As great as folding phones can be, some can be a drag on our wallets when worn too tight. After all, these devices make it feel like you have two phones in your pocket instead of one. It’s not just the hardware, but also the essential hinges and joints that keep the components from breaking. So I was surprised that Honor’s new Magic V3 felt almost thinner in my jeans than its predecessor.
The company has reduced 0.7mm of thickness from last year’s Magic V2, making the new model just 9.2mm thick. That doesn’t sound like a lot, but it’s enough to make the whole model look noticeably slimmer. It’s a mark of the work Honor has done to improve its flagship foldable to make it easier to use on a daily basis. So, while there isn’t a list of flashy new features, a lot of the smaller changes add up to a lot.
For example, the display hasn’t changed much other than increasing the backlight brightness, which helps with reading in bright sunlight. You’ll notice that the company has made a lot of noise about its AI defocus technology, which helps reduce eye strain. The battery has also grown from 5,000mAh in the V2 to 5,150mAh, but you can now charge it wirelessly. Similarly, the V3 has been worked on to stay cooler for longer under higher loads.
On the imaging front, there’s a 50-megapixel, f/1.6 wide camera with optical image stabilization (OIS) and LIDAR, a 50-megapixel f/3.0 periscope telephoto lens, and a 40-megapixel, f/2.2 ultra-wide camera that comes with OIS. There are also two 20-megapixel cameras for selfies in both the cover display and the internal display, should you need them.
Honor is also packing the kitchen sink’s worth of AI features into this thing, which I haven’t been able to test yet. This includes a Google-powered AI eraser, which will remove unwanted grime in your photos and also offer face-to-face translation services. Honor’s Magic Portal will also hook into Google Search and make suggestions whenever you need them.
Of course, we don’t yet know how much this thing will cost you or when it will be available, but we expect it will be priced smart enough to outshine its competitors.
The Switch 2 looks functionally the same as the original system, albeit with a larger display, magnetic Joy-Cons, and a sleeker design. The company also confirmed that the upcoming console will be backwards compatible with Switch games.
While the reveal confirmed some rumors and gave some interesting details for those who were paying attention, Nintendo is still keeping its cards to itself. We’ll have to wait for a special Nintendo Direct on April 2 for all the interesting details. Trouble is, that date is Wednesday, not two-weeks later.