Honor Magic 5 Lite test: beautiful setting, great autonomy

This test was carried out with a Honor Magic5 Lite in version 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage in color Emerald Green loaned by the brand.

Honor Magic 5 Lite

Announced in February 2023, the Magic 5 Lite de Honor, a smartphone positioned as an entry -level model is equipped with an AMOLED curved screen of 6.67 inch with a 120 Hz refreshment rate. It is hosted by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 SOC, 6 GB of RAM (expandable with 5 more GB) and 128 GB of storage. At the rear is a photo block with 3 sensors: a large angle of 64 megapixels, an ultra large angle of 8 megapixels and a macro lens of 2 megapixels. It has a 5100 mAh battery compatible with fast load of 40 W.

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Learn more about the Honor Magic 5 Lite

What is a good mid-range phone ? In view of the contained price, Honor as any brand must make choices, because it is impossible to want to put everything in a phone, a fortiori if it is not a flagship. After a somewhat disappointing Honor Magic 4, the independent Chinese brand of Huawei for almost three years seems to have heard our criticisms with the Honor Magic 5 Lite.

Exit the LCD screen, hello the 6.67 -inch OLED slab in 120 Hz and Full HD+. The interface also took a big stroke of young since we went directly from Magic Ui 4 to Magic Ui 6 (Android 12). During a short handling, these two elements immediately skipped the eyes like real assets that were missing in the previous generation. The screen appears to be saturated, but not unpleasant and the impression of fluidity, both in the slab and the interface, is present.

A fine design for a big battery of 5100 mAh

The other asset that immediately jumps out in the eyes is the thickness and weight of the Honor Magic 5 Lite. You could say that Honor realizes an all-in on the subject, since the brand even justifies the absence of IP certification by this format to say the least, seaman and comfortable. The curved screen finishes making the grip rather pleasant. Let us add that the brand incorporates detection technology on the edges of the screen supposed. If the manufacturer does not integrate by De Gorilla Glass, the manufacturer of the screen, Boe, he still goes from his own certification and protects it all the same with a reinforced glass.

If it is fine, the Honor Magic 5 Lite does not forget to be independent, at least on paper, since Honor promises no less than two days of autonomy. We would tend to believe them because the phone includes a 5100 mAh battery. A very nice capacity which is supposed to guarantee 24 hours continuously on YouTube.

Understandable concessions

Autonomy, OLED screen, nice design. On paper, it is a phone that seems more enticing than last year, especially at its relatively content price of 379 euros. On the other hand, as indicated above, it is not free from concessions. We think for example of his Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G chip, which may be a little light, or the absence of a charger in the box, yet capable of going to 40 W. This is another dealership: last year the Magic 4 Lite went up to 66W. The time for software support promised seems a bit just too, we are told about follow -up to Android 14 only. Finally, let us quote the photo, with 64 megapixel sensors in high angle, 5 megapixels on the ultra grand angle and a macro of two megapixels, but this is more usual on this price range.

All these concessions, inevitable in this price range, still seem more legitimate than on the Magic 4 Lite. It is a safe bet that the target audience (young people aged 15 to 45) do not hold it against them and rather take advantage of a beautiful screen and a product that seems relatively neat.

Honor Magic 5 Lite test: beautiful setting, great autonomy

After having created the surprise on the high -end smartphones market with the Magic 5 Pro, Honor tries to occupy a significantly more affordable segment thanks to his Magic 5 Lite. However, he faces very good competition.

Presentation

Honor may offer ambitious models like the Magic 5 pro, and even folding such as Magic VS, the brand is aware that they do not represent very important sales in France. Launched at € 379, the Magic 5 Lite is positioned in a significantly more affordable price segment, therefore a wider audience.

However, he has a lot to do to stand out, since the references around € 400 are numerous and qualitative. We think in particular of the Motorola Edge 30 Neo, the recent Samsung Galaxy A34, or the Realme GT Neo 3T. In view of its technical sheet, we understand that the firm has bet on a beautiful screen and a licked design, saving on other aspects. A fair balance ?

Ergonomics and design

The Honor Magic 5 Lite is a well -finished smartphone, which seems more expensive than it is actually. It partly takes up the design of its predecessor, but the circular photo island is much more successful, even if it puts an important distance between each of the sensors. Despite its lightness (175 g), its dimensions of 161.6 x 73.9 x 7.9 mm make it a fairly imposing device.

