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Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Two-minute overview
After its robust exhibiting with final yr’s Magic 7 Professional, Chinese language smartphone maker Honor is again with one other wonderful flagship. The Honor Magic 8 Professional is the whole lot you possibly can need from a prime of the road smartphone, with a stacked spec sheet that options Qualcomm’s very good Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 SoC (the identical chip that powers the likes of the dearer Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely), backed up by 12GB of RAM and a beneficiant 512GB of storage in all accessible fashions.
I additionally love Honor’s new design, which refines the already robust look of the Magic 7 Professional with a bigger and rounder digital camera module that offers the telephone a extra even look than earlier than. The Magic 8 Professional is available in a lot better colours in the event you’re keen to enterprise exterior the fundamental Black, too, together with vibrant Sky Cyan and the radiant Dawn Gold model that I examined. I’m a sucker for gold or rose gold colorways, and the shimmery again materials right here is an absolute stunner.
(Picture credit score: Future)
That stated, I’m not too impressed by the addition of a devoted, touch-sensitive AI Button on the Magic 8 Professional. That is successfully simply Honor’s model of Apple’s Digital camera Management button, letting you zoom the digital camera in or out by merely sliding your finger throughout it. Faucet it whereas on the house display, and also you’ll open up a few of Honor’s AI instruments, that are actually somewhat missing and don’t actually justify a devoted button. The AI Photographs Agent is nice, providing genuinely helpful instruments like the flexibility to take away passersby, upscale photos, take away reflections, and so forth, however the AI Settings Agent and AI Reminiscences apps are each borderline ineffective.
Like different Honor units, battery life is excellent right here. The battery optimization software program is usually a little too desperate to shut down background apps that you just may need to maintain open, however it’s simple so as to add exceptions within the settings. The Magic 8 Professional unit that I used boasts a mega 7,100mAh silicon-carbon battery, which provides it greater than sufficient juice to final a full day with reasonable use. Even if you’re streaming content material or taking part in intensive video games, it’s tough to expire of gasoline in a single day. When you’re a lighter person, you need to be capable to obtain a number of days of runtime — particularly in the event you allow the battery saver mode.
There’s a caveat, although: patrons of the Magic 8 Professional in EU areas will get a diminished 6,270mAh silicon-carbon battery. It is a small downgrade that the majority aren’t going to note, and can under no circumstances prohibit your skill to squeeze out a full day of use. Nonetheless, it’s price taking into consideration on condition that competing units just like the Oppo Discover X9 Professional and OnePlus 15 have batteries exceeding 7,000mAh in the identical area.
Additionally, consumers within the US and Australia must cope with restricted availability as Honor telephones are usually not formally offered there. You might be able to import the Magic 8 Professional by some on-line retailers, however do keep in mind that this will likely affect community compatibility and your entry to assist or guarantee companies.
Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Worth and availability
- £1,099.99 within the UK
- Virtually all the time on sale for £899.99
- Continuously comes with nice freebies
- Not formally accessible within the US or Australia
When you’ve purchased an Honor system earlier than, you’ll know that they’re all the time nearly on sale through Honor’s official web site. The Honor Magic 8 Professional is not any exception, and whereas it has an £1,099.99 RRP, it’s simple to search out for as little as £899.99 at varied instances all year long.
Contemplating the excessive specs (plus that beneficiant 512GB of storage), the Magic 8 Professional is completely unbelievable worth at that lower cost, and issues solely get higher if you issue within the varied freebies Honor likes to throw in.
On the time of writing, along with the £200 low cost, the Honor Magic 8 Professional comes with an honest finances pill (the Honor Pad X9a) that usually goes for £149.99, plus a £49.99 energy adapter and £59.99 earbuds — that’s about £260 of additional worth proper there. The identical provide may not be accessible as you learn this, however it’s all the time price checking Honor’s official web site for related freebies earlier than heading straight to Amazon and different third-party retailers.
As with most different Honor telephones, the Magic 8 Professional isn’t formally offered within the US or Australia.
Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Specs
This is a take a look at the Honor Magic 8 Professional’s key specs:
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Honor Magic 8 Professional
Dimensions
161.15 x 8.4 x 75mm
Weight
219g
OS
MagicOS 10, primarily based on Android 16
Show
6.7-inch OLED, 120Hz
Decision
1256 x 2808
Chipset
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
RAM
12GB
Storage
512GB
Battery
7,100mAh (examined), 6270mAh (EU)
Rear cameras
50MP broad (f/1.6) + 50MP ultra-wide (f/2.0) + 200MP telephoto (f/2.6, 3.7x optical zoom)
Entrance digital camera
50MP (f/2.0) + 3D Depth Digital camera
Charging
120W wired, 80W wi-fi
Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Design
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(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)
- Modern and classy
- Follows typical Chinese language telephone design tendencies
- New AI Button
Honor hasn’t rocked the design boat with its newest flagship, however reasonably opted to refine the already robust aesthetics of the Honor Magic 7 Professional. The largest distinction with this new mannequin is a extra rounded ‘squircle’ digital camera bump, which has been moved somewhat larger up and made ever so barely bigger to present the telephone a extra balanced look. It’s a really glossy and classy design, offered you want an enormous digital camera module — a development in most Chinese language flagships.
The telephone feels beautiful within the fingers, with the hefty aluminum body giving a very good impression of sturdiness. The again is plastic, however it’s impressively high-quality and strengthened in such a manner that I didn’t even discover it wasn’t truly glass till I checked the system’s spec sheet.
I’m very clumsy with my telephones and customarily use them with out a case, which is a recipe for fairly just a few nasty drops. Embarrassingly, in my time with the Magic 8 Professional, I’ve dropped it from arm peak instantly on concrete a few instances, and it’s emerged unscathed, bar just a few small nicks on the Honor NanoCrystal Protect display and a tiny dent in a single nook. That is a formidable exhibiting, and I’ve no doubts that it may take a way more intense beating with equally robust outcomes.
Along with the quantity rocker and energy button, the appropriate aspect of the Honor Magic 8 Professional now boasts a brand new AI Button. In contrast to the opposite buttons, it’s flush in opposition to the aspect of the telephone and is touch-sensitive. You customise what the button does within the telephone’s settings menu, and I’ve discovered it’s most helpful when used to open the digital camera, although given the present digital camera shortcut on the lock display, it’s not likely one thing that I take advantage of loads.
The Magic 8 Professional is out there in three colours: Dawn Gold, Sky Cyan, and Black. My private favourite is comfortably Dawn Gold, which occurs to be the one despatched to me for testing. It’s received a stunning shimmery look to it, with a refined gold coloration that appears luxurious however, importantly, not overly garish.
Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Show
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(Picture credit score: Future)
- Spectacular brightness
- Robust decision and refresh fee
- Options Magic Capsule
The Honor Magic 8 Professional has a formidable 6.7-inch 1256 x 2808 OLED panel with HDR assist that is able to reaching a blinding 6,000 nits brightness. Cranked as much as the max (which is 1,800 nits in non-HDR content material), it stays absolutely seen in even the harshest daylight.
The 120Hz refresh fee is silky clean and ensures that scrolling social media and system menus seems and feels nice.
Some may not admire the rounded corners or refined curve alongside the sting of the telephone’s show, however I discover that it is beautiful beneath the fingers.
On the prime of the display, you will discover a small island with the entrance digital camera and 3D depth digital camera. You need to use this for 3D face recognition, although I used to be completely completely happy simply sticking to the Magic 8 Professional’s impressively snappy under-screen fingerprint reader.
This island can be residence to the Magic Capsule, Honor’s tackle Apple’s Dynamic Island idea. It gives a simple solution to see your present track, any lively timers, whether or not you may have a voice recording working, and related system app capabilities.
The entire display is roofed by Honor’s NanoCrystal Protect coating, which appears to carry up fairly properly. You are still going to finish up with scratches in the event you by accident stick the telephone in a pocket subsequent to your keys, however in any other case, you should not anticipate to select up many blemishes on the whole use. I additionally admire the truth that the telephone comes fitted with a plastic display protector proper out of the field, too.
Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Cameras
(Picture credit score: Future)
- Nice digital camera efficiency
- Particularly good in difficult environments
- Aggressive picture processing
The Honor Magic 8 Professional’s digital camera array is headlined by a 200MP telephoto shooter with 3.7x optical zoom and 100x digital zoom. It performs excellently on the entire, although pictures purists will inevitably spot that photos do are inclined to endure from reasonably aggressive processing that typically leaves edges wanting somewhat too clean and even barely smudged in the event you prefer to zoom in on captured pictures.
