Honor’s Magic5 series got off to a quiet start with the Magic5 Lite, but the company was saving its best performance for MWC – the new Honor Magic5 Pro is an all-around flagship that builds on last year’s design . However, it doesn’t follow a direct path to updates.
In fact, the phone designers prefer curved lines and the phone is rounded all over. Despite the large 6.81″ display, the phone is lighter: it weighs 219g. For comparison, a Galaxy S23 Ultra weighs 234g, an iPhone 14 Pro Max 240g. If you’ve been holding a Magic4 Pro , you should have a rough idea of the size of its successor: it weighs about the same, is a little thinner (8.8 mm vs. 9.2 mm) but also wider (76.7 mm vs. 74.7 mm).
The Honor Magic5 Pro is for those who like big phones, but it’s not excessive either (the aforementioned Galaxy and iPhone are about a millimeter wider, for example). Like last year, the phone is IP68 rated for dust and water resistance. The company has not disclosed the origin of the phone’s glass panels.
We spent some time with the new Honor Magic5 Pro flagship (seen here in Glacier Blue)
The Pro model is available in five color options: Glacier Blue, Meadow Green, Coral Purple, Orange and Black. The unit we had to manage was Glacier Blue. Note that the purple and orange colorways have vegan leather backing.
The display is the same size and resolution as last year: 6.81″ and 1,312 x 2,848 px (19.5:9, 461ppi). And yes, it’s a 10-bit LTPO panel with HDR10+ support. The refresh rate ranges from 1Hz to 120Hz However, there are a number of improvements that improve display performance and reduce user eye strain.
For starters, it’s much, much brighter. The new display can reach up to 1,800 nits when viewing HDR content, the maximum overall brightness is 1,300 nits. For comparison, the older display peaked at “just” 1,000 nits. Honor has also improved the high-frequency PWM dimming system and brought it up to 2,160Hz (from 1,920Hz). The company has calibrated the color accuracy of the display at two brightness levels (120 and 800 nits) down to a deltaE of 0.27 (translation: the human eye cannot perceive any deviation from the actual color).
The rear camera has a multi-spectrum color temperature sensor for measuring ambient light. Let’s talk about the camera, shall we? The triple module still lives on a large circle, which Honor calls the “Eye of Muse”. This year the camera trio has been rearranged into a triangular constellation: the periscope moved to the top, the main and ultra-wide-angle cameras are at the bottom.
All three are using 50MP sensors this year. The main camera is particularly interesting. Last year, Honor used the IMX766, a 50MP 1/1.56″ sensor that we’ve seen on flagships and some less expensive phones. This year, the company secured a custom 1/1.56″ sensor. 1.12″ and widened the aperture to f/1.6 (from f/1.8). The no-name sensor has native 1.4µm pixels and 4-in-1 binning support.
This has a big impact on night shots, and we won’t keep you waiting; check out some camera examples below. You know what else helps to take handheld photos in the dark? Optical image stabilization (OIS), of course, available on the Magic5 Pro’s main camera (its omission from the Magic4 Pro was a sore point last year).
Honor Magic5 Pro camera samples from a dimly lit bar (main camera)
Honor has optimized the phone for high-quality video as well, it can record 4K footage at 60fps in HDR10+ or 10-bit Magic-Log log formats. There’s an IMAX-branded app that will help you edit the videos you shoot on the phone itself, without needing a computer. One thing it lacks compared to other flagships is an 8K mode.
Magic5 Pro offers a new periscope telephoto camera. The optics still offer 3.5x magnification and have a brighter aperture to boot (f/3.0 vs. f/3.5 on the older Pro). The new module uses the 50MP Sony IMX858 sensor (instead of a 64MP sensor). The digital zoom goes up to 100x.
Before we show you more camera examples, we should note that the ultra-wide-angle camera complements the triple 50MP setup; it has a 122° field of view and an f/2.0 aperture (compared to the old Pro’s f/2.2). Now, here are the photos taken with each of the three cameras.
Honor Magic5 Pro camera samples: ultra wide angle • main • telephoto • further zoom
Honor Magic5 Pro camera champions: ultra wide angle • main camera • telephoto • further zoom
Honor Magic5 Pro camera champions: ultra wide camera
Honor Magic5 camera champions: main camera
Honor Magic5 Pro camera champions: telephoto
Here’s an interesting note: This phone has dual cameras that are capable of taking macro images. The ultra wide-angle module can do it up close (2.5cm/1in), and the camera can do it at a distance of 30cm/12in.
The Honor Magc5 Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, which, of course, it is. Honor has simplified the memory setup for the phone: 12GB of LPDDR5X and 512GB of UFS 4.0, that’s all.
Honor has added some custom features like the Discrete Display Chipset, which always renders video in HDR10+ and has the ability to turn 30fps content into 60fps. The phone also features a security system developed in collaboration with Qualcomm, which protects passwords and biometric data.
This biometric data includes 3D scans of the face: the pill-shaped hole in the upper left corner contains the 12 MP selfie camera (1.22 μm, unfortunately with fixed focus lens) and a depth sensor for body scans face more accurate and safer. The selfie camera, among other things, has a wide field of view, 100°, which allows it to easily capture group photos.
Last year, the Magic4 Pro impressed with its ability to charge at 100W both wired and wirelessly. This year, Honor has reduced the speed – 65W wired, 50W wireless – and increased the battery capacity instead of 5,000mAh, from 4,600mAh. Honor includes a 65W SuperCharge adapter in the retail box, here’s a look:
The Honor Magic5 Pro will be available in Q2 (April-June) at a price of €1,200 (which is the equivalent of $1,270/£1,055/₹105,000) for the 12/512GB configuration (which is the only option for now). For comparison, the Magic4 Pro has gone global with a price tag of £950 for an 8/256GB unit.
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