Its large screen occupies more than 90 % of the front face and contains a 16 Mpx sensor in the central hallmark. It allows you to enjoy a fairly basic facial unlocking mode, even if we prefer to use the fingerprint sensor located under the slab.

Unfortunately, this mobile has no sealing certification. It will therefore be necessary to pay attention to the projections of water of all kinds. Too bad, because some competitors, such as the Samsung Galaxy A34, are truly waterproof.

In terms of connectivity, Honor ensures the minimum. Mobile is 5G compatible, WiFi 5 only, Bluetooth 5.1, and takes on a NFC chip. 3.5 mm mini-jack ports and microSD are absent.

The only speaker on the lower edge delivers a very average sound, which can easily be muffled when the smartphone is held in landscape mode. This will be enough to consult videos, but it will be necessary to go through headphones for music.

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Screen

While his ancestor opted for an LCD slab, this Honor Magic 5 Lite hosts a beautiful amoled slab curved of 6.67 inches. It displays in Full HD+ and benefits from a refresh rate up to 120 Hz. It is natively configured to go from 60 to 120 Hz depending on the use, but it is possible to opt for a fixed rate of 60 or 120 Hz.

The light peak stands at 804 cd/m², which allows it to be available even in light environments. The reflectance rate is also lower than on the majority of competitors (40 %), even if it remains important.

The minimum value falls to 2.2 cd/m² and makes it a good ally for night reading. The choice of OLED gives it an almost infinite contrast and a time of zero persistence. The touch delay is low, measured at 62 ms.

Unsurprisingly, it will be necessary to go through a calibration phase to take full advantage of the slab. On the way out of the box, the bright mode displays a color temperature too high (7559 k) and a Delta E at 3.5. There are therefore some colorimetric drifts, especially on green, yellow and red tones. It is therefore strongly advised to select the normal color mode to correct the shot.

Honor Magic5 Lite test: Too many concessions for this sublime OLED screen ?

Last year, Honor released a Magic4 Lite disappointing for its price. But the reproaches we made to him seem to have been corrected. All ? Maybe not: he’s even late on a specific point. We tested the Magic5 Lite, here is our full experience return.

Where to buy the
Honor Magic 5 Lite at the best price ?
299 € discover the offer
299 € discover the offer
299 € discover the offer
349 € discover the offer
379 € discover the offer
259 € discover the offer
265 € discover the offer
269 ​​€ discover the offer
280 € discover the offer
379 € discover the offer
379 € discover the offer
395 € discover the offer

Our full opinion
Honor Magic 5 Lite

July 08, 2023 08/07/2023 • 19:56

A few months ago, Honor was released with great fanfare the Honor Magic5 Pro, the technological flagship of the brand and which is one of the elements of its window alongside the Magic VS. But behind him, there is another smartphone from the Magic series: the Honor Magic5 Lite. Like last year, this is the entry -level model of the series, which intends to resume the elegance of the design of the pro, with real concessions of course.

The Magic4 Lite was an honest smartphone disappointing by its slight technological delay. Honor Magic5 Lite managed to outdo this delay to make it a real competitor to Oppo, Xiaomi or Samsung ?

Technical sheet of the Honor Magic5 Lite

Model	Honor Magic 5 Lite
Dimensions	7.39 cm x 16.16 cm x 7.9 mm
Building interface	Magic Ui
Screen size	6.67 inches
Definition	2400 x 1080 pixels
Pixel density	394 PPP
Technology	Amoled
Sock	Qualcomm Snapdragon 695
Graphic chip	Adreno 619
Internal storage	128 GB
Camera (Dorsal)	Sensor 1: 64 MP 2: 5 MP sensor 3: 2 MP sensor
Front photo sensor	16 MP
Definition Video Recording	Full HD
Wireless	Wi-Fi 5 (AC)
Bluetooth	5.1
5g	Yes
NFC	Yes
Fingerprint	Under the screen
Connector type	USB Type-C
Battery capacity	5100 mAh
Weight	175 g
Colors	Black, silver, green
Price	299 €
Product sheet

This test was carried out with a Honor Magic5 Lite in version 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage in color Emerald Green loaned by the brand.

