Earlier than attending Honor’s world reveal of its foldable Magic V5, I wasn’t certain how I felt about foldable telephones. I do nicely with my iPhone 16 Professional, and as we decide smartphones at Artistic Bloq largely on how good their digital camera is, it is not as if I used to be eagerly on the lookout for a brand new gadget.
Honor has actually confused issues for me with the discharge of the V5. There are lots of cool options, however the digital camera and show mixture are the celebrities for me. And, as soon as I bought previous the same old advertising waffle that comes with such reveal occasions (“non-Newtonian liquid” anybody?!), the specs usually appear to boost the bar for foldable telephones.
You might like
Picture 1 of 6
(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)
‘Mild as paper, sturdy as metal’
This can be a very skinny cellphone. 4.1mm skinny. That makes it the thinnest smartphone available on the market proper now – not solely cool, however helpful, when you think about that, when folded, you will have double that in your pocket. I put it in my pocket and – after explaining to a involved workers member that no, I wasn’t making an attempt to have it away – it felt the identical, if not somewhat thinner, than my iPhone 16 Professional, with silicone case.
At 217g it is gentle, however it’s no light-weight – one of many items of promoting that truly hit was seeing the unfolded V5 take the burden of a 35kg dumbbell, displaying that there is not any weak spot within the V5’s crease. In my arms, it definitely felt stable after I was folding the cellphone open and shut.
AI and battery
Rather a lot was mentioned in regards to the V5 being an AI gadget and, although not quite a bit was fleshed out on the occasion, that rings true with its Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, and Google Gemini put in. Coming with 16GB RAM ought to imply this will probably be a quick, responsive gadget, and with that AI motor, the effectivity of the V5’s battery appears to be industry-leading.
Honor declare that the V5’s battery will final for 49 hours – 9 hours longer than the Samsung Z Fold 7 – although it wasn’t made clear how the gadget was utilized in that point. Stats coming from the product’s maker ought to all the time be taken with a pinch of salt, but when it is near that quantity at mid-level use, that is fairly spectacular.
Digicam and show
The digital camera sounds nice, with a 50mp huge, 50mp ultra-wide and 64mp periscope telephoto lens, and although I took a couple of snaps with the V5 on the occasion, I will not be capable to give an knowledgeable opinion on this till I spend a while with the gadget and write up my full evaluate.
One factor I can say with confidence is that the V5’s show is completely beautiful. Unfolded there is a 7.95-inch AMOLED interior show with virtually sparkles. It is actually one thing to behold, and scrolling via textual content and pictures was actually pleasing. One cool element – now you can use each interior and again screens with the stylus, the place beforehand you possibly can solely use the bigger interior display.
All in all, I left the Honor Magic V5’s launch occasion desperate to get my arms again on the gadget, and actually put it via its paces. First impressions? This can be a significantly spectacular smartphone, and – simply presumably – the one that can convert me to foldable telephones.
