the most durable smartphone on the market?

Design

Honor offers a fairly classic design for the Magic7 Lite, articulating the design of its device around the imposing circular photo block. The latter maintains reasonable measurements and does not protrude too much from the body of the device, which contributes to having a balanced smartphone (189 g) in the hands. The Magic7 Lite is compact at less than 8 mm thick and gives the impression of being slender, which is reinforced by the presence of curved edges and a generous screen size (see below). The smartphone is available in black (Titanium Black) or bright pink (Titanium Purple depending on the manufacturer), and we were treated to this second version.

As with the previous model, Honor highlights the solidity of its smartphone. The Magic7 Lite is equipped with the Anti-Drop Display to withstand falls of up to 2 meters and the brand assures that it has “significantly” improved its general reliability (+166% compared to the Magic6 Lite). We will leave this speech to Honor, but it is clear that the Magic7 Lite does not fear falls or even key hits (voluntary or involuntary).

The device adds a three-layer waterproof structure to better resist water, which translates here into an IP64 certification. It can be submerged in water for 5 cm up to 25 cm, and even works with wet fingers. The brand improves an already convincing copy compared to the previous model.

Screen

A 6.78-inch AMOLED screen is featured in the Magic7 Lite, displaying a definition of 2,700 x 1,224 pixels. Honor continues to focus on curved edges for its portable device, which helps to minimize the thickness of the frame and offer a greater feeling of immersion. For some time now, these screens have been less popular and most premium devices are returning to a flat screen. The Lite’s big brother, the Magic7 Pro, also follows this trend.

We find the advantages of OLED, including “infinite” contrast and vibrant colors. The Magic7 Lite adds a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz, but does not benefit from LTPO technology and simply offers 60 or 120 Hz. The display is pleasant and the panel is bright with a peak announced at 4,000 nits , enough to allow outdoor use without frowning. As is often the case, you have to go through the settings to find the right calibration, because the default mode (bright colors) tends to flatter our eyes too much.

Performances

While this smartphone multiplies the improvements compared to the Magic6 Lite, its heart does not change and we find a Snapdragon 6 Gen 1. Honor offers a version with 8 GB of RAM (+8 GB Honor RAM Turbo) and 256 GB of storage in the Hexagon, i.e. the same configuration as our test model.

This configuration remains effective at the start of 2025 and sufficient for most uses. The Magic7 Lite offers a fluid experience and there is no slowdown when opening applications, even when chaining the most common apps (email, telephone, social networks, browsers, music, etc.). Multitasking is allowed, but we quickly realize that the Magic7 Lite is not designed for intensive use.

The most demanding applications need a little more time than on a premium model and the gaming experience is not up to par. The Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 and its Adreno 710 GPU need to lower graphics settings to run the most demanding 3D games in the Play Store. In terms of pure performance, you can find much better in this price range, but the Magic7 Lite remains efficient and faithful to its ambitions.

Software

To accompany its smartphone, Honor offers its MagicOS 8.0 overlay with Android 14. We are a little disappointed not to find the latest version at the moment, namely Android 15 with the MagicOS 9.0 overlay. Even if this doesn’t really change the experience, we appreciate having the latest version of the moment on a new smartphone, especially since this can mean losing a generation of updates.

However, Honor’s efforts in this area must be highlighted, since the brand is announcing 6 years of major and security updates for the Magic6 Lite. An interesting progression which allows the brand to do almost as well as the market references (Google, Samsung) on ​​an affordable model.

We have already had the opportunity to discover MagicOS 8 on other Honor smartphones. The interface is pleasant and hasn’t changed too much over the last few generations, enough to quickly find its bearings. We still note the presence of the Magic Capsule, Honor’s equivalent to Apple’s Dynamic Island, to offer an overview of the tasks in progress around the punch of the camera dedicated to selfies.

Photo

The Honor Magic7 Lite arrives with the following photo configuration:

• 108MP main sensor (f/1.75, OIS)
• Ultra grand-angle de 5 Mpx (f/2,2)
• 16MP selfie sensor (f/2.45)

Compared to its predecessor, it loses the 2 Mpx macro lens and no one will blame Honor for making this choice. This is unnecessary and we prefer that the brand focuses on two modules, which is done with the arrival of optical image stabilization (OIS) on the main 108 Mpx sensor. The ultra-wide-angle appears much more modest, displaying only 5 Mpx.

The main sensor is a very pleasant surprise, exceeding my expectations for a smartphone in this category. With good conditions, it offers good image quality by displaying many details and offering realistic color processing. Optical stabilization goes a long way to making the experience enjoyable while the processing offered by Honor is not too aggressive. It is undoubtedly a little more so than Google or Samsung, but the Magic7 Lite is at the top of the basket in its category.

A very convincing 108 Mpx sensor

From the photo application, you can zoom x2 and x3. The smartphone does not have a telephoto lens and it is not an optical magnification, but a digital zoom. The good news is that the treatment is up to par and that you should not deprive yourself of using its two options, at least when there is light. In low light, noise appears on the photos and the smartphone invites us to switch to night mode. The latter is effective, but you get the best results without zooming.

Unsurprisingly, the ultra-wide angle is relegated to the background and this is verified very quickly. Its definition is too low to capture all the details and the images tend to have a lot of noise. The color processing is also not equal to that offered by the main sensor, so this sensor is only used when necessary. It will do some service if you really need to fit as many elements into the image as possible, but won’t help much more.

Without teasing more expensive models, the Honor Magic7 Lite comes out on top and ensures a very decent experience.

Autonomy

Honor equips its Magic7 Lite with an impressive 6,600 mAh battery, an increase of 1,300 mAh compared to its predecessor! The feat is impressive and allows this smartphone to have a greater capacity than several of its competitors, especially since it maintains a thin and light design.

The manufacturer achieves this feat by using a silicon-carbon (Si-C) battery, a technology that it introduced in 2023. It offers the possibility of integrating a thinner battery than before, with a much greater capacity. The Magic7 Lite takes full advantage of this advancement and its efficient configuration helps it deliver an impressive battery.

This smartphone easily offers two full days of use before having to go through the recharge box. If you are not a gamer and you agree to use (a little) the energy saving modes, the three days promised by the manufacturer are possible.