Honor’s Magic 8 phones have huge batteries and oodles of AI

Honor announced its Magic 8 and Magic 8 Pro flagships at a launch event in China today, with an international launch scheduled for later this year. They boast some of the biggest batteries in mainstream phones, along with a suite of AI features including a dedicated AI shortcut button.

The version of the Magic 8 Pro announced today in China includes a 7,200mAh battery, with 7,000mAh in the regular Magic 8 which doesn’t quite match the 7,500mAh battery of last month’s Xiaomi 17 Pro Max, though Honor claims its phones can outlast Xiaomi’s thanks to better optimization. Honor hasn’t told me how long to expect that battery to last, though I’d expect it to deliver a couple days of normal usage. Honor’s managed this thanks to the latest generation of its silicon-carbon battery tech, which lets it cram larger capacities into smaller spaces. 

Outside of China, things will be a little different though: the global version of the Pro’s battery will be a fraction smaller at 7,100mAh, with EU markets getting an even smaller (though honestly, still enormous) 6,270mAh battery, most likely thanks to the international shipping regulations around batteries. Charging will differ a little too, with a 120W max wired speed in China, and 100W PPS support elsewhere — and up to 80W wireless supported everywhere, albeit only if you use Honor’s own charger.

Beyond the battery, you shouldn’t be too surprised to hear that AI is a focus. Honor had already confirmed that the Magic 8 phones feature a dedicated AI button, which we now know is used as a shortcut for its Yoyo assistant and doubles as a camera shutter button too. It can also be customized as a shortcut to other phone functions such as Yoyo Memories, an AI-powered storage space for photos and documents that sounds rather like Nothing’s Essential Space.

On the camera side, not too much has changed from last year’s Magic 7 Pro. The Magic 8 Pro’s 50-megapixel main camera has dropped the variable aperture in favor of a fixed f/1.6 lens, while the 200-megapixel telephoto and 50-megapixel ultrawide match the Magic 7 Pro’s lenses on paper. The question will be how much Honor’s touted AI enhancements actually improve the cameras’ final output.

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 provides the power, together with 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage on the global variant. Honor is also keen to emphasize the IP68 and IP69K durability rating, though bear in mind that the “K” only signifies testing with water jets a little closer to the phone than in the standard IP69 test.

Both phones will run MagicOS 10, the latest version of Honor’s software, built on top of Android 16. It boasts a “translucent visual design,” which you may not be surprised to hear includes lots of Liquid Glass-esque semi-transparent and blurred elements.

Honor gave me the details on the Magic 8 Pro ahead of its announcement, and I’ll update this article with more on the regular Magic 8 from the China launch event, where the company also announced new Earbuds 4, the Watch 5 Pro, and three MagicPad 3 tablets, alongside a tease of a “Robot Phone” concept. The Magic 8 and Magic 8 Pro phones launch in China this month for ¥4,499 (around $630) and ¥5,699 (around $800) respectively, and the company’s announcement promises an international release “later this year.”

Update, October 15th: Added Chinese pricing for the phones.