HONOR announced the world’s slimmest and lightest book-style foldable smartphone a couple of months ago, the HONOR Magic V3. That phone went global in September, and in this article, we’ll compare it with a device that is considered to be one of the best, if not the best foldable smartphones out there still. In this article, we’ll be comparing the HONOR Magic V3 vs OnePlus Open.
Both of these smartphones are truly compelling, but they’re also quite different. That goes for both their designs, their internals, and so on. As we usually do, we will first list the spec sheets of both smartphones. Following that, we will compare them across a number of categories, including design, display, performance, battery, cameras, and audio, With that being said, let’s get to it.
Specs
HONOR Magic V3 & OnePlus Open, respectively
– Screen size (main):
7.92-inch Foldable LTPO AMOLED (120Hz, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 1,800 nits)
7.82-inch LTPO 3 AMOLED (120Hz, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 2,800 nits)
– Screen Size (cover):
6.43-inch LTPO OLED (120Hz, 5,000 nits)
6.31-inch LTPO3 OLED (120Hz, 2,800 nits)
– Display resolution (main):
2156 x 2344
2268 x 2440
– Display resolution (cover):
2376 x 1060
2484 x 1116
– SoC:
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
– RAM:
12GB/16GB (LPDDR5X)
16GB (LPDDR5X)
– Storage:
256GB/512GB/1TB (UFS 4.0)
512GB (UFS 4.0)
– Rear cameras:
50MP (wide, f/1.6 aperture, 1/1.56-inch sensor size, OIS, PDAF), 40MP (ultrawide, f/2.2 aperture, 112-degree FoV), 50MP (periscope telephoto, 1/2.51-inch sensor size, OIS, 3.5x optical zoom)
48MP (wide, f/1.7 aperture, multi-directional PDAF, OIS), 48MP (ultrawide, 114-degree FoV), 64MP (periscope telephoto, 3x optical zoom, 6x “in-sensor” zoom, macro)
– Front cameras:
20MP (main display, f/2.2 aperture), 32MP (cover display, f/2.4 aperture)
20MP (main display, f/2.2 aperture), 32MP (cover display, f/2.4 aperture)
– Battery:
5,150mAh
4,805mAh
– Charging:
66W wired, 50W wireless, 5W reverse wired (charger included)
67W wired, 5W reverse wired (charger included)
– Dimensions (unfolded):
156.6 x 145.3 x 4.35 mm or 4.4 mm
153.4 x 143.1 x 5.8 mm
– Dimensions (folded):
156.6 x 74.0 x 9.2 mm or 9.3 mm
153.4 x 73.3 x 11.7 mm
– Weight:
226/230 grams
239/245 grams
– Connectivity:
5G, LTE, NFC, Wi-Fi, USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.3
– Security:
Side-facing fingerprint scanner
– OS:
Android 14 with MagicOS 8.0.1
Android 13 with OxygenOS (upgradable)
– Price:
€1,999
$1,699
– Buy:
HONOR Magic V3 (HONOR)
OnePlus Open (Best Buy)
HONOR Magic V3 vs OnePlus Open: Design
Both of these phones are book-style foldables, but they do both look and feel different in the hand. The HONOR Magic V3 comes in both glass and vegan leather models, while the same goes for the OnePlus Open. Both phones also use aluminum and some other materials in their build, though. The back side of the OnePlus Open is flat, as are its sides. The same cannot be said for the HONOR Magic V3. Its back side does have a bit more of a curve towards the edges, while its sides are definitely not flat.
Both devices do have a flat cover display with a centered display camera hole on it. The bezels are quite thin on both of their displays, actually. You will also spot a display camera hole on their main displays, but they’re located in different spots. The HONOR Magic V3’s display camera hole is centered on the right side of the main display, so it’s about three-quarters to the right. On the OnePlus Open, it’s in the top-right corner.
There is a camera oreo located on the back of both phones. The one on the OnePlus Open does protrude a bit more, though, and it’s also physically larger. It is a good anchor for your finger when you’re holding the phone, though, so I definitely appreciated it being there during my use. The in-hand feel with these two phones is considerably different. Depending on the variant you get, they can be slippery.
The HONOR Magic V3 is the lighter device of the two, that much is obvious. It is also thinner, and it feels as much in the hand. The HONOR Magic V3 is IPX8 rated for water resistance. The OnePlus Open, on the flip side, comes with an IPX4 rating, which means it’s splash resistant.
HONOR Magic V3 vs OnePlus Open: Display
The main display on the HONOR Magic V3 is a 7.92-inch Foldable LTPO AMOLED panel with a resolution of 2156 x 2344. That panel can project up to 1 billion colors and supports HDR10+ content. It also supports Dolby Vision, and its refresh rate goes up to 120Hz. The peak brightness of this panel is 1,800 nits, and the screen-to-body ratio is at around 88%. The cover display measures 6.43 inches, and it’s an LTPO OLED display. It can project up to 1 billion colors, and Dolby Vision is supported. Its refresh rate goes up to 120Hz, while the peak brightness here is 5,000 nits, on paper. The resolution is 2376 x 1080.
