless some methods off, as Honor says the foldable will likely be accessible globally in Q1 2024 — at the very least three months away. That’s a prolonged wait contemplating the cellphone had an official launch at IFA, however having used it for per week, I can say that it is price it.