One of the best foldable smartphones, Honor Magic V3, is now available worldwide

The foldable phone market is one where everyone has to do their best. Phones are far too expensive to release a device that doesn’t deliver the level of value the average consumer expects from such cutting-edge devices.

That’s what makes the Honor Magic V3 so exciting. It’s arguably the best foldable smartphone in the world, but it launched as a China-exclusive device, which was a huge shame. Well, now’s the time to rejoice, as Honor has just unveiled the Magic V3 at IFA 2024, marking its global launch.

Honor Magic V3 has hardware that can compete with the best smartphones; foldable or not

Each half of a foldable device is significantly thinner than your average smartphone. This comes with a lot of limitations on the hardware that can fit inside these devices. As such, we were forgiving of the weaker hardware despite the much higher prices. However, some manufacturers, like Honor, have been able to somehow get around these obstacles and deliver excellent specs despite the form factor.

The Honor Magic V3 is quite literally the world’s thinnest foldable smartphone — it’s 9.2mm when folded and weighs just 226g — which makes its hardware even more impressive. You get a 6.43-inch display on the body and a 7.92-inch display on the inside, both of which are LTPO OLEDs with a 120Hz refresh rate and Dolby Vision. There’s also 4320Hz PWM dimming. You’re still getting the power of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 in this body, with up to 16GB/1TB of storage configuration.

The camera setup is nothing to scoff at either. We’re talking about a 50-megapixel main camera with OIS, a 50-megapixel 3.5x periscope telephoto lens with OIS, and a 40-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens. On each screen, you’ve got a selfie camera; both of them 20MP lenses. Honor doesn’t let its slimness stop it from packing a 5150mAh cell with support for 66W wired charging AND 50W wireless charging. It almost sounds too good to be true.

Honestly, just looking at the specs, it’s hard to say that the Honor Magic V3 isn’t one of the best — if not the best — foldable smartphones you can buy right now. Wi-Fi 7, an IR blaster, IPX8 water resistance, stylus compatibility, and DisplayPort 1.2 support all come together to seal the deal — it’s an absolute winner.

Honor Magic V3 stays up to date with software updates despite common AI issues

Needless to say, if the Honor Magic V3 is to remain competitive, it needs to be equipped with all the new AI features that most other manufacturers are implementing.

With Android 14 on your Magic V3, you’ll get access to features like AI Eraser and Face to Face Translation, as well as Honor’s AI Portrait Engine and AI Motion Sensor when using the camera.

Honor Magic V3 is available for purchase in Europe, at the expected price of a foldable device

The Honor Magic V3 comes in black, green and reddish brown, and will be available to buy now in the UK, starting at £1,699 – the typical price for a foldable flagship. It will be available to buy from major retailers, including the Honor website.