Design

The first feeling that you feel with the Magic5 Lite in hand is not really comparable to the rest of the smartphones around 300 euros. The smartphone gives high -end model air, and Honor has had some good ideas to create this. First of all, the screen: it is curved on the sides at 45 °, which is rather rare at this price. The selfie camera is placed in punch on the top of the screen, in the middle. The borders also produce their effect. Already on a curved screen, they are less seen, here they are still fine. The same goes for borders at the top and bottom.

Second point, finesse: 7.9 mm thick, there too is remarkable for a phone at this price. Third point: the photo module at the back. It separates from the traditional induction plate to adopt a circle containing three sensors as well as the flash. A fairly original provision, although it can put off some. But the effect is there, even with plastic and without glass Gorilla Glass. In addition, this model does not have IP certification. Honor, however, ensures that there should not be any concern in the event of a water projection.

Finally, we can mention the back: on our model, it is a very slightly glitter and very slightly shiny mat color color. Again, it is clear that the formula is working: there is a good balance between shine and discreet reflections. What have a smartphone that has the good taste not to take the fingerprints. The icing on the cake: the finishes are very good, nothing to blame on this. Note that everything is still light: we are talking about 175 grams, small weight for a large smartphone with a battery at first sight comfortable.

Honor Magic5 Lite handling

6.67 inches is a large size for a screen, which gives a rather large phone. The buttons are placed high enough: if it is easy to access the power button and the one that allows the volume to be lowered, for the last one, it can be more complicated, even with large hands. For my part, I need to move the phone in my hand to access the end to increase the volume.

Overall, the grip is very good and this thanks to the rounded borders, no risk that the Magic5 Lite slides the fingers. As for the circular photo block, as it takes a good part of the total width, it allows you to comfortably tap the keyboard and almost on the whole screen when the smartphone is placed flat.

To unlock the smartphone, two solutions. The first: the fingerprint sensor. Quite quick to configure, it turns out to be a little slow in use. Nothing really crippling, but still, it may not have a good idea to place it under the screen. A sensor on the side could have been more adequate for more liveliness, but one might think that Honor wanted to have a fine smartphone and on a curved screen. To overcome this, there is also facial recognition, which is also quick to set up. On this point, we feel the difference with a Magic5 pro. The Magic5 Lite has a certain latency before identifying us. In broad daylight, it’s just quite lively, time to read a notification or slide your finger to access the home screen. If you use the fingerprint sensor and facial recognition simultaneously, you shouldn’t be bothered too much.

Screen

The Honor Magic5 Lite slab is in Amoled, with a size of 6.67 inches and a cooling rate of 120 Hz. Enough to offer a 20: 9 format, a maximum announced brightness of 800 cd/m² as well as a definition of 2400 per 1080 pixels.

Concretely, the screen of this Honor smartphone is well defined and offers suitable brightness in this price range. The colors are pretty pretty, although pulling slightly towards cold tones. For 330 euros minimum, this gives a nice screen without real compromise, which is rare enough to emphasize it.

We are entitled to a mode Always-on which offers several themes: animals in natural environments, texts, artistic designs and clocks (analog or digital). Same, at this price, it is relatively complete.

In order to have more objective values ​​about the Magic5 Lite screen, we used a specialized probe and Calman Ultimate Displays software. The maximum measured brightness was 820 cd/m² in SDR and 989 in HDR. A high enough value for the device’s price range. What read what is displayed, even in full sun.

On the color temperature side, it’s less good: 7418 K, where we are targeting 6,500 k. The measurement was carried out with the default color mode, which is adjusted in colors ” Vivid »». There is a second preset to enjoy colors ” normal »». Finally, colorimetric coverage is very good: 169 % of the SRGB and 113 % of the DCI-P3. It is at the level of significantly more expensive smartphones.

Software: A Magic UI 6.1 Sous Android 12 late in 2023

The interface is a recurring problem on Honor smartphones: the manufacturer is late on this point. First of all, the Magic5 Lite is not sold on Android 13: you have to be satisfied with Android 12. Rest assured, the next version will arrive from mid-September, to take advantage of the new features brought by Magicos 7.1. A short -lived rejoicing: it will be the last major update on this model !