Honor Magic V3 review

Honor Magic V3 feels like the foldable device we’ve all been waiting for, and it was just a matter of time before it became a reality. Earlier models from Honor had great designs but lacked in the hardware department. However, Magic V3 changes that just seven months after Honor’s previous foldable launched outside of China. The timing of its release couldn’t be better.

That said, this phone isn’t for everyone. It’s not sold in the U.S., doesn’t get as many software updates as competitors, and the camera can be a bit inconsistent. But despite these drawbacks, Honor has created the thinnest foldable phone yet. It’s lightweight and slim, making it easy to use like a regular phone. And when you unfold it, the large display is perfect for multitasking or exploring Honor’s special AI features.

By the end of this review, I hope you’ll see why Magic V3 stands among the top foldable phones today. Maybe it will convince you to get one if you can or at least wish it was available in your region, pushing other brands to offer more.

Honor Magic V3 Specification

Feature	Details
📏 Height	156.6 mm
📏 Width (Folded)	74.0 mm
📏 Width (Unfolded)	145.3 mm
📏 Depth (Folded)	9.2 mm (Black) / 9.3 mm (Other)
📏 Depth (Unfolded)	4.35 mm (Black) / 4.4 mm (Other)
⚖️ Weight	226 g (Black) / 230 g (Other)
📱 Inner Screen	7.92 inches, OLED, 2344×2156 pixels
📱 Outer Screen	6.43 inches, OLED, 2376×1060 pixels
⚙️ Processor	Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
💾 RAM & Storage	12GB RAM, 512GB storage
📸 Rear Cameras	40MP Ultra-wide, 50MP Wide, 50MP Telephoto (OIS)
🤳 Front Cameras	20MP (both inner and outer screens)
🔋 Battery	5150 mAh, 66W wired charging, 50W wireless charging
🌐 Connectivity	5G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC
💧 Water Resistance	IPX8
🔌 Ports	USB Type-C

Honor Magic V3 Price and availability

Honor Magic V3 is priced at £1,699, just like the previous Magic V2 model it replaces. This pricing makes Magic V3 slightly more affordable than many other foldable phones available today. For example, in the U.K., Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 starts at £1,799 and Pixel 9 Pro Fold is priced at £1,749. OnePlus Open is cheapest among high-end foldable options, costing £1,599.

However, if you’re in the U.S., Honor Magic V3 won’t be available for direct purchase. While some people may choose to import it, for most users, it’s a smarter choice to go for phone that’s officially available in their region. This ensures better network compatibility and reliable customer support which can be important for long-term use.

Honor Magic V3 design

Honor Magic V3 stands out for its ultra-slim design, being thinnest foldable phone so far. It’s just 9.2mm thick when folded, making it about 3mm slimmer than Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6. Weighing only 226g, it’s also one of the lightest foldable phones, even lighter than Honor’s non-folding Magic 6 Pro. With smooth curved edges and a slim 4.35mm frame when unfolded, it feels incredibly sleek and compact.

The matte glass back feels velvety, and it’s water-resistant with an IPX8 rating, adding durability. Despite being a foldable phone, cover display has normal smartphone dimensions, making it easy and natural to use even when folded. In fact, it’s so similar to a regular phone that it’s easy to mistake it for one at first glance.

One noticeable feature is camera bump on the back, which doubles the thickness in that area. However, the circular camera setup with an octagonal aluminum bezel looks stylish and serves a functional purpose. The design also provides a convenient resting spot for your finger when holding the phone one-handed.

Volume rocker and power button are placed on opposite sides when unfolded, which is different from most foldables but easy to get used to. If you’ve used Honor Magic V2, the button placement will feel familiar.

Phone comes in three color options: black, green and red. Black and green variants feature a soft matte finish on the rear, while the red model has a faux leather back with gold accents, making it the most eye-catching version.

Honor also includes a high-quality vegan leather case in the box. The case has thoughtful details, like a protective hinge cover, a metal ring for lens protection, and an adhesive bumper for the front. The metal ring can even fold out and act as a kickstand, though it’s not always the sturdiest. You can also use it like a pop socket for one-handed use of the main display. Overall, Magic V3 combines a sleek design with functional features, making it a standout in foldable phone market.

Honor Magic V3 display

Honor Magic V3 offers two impressive displays, making it a great option for those who value screen quality. Cover display is 6.43-inch OLED with 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and a resolution of 1060 x 2376 pixels. It’s extremely bright, reaching up to 5000 nits and is protected by Honor’s NanoCrystal 2.0 glass which is said to be 40 times more impact-resistant than regular glass. Display also has curved edges, which make gestures feel smooth without causing distracting reflections.

