We spent some time with the new HONOR Magic4 Pro, and share with you some of our observations. Searching for the perfect phone with good specs and a tasteful style within your price range could sometimes get frustrating. With technology evolving, chipsets and specs have improved to cater to the fast-paced world we live in today. For that perfect smartphone choice, make sure it works like magic.
Design: 5/5
The HONOR Magic4 Pro comes in a black box embossed with a holographic crescent moon, such that the packaging alone set my expectations high. Taking the phone out of the box, its sleek industrial design in Cyan is stunning. It has a glass front, a glass back with a mirror-like finish, and an aluminum frame for support.
It has a 6.81 LTPO OLED display (2848 x 1312) that curves around the edges. The display is a 12MP ultrawide front camera, and a triple multidirectional camera setup is mounted on the back. The power button and volume rockers are on the right side of the phone, the sim card tray and USB-C port are at the bottom of the phone, and dual speakers are on the top and bottom.
Hardware: 4/5
Like most top-tier smartphones, the Magic4 Pro is powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 for powerful and faster performance. It runs on Android 12 OS and Magic UI 6. Our review unit has 8GB internal storage and 256GB external storage.
Its triple rear camera setup consists of a 50MP wide camera, a 50MP ultrawide camera for macro photography, and a 64MP periscope telephoto camera. Its display-mounted front camera is a 12MP ultrawide camera.
What’s impressive about the Magic4 Pro is the life of its massive 4600mAh battery, which can be fast-charged from 0% to 100% in less than an hour.
User Experience: 3/5
Gaming on the Magic4 Pro is 50-50 for me. The curved display gives it a more immersive gaming experience, and the graphics are satisfactory, but the lags are disappointing. It can handle fast-paced games like Call of Duty: Mobile in the highest settings, but occasional lags, even with a stable internet connection, make for a frustrating experience.
It is an excellent device for media consumption. I think the audio quality is top-tier, producing crisp sounds even at max volume.
With Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, it is expected to deliver fast and seamless performance, but I encountered some unexpected issues. Despite its powerful chipset, switching between apps can be laggy. Launching apps, particularly the camera, may be slow. Also, background activity can impact the battery too much.
Playing around with the camera features and taking snaps could get laggy. Still, the camera produces good results with sharp images. Color reproduction, although slightly off, can be considered reasonably accurate. The lens can zoom up to 100x — an impressive feat — although image output could be grainy and pixelated.
Value: 3/5
The Honor Magic4 Pro is priced at PHP52,990 for the 8GB + 256GB configuration, leaning on the more expensive side. I have mixed feelings about this new phone — it has a good camera, but overall performance could stand some improvement.
Specifications:
- Chipset: Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1
- OS: Magic UI 6, Android 12
- Storage: 8GB RAM, 256GB internal storage
- Display: 6.81” LTPO OLED Display
- Refresh Rate: 120Hz
- Dimensions: 163.6 x 74.7 x 9.1mm
- Front/Back: Glass front and back, aluminum frame
- Battery: 4600mAh, USB-C 100W SuperCharge
- Camera: Triple (Main) 50MP wide, 50MP ultrawide, 64MP periscope telephoto / Front 12MP ultrawide
- Fingerprint: In-display
- Colors: Black, White, Cyan, Gold, Orange
- Package Includes: USB-C cable and 100W SuperCharge charger, user manual, pin ejector, protective silicon case, aux to USB-C adaptor
What’s Hot:
- Design
- Fast charging
- Multidirectional camera with 100x zoom
- User interface
What’s Not:
- Refresh rate dips
- Bloatware
- Average performance
- Background app activity consumes too much battery
Bottomline:
Mixed feelings about the Honor Magic4 Pro — great design, good camera, but some performance improvements needed.
Reviewed by Franceska Aguila
Also published in Gadgets Magazine January 2023 Issue