Honor Magic 7 Pro review: a worthy Samsung competitor?

The Honor Magic 6 Pro was one of last year's standout smartphones. It looked unique, had a novel camera system that was generally competitive, and squeezed in one of the highest-capacity batteries of any flagship when it launched. I had high hopes for its successor, but on paper, the Magic 7 Pro seems like a modest upgrade.

In the context of 2025 alternatives, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra crams in a more robust camera mix, as does the Oppo Find X8 Pro and the Galaxy S25 Ultra. Gamers can look to the cheaper Redmagic 10 Pro if they want pure power, which costs significantly less than the Honor. Alternatively, the OnePlus 13 packs plenty of appeal too.

So from the get-go, the problem with the Honor Magic 7 Pro is that it looks like a safe phone. But that was the story when the phone first launched. Since, Honor has upgraded the long-term software support, lowered the price, and even the battery life seems to outperform higher-spec alternatives. So could the 7 Pro actually be the dark horse flagship champion of 2025?

How much does the Honor Magic 7 Pro cost?

When Honor first announced the Magic 7 Pro, it was priced at a punchy £1,099 (roughly $1,470), not much less than an iPhone 16 Pro and a Galaxy S25 Ultra, making it a tougher sell than it is today.

The official price has since dropped to a much more agreeable £949, and with offers at the time of writing, you can pick the phone up for £799, pitting it against much more affordable phones like the aforementioned OnePlus 13.

Considering the Magic 7 Pro packs 512GB storage and, as I'll come onto, excellent features across the board, not to mention 7 years of software support, it's gone from being a tough sell on launch to bordering on a no-brainer now.

Honor Magic 7 Pro: What's New?

• Overhauled design, ditching the curved display
• More powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset
• Upgraded speakers add class-leading sound
• Improved durability for extreme environments
• Longer software update promise, to 7 years

I initially reported on the Honor Magic 7 Pro when in China, where the phone first launched. On first impressions, its specification impressed thanks to a high-capacity battery life and the fact it was one of the first Snapdragon 8 Elite phones available, carving out welcome points of differentiation.

Now that the phone has launched globally, Honor has shrunk its battery capacity in a hardware shuffle for global markets, taking the spec below that of the Magic 6 Pro. That, plus the fact it packs similar camera hardware and arguably less standout design, might make it a tough sell for upgraders. Nevertheless, as I'll cover, battery performance still outperforms its predecessor, suggesting all is not lost.

There are also several notable updates on paper for Honor's 2025 flagship: the Magic 7 Pro features improved speakers that sound fantastic, the streamlined design incorporates durability upgrades, and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset is a gaming powerhouse.

Arguably, the most significant upgrade for the Magic 7 Pro in terms of long-term usability is Honor’s update promise, announced over a month after the phone was first unveiled in the West. While the Honor Magic 6 Pro was guaranteed 4 years of software updates, Honor is committing to a more impressive 7 years this time around.

Is the Honor Magic 7 Pro a design downgrade?

• Colours: Lunar Shadow Grey / Black / Breeze Blue
• Dimensions: 162.7 x 77.1 x 8.8mm / Weight: 223g
• IP68 and IP69 water- and dust-resistance
• Flat glass on both front and rear

If you're anything like me, you're also thinking the Honor Magic 7 Pro's design is more boring than that of the Honor Magic 6 Pro. But in the flesh, it's a premium-feeling, sleek smartphone.

One of the trends from 2024 to 2025 is screens moving from curved to flat, and the Magic 7 Pro follows this masterfully. With flat glass on the front that subtly curves into the back, this shape is mirrored around the back, making the 7 Pro’s body look more modern – even if it's less standout.

While it isn’t particularly thin or light, with its flatter metal frame, it’s great for gaming, creating a comfortable grip when held sideways. Honor has also upgraded the durability this year, with IP68 and IP69 water- and dust-resistance. There's also a pre-fitted screen protector to safeguard the NanoCrystal Shield display further.

The Magic 7 Pro is available in three colours, with my review device being the black option. There's a statement camera bump around the back to help it stand out, a novel pill-shaped cutout on the front for the front camera, and a polished metal frame which feels rich – even if it can get slippery with sweaty hands.