When you open Magic V3, you’ll see a large 7.92-inch foldable OLED display. It has a resolution of 2156 x 2344 pixels and supports a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate. Brightness goes up to 1800 nits which makes it easy to use even outdoors. One of the highlights of this foldable display is the minimal crease which is much less noticeable than on other foldable phones like Galaxy Z Fold 6. Screen protector is also tougher, being up to five times more scratch-resistant than previous versions.

One downside is the selfie camera placement on the main screen. The cutout is in the center on the right side, which can get in the way when watching videos. Despite this, the displays perform excellently with vibrant colors and smooth motion, making it perfect for watching HDR content on apps like Netflix and YouTube.

For those concerned about eye health, Honor has included features like high PWM dimming rates (4320Hz on cover display and 3840Hz on the foldable screen) to reduce flicker. It also has a low blue light mode, adaptive brightness and a new AI Defocus Display feature, which is designed to reduce eye strain by simulating a myopic lens effect. Although the effect isn’t immediately noticeable, it could help with long-term screen use.

Honor Magic V3 cameras

Honor Magic V3 comes with an impressive camera setup. It has 50MP main camera with a wide f/1.6 aperture, a 50MP 3.5x telephoto lens and 40MP ultra-wide lens with macro capability. Each display also has a 20MP selfie camera but since it’s a foldable phone, you can use the rear cameras for selfies too.

Main camera delivers sharp images with vibrant colors and a great dynamic range, even in action shots. At night, it still performs well but you might notice more motion blur and noise, especially with the ultra-wide lens. 3.5x telephoto lens, equivalent to a 90mm lens on a full-frame camera, is perfect for portraits and street photography. You can zoom digitally up to 100x, but it’s best to stick to 15-20x for decent results.

Ultra-wide lens is great for landscapes and group shots and it has autofocus and macro capabilities, which make it more versatile. Selfie cameras are decent for video calls and quick snaps but for higher-quality selfies, it’s better to use the rear cameras.

Phone also features new Studio Harcourt portrait mode on the rear cameras, giving selfies and portraits a professional touch. AI eraser tool lets you remove unwanted objects from your photos easily.

For video, Honor Magic V3 records in 4K at 60fps on the rear cameras and up to 4K 30fps on the selfie cameras. Stabilization works well and sound quality from the microphones is decent, though the videos can be a bit too contrasty. You can fix this with filters or by using Pro Video mode to customize your video look.

Honor Magic V3 performance and software

Honor Magic V3 uses latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, paired with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. This setup delivers fast performance and handles demanding games smoothly. For example- it runs the challenging game Zenless Zone Zero at max settings with minimal frame drops. Phone does get warm during intense use but not excessively so.

It runs MagicOS 8.0, based on Android 14 which has a unique interface inspired by iOS. It includes features like Magic Capsule which provides quick access to timers and playback controls and Magic Portal, which lets you drag and drop text and images between apps. Over 150 apps support Magic Portal.

MagicOS also has new AI features such as noise reduction for calls, live translation with Google’s Cloud AI and upcoming tools to detect deepfakes.

For multitasking, Magic V3 offers a taskbar and ability to split the screen or use floating windows. However, it lacks some of the more advanced multitasking features found on competitors like Pixel 9 Pro Fold or OnePlus Open.

Honor Magic V3 battery

Honor Magic V3 features a 5,150mAh silicon-carbon battery that uses AI to enhance efficiency. Although it usually lasts a full day, its battery life is similar to the Galaxy Z Fold 6’s 4,400mAh battery. Battery life might improve with future updates.

Where Magic V3 shines is its charging speed. It supports 66W wired charging and 50W wireless charging with Honor’s Wireless SuperCharger. This is twice as fast as Galaxy Z Fold 6’s wired charging. The phone can fully charge in under an hour and 66W wall adapter is included in the box.

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Honor Magic V3 Pros and Cons

😊 Pros	😕 Cons
💰 Affordable	🌍 Not sold in the U.S.
📱 Thinnest foldable phone	🔄 Few software updates
🖥️ Big displays	📷 Average photos
🤖 Cool AI features

Conclusion

Honor Magic V3 combines features from both foldable and regular phones, making it user-friendly whether it’s open or closed. It’s currently thinnest foldable phone available with large screens & useful AI features. However, if you’re looking for top-notch photography, long software support or availability in the U.S., you might want to consider other options.