Honor Magic V2 foldable phone launched: specifications, price and details

Chinese consumer electronics company Honor has launched its flagship foldable smartphone overseas, venturing into a high-end market dominated by Samsung and Apple.

The Honor Magic V2 will go on sale in European markets and elsewhere – but not in the United States – no later than the first quarter of 2024, the company said.

Honor was sold to a consortium of investors to separate it from Huawei after the latter was hit by a number of US sanctions that cut it off from mainstream technology and crushed its smartphone business, turning it from the number one company in the world into a very small part of the overall market.

Honor has been looking forward to charting its own path since the sub-display, leading it to play a special role in the premium segment of the smartphone arena and expand abroad.

The Magic V2 is the company’s second foldable smartphone. The phone can be completely folded and opened.

Honor launched the phone in China in July, with a starting price of 8,999 yuan ($1,235), and it appears to be off to a strong start. The Shenzhen-headquartered company hopes to have similar success abroad. The price of the phone has not yet been announced in the global markets.

Honor accounted for a market share of 5.2% in the second quarter of this year, which is slightly higher than the 4.9% in the same period last year, and is still a small player in the market, according to IDC. China accounts for nearly 78% of Honor’s total smartphone shipments, highlighting its reliance on its home market.

Part of Honor’s strategy to improve its global position is to launch high-spec phones at competitive prices, particularly in mature European markets such as the UK, and the Magic V2 is part of that.

“Honor appears to be following the playbook of Huawei in its hugely successful run in the global smartphone market before US actions put it in reverse, aiming for a largely high-end portfolio with a focus on top-notch technology and specifications,” it says. Said Simon Baker, Director of Smartphones Division. IDC’s mobile research in Europe told CNBC via email.

However, the now independent Honor is doing this with fewer resources than Huawei used to have.

However, Honor faces a number of challenges as it attempts to compete at the highest levels with giants Apple and Samsung, particularly in trying to raise its brand profile.

“Both Apple and Samsung have huge advantages in terms of scale, R&D (research and development) resources and marketing clout. Honor’s new phones are generally very well received as products, but it takes years to become a well-known and respected name in the phone space,” added Becker.

Magic V2 comes with all the latest features expected from a premium phone.

It has a triple lens camera, the latest Qualcomm mobile chipset and has storage options of up to 1TB.

And when the phone is unfolded, users can enjoy a 7.92-inch screen.

The device also measures 9.9mm when folded, which is smaller than the 13.4mm of its closest competitor – the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5. Honor’s product is also lighter than Samsung’s.

CNBC looked at the battery in the device and it’s very thin at just 2.72mm thick.

Although the specifications are innovative, Honor still has a hard time convincing people to buy its device.

“When Honor was a sub-brand of Huawei, it was not present or well known in many countries. This is an advantage now because it is not easily associated with Huawei for many consumers, but at the same time Honor has to establish itself on It’s visible as a trusted, premium brand,” Baker said.

Samsung and Apple accounted for nearly 70% of the smartphone market in Western Europe in the first quarter, according to Counterpoint Research, while Chinese brand Xiaomi came in third with a market share of 15%. This highlights the challenge Honor faces in some of the markets it aims to gain a foothold in.

“The experience of Chinese phone makers that have followed Huawei into Europe in the past few years presents a challenge, especially in persuading consumers to buy their more expensive models,” Becker said.

On Friday, Honor also showed off a concept device designed to be worn like a handbag.