Hardware

Published on May 7th, 2026 | by Andrew Bistak

Honor Magic8 Pro Review

With the technological dominance of Apple and Samsung, it’s great that Honor is now offering Australians (including other regions) its new high-end flagship smartphone, the Magic8 Pro. The Honor Magic8 Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 that along with its high-speed LPDDR5X 12GB of RAM delivers exceptional performance as does its triple camera system dubbed the “Super Night God” with its powerful night shots thanks to its 200MP telephoto lens. Add in 512GB of storage and this ensures you have plenty of space for apps, games, multimedia and of course photos plus videos.

The Honor Magic8 Pro boasts a premium chassis with high-strength glass and metal that boasts SGS (provided by the Swiss Société Générale de Surveillance) 5-Star certification for drop resistance from heights of up to 1.5 metres, including IP68 and IP69K (*). The screen also uses Honor NanoCrystal Shield glass which according to Honor is 10 times more drop resistant than regular smartphone glass. Add in a silicon-carbon 7200mAh battery (which is safer than lithium-ion) for all-day usage and more, it adds 100W wired and 80W wireless fast charging to ensure the Magic8 Pro is always powered.

(*) IP68 [6: Total protection against, dust, sand and dirt] [8: The Phone can be submerged in fresh water up to 1.5 metres for up to 30 minutes)
IP69K: [9K: Protects against high-pressure water jets and high-temperature water]

Honor Magic8 Pro Specifications

Unboxing

The Honor Magic8 Pro definitely feels premium once unboxed and it’s a manageable size (height 161.15 mm x width 75.0 mm x depth 8.32 mm) which with a weight of around 219 grams makes it feel good in your hand. The camera bump on the rear does add a little lopsidedness to the smartphone which is understandable given the technology used with the camera system but does not cause any usage issues.

The metallic casing feels nice and I did like the shimmering effect on the back that adds to the premium design of the Magic8 Pro. However, given the price of this flagship phone from Honor, I would still recommend a case and also a tempered glass screen protector (it does come with a protector pre-installed) to add a further layer of protection to your new smartphone. Although it comes with a high-quality USB-C cable, it does not come with a charger which unfortunately is an extra cost.

Setup is like any other Android device via a simple wizard, however the Magic8 Pro is powered by MagicOS 10 which fine-tunes the classic Android experience with its simplified design that also improves cross-platform connectivity between Android, iOS, macOS and Windows. Overall, the whole process is fast and simple.

Setup Gallery

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Besides the overall design of the phone, the next standout for me was the screen. The display of the Honor Magic8 Pro is exceptional thanks to the 6.71-inch LTPO OLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate that makes it ideal for both video and gaming. It’s also perfect outdoors thanks to its peak brightness of 6,000 nits. At night, you’ll appreciate the 4,320Hz PWM dimming technology that helps reduce eye strain.

Benchmarking

As mentioned, the Honor Magic8 Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 Mobile Platform that provides impressive performance with its CPU and GPU, including AI computing power. The Magic8 Pro also uses an industry first with GPU-NPU Heterogeneous AI super-resolution and frame-generation technology. This basically upscales low-resolution gameplay, including boosting framerates so titles that once ran at 60 frames per second (fps) can now reach up to 120 at 1080p. For gaming, the Magic8 Pro is seriously like a handheld console but first things first, Geekbench 6, a very popular benchmarking app.

Geekbench 6

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In Geekbench 6, the Honor Magic8 Pro’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 delivers outstanding results, posting 3678 in single‑core and 9692 in multi‑core, putting it ahead of some of the more common high-end phones in raw CPU performance. GPU compute is also strong with an OpenCL score of 23,959 that comfortably clears Samsung’s latest flagship, though Apple’s A18 Pro still leads in Geekbench’s Metal-based GPU test. Even so, the Magic8 Pro feels every bit like a top‑tier performer, handling demanding games and heavy multitasking with ease.

3DMark

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The 3DMark results highlight the Magic8 Pro’s graphical muscle. In Solar Bay, its ray‑tracing score of 13,533 comfortably outpaces both the iPhone 16 Pro and Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra and it repeats that lead in Solar Bay Extreme. The phone also dominates rasterised workloads with Wild Life Extreme and Steel Nomad Light scores that sit well above its closest rivals. Even under prolonged stress, the Magic8 Pro maintains strong frame rates and stable thermals, reinforcing its position as one of the most capable mobile GPUs on the market.

