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An Honor Foldable Phone Is Set to Go Global Soon

The Chinese company is ready to take to the Mobile World Congress stage to unveil its latest flagship phones.

Sareena Dayaram Senior Editor
Sareena is a senior editor for CNET covering the mobile beat including device reviews. She is a seasoned multimedia journalist with more than a decade's worth of experience producing stories for television and digital publications across Asia's financial capitals including Singapore, Hong Kong, and Mumbai. Prior to CNET, Sareena worked at CNN as a news writer and Reuters as a producer.
Expertise Huawei, Oppo, smartphones, smartwatches Credentials
  • More than a decade of journalism experience
Sareena Dayaram
2 min read
honor magic vs unfoldend
Sareena Dayaram/CNET

Honor is all set to flex two different flagship phones next month. The Chinese company, a former unit of Huawei, is gearing up to debut the Honor Magic 5 series on Feb. 27 at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. 

Based on an image shared with the media, it appears as though a Magic 5 phone will bear a triple camera module on a circle-shaped camera bump. Not much else was revealed, but rumors point to the Magic 5 series consisting of three phones and featuring 100x zoom thanks to a periscope-style telephoto lens. 

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Honor sent out Save the Dates to media announcing the launch of two flagship phones.

Sareena Dayaram/CNET

The Magic Vs, the company's first foldable bound for an international release, is set to launch alongside the Magic 5 series. But it isn't exactly new or a surprise. Last year, Honor took the wraps off the Magic Vs for the first time. It takes the form of a book-style foldable phone similar in look and feel to Samsung's Galaxy Fold 4. 

In addition to the folding screen, the Honor Magic Vs boasts a Snapdragon 8 Gen Plus 1 processor, a 5,000-mAh battery and 66-watt fast charging. It also has a triple rear camera setup with 3x optical zoom. What stands out compared to its predecessor, the Magic V, is the inclusion of a stylus that Honor calls the Magic Pen. CNET got some hands-on time with Honor's foldable flagship phone, and has some thoughts about the device's hardware and display. 

In China, the Magic Vs starts for 7,499 yuan, which converts to roughly $1,050, £880 or AU$1,575. Honor is expected to reveal international prices at MWC 2023.

Unlike phones from Huawei, Honor phones carry the full power of Google mobile services, which includes the Google Play Store, the Google Map app and other critical parts of the Android ecosystem. In 2020, Huawei sold Honor to a consortium of buyers in order to ensure its survival amid US sanctions.