HONOR Magic V2 long-term review: the revolution of the smartphone?

The HONOR Magic V2 is the thinnest foldable I’ve ever held. To be honest, that’s not hard: in Germany, so far there has only been Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold series. I think they’re great, but I couldn’t use them long-term as a daily driver because they’re too thick and too heavy for me. The Magic V2 shows that it can be done differently.

Design: so thin and light

Closed, the Magic V2 is only 9.9 mm thick, while the Z Fold 5 measures 13.4 mm. So HONOR has made the foldable concept 3.5 mm thinner. For a device you hold constantly, that’s an enormous difference. The same goes for weight: thanks to the aluminum frame and faux leather back, the Magic V2 weighs 231 g, the Z Fold 5 253 g. Closed, it feels almost like a normal smartphone in size and weight. Open, it measures an insanely thin 4.7 mm.

The build quality is very high. The fingerprint scanner sits in the power button on the right side, and you can also unlock with the front camera.

Displays: practical outside, big inside

• Outer display: 6.4-inch OLED in a 20:9 format, up to 2,500 nits bright. It’s as comfortable as on a normal smartphone. On the Z Fold 5’s 6.2-inch outer display in the narrow 23:9 format, on the other hand, typing on the narrow keyboard is no fun.
• Inner display: 7.92-inch OLED with 120 Hz, up to 1,600 nits at peak. The outer display also has 120 Hz.

With the inner display and the very good stereo speakers, videos are really fun. A case for the hinge and back with a kickstand is included in the box. It attaches magnetically to the hinge and adds no bulk. The only pity is that you then no longer see the beautiful faux leather back. The hinge is made of stainless steel with a titanium coating and closes completely.

You hardly notice the crease in the inner display in everyday use. You can see it when you hold the display against sunlight, and you can feel it slightly with your finger. Apps like WhatsApp, email, calendar, and browser are clearly laid out, and even Instagram is optimized for the format. Google Maps on the go or reading a book is great: with a foldable, you always have your tablet with you too.

Magic OS 7.2

The Magic OS operating system runs in version 7.2 and, in my view, is well done. It’s based on Android and is simple and clear, but comes with extras:

• Expandable folders: You tap directly on an app in the folder without opening it.
• Separate panels: Control Center from the top right and notifications from the top left edge, inside and outside. You switch between the two with a swipe. More buttons fit on the screen in Control Center.
• Multitasking: several apps above or next to each other, such as YouTube and Instagram.
• Parallel Space: Spread two fingers apart on the home screen, and you can then store apps, photos, and videos separately. It is secured by fingerprint.

Battery and charging

The battery has 5,000 mAh. With a foldable with two displays, you expect less, but mine lasted two days, at about 3 to 4 hours of screen time per day. That’s 6 to 8 hours of screen time per charge. I should add that I was on Wi-Fi most of the time. It charges at 66 watts, and the battery is full in under an hour.

Camera

There is one front camera and three cameras on the back:

• Front camera: 16 megapixels, 4K video
• Main camera: 50 megapixels
• Ultrawide: 50 megapixels
• Telephoto: 20 megapixels

There is a 40x digital zoom, and the device records video in 4K at a maximum of 60 fps. You don’t really need the front camera, because with the better main camera, the front display works as a preview. We know that from Samsung. The large inner display can also be used split: on the left you see the shots large and decide whether they turned out well. On top of that there’s HONOR’s own gallery app with an extensive photo editing and video editing program that reminds me of CapCut.

The criticisms

Three things bother me.

1. The stylus: The Magic V2 supports styluses on the inner and outer displays, not just inside as with Samsung. But HONOR doesn’t sell the stylus in Europe, even though the price should actually include it. Only the Magic V2 Porsche Design, available in Germany from 18 March, includes the stylus. But it is €700 more expensive than the regular Magic V2.
2. Android 13: The device has only been available in Germany since February 2024, while it launched in China back in July 2023. It still runs Android 13, even though Android 14 has been out since October 2023 and there has already been a first beta for Android 15. There has been no update yet. In everyday use, that wasn’t a problem for me. But with an update policy like that, you wonder how long the device will stay current, even though HONOR actually guarantees five years of updates. The processor, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, is also last year’s. It’s really good, efficient, and blazing fast, and the 8 Gen 3 was only introduced in October.
3. The price: The RRP is €1,999, €500 more than the Z Fold 5, where you can at least buy the stylus separately. In my view, that’s completely unrealistic. You’re buying a last-year model with last year’s operating system and last year’s processor. It should actually cost €1,100 to €1,200 at most.

Verdict

The Magic V2 is an excellent foldable that gets a lot right and is much-needed competition for Samsung. If there had already been an update to Android 14, so that you could see it continues to be supported, I would have bought it for myself. Maybe the Magic V3 will come as early as summer, and then straight to us as well. I hope Samsung and Google take a leaf out of this format’s book and build their foldables at least as thin and light this year.