Nelson Morales

REVIEW: HONOR Magic V6 piles toughness, power on slim elegance

Article (news)

Arthur Fuentes

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><br/><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787565754555v5 camera back.jpg" style="width:960px;display:block;height:auto" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News "/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News </span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — HONOR’s newest foldable phone, the Magic V6, is leaning on a tougher build, a bigger battery, an uncompromised camera system, and a much reduced crease to distinguish itself from other folding phones that have also pushed the envelope this year. </p><p>But aside from bumping up the specs, HONOR also did a glow-up on its flagship folding phone. The red version in particular, which was sent to us for review, looks like it was designed in league with a luxury brand. Its velvety texture, golden frame, and very high level of polish look very premium. If you’re someone who likes to wear Prada or Balenciaga, this phone probably wouldn’t feel out of place in your hand. </p><p>Not that this is a fashion piece that needs to be treated like a baby. Far from it, this is a durable device that can handle the rough stuff.</p><div><strong>VITAL SPECS</strong></div><ul style="list-style-type:disc"><li>Ultra-Slim &amp; Lightweight Build: Unfolds to just 4.1 mm thin (9 mm when folded) and weighs only 224 g.</li><li>Displays &amp; Brightness: Outfitted with a 7.95-inch main foldable LTPO OLED (2172 x 2352) and a 6.52-inch cover OLED (1080 x 2420), both featuring 120Hz refresh rates, 4320Hz PWM dimming, and up to 6,000 nits peak brightness on the cover display.</li><li>Processor &amp; Platform: Powered by the 3nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor with Adreno 840 graphics, 16GB of RAM, 512GB of storage running MagicOS 10 on top of Android 16.</li><li>Battery Capacity: Integrates a 6,660 mAh Silicon-Carbon battery </li><li>Fast Charging System: Supports 80W wired HONOR SuperCharge and 66W wireless charging.</li><li>Triple Camera Setup: Features a 50 MP main camera (f/1.6, OIS), a 64 MP periscope telephoto lens (3x optical zoom, OIS), and a 50 MP ultrawide camera.</li><li>Durability Rating: Rated IP68 and IP69 for dust and high-pressure water resistance, protected by an Anti-Scratch NanoCrystal Shield cover display and Super Armored inner screen.</li></ul><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787565822474v5 unfolded.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News "/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News </span></span></span></div><div><strong>SAME SAME BUT DIFFERENT</strong></div><p>The Chinese tech giant had already built a very formidable foldable in last year’s Magic V5, so this year’s version is understandably a bit similar to last year’s. </p><p>It’s still very thin, with a depth of just 9mm folded, and 4.1mm unfolded. To put that in perspective, it feels roughly identical in the hand to an iPhone 17 Pro Max. </p><p>The main difference, design-wise, is the V6’s adoption of a flat cover screen in place of the V5’s slightly curved display. This allowed it to slightly increase the screen size from 6.43 inches to 6.52 inches. </p><p>But if you liked the design of the V5, then you will also like the V6, because, aside from the new colorways and back panel glow-ups, this is still practically the same design. In fact, I swapped the cover case of the V5 with the V6, and there was no problem with the fit. </p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787565852592IMG_20260823_132726.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="HONOR Magic V6 folding phone with protective case. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News "/><span class="fr-inner" spellcheck="false" style="text-align:left">HONOR Magic V6 folding phone with protective case. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News </span></span></span></div><p>Unfold it, and you’re greeted by a stunning 7.95-inch OLED inner display featuring a crease that is essentially invisible head-on. Honor claims that it has reduced the depth of the crease by almost half, making it barely perceptible.</p><p>As someone who has been using foldable phones for several years now, I am not really bothered by the crease. But it’s always a good thing that device makers like Honor are ever-chasing perfection.</p><div><strong>TOUGHER, FASTER, LONGER LASTING</strong></div><p>The big changes are in the engineering and specs underneath. Honor hasn’t just built a good foldable; they’ve built hardware that once again pushes the envelope of what a foldable can be. </p><p>The V6 ships with dual IP68 and IP69 dust and water resistance ratings, meaning it can legitimately survive the kinds of everyday splashes and dunks that would historically send a foldable to the grave.