Samsung has long set the pace in the foldable market, but Honor has been steadily gaining ground with its Magic V series. With the arrival of the new Honor Magic V5 (Review), the competition feels tighter than ever, especially when set against Samsung’s latest Galaxy Z Fold7 (Review).
Both devices push the boundaries of what a smartphone can be, combining sleek design with powerhouse performance, yet they approach the foldable formula in subtly different ways. This head-to-head looks at where each phone shines, and more importantly, which one might fit your lifestyle better.
The Design
| Honor Magic V5 | Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 | |
| Dimension | Folded: 156.8 x 74.3 x 8.8 mm Unfolded: 156.8 x 145.9 x 4.1 mm | 58.4 x 72.8 x 8.9 mm 158.4 x 143.2 x 4.2 mm |
| Weight | 217 grams | 215 grams |
When it comes to size and portability, the Honor Magic V5 (Review) takes the crown as the slimmest foldable on the market right now. Measuring 8.8mm when folded and just 4.1mm when unfolded, it feels impressively sleek in hand — almost like handling a regular flagship slab phone rather than a bulky foldable. By comparison, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 (Review) is only a hair thicker at 8.9mm folded and 4.2mm unfolded, which still makes it the slimmest Galaxy Fold to date but just shy of Honor’s razor-thin build.
Weight-wise, the difference is even subtler. The Fold7 tips the scale at 215 grams, narrowly undercutting the Magic V5’s 217 grams. It’s a tiny gap you won’t really notice in day-to-day use, but it does underline Samsung’s effort to make its foldable lighter with each generation. In short, Honor wins on sheer slimness, while Samsung edges ahead on weight — but both are shaping the foldable category to feel more natural and less like a futuristic brick in your pocket.
The Display
When it comes to displays, both foldables bring plenty to impress. The Honor Magic V5 starts with a 6.43-inch OLED outer display that features a 21:9 aspect ratio, making it feel familiar and practical for day-to-day use. With its 2376 × 1060 resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, and a stunning 5,000 nits peak brightness, it pushes visibility and sharpness to another level. Open it up, and the 7.95-inch foldable OLED inner screen delivers a true tablet-like experience, boasting a 2352 × 2172 resolution, the same 120Hz smoothness, and full DCI-P3 color gamut coverage for accurate, cinematic visuals.
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold7 is equally great. Its 6.5-inch LTPO AMOLED 2X outer display also adopts a 21:9 aspect ratio, keeping the feel close to a traditional smartphone. With 1080 × 2520 resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate, it’s fluid and detailed, while Samsung’s AMOLED tuning ensures balanced colors and excellent contrast. On the inside, the Fold7 opens up to an 8-inch Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X panel with 1968 × 2184 resolution, also running at 120Hz, delivering a sharp and immersive space for multitasking or watching content. Both devices feature displays with barely noticeable creases, and in real-world use they feel equally impressive, delivering vibrant visuals, seamless scrolling, and immersive viewing whether folded or unfolded.
The Performance
Performance is an area where the Honor Magic V5 and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 stand shoulder to shoulder, as both are equipped with Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Elite processor. This powerhouse chip is designed to handle everything from intensive multitasking to demanding 3D games with ease, ensuring both foldables deliver flagship-grade speed and responsiveness.
In terms of memory and storage, there’s little to separate the two. Both devices offer configurations with 12GB or 16GB of RAM, paired with storage options ranging from 256GB to 1TB. This means whether you’re a casual user who sticks to essential apps or a power user juggling work documents, high-res media, and large games, either device has you covered.
In day-to-day use, the experience is virtually identical — apps open instantly, multitasking across the large foldable displays feels seamless, and even the most demanding workloads don’t cause noticeable hiccups. Put simply, when it comes to raw performance, both the Honor Magic V5 and Galaxy Z Fold7 are equally capable contenders, delivering