Gaming

Diablo Immortal

Diablo Immortal delivers a fast, loot‑driven action RPG built around the classic Diablo loop of carving through hordes of demons, chasing legendary drops and steadily upgrading your build as you push into tougher rifts and raids. It’s set between Diablo II and III, with a surprisingly meaty campaign, six fully fledged classes and a combat system that feels far closer to a console ARPG than a typical mobile tap‑fest. On the Magic8 Pro it genuinely plays like a handheld console experience with smooth animations, crisp effects and no stutter even when the screen fills with enemies. Running at the phone’s highest resolution and maxed‑out graphics settings, the game stayed fluid throughout, making full use of the Adreno 840’s power and reinforcing just how capable this device is for high‑end mobile gaming..

Next up is Wuthering Waves, one of the most demanding open‑world action RPGs currently available on Android. It’s a visually dense, fast‑paced game built around large seamless environments, high‑fidelity character models and a combat system that leans heavily on particle effects, physics and rapid animation transitions. On most phones it’s notorious for pushing hardware to its limits, so it was interesting to see the Magic8 Pro automatically default to the Quality preset on first launch. Even so, bumping everything up to High Quality made no difference to performance at all. The game ran smoothly with no stutter, no thermal dips and no noticeable frame pacing issues, delivering a genuinely premium experience that feels far closer to a handheld console than a typical mobile title.

Asphalt 8: Airborne is another great showcase title with its high‑speed arcade racing, dense particle effects and chaotic crash sequences that usually expose weaker hardware pretty quickly. On the Magic8 Pro it ran flawlessly at the highest detail settings, delivering a smooth, console‑like experience throughout every race. Even when casting the game to an 85‑inch LCD the phone didn’t struggle, maintaining fluid performance and fast response times. The lower rendering resolution becomes more noticeable on a large TV as expected but the fact that it holds up this well on a display that size only reinforces just how much graphical headroom the Magic8 Pro has to spare.

And finally, Call of Duty Mobile performed flawlessly on the Magic8 Pro. With all graphics settings pushed to high, it delivered another console‑like experience, holding a rock‑solid frame rate even during intense firefights packed with explosions and particle effects. The controls stayed responsive, the action never stuttered and the phone didn’t show any signs of struggling, underscoring just how much performance headroom the Magic8 Pro has for fast‑paced competitive games.

Our benchmarking and gaming results on the Magic8 Pro acknowledge the high-end performance of this smartphone. Across both Geekbench and 3DMark it consistently outperformed many of the higher-end smartphones in CPU and GPU workloads, handled ray‑traced tests with ease and maintained stable thermals even under extended stress. In real‑world gaming it was just as impressive, delivering console‑like performance in Diablo Immortal, Wuthering Waves, Asphalt 8 Airborne and Call of Duty Mobile, all running at the highest detail settings without a single stutter or frame‑rate dip.

Everyday use was equally responsive as apps opened instantly, multitasking felt effortless and web browsing was lightning fast thanks to the phone’s excellent Wi‑Fi performance. The camera launched quickly, AI features responded without pauses and there wasn’t a hint of slowdown anywhere in the interface thanks to the CPU, GPU, memory and fast storage.

Photography

When it comes to photography, Honor has created a new standard thanks to its AiMAGE Camera System that combines next‑generation AI with advanced hardware to deliver exceptional clarity, stability and creative control. The HONOR Magic8 Pro also brings a sophisticated AI‑driven telephoto setup built around a 200MP Ultra Night Telephoto Camera featuring a large 1/1.4‑inch sensor, f/2.6 aperture, OIS and 3.7x optical zoom for dramatically improved long‑distance performance in low light.

It’s further supported by a 50MP Ultra Night Main Camera (f/1.6, OIS) and a 50MP Ultra‑Wide Camera (122° FOV, 2.5 cm HD macro) enabling accurate tones, natural portraits and landscapes. Honor’s AI Adaptive Stabilisation Model further boosts reliability, making users seven times more likely to capture sharp zoomed shots without a tripod, achieving industry‑leading CIPA 6.5‑level stability with major gains in shake detection and dynamic response. The photo quality of the Magic8 Pro is exceptional and its clear images and vibrant colours cannot be faulted, including its telephoto and macro abilities. And what about the “Super Night God” low light + telephoto? Well, if a photo is worth a thousand words, check out the gallery below.