</p><p>Honor also upgraded its “Super Steel” hinge to make it even more durable. In true Honor fashion, the V6 was even subjected to an absurd test of durability. The company recently brought local tech journalists and influencers to an airfield in Clark to witness the V6 clamped to a car and a 1-ton aircraft. The car pulled on the plane, and the V6 was not ripped apart by the ordeal, and was actually still functioning after the torture test. </p><p>Then there is the battery. Honor somehow crammed a massive 6,660mAh silicon-carbon battery inside this razor-thin chassis. It easily delivers the best battery life in the entire foldable category, capable of pushing through almost two full days of heavy use.</p><div><strong>UNCOMPROMISED CAMERAS</strong></div><p>The camera system—housed in a massive, love-it-or-hate-it octagonal bump on the back—is also top tier for foldables. These camera specs would be right at home in a flagship bar phone.</p><p>The 50MP main sensor and the impressive 64MP 3x periscope telephoto pull down top-notch photos with Honor&#x27;s signature true-to-life image processing. It’s a versatile setup that doesn&#x27;t make you feel like you compromised on photography just to get a folding screen.</p><p>But having used the V5, I’m left a bit confused about why Honor chose to spec the V6 with an ultrawide camera that seems dimmer (f/2.2) than the V5 (f/2.). It’s also a bit strange that while the ultrawides on both the V6 and the V5 are rated with 13mm equivalent lenses with 122˚ field of view, the V6 can only zoom to 0.6x while the V5 can focus to 0.5x. While both ultrawides are excellent, the V5 noticeably captures a wider field.</p><p>Content creators will also be happy that the Magic V6’s main cameras can record 4K video at 60 frames per second, while the front-facing cameras can do 4K at 30 fps. I know that some bar phones already promise 8K video at up to 60 fps, but this is a foldable phone. </p><div><strong>SAMPLE SHOTS</strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787566270312nat mus facade.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News "/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News </span></span></span></strong><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787566316293manila ct hall.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News "/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News </span></span></span></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787566351314papa kape.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News "/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News </span></span></span></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787566380975met.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News "/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News </span></span></span></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787566405615selfie.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News "/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Shot with HONOR Magic V6 folding phone. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News </span></span></span></div><div><strong>PERFORMANCE</strong></div><p>The Magic V6 is powered by Qualcomm&#x27;s latest flagship Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip. However, to keep this incredibly thin phone from melting in your hands, Honor bizarrely caps the CPU performance by about half right out of the box. You have to manually dive into the battery settings and enable &quot;Performance Mode&quot; to get the speed you paid for, which immediately results in heavy thermal throttling under load.</p><p>I would have also liked Honor to polish its Magic Desktop mode. I want to be able to connect this foldable to a portable monitor and for it to function like I am on a high end tablet PC. While the present version is workable, it still feels like a work in progress compared to other desktop modes. </p><p>Lastly, Honor promised better integration with Apple products, including the Mac. I hope they deliver on this soon, as I know a lot of Apple fans, could benefit from bringing this device into their walled ecosystem. </p><p>But all in all, the Honor Magic V6 is a mechanical triumph. It once again proves that foldables can be razor-thin, last forever on a charge, and survive a rainstorm. </p><p>The HONOR Magic V6 will sell for P119,999 for the 16GB-512GB version and come with an HONOR Pad X8b. The preorder period will be from August 25 to September 4.</p>

<p>Aside from bumping up the specs, HONOR also did a glow-up on its flagship folding phone.</p>

Aside from bumping up the specs, HONOR also did a glow-up on its flagship folding phone.