Chinese smartphone manufacturer Honor will start selling devices in Australia from December 4, leading with its ultra-thin Magic V5 foldable as its flagship device.
The book-style foldable's key selling point is its thin design, measuring in at 4.1mm when unfolded. Despite this, the Magic V5 has a 5,820mAh battery. For comparison, Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 7 is 4.2mm at its thinnest point when unfolded, but the battery has a 4,400mAh capacity.
Other key specifications for the Magic V5 include a 6.43-inch 120Hz cover display, a 7.95-inch 120Hz internal display, a Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, 16GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, and IP59 water resistance. The camera configuration includes a 50MP primary lens, 50MP ultra-wide lens, and 64MP 3x optical zoom lens. There is a 20MP selfie camera in each screen.
In Europe, Honor promises the Magic V5 will get seven years of operating system ugrades and security updates. We're trying to confirm if the same promise applies in Australia.
The Magic V5 will sell for $2,599 and is available in a choice of black, gold, or white. That's $300 cheaper than an entry-level Galaxy Z Fold 7, but $500 cheaper than the equivalent 512GB configuration.
Honor's also bringing a more conventional slab phone to Australia: the Honor 400 Pro 5G, priced at $999. Key specifications include a 6.7-inch 120Hz display, a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, 12GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, IP69 water-resistance, and a 5,300mAh battery. Cameras include a 200MP primary lens, 12MP ultra-wide, and 50MP 3x optical zoom. There's a dual selfie camera configuration on the front made of up a 50MP primary lens and 2MP depth lens.
The Honor 400 Pro 5G is slated to get six years of Android operating system upgrades in other markets. We'll confirm if that's also the case in Australia as soon as we can.
Other Honor devices available at launch will include the Honor Pad 10 tablet ($599), the Honor 4 Watch ($249), and the Honor Choice Earbud Clips ($199).
Honor devices will be available through the Honor website and Harvey Norman. In a press release, the company also said it is "investing in a comprehensive after‑sales support network that will ensure a reliable and positive experience for every Honor user".
Honor was originally founded as a Huawei sub-brand, but was sold off in November 2020 following the US government ban that prevented Huawei from using Google apps and services. Since Honor is no longer a sub-brand of Huawei, its phones once again have Google apps.
Honor's local launch is hot on the heels of rival Xiaomi. While Xiaomi previously had distributors in Australia, the company itself set up shop locally last month.
Alex Choros
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