Is Honor's eye care any good?

• Flat 6.8-inch LTPO OLED
  • 1600 nits global maximum brightness
  • 5000 nits HDR maximum brightness
  • 1080 x 2800 resolution
  • 120Hz variable refresh rate
• Honor's flagship eye-care features
  • 4320Hz PWM dimming technology
  • TÜV Rheinland flicker-free certified

If there’s one thing Honor makes a big deal about, it’s eye care. And the Honor Magic 7 Pro puts the firm’s finest peeper-protector software to work at both a hardware and software level.

First up, there’s the screen spec; with a 6.8-inch panel sporting a FHD+ (1280 x 2800) resolution, plus 1600 nits peak brightness outdoors. That means the Magic 7 Pro is expansive, sharp, and bright – all laying a great foundation for an eye-friendly display.

With 4320Hz PWM dimming, the low brightness flicker rate should also contribute to reduced eye strain, and Honor also introduces a defocus feature, manipulating the screen to help reduce near-sightedness that can result from prolonged smartphone use.

As with most phones, the 7 Pro’s display settings are also rich with blue light filtering options, but Honor backs up its eye-care claims with certifications from TÜV Rheinland, with its Circadian Night Display tech apparently resulting in a 20% increase in melatonin versus unoptimised screens.

The result is one of the most comfortable phones to use in darker environments. If you’re on a plane and the lights are turned off, in a cab at night, or in bed, whether it was psychosomatic or not, it was very comfortable looking at my Honor Magic 7 Pro's screen. That even applies when gaming, which usually dries my eyes out quickly.

Another aspect of Honor’s 2025 flagship that impresses is the speakers. Located on either end of the phone, the 7 Pro is loud, clear, packs depth, and actually competes with the iPhone 16 Pro Max on sound quality, which is something very few of the best Android phones accomplish.

Is the Honor Magic 7 Pro good for for gaming?

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite
• 512GB storage and 12GB RAM
• 5,270mAh battery capacity
• 100W wired / 80W wireless

With its Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, the Honor Magic 7 Pro is excellent for gaming. I played hours of Genshin Impact, Honkai Star Rail, and Wuthering Waves, three demanding titles, and even with graphics settings ramped up, the phone didn’t overheat or drop too many frames.

Despite its stellar performance in my time with it, I wouldn’t quite call the Honor Magic 7 Pro a gaming phone. Phones like the Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro and Redmagic 10 Pro include gamer-centric features like shoulder triggers and bypass charging (so you can keep your phone topped up without it getting too hot).

So if you're an elite gamer, then the 7 Pro's power might not be enough, but with Geekbench multi-core scores of over 3000, and an Antutu score of over 220,000, casual gamers like me will be covered.

The Honor Magic 7 Pro also does a fantastic job of lasting more than a day with regular use, even with some gaming and camera action thrown in. There was some controversy since I first tested the Chinese version of the phone, with its battery capacity being reduced for the global version of the 7 Pro. The biggest sting is the fact the 7 Pro has a lower-capacity battery on paper than last year's Magic 6 Pro.

In a turn for the books, in real-world tests and PC Mark battery test, my Honor Magic 7 Pro outperformed the Magic 6 Pro and higher-capacity phones like the Nubia Z70 Ultra with its 6000mAh battery, so there's no danger of battery anxiety in reality.

Honor's included very fast-charging – at 100W – so the Magic 7 Pro powers up in around 35 minutes when plugged in. If you have a fast 80W wireless charger, it charges fully in around 50 minutes without the need to plug into the port.

Since the Magic 7 Pro launched, it's received the latest version of MagicOS 9, Honor's interface that's built on Android 15. Anyone who prefers their phones simple, MagicOS might be a bit much, especially if you're coming from a Google Pixel.

For anyone up for getting stuck in and personalising almost everything, this is Honor's most customisable and polished software to date. There's a comprehensive suite of themes, customisable folder and app shortcuts, expanding each to access more in less space.

