For reasons known to all, HUAWEI is having a hard time manufacturing and marketing its flagship phones. As a result, HONOR broke away from HUAWEI and became an independent brand. This Magic4 Pro is also the first HONOR phone we have reviewed since HONOR became independent. How far can the reborn HONOR Magic4 Pro go, let’s take a look.
The design of Magic4 Pro is familiar to us. As with its predecessor, the camera module is centered in a circle, a design HONOR calls “Eye of Muse”. This symmetrical design is very different from other phones, so you can tell at a glance that you are using a HONOR flagship and not another brand of phone. The Magic 4 Pro we got is cyan, and the glass back panel looks great in the light, just like ceramic. Of course, to keep it beautiful, you have to wipe it very often. The top and bottom bezels are flat, the SIM card slot is at the bottom and supports 2 SIM cards. There is IR emitter, NFC, stereo speakers, ultrasonic fingerprint recognition, IP68, but no headphone jack. However, the Google Mobile Services you care about is available on this HONOR device. It has all the features it should have, and the design is very special, I think Magic4 Pro is doing what a flagship phone should do.
HONOR Magic4 Pro Review: Display
Magic4 Pro uses a 6.8-inch Quad-Curved Display. Although the resolution does not reach WQHD+, it is sharper than the FHD+ of other phones. While it is not a screen supplied by Samsung, its performance is comparable to Samsung’s panel. Some aspects are even better than what Samsung has done. You may not have noticed that very few phones that support LTPO 2.0 this year have the option of DC dimming. Most phones with low-frequency PWM dimming at low brightness will make people with sensitive eyes feel uncomfortable. But Magic4 Pro‘s screen supports 1920Hz high-frequency PWM dimming, which will not make the display worse like DC dimming, but also more eye protection than low-frequency PWM dimming. The side view color cast is also better controlled than the E5 screen with Micro-Lens technology, and the Magic4 Pro has a MEMC chip that can interpolate frames for video, but not for gaming. If I had to pick a downside, I’d like to see the Magic4 Pro with a smaller curved screen, because the larger the curved area, the more serious the problem of black and green edges will be.
HONOR Magic4 Pro Review: Performance & Gaming
Maybe the product is planned earlier, Magic4 Pro’s processor is Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. Because they were all using Kirin processors before, how good is HONOR’s tuning of Snapdragon’s flagship processor, let’s take a look. From the results of each benchmark, they are at least doing the same level as the 8 Gen 1 of other brands, no one data is particularly low.
What about gaming, PUBG is a piece of cake for flagship phones, Genshin’s performance is interesting. Looking at this frame rate curve, the first half of the game is very good, almost perfect. But the second half of the game is locked at 30fps most of the time, and the lowest frame rate is 15fps, which means HONOR is capable of playing to the full strength of 8 Gen 1, but there is still room for improvement. Hopefully, the performance and temperature will be balanced in subsequent updates.
HONOR Magic4 Pro Review: Camera
When we see the huge camera module, we know that the Magic4 Pro’s forte is taking pictures. Indeed, it has a luxurious camera setup. But two of the five lenses are secondary lenses, and only one main camera, the ultra-wide camera and the 3.5x telephoto camera, it can really take pictures on its own.
What impresses me most about the Magic4 Pro’s camera is its powerful image algorithm. The scene you see in the preview screen may not be pretty enough, but once you press the shutter and then quickly go to the album, you can see the magic happen. A bland photo is transformed into a stunning photo. I finally understand why the Magic4 Pro got that name. Whether it’s the ultra-wide-angle camera or the main camera, this magical algorithm gives the photo a huge improvement. This amazing algorithm will also appear on telephoto cameras. This 3.5x telephoto camera is surprisingly powerful. Even if you zoom in to 5 times or 10 times, you can still get a good picture through the algorithm.
Even at 16x zoom, you will still be able to recognize the phone number written on the elevator. You can also get good pictures even at night when the light is low. Well, this algorithm for optimizing photos only works well for more regular graphics, if there is not enough light plus the subject is irregular, then the algorithm will not work as well. The main camera is without OIS, and you may wonder how badly it will perform at night. In fact, it performed well at night, with almost no problems with shaky hands. Overall, I am very satisfied with the Magic4 Pro’s camera performance, especially its 3.5x telephoto camera, which is comparable to a 5x or 10x optical telephoto camera through its algorithm. I think this is the most correct direction for mobile photography.
The recording has also improved a lot with support for switching lenses in 4k 30fps recording. Stability and dynamic range are good. But what surprised me more is the front camera, because it uses an ultra-wide-angle lens, so you are able to take selfies with different focal lengths. And because of the 3D TOF lens, the background bokeh effect is good. This super wide-angle camera is more suitable for video recording, and supports EIS and 4k 30fps with excellent dynamic range. I’m sure magic4 pro is definitely an excellent vlog machine.
HONOR Magic4 Pro Review: Charging
Magic4 Pro supports 100w wired charging. The charger also supports up to 100w output power. It also supports 50w wireless charging. Wired charging takes 15 minutes to charge up to 60% and takes 30 minutes to fill. The Magic4 Pro’s battery capacity is 4600mAh, which is not huge, but it is enough. Although it is a little difficult to go a full day without charging, other 8 Gen 1 phones are at about the same level, so don’t expect the Magic4 Pro’s battery life to be as impressive.
To sum up, Magic4 Pro is actually not HONOR’s powerful flagship phone this year, it’s just a sub-flagship. But this sub-flagship phone does what many flagship phones can do. For example, the superb level of photography, the screen also has some bright spots.
And there are no obvious drawbacks, and GMS can be used normally. If you don’t want to buy an expensive flagship phone, then this cheaper HONOR sub-flagship phone might be more suitable for those of you who like to take pictures.