Photo Gallery

AI

Editing is equally streamlined through the AI Photos Agent which offers one‑tap tools like AI Eraser, AI Outpainting, AI Colour and AI Cutout for precise adjustments and creative transformations. And for spontaneous moments, a dedicated AI Button allows instant camera access with a quick double‑press, even when the device is locked. As a bonus to the user, the Honor Magic8 Pro comes with a three-month free trial of Google AI Pro that increases the capabilities of Gemini. From a usage perspective, a long press of the AI button provides quick access to AI screen suggestions, AI photo agent, AI summary and even AI deepfake detection.

The HONOR Magic8 Pro also comes pre-installed with Google Gemini, empowering users to interact seamlessly via text, voice or image for comprehensive assistance on the go. This marks a significant step towards building a truly intelligent AI assistant that is conversational, intuitive and genuinely helpful. Features such as Overlay and Screen Context make it easier to access information and complete tasks with fewer steps and Gemini Live adds real-time visual understanding and live translation, allowing users to recognise landmarks, read signs and translate menus or documents instantly.

Final Thoughts

The Honor Magic8 Pro is a powerhouse that proves you don’t have to stick to the “big two” to get a genuine flagship experience. By combining the raw muscle of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 with a truly elite “Super Night God” camera system, Honor has delivered a device for all facets of our lives. Whether you’re a mobile gamer looking for console-quality performance, a photography enthusiast chasing that perfect low-light shot or just someone who wants a phone that can survive a 1.5-metre drop, the Magic8 Pro ticks all the boxes. While the lack of an included charger is a minor gripe, it’s easily overshadowed by the stunning 6,000-nit display, the massive 7200mAh battery and a software experience in MagicOS 10 that feels modern and intuitive. So, if you’re looking to break away from the status quo and want a premium smartphone that feels as good as it performs, the Honor Magic8 Pro is an absolute top-tier contender that belongs in your pocket.

Highly Recommended!

Honor Magic8 Pro Key Features

Industry‑Leading Resistance to Drops, Dust, and Water
Industry’s first SGS Triple‑resistant Premium Performance certification1. Supports 2.5‑meter drop resistance, IPX9K water resistance against splashes, rain, and high‑pressure water exposure, and IP6X dust resistance to keep out fine particles2.

Built to Endure – A New Era of Drop Defence
Ultra‑tough tempered glass with multilayer cushioning design featuring ballistic‑grade damping layer, six cushioning layers, and certified 2.5m drop resistance3.

Beyond All-Day Battery Life
Honor’s most powerful battery to date. 8300mAh high‑capacity silicon‑carbon battery designed for long endurance with up to 3‑day battery life and long‑term durability7.

Supports 66W HONOR SuperCharge
Supports fast wired charging8 and reverse charging, allowing the device to act as a power bank for other devices.

Brilliant OLED Display
Next‑generation OLED display designed for vivid visuals, long‑lasting brightness, and slim bezel design.

A Brilliant Display Remarkably Sharp & Vibrant
6000 nits peak brightness9, 1.5K ultra‑clear resolution, 6.79‑inch OLED display, 1.3 mm slim bezel, 120Hz adaptive refresh rate.

108MP Ultra‑Clear AI Camera with OIS
108MP ultra‑high resolution main camera with OIS designed for sharp, detailed photos across lighting conditions.12

4K HD Moving Photo Collage
One‑tap creation of 4K HD moving photo collages for dynamic photo editing and sharing.

AI Photo Editing
Includes AI editing tools such as object removal and one‑tap erasing.

All-new Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 Mobile Platform
Powered by Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 platform with system‑level AI resource management for smooth performance.

Advanced VC Cooling System
Advanced VC cooling system with 5th‑generation hexagonal graphite and ultra-light stainless steel structure for efficient heat dissipation.

AI Experience & Smart Features
AI features designed to enhance productivity and usability.

Magic Portal
AI shortcut system enabling quick access to content and actions.

AI Writing Tools
AI productivity tools designed to improve writing efficiency.

Powerful Dual Speakers
Dual speaker system delivering immersive audio.

Instant NFC Access
Built‑in NFC for quick device interactions and convenience features.

About the Author

Andrew Bistak When he's not trying to save the world, Andrew enjoys travel (although loathes turbulence), going to the movies, reading and being a dad to his two dogs (and now twins) with his wife.

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