Nonetheless, the outcomes are all the time vibrant and cheerful with robust colours and a great deal of element. The optical zoom is speedy and efficient, and you will get some surprisingly good outcomes from the 100x digital zoom, although you need to anticipate plenty of seen AI processing. 4K 120fps video seize can be supported on the Magic 8 Professional, which makes it really feel decidedly flagship.
This telephoto shooter is joined by a 50MP ‘Extremely Evening’ broad lens, which actually comes into its personal in difficult lighting situations. Whether or not it’s at a bustling membership or an eclectic present, the Magic 8 Professional manages to seize particulars impressively clearly. It offers with movement extraordinarily properly, too, serving to you effortlessly obtain nice photographs.
The weakest a part of the digital camera setup is well the 50MP ultra-wide, which is respectable however nothing particular on this market section.
You additionally get loads of cool modes to mess around with, together with Harcourt-inspired portraits and a completely unbelievable Stage mode that basically takes the digital camera efficiency to a different stage at live performance occasions.
Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Digital camera samples
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(Picture credit score: Future)(Picture credit score: Future)
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Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Efficiency
(Picture credit score: Future)
- Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 delivers lightning-fast efficiency
- Flawless in day by day use and gaming
- Some audio settings tweaks wanted
What’s there actually to say concerning the efficiency of a telephone outfitted with Snapdragon’s newest top-of-the-line Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset? You’ll be able to simply obtain a rock stable 60fps in demanding titles like Genshin Affect and Zenless Zone Zero, even with the graphics cranked all the way in which as much as the utmost settings. The telephone stays impressively cool beneath heavy load, too, and doesn’t endure from an excessive amount of battery drain.
For day by day use, the efficiency of the Magic 8 Professional is just flawless, whether or not you’re scrolling by social media apps, on-line procuring, or looking the web. The 12GB of RAM (plus a reasonably superfluous extra 12GB of ‘Honor RAM Turbo’) is greater than sufficient to multitask successfully and ensures that you’ll not often battle to flick between a number of apps.
The bottom 512GB capability is superb too, and must be loads for many customers. I obtain a helluva lot of high-fidelity music and high-end video games, and have barely scraped previous the 250GB mark in months of use.
The audio system on the Magic 8 Professional are additionally surprisingly good. No, they’re meant to exchange your standalone JBL speaker, however music that you just blast is completely nice and has a formidable stage of bass. Simply be certain that to allow the premium bass mode in settings and disable 3D encompass sound, because the latter leaves music sounding tinny and peculiar.
Additionally, be certain that to show off each Honor Sound Spatial Audio and Honor Sound Stereo Studio beneath Headphone Sound Results settings, in any other case your sound with headphones goes to really feel noticeably off.
Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Software program
(Picture credit score: Future)
- MagicOS 10 is simple to make use of
- Seven years of assist promised
- AI options are hit-and-miss
As a former Apple person, I’ve all the time championed Honor’s MagicOS 10 for its engaging design and ease of use. Sure, the model is reasonably shameless in its copying of the Silicon Valley big’s newest software program improvements (simply seen MagicOS 10’s very Liquid Glass-inspired clear new look), however it’s exhausting to argue with the outcomes.
Menus are properly laid out and look fairly, and there are many customization choices to mess around with. The entire system apps look nice and are brimming with performance too, with the well-organized Notes app and transcribing Voice Recorder common favorites once I’m working at tech occasions.
Within the EU and another markets, Honor has additionally promised seven years of software program assist. This is a wonderful dedication and places Honor up there with market leaders like Samsung.
I do must admit that I anticipated much more from the telephone’s AI options, given the model’s deal with them in advertising. There are just a few good inclusions right here, like some efficient AI picture modifying instruments and the flexibility to generate summaries or graphs in Notes, however among the software program feels half-baked.
The AI Settings Agent is a major instance of this. On paper, it is a chatbot that may modify your telephone settings by turning off Bluetooth, enabling your hotspot, and so forth when requested by voice or textual content. A cool concept, however in apply, it is gradual, buggy, and might’t parse advanced instructions in any respect. Then there’s the AI Reminiscences app, which is just baffling. It is only a bathroom common screenshot instrument with the phrase “AI” slapped on it for no obvious cause.
