Honor Teases Magic V Foldable, Here's Everything We Know
Smartphone companies such as Samsung, Xiaomi, Motorola, and Oppo have already unveiled their respective designs and foldable phones to the market. Samsung has two variants, one that folds into a compact form factor in the Z Flip3 and another that opens into a small tablet, the Galaxy Z Fold3. With the success that other companies are experiencing with the foldable design, it seems Honor will be the next to jump into the arena with its own version, the Honor Magic V.
Honor CEO George Zhao expressed interest in making a foldable phone all the way back in 2019. At that time he told CNET that although he had an interest in making a foldable phone, he was concerned that it would be too expensive for its younger target audience. Then in July of this year there were reports that the company had undertaken the development of a foldable phone, which has now been confirmed by the recent Twitter post.
While Honor shared a teaser peek at the Magic V on its Twitter account, there is really no other information that has been confirmed. But the rumor mill has been churning about what Honor may be bringing to the pockets of its future users.
Honor Magic V Specs And Features Rumor Round-Up
Unfold all the potential. This is HONOR’s first foldable flagship phone, the #HONORMagicV. pic.twitter.com/kijORIGxg1
— HONOR (@Honorglobal) December 22, 2021
One report from The Elec has proposed that the phone may have an 8.03-inch folding inner display that will be paired with a 6.54-inch outer screen. This would be similar to the Samsung Z Fold smartphone, instead of a more compact form factor that comes with the Z Flip. Interestingly, this would fall into line with the Mate X2 that is being produced by Honor's former parent company, Huawei.
There is no date as of yet for a release of the Honor Magic V, but some have speculated in the recent past that it would happen in late Q4 of this year. With that time frame having pretty much passed, some think that there is a good possibility an announcement will be made around the same time as CES 2022, which is scheduled to begin on January 5, 2022. It would make sense for the company to follow a teaser of its foldable phone with an announcement providing more information within a short time frame. So, CES 2022 would present an excellent opportunity for that to happen. But some feel that it may coincide with the Chinese New Year in February instead. Either way, more confirmed information should be coming in the near future.
Pricing for the Magic V is a bit more difficult to speculate. As mentioned earlier, Zhao expressed a concern that the foldable would be priced to high for its younger consumers. So it would make sense for the company to try and provide a price point that is more affordable than other foldable devices already on the market.
In comparison, the Mate X2, which is only available in China, sells for the equivalent of $2,825 USD. The Samsung Fold3 comes in at a hefty price point of $1799. A more affordable Samsung Flip3 is available at $999, but the design is much smaller than its larger sibling. Honor may be looking to price its Magic V somewhere in between the Fold3 and Flip3 in order to make it more attainable. But this is all speculation at this point.
When it comes to specs the one thing that most agree on is that the smartphone will more than likely be powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 or possibly a Dimensity 1100 processor that is said to be part of the upcoming X20 Max. If the phone ends up using either of these chips it will no doubt pack a powerful punch.
The fingerprint sensor on the Magic V could follow suit with other Huawei phones with it placed on the side of the device inside the power button. This would make sense for the company due to the barriers that it would have to overcome with trying to place an under-the-screen sensor on a foldable device. Google Pixel 6 owners can attest to how a fingerprint sensor on a non-foldable device can prove to be a frustrating feature to get right, much less one on a foldable phone.
Regardless of what the foldable smartphone from Honor comes with in terms of features, tech lovers should be excited that yet another company is pushing the envelope of smartphone design. Smartphones are being redesigned every year in hopes of keeping the form and function fresh and exciting for its users. CES 2022 is right around the corner and should hopefully reveal many thrilling announcements, and perhaps more news on the Magic V.
