Sometimes I wonder if the design and development cost for folding phones is next to nothing. I mean how else do you explain why Honor is able to turn out so many folding phone models each year? The Chinese phone maker has to be the only smartphone brand to rock more than one model of folding phones. The latest to join its rapidly growing folding phone portfolio is the follow-up of the Magic Vs2 and Magic V2, aptly called, well, Magic Vs3 and Magic V3.
Among the two, the flagship of the flagships folding phone, the V3 has to be the craziest. It takes the light and thin folding phone to the next level with an opened profile of a mere 4.35 mm at its thinnest end and weighing just 226g. When closed, it is just 9.2 mm thin. The Magic Vs3 is no slouch in the areas of lightweight and thin; it measures 4.65 mm at the thinnest part when opened, and 9.8 mm when closed. It is super lightweight for a folding phone, tipping the scales at just 229g.
Honor Magic V3
The Honor Magic V3 [CH] boasts a sleek and lightweight design, made possible by the new Honor Luban architecture. It has a folded thickness of 9.2 mm and weighs just 226g, making it lighter than many traditional flagship phones. The device features a second-generation Honor “Shield Steel” hinge with a thickness of only 2.84 mm, enhancing impact resistance by 100%.
A standout feature is its battery technology which kind of feels like magic, TBH. The Magic V3 is outfitted with the third-generation Qinghai Lake battery, the industry’s first silicon-carbon battery with over 10% silicon content, which is a 2.6mm thick battery despite having a capacity of 5150mAh. Mind-blowing.
The battery is bolstered by the Honor E1 efficiency enhancement chip and Dujiangyan power management system, allowing it to achieve a threefold increase in energy management precision. The device supports 66W wired and 50W wireless fast charging.
The Magic V3’s camera system is centrally positioned with a round camera module framed by an octagonal bezel. Needless to say, the camera bump is pretty pronounced—this is, IMHO, attributed in part to a 50 MP periscope 100x zoom telephoto camera and the 50 MP wide-angle, and 40 MP super wide-angle camera. Speaking of cameras, both front-facing cameras are 20 MP wide-angle items.
In the visual department, it has a 6.43-inch external display with a 20:9 aspect ratio and a 7.92-inch internal display with a 9.78:9 aspect ratio. The outside display is an OLED item, while the inside is a foldable flexible OLED display. It is not said, or at least I did not see it anywhere, but it is safe to assume both displays are 120 Hz since the displays do rock LTPO technology.
For eye protection, the Magic V3 introduces the Honor Vision Comfort Oasis screen, which mimics defocus effects to inhibit axial growth and includes AI-powered dry eye relief technology.
Aesthetically, the design draws inspiration from China’s scenic landscapes and the Silk Road, with color options including velvet black, tundra green, Qilian snow, and the exclusive Silk Road Dunhuang.
Powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset and featuring a new Honor pure titanium thermal VC, the Magic V3 delivers improved thermal performance with a 22% increase in cooling area and a 40% reduction in component weight. The flagship processor is complemented by fast LPDDR5X and UFS4.0 memories.
Communication features include Honor Hongyan communication technology, supporting dual-way satellite calls and messaging. Collaborating with Gaode, it offers satellite-connected maps in no-network scenarios, enhancing safety in remote areas.
Other noteworthy mentions include 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be, dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.3, IR blaster, NFC, positioning (Beidou B1I+B1C+B2a, GPS L1+L5, A-GPS, GLONASS, Galileo E1+E5a), DTS-X Ultra, stereo speakers, and IPX8 rated.
The new Honor Magic V3 is available to order in China. It has a starting price of 8,999 yuan [CH], which is around 1,240 USD based on today’s going rate.
Honor Magic Vs3
Clearly, not everyone is enamored by the Honor Magic V3’s asking price. Thankfully, there is a slightly more affordable option, the Honor Magic Vs3 [CH] and while it is a tad easier on your wallet, it is not lacking in specs.
For starters, it is powered by the last-gen flagship chip, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, and is bolstered by LPDDR5X and UFS4.0 memories—the fastest memories there are in the market now.
The new Vs3 also rocks the third-generation Qinghai Lake 5,000 mAh battery, 66 W wired fast charging, and 50 W wireless fast charging. Like its higher-end sibling, the device also boasts the second-generation Honor “Shield Steel” hinge which is said to have a strength of up to 1800 MPa. It is smooth and flat, support open at multiple angles, while remaining light and thin.
Non-fan of an in-your-face module will be glad that the Vs3 does not have a giant bump on its back. Instead, it has a rectangular camera module with a less pronounced bump.
The rectangular camera module is home to a tri-camera setup comprising a 40 MP 112° super wide-angle camera with 2.5 cm hi-res macro imaging, an 8 MP periscope 50x zoom telephoto lens (5x optical zoom) with OIS, and 50 MP 1/1.56-inch sensor wide-angle camera with OIS.
Still on the imaging, it has two front-facing cameras. Each camera is rocking a 16 MP sensor featuring 90° smart wide-angle selfie functionality. It is worth noting that these front-facing cameras support 4K video recording.
The device is rocking a 120 Hz adaptive 6.43-inch display with LTPO technology and opens up to a 7.92-inch, also adaptive (1-120 Hz) display with LTPO technology and 2,500 nits peak brightness. Both displays support handwriting recognition, have 1.07 billion colors, and 3,830 Hz PWM “zero-risk” dimming.
This also signifies a paradigm shift in display protection and serious competition with Corning, the glass specialist. The main display is protected by Honor’s self-developed “King Kong” flexible armor.
Honor claims that this protective layer is super wear-resistant—thanks to a nano-aluminum oxide coating that boosted the wear resistance up to 5x over the traditional protective films There is also an impact-resistant silicone gel material with so-called “non-Newtonian fluid material” characteristics that becomes tougher when struck by strong forces.
Another highlight of the new Magic Vs3 is the in-house developed RF-enhanced chip, Honor C1+ that, when combined with algorithm and antenna, allows for a fast, stable 5G experience.
Other notables include 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be, dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.3, IR blaster, NFC, positioning (Beidou B1I+B1C+B2a, GPS L1+L5, A-GPS, GLONASS, Galileo E1+E5a), side-mounted fingerprint sensor, DTS: Ultra, stereo speaker, and USB 3.1 Gen1 (Type C interface). Strangely, it does not appear to have any IP rating. At least I did not find it mentioned anywhere.
The Honor Magic Vs3 is available to order in China now with a starting price of 6,999 yuan [CH] (about US$964). It is available in three colorways: velvet black, tundra green, and Qilian snow.
Images: Honor [CH].