Honor Magic5 Pro review: a monster!

Since Honor is legally separated from Huawei, Google applications have returned to MagicOS. Good news that opens the Chinese brand to the world. This Honor Magic5 Pro coming out today is quite a piece with 219 grams on the scale and a size of windsurfing. It’s not easy to slip it into your pocket, but you have to recognize that with a diagonal of 17.3 cm, the device lends itself very well to cinema sessions under the duvet or in transport. MagicOS 7 will take a little getting used to, but the software experience isn’t bad.

With a price of €1199 for this 12+512 GB version, this Magic5 Pro lands there in the big leagues with the Galaxy 23+ (from €959 to €1219) or the Xiaomi 13/13 Pro (€999/1299 €). Note that it is IP68 certified and that it is one of the first devices to offer compatibility with WiFi 7. Functionality that we could not test for lack of a compatible router. The device offers a drawer with two nano-SIMs, but no slot for a microSD. Surprise, the Magic5 Pro includes an IR blaster to turn it into a universal remote control and there is also a transparent cover in the box.

Design level is quite strange with a plastic back that leaves fingerprints and a slightly prominent photo island that will not please everyone. Fortunately, no “wobbly” problem when the phone is on its back.

Very nice screen and top performance

The slightly curved AMOLED display features variable refresh rate (60/90/120Hz) as well as pulse-width modulated dimming (2160Hz PWM) that does wonders when it comes to flickering. It’s quite nice to navigate and switch between apps. The maximum brightness of 1300 nits is also a very good point. Be careful, the basic colorimetric settings are bluish, you will have to adjust the colors a little to get a more neutral result. The slab is a success, but why did you put such a large punch? To add a rather dispensable depth sensor… Too bad.

In terms of performance, it is difficult to do better with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and 12 GB of RAM, especially since it is possible to borrow another 7 GB of RAM from the storage space. The AnTuTu benchmark is not gospel, but with a score of 1,108,735, the Magic5 Pro places itself in the top 10 most powerful devices without worry. In performance mode, the score rises to 1,225,842 which puts him in 5th position. It is a device that has fishing and does not heat up, even in prolonged use.

A photo part that makes the coffee…

On the photo side, it’s hard to do better with three 50 MP lenses: wide-angle, ultra wide-angle and telephoto. The main sensor is a delight to use, whatever the brightness: nice contrast, nice sharpness and little software intervention. The optical zoom is almost perfect with impeccable stabilization. In x10, the shots are slightly duller, but nothing unacceptable. Passed x20, the camera tries to compensate for the loss of sharpness with artifacts. It’s workable, but don’t expect a miracle. The x100 mode is just there for show, but it’s also the case for all devices that display this type of performance. At night it’s almost perfect up to x10 with well transcribed colors. The experts are not mistaken since the site DXOMARK gave the Magic5 Pro a score of 152.

As far as video is concerned, the device is very pleasant to use. Strangely it is not possible to operate the ultra wide-angle mode or to increase the fps in HD definition. The stabilization works wonders and there are several “dual view” modes. When it comes to selfies, there’s nothing to complain about, but one wonders if the 3D depth sensor that changes the punch into a pill really serves a purpose…

zoom x1 – zoom x3.5 – zoom x10

A very comfortable autonomy

With a screen of this size, this maximum brightness and these performances, it needed a 5100 mAh battery to be comfortable. Honor has done well since the phone lasts more than 14 hours in mixed use. Even users who always have their eyes on their screen will last the day. The supplied 66 Watt charger allows you to go from 0 to 100% in 42 minutes (from 5% to 17% in 6 minutes and from 5% to 82% in 30 minutes). Do you have a wireless charger? The Honor Magic5 Pro is compatible with a maximum power of 50 Watts! There is also a reverse charge… Anecdotal as always.

The Honor Magic5 Pro offers different “dual view” modes in video

Our Verdict:

The Honor Magic5 Pro does everything in one-upmanship. Size, screen, performance, photo capacity: everything is XXL in this device. A smartphone that also weighs its weight, but which surprises on many points starting with a very comfortable autonomy for a Premium device. The only disappointments concern the atypical design and a MagicOS that surprises at first. A good alternative to the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra for a more reasonable price…

Shooting tests