Honor Magic V5 vs Honor Magic V3

Verdict

Honor Magic V5 scores higher on the OH Rank (70 vs 69), winning 2 of 10 categories including Performance and Desktop Replacement. Honor Magic V5 is 0.3mm wider than Honor Magic V3. Honor Magic V5 is the more recent release, from Jul 2025.

Score Breakdown

Category

Honor Magic V5

74.3mm (2.93in) · Jul 2025 · Rank #85

Honor Magic V3

74mm (2.91in) · Jul 19, 2024 · Rank #92
Performance /15
11
7
Battery /15
8
8
Screen /15
11
13
IP Protection /15
12
12
Main Camera /15
12
12
Selfie /5
3
5
Video /5
3
4
SD Memory /5
0
0
Software /5
5
5
Desktop Replacement /5
5
3
TOTAL
70
69
Honor Magic V5
74.3mm (2.93in) · Jul 2025 · FOLD · Rank #85
11+8+11+12+12+3+3+0+5+5 = 70
FOLDFLY* TOP Desktop Replacement* TOP Software

EDITORIAL: Honor skipped the V4 iteration and put out Magic V5 - the thinnest FOLD phone in the world. At 8.8mm total thickness, the USB-C port barely fits in and to make future foldables any thinner, the device would have to drop the USB port altogether. Honor also dust protection, increased water resistance, put in a bigger battery and improved the back cameras. A great upgrade overall.

PROs
2025 thinnest foldable, 217g light and very strong build, fast SD 8 Elite with UFS4.0 performance, 24hr endurance from 5820mAh Si-C battery with sub-1hr 66W charging (50W wireless), >400ppi LTPO AMOLED screens with Dolby Vision, IP59 dust and water protection, great pics from 50MP OIS PDAF main + 64MP periscope tele + 50MP AF ultrawide, 7 years of OS updates, desktop replacement feature, fast USB-C 3.1 with Display Port tech
CONs
only a day of battery life, no AF on either 20MP selfie nor on the periscope tele (!), no SDmemory slot
Honor Magic V3
74mm (2.91in) · Jul 19, 2024 · FOLD · Rank #92
7+8+13+12+12+5+4+0+5+3 = 69
FOLD* TOP Software

EDITORIAL: The 3rd try at Honor fold phone gets us some great innovation and solutions. V 3 is a very competent foldable with a capable camera system, very bright external screen, stylus support and water immersion down to 2.5m. Battery has seen a minimal upgrade and it shows in phone's mediocre endurance.

PROs
very solid build, fast Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 with UFS 4.0 performance, fast sub-50min 66W (even has 50W wireless) charging, 2 >400ppi LTPO AMOLED screens with Dolby Vision (external goes over 2000nits), IPX8 (no dust - only water immersion) protection, very good imaging from a 50MP 23mm main + 50MP 90mm periscope telephoto (both OIS PDAF) + 40MP 16mm AF ultrawide setup, 2 20MP 21mm selfies, reliable video recording, looking OS update promise, desktop replacement functionality, fast USB-C 3.1 with Display Port 1.2 and OTG and stylus support
CONs
6mm wider then Z Fold, 230g heavy, mediocre 24hr endurance from a 5150mAh battery, no dust IP protection, no expandable storage, desktop replacement functionality can be improved, stereo speakers could be louder, limited market availability

Both phones here were scored by me, using the same ten categories, with no ads, sponsorships, or manufacturer relationships — this comparison is as objective and honest as it gets.

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