The OnePlus Open, on the other hand, has a 7.82-inch Foldable LTPO3 Flexi-fluid main display. That is an AMOLED panel that can project up to 1 billion colors. Dolby Vision is supported too. The refresh rate here goes up to 120Hz, while the peak brightness is 2,800 nits. This display has a resolution of 2268 x 2440 and a screen-to-body ratio of 89%. The cover display measures 6.31 inches, and it’s an LTPO3 Super Fluid OLED display. Its resolution is 2484 x 1116, and it can project up to 1 billion colors. Dolby Vision is supported here too.
All four of these displays are very good. They do look a bit different out of the box, but both phones allow you to tweak their displays. They’re both more than sharp enough, and they’re well-optimized for a high refresh rate. The touch response is good, and the colors are vivid. The viewing angles are great on all displays. All four displays do get bright enough for all conditions, even though there is some difference in that regard too. The bottom line is, you’ll be happy with all of these displays. Both companies used quality panels and did a great job balancing them.
HONOR Magic V3 vs OnePlus Open: Performance
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC fuels the HONOR Magic V3. That is Qualcomm’s 4nm processor, which is, at this moment in time, still the company’s flagship SoC. HONOR paired that with up to 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM, and UFS 4.0 flash storage. The OnePlus Open is fueled by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, which is also a 4nm chip, but a year older than the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. This phone comes with 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0 flash storage. Neither device offers storage expansion, by the way.
The performance that both phones offer is outstanding, though. You’ll be hard-pressed to notice the difference between these two chips in day-to-day use. Both phones offer snappy performance without any lag, even though their software implementations are notably different. They open apps really fast, and they’re also great for multitasking of any kind. Both companies also have rather snappy and well-executed animations thrown into the mix.
What about gaming? Well, despite the fact the OnePlus Open has an older chip, it still holds up in the gaming department, even when the most demanding games are concerned. Both of these phones can run anything the Google Play Store has to offer, and they can do a great job of running those games, even at the highest graphical settings. The bottom line is, the performance is not an issue on either of these two smartphones.
HONOR Magic V3 vs OnePlus Open: Battery
A 5,150mAh silicon-carbon battery sits inside the HONOR Magic V3. The OnePlus Open, on the flip side, offers a 4,805mAh battery pack. A larger battery doesn’t always mean better battery life, but in this case, it does. The HONOR Magic V3 did manage to offer better battery life for us, even though the OnePlus Open’s battery life is not bad at all. You can cross the 6-hour screen-on-time threshold on the OnePlus Open, and even go beyond that, depending on what you’re doing on the phone during your use.
The HONOR Magic V3, however, goes above and beyond that, usually. It can go over the 7-hour screen-on-time mark, once again, depending on your usage. The point is, it does offer better battery life, though the mileage may vary in your case. The battery life depends on a ton of factors, so… it will vary from one person to the next, of course. Both of these phones will offer more than enough juice for most people, but if you want a phone with better battery life, the HONOR Magic V3 is the one to get.
The HONOR Magic V3 is more versatile when it comes to charging. However, both phones charge similarly fast, at least in terms of wired charging, as that’s the only charging OnePlus’ foldable offers. The Magic V3 supports 66W wired, 50W wireless, and 5W reverse wired charging. The OnePlus Open only supports 67W wired charging. Both smartphones do come with a charger in the box.
HONOR Magic V3 vs OnePlus Open: Cameras
The two devices have considerably different camera hardware on the back. Still, both are quite compelling and amongst the best camera smartphones in the foldable world. The HONOR Magic V3 includes a 50-megapixel main camera (1/1.56-inch sensor), a 40-megapixel ultrawide unit (112-degree FoV), and a 50-megapixel periscope telephoto unit (1/2.51-inch sensor, 3.5x optical zoom). The OnePlus Open has a 48-megapixel main camera (1/1.43-inch sensor), a 48-megapixel ultrawide camera (114-degree FoV), and a 64-megapixel periscope telephoto unit (3x optical zoom, 1/2.0-inch sensor size).
Both devices are rather capable in the camera department, but the results are different. The HONOR Magic V3 offers well-saturated images, but they’re usually less contrasty than the shots from the OnePlus Open. We preferred the color science of the OnePlus Open most of the time. Their ultrawide cameras do a good job of keeping the color profile of the main cameras, while both telephoto cameras are quite capable. Both of them have a periscope telephoto camera, though the OnePlus Open has a larger camera sensor. Both cameras do a good job, but we preferred telephoto shots from the OnePlus Open, as it balanced them out a bit better.
What about low light? Well, both do a good job in such situations too, it’s also a matter of preference. The Magic V3 tends to brighten up such scenes more than the OnePlus Open, for better or worse. The styles are entirely different, but quite compelling on both sides. The Magic V3 is a major improvement over the Magic V2, that’s for sure. The HONOR Magic V2’s camera was not all that impressive.
Audio
You will find stereo speakers on both of these smartphones. The thing is, the volume that both sets of speakers provide is average at best. It’ll be enough for most people, but don’t expect them to be as loud as you may be used to. The sound quality output is good, though.
There is no audio jack on either one of these two phones. You can use their Type-C ports to hook up your wired headphones, though, if you want. Bluetooth 5.3 is supported on both smartphones.
