The HONOR Magic5 Lite is a mid-range 5G phone from HONOR. It launched in Europe in February 2023, a few weeks before the main Magic5 models. In Germany, the recommended price was €370 for the 6 GB / 128 GB model. An 8 GB / 256 GB version was also sold. The phone was not officially sold in the US. In parts of Asia and the Middle East, the same phone is sold as the HONOR X9a.
Design and display
The Magic5 Lite has a 6.67-inch curved AMOLED screen with a resolution of 2400 x 1080 pixels. It runs at up to 120 Hz and has a 300 Hz touch sampling rate. HONOR rates its full-screen brightness at 800 nits. The panel uses 1920 Hz PWM dimming. The front glass is a 0.65 mm reinforced glass.
The body is 7.9 mm thick at its thinnest point and weighs about 175 g. A large camera ring sits in the middle of the back. HONOR sold the phone in Emerald Green, Midnight Black and Titanium Silver. In France, Titanium Silver was exclusive to the HONOR online store. HONOR does not list an IP rating for this model. An under-display fingerprint reader handles unlocking.
Performance
The phone runs on the Snapdragon 695, a 6 nm chip. Its CPU has two Cortex-A78 cores at 2.2 GHz and six Cortex-A55 cores at 1.8 GHz. Graphics come from the Adreno 619 GPU. Memory options are 6 GB of RAM with 128 GB of storage, or 8 GB with 256 GB. There is no microSD card slot.
Cameras
The rear setup has three cameras. The main camera has 64 MP and an f/1.8 lens. A 5 MP f/2.2 camera handles ultrawide and depth shots. A 2 MP f/2.4 camera takes macro photos. Video recording tops out at 1080p. The front camera has 16 MP and an f/2.45 lens, and it also records 1080p video.
Battery and charging
A 5,100 mAh battery (typical value) powers the phone. It supports 40 W wired charging. In Europe, the box does not include a charger. The phone has no wireless charging.
Software and updates
The Magic5 Lite shipped with MagicUI 6.1 based on Android 12. HONOR did not publish a multi-year update promise for this model on its spec pages. Connectivity includes 5G, Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.1 and NFC. The phone takes two Nano-SIM cards. Its USB-C port runs at USB 2.0 speed.
Should you buy the Magic5 Lite?
The Magic5 Lite suits buyers who want a slim phone with a curved 120 Hz OLED screen and a large battery. The Snapdragon 695 handles everyday tasks, but it is a 2023 mid-range chip. There is no water resistance rating, no wireless charging and no 4K video. HONOR replaced it with the Magic6 Lite.
