Honor isn’t trying to reinvent its flagship formula with the Magic 8 Pro. Instead, it sharpens what already worked: a premium design, a powerful camera system built around low-light performance, and one of the largest batteries you’ll find in a modern flagship. The result is a phone that feels confident rather than experimental, aimed squarely at users who want reliable performance, excellent photography, and long battery life without paying Apple or Samsung prices.
After spending time with the Magic 8 Pro, it’s clear that this is an iterative upgrade done right.
Design: Familiar, Polished, And Premium In Hand
The Honor Magic 8 Pro looks and feels like a flagship the moment you pick it up. The gently curved edges, matte glass back, and champagne-like gold finish (it is also available in black and cyan) give it a refined presence that leans elegant rather than flashy. At 161.2mm tall, 75mm wide, and 8.3mm thick, it sits firmly in flagship territory, while the 219g weight adds a reassuring sense of solidity without making it cumbersome.
The large circular camera module dominates the rear, adding visual character and a slight tilt when the phone is placed flat on a desk. Some may prefer flatter or squarer designs from rivals, but the Magic 8 Pro’s curves make it comfortable to hold for long periods.
Durability is another strong point. With IP68, IP69, and IP69K ratings, the phone offers serious protection against dust and water, making it well suited for everyday use in less-than-ideal conditions.
A new addition this year is the physical AI button on the right edge. Positioned similarly to a camera shutter, it can be customized with single tap, double tap, and press-and-hold actions. You can assign it to launch the camera, Google Lens, or various AI features, and it also doubles as a zoom slider when shooting photos or videos. While its placement could be slightly lower for easier reach, it proves genuinely useful in daily use and isn’t overly sensitive.
Display: Bright, Smooth, And Flagship-Grade
Up front, the Magic 8 Pro features a 6.71-inch LTPO OLED display with a resolution of 2,808 x 1,256 pixels and a 120Hz refresh rate. It’s sharp, vibrant, and comfortably bright, with support for HDR Vivid and Dolby Vision. Slightly smaller than its predecessor, the screen is marginally easier to handle while still offering plenty of space for media, gaming, and multitasking.
The pill-shaped cutout houses a ToF sensor for secure facial recognition and also powers Honor’s Dynamic Island-style interface, which shows live notifications and app controls. For users coming from an iPhone, the overall experience will feel immediately familiar.
For the most accurate colors, switching to Professional Colour Mode is recommended, especially if you care about photo and video accuracy.
Performance: Fast, Fluid
Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor and paired with 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, the Magic 8 Pro delivers flagship-level performance across the board. Apps launch quickly, multitasking is smooth, and demanding games run without obvious stutter.
Honor also offers a higher-end configuration with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage for users who want extra headroom for demanding apps or large media libraries.
Battery Life And Charging: One Of The Best In Class
Battery life is one of the Magic 8 Pro’s biggest strengths. The massive 7,100mAh silicon-carbon battery easily lasts a full day of mixed use, with many users finishing the day with well over 50 percent remaining. In real-world use, it can stretch to around a day and a half without much effort.
Charging is equally impressive. With 120W wired charging and 80W wireless charging using Honor’s SuperCharge accessories, topping up the battery is quick and convenient, minimizing downtime even with such a large cell.
Cameras: Built For Low Light, Strong Across The Board
The Honor Magic 8 Pro’s camera system is clearly tuned with low-light photography in mind. The triple-camera setup consists of a 50MP main camera, a 50MP ultra-wide, and a 200MP periscope telephoto, complemented by a 50MP front camera with a ToF sensor.
In everyday shooting, the main and ultra-wide cameras produce pleasing images with a slightly warmer color profile. This can be flattering for skin tones and sunsets, though it may occasionally drift from true-to-life color. For those who want more control, Pro mode allows manual white balance adjustments, which can help correct the occasional misstep under artificial lighting.
Low-light performance is where the Magic 8 Pro really shines. Night mode delivers bright, detailed images in dim environments such as aquariums, bars, and city streets, often outperforming competitors at similar zoom levels. Faces are generally handled well at night, though slower shutter speeds can introduce motion blur if subjects move.
The 200MP telephoto camera offers impressive reach, with usable results up to around 10x zoom and acceptable quality for social media at moderate levels beyond that. Pushing to extreme digital zoom relies heavily on AI enhancement and results can look soft or hazy, so staying within mid-range zoom delivers the best balance of detail and clarity.
Portrait mode produces convincing background blur with accurate subject separation, while macro shots and close-up product photography turn out sharp and vibrant when lighting is controlled. One notable omission compared to the previous generation is the variable aperture, which limits creative depth-of-field control for advanced users.
If you’d like to see full-resolution camera samples and detailed shooting scenarios, you can check out our earlier first-look camera coverage of the Honor Magic 8 Pro.
Software And AI Features: Useful, If You Want Them
Running MagicOS 10 based on Android 16, the Magic 8 Pro offers a clean, smooth experience that borrows heavily from iOS in both visuals and interaction. Some may find the translucent UI elements and AI button interface a little too familiar, but the good news is that the Themes app makes it easy to customize the look.
AI features are plentiful, though not all will appeal to everyone. Highlights include AI photo editing tools for object removal and image enhancement, AI Memories for content summaries, real-time subtitles, and deepfake detection during video calls. There’s also an AI Settings Agent that lets you control system functions like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and brightness using voice commands.
Google’s Gemini assistant is also available for writing, brainstorming, and general assistance, rounding out a feature set that feels comprehensive without being mandatory to use.
Verdict: A Dependable Flagship That Gets The Essentials Right
Starting at S$1,499 for the 12GB/512GB model, the Honor Magic 8 Pro delivers a well-balanced flagship experience with standout battery life and excellent low-light photography. It may not introduce radical design changes, and its software takes clear inspiration from iOS, but the fundamentals are executed extremely well.
If you want a premium Android phone that prioritizes camera performance, endurance, and overall reliability—without pushing into ultra-premium pricing—the Honor Magic 8 Pro is an easy recommendation and one of the strongest flagship options available right now.
