Honor has unveiled the Magic V2, its latest foldable device. And, rather than settling for the most economical alternative, the V2 sees the business go all out to create one of the most elegant, stylish folding phones yet.
Here’s everything we know so far about this high-end smartphone that will hopefully leave China.
When will the Honor Magic V2 be released worldwide?
Honor has officially confirmed that the Honor Magic V2 will be released in China on July 12, 2023, in Beijing.
The major question is whether – and when – it will be released elsewhere.
The original Honor Magic V was never released outside of China, however the succeeding Honor Magic Vs were released in November 2022 in China, followed by a global release in February 2023, but without North America.
If Honor continues on this path, we may see the Magic V2 in Europe sometime this autumn, if not sooner. A launch in the United States is improbable.
How much will the Honor Magic V2 cost?
In China, the Magic V2 starts at $8,999 (about $1,250/£970) and goes up to $11,999 (approximately $1,670/£1,290) for the Ultimate version, which includes a stylus.
That isn’t always a reliable indicator of pricing in any foreign release, which will almost certainly be higher.
The previous Honor Magic Vs cost £1,399/€1,599 (about $1,690) at launch, making it somewhat less expensive than its primary competitors, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 ($1,799/£1,649/€1,799) and the Pixel Fold ($1,799/£1,749/€1,899).
The Magic V2 will very certainly cost at least that amount, if not more.
What about the Honor Magic V2’s specs and design?
The most remarkable aspect of the Magic V2 is its design, not its internals.
This is the thinnest and lightest big foldable yet, weighing 231g and measuring 9.9mm thick when folded. That’s even smaller than the Huawei Mate X3, and much thinner than anything Samsung has produced so far.
In China, it will be available in three colors: black, gold, and purple. However, there are three distinct black variants, including a ‘Silk Black’ version wrapped in vegan leather and a ‘Ultimate Black’ edition with luxury details such as a gold Honor logo.
Of course, there are two displays. Inside is a 7.92in foldable OLED display with a refresh rate of 120Hz and LTPO technology for refresh rate scaling. It has a resolution of 2344 x 2156 and even supports a stylus, finally matching Samsung, albeit this is only included in the package with the Ultimate model.
The 6.43in OLED display utilizes the same 120Hz LTPO tech as the rest of the phone, with a resolution of 2376 x 1060. It also works with a stylus.
Moving on, the phone is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor with 16GB of RAM. Storage starts at 256GB and can go all the way up to 1TB in the Ultimate.
Despite how thin the phone is overall, the 5000mAh battery is substantial, and the 66W wired charging is quick – albeit there’s no evidence of a wireless alternative.
In terms of cameras, you can see a triple lens configuration on the rear. This kit includes a 50Mp, f/1.9 primary camera, a 50Mp, f/2.0 ultrawide camera, and a 20Mp, f/2.4 telephoto lens. Each display also contains a selfie camera with a punch-hole, both of which are 16Mp and f/2.2.