Honor is also keeping up to speed with the competition's AI features, with the most original (and useful) feature being Magic Portal, allowing you to send or share to popular apps with fewer taps than Android's traditional search mechanism.

How good is the Magic 7 Pro's camera?

• Main (24mm): 50MP, f/1.4-f/2.0 aperture, OIS
• Telephoto (72): 200MP, f/2.6, OIS
• Ultra-wide (12mm): 50MP, f/2.0, autofocus

The Magic 7 Pro’s telephoto camera is an almighty 200MP with a huge 1/1.4-inch sensor, and at 72mm, it's a very practical focal length for high-impact product, portrait and food photography. Alongside the main are a 50MP ultra-wide and a 50MP primary camera, making the 7 Pro competitive.

Fans of gigs and zooming into the distance might notice that Honor doesn't give you quite as much zoom as alternatives like the Pixel 9 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro, Oppo Find X8 Pro and Xiaomi 15 Ultra. However, thanks to its high resolution, large sensor, matched with the fast aperture and ability to focus close to subjects, what it misses out on when it comes to optical zoom, it makes up for when photographing more close-up objects and detail – something none of the aforementioned further-reaching telephoto cameras can do.

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In isolation, each of the Magic 7 Pro's cameras performs well. The ultra-wide is excellent for vlogging and capturing super-expansive selfies. It's the widest ultra-wide around, at 12mm, giving photos an almost action camera quality – which I quite enjoyed for more dynamic-looking clips and photos.

The primary camera has the biggest sensor and so is the best camera across various lighting conditions, especially when matched with that fast variable aperture. So whether you're shooting at night or in challenging lighting, it will be the most reliable camera of the three.

While the telephoto camera shines before you hit 6x zoom, when you go beyond, results can be more hit and miss – depending on what you're photographing. Honor's photo processing helps along buildings and less organic objects, while faces and animals start to look a little bit too AI-ified the further you zoom in.

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The biggest issue with the 7 Pro's camera is inconsistency across all three cameras. When you shoot across the wide, ultra-wide, and telephoto, colours can vary a fair bit. The HDR effect also occasionally adds a halo around dark objects, or overexposes the foreground while underexposing the background, and nighttime colour balance can also struggle.

Aside from these niggles, though, there’s a base-level of quality to the Magic 7 Pro’s shots that keep it competitive and make sure you can get some fantastic photos and videos – especially once you lean into its strengths.

Honor Magic 7 Pro review: verdict

The Honor Magic 7 Pro is a much better phone in the middle of 2025 than when it first launched. Updates have ironed out some camera and software kinks, Honor has extended its software support to a Samsung and Google-matching 7 years for fantastic future-proofing, and the price has dropped, shifting its competition to more affordable flagship phones like the OnePlus 13.

Honor's MagicOS 9 interface will be too heavy for some, photos can feel a bit too processed in challenging scenes, and the zoom won't give gig-goers the crisp on-stage photography you'll get from some other phones like the Oppo Find X8 Pro.

However, the Magic 7 Pro could have the best speakers of any Android flagship, its battery life is very long-lasting (despite the international specification change), and its display is a fantastic, eye-friendly option.

So while Honor's latest flagship may have launched to a modestly positive reception, it's now one of the best phones you can get your hands on at its price. As a Samsung Galaxy alternative it holds up well.

Also consider

When you consider the Magic 7 Pro's 512GB storage, its main competition is the OnePlus 13, which is slightly pricer in its 512GB guise. Both phones are excellent, though Honor packs a more impressive telephoto camera, superior speakers and better battery life.

Another lower-cost option is the Poco F7 Ultra, an excellent choice for anyone who wants power and is prepared to take a hit on the cameras. Costing significantly less, the F7 Ultra is a fantastic gaming option with its Snapdragon 8 Elite, though it falls behind Honor's Magic 7 Pro in every other respect.

Finally, the Oppo Find X8 Pro is a pricier alternative with superior zoom and a cleaner interface. As with the Magic 7 Pro, its price has dropped since launch, making both phones great-value alternatives to the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and Google Pixel 9 Pro XL.