There’s additionally no getting round the truth that patrons exterior of China are lacking out on the YoYo Agent, Honor’s agentic AI assistant. As an alternative, you get Gemini built-in which is way much less thrilling.
Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Battery
(Picture credit score: Future)
- 7,100mAh silicon-carbon, or 6,270mAh within the EU
- Simply powers by a number of days of use
- 100W wired charging, 80W wi-fi charging
Honor has all the time delivered telephones with very good battery life, and the Honor Magic 8 Professional is not any exception. As I discussed beforehand, the mannequin I examined sports activities a 7,100mAh silicon-carbon battery, although patrons within the EU can have a barely smaller 6,270mAh mannequin.
It comfortably lasts a full day of use after which some, and I’m a very frequent telephone person who’s all the time checking social media and blasting music by my headphones.
With minimal use, you possibly can simply squeeze a number of days out of a single cost, particularly in the event you activate the battery saver mode. The telephone helps blazing-fast 100W wired charging, plus staggering 80W wi-fi charging, offered you utilize Honor’s personal peripherals.
When it comes to the competitors, the Magic 8 Professional is similar to the iPhone 17 Professional Max and Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely, although it gives sooner wired charging than each of these telephones. The OnePlus 15, in the meantime, stays the general battery life champion — however the Honor runs it shut.
Do you have to purchase the Honor Magic 8 Professional?
Swipe to scroll horizontallyHonor Magic 8 Professional scorecard
Attributes
Notes
Ranking
Worth
The Honor Magic 8 Professional is killer worth, with its top-of-the-line specs and beneficiant beginning storage capability, particularly if yow will discover it with freebies thrown in.
5 / 5
Design
Though Honor doesn’t rip up the design rule e-book, the Magic 8 Professional continues to be a lovely-looking telephone that is available in some nice coloration choices.
4 / 5
Show
A terrific show that’s vibrant, clean, and gives a excessive decision. The slight curve on its edges and rounded bezels could be divisive, although.
4 / 5
Efficiency
Qualcomm’s quickest chip is paired with a wholesome 12GB of RAM. What else is there to say?
5 / 5
Software program
Good, easy-to-use software program with a wealth of options and a very good assist dedication. A few of the AI instruments are a bit underwhelming, although.
4 / 5
Cameras
Merely put, the Honor Magic 7 Professional is the longest-lasting Android flagship round. It costs extraordinarily rapidly, too.
4 / 5
Battery
A telephone that may energy by a number of days with commonplace use. It’s a disgrace that some patrons get a barely smaller battery than others, although.
4.5 / 5
Purchase it if…
Do not buy it if…
Honor Magic 8 Professional overview: Additionally think about
Not so eager on the Honor Magic 8 Professional? Stack it up in opposition to these compelling alternate options.
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Honor Magic 8 Professional
Samsung Galaxy S25 Extremely
OnePlus 15
Worth:
£1099.99
$1,299 / £1,249 / AU$2,149
$899 / £899
Show:
6.7-inch OLED, 120Hz
6.9-inch AMOLED, 120Hz
6.78-inch LTPO OLED, 120Hz (165Hz for choose video games)
Cameras:
50MP essential + 50MP ultra-wide + 200MP telephoto w/ 3.7x zoom
200MP essential + 50MP ultra-wide + 10MP telephoto w/ 3x zoom + 50MP telephoto w/ 5x zoom
50MP essential + 50MP ultra-wide + 50MP telephoto w/ 3.5x zoom
Processor:
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
Battery:
7,100mAh (examined), 6,270mAh (EU)
5,000mAh
7,300mAh
How I examined the Honor Magic 8 Professional
- Examined for a number of months
- Used as a day by day driver
- In comparison with different telephones
I examined the Honor Magic 8 Professional over a interval of a number of months, with Honor offering the telephone just a few weeks earlier than its official launch again in October 2025.
It’s been my day by day driver for that total time, used for hours each week, and completely in contrast with my hands-on testing of different telephones from Honor along with prime Android alternate options. All through my testing time, I used to be cautious to guage the telephone’s efficiency in a variety of apps, together with prime video games, social media functions, and extra.
Learn extra about how we check
First examined March 2026
Honor Magic 8 Professional: Worth Comparability
