The Honor Magic Vs smartphone has launched in China today and will see an international launch next
(Image credit: Honor)
This morning Chinese smartphone manufacturer, Honor, has launched its next-gen foldable flagship, the Honor Magic Vs, into its home market. Although an international launch wasn't mentioned by Honor at the launch event, it has since been confirmed, via GSMArea that this is scheduled for the first quarter of 2023, making the new phone a real rival for the Samsung Z Fold 4.
"Transforming how people all around the world use their smartphones"
George Zhao, Honor
"The Honor Magic Vs will be our very first foldable flagship to debut in overseas markets and we are confident that it will deliver huge advancements, transforming how people all around the world use their smartphones," said George Zhao, CEO of Honor Device Co, Ltd, in a press statement.
Indeed, Honor extending their foldable offering outside of China could indeed change the whole landscape of foldable phones as they vie for the best foldable against the likes of the Samsung Z Fold 4 and Xiaomi Mix Fold 2.
Honor Magic Vs: Design
With a sophisticated and sleek look, available in cyan, orange and black, the Honor Magic Vs weighs in at just 261g and is 12.9mm thin when folded, becoming the lightest foldable smartphone on the market.
Contributing to the lightweight build, the smartphone features a super-light gearless hinge, which Honor says has been crafted with a single-piece casting processing technology, thus “drastically reducing the number of components of supporting structure used in the hinge from 92 to 4.” Furthermore, built with aerospace-grade materials, Honor says the hinge can withstand over 400,000 folds – this is equivalent to more than ten years of use with 100 folds per day.
Honor Magic Vs: Specifications
As well as its extra light credentials, the Honor Magic Vs brings another class-leading specification in the form of a huge of 5,000mAh battery. Supporting 66W Wired Honor SuperCharge, the company says the new smartphone battery can be fully charged up to 100 percent within just 46 minutes.
The large dual display on the Honor Magic Vs also has some impressive specifications, not least its 6.45-inch display when folded, with a user-friendly 21:9 aspect ratio and a 90% screen-to-body ratio. When unfolded, there is a 7.9-inch internal display, with a screen refresh rate of up to 120Hz, which should deliver a tablet-style experience.
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The Honor Magic Vs is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip and is equipped with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage, or 12GB RAM and 256/512GB storage.
Honor Magic Vs: Camera system
A 54MP IMX800 main camera, a 50MP ultra-wide and macro and an 8MP 3X optical zoom make up the Honor Magic Vs triple-camera system. Up front, there's a 16MP selfie camera, too. The camera system uses Honor’s proprietary AI-enabled image engine, which the company says equips it with best-in-class computational photography capabilities.
Honor Magic Vs: Price and availability
The Honor Magic Vs is available to pre-order in China from today, priced at 7,499 RMB (roughly £878 / $1,047). It’s been confirmed, via GSMArena, that the new foldable will receive an international launch too, but we will have to wait until the first quarter of 2023.
Rachael is a British journalist with 18 years experience in the publishing industry. Since working on www.digitalcameraworld.com, she’s been freelancing, and contributing to some of the world’s best-loved websites and magazines including T3.com and TechRadar.com and has also had a book, iPad for Photographers, published. She's currently acting as editor of 5GRadar.com - a website specializing in the latest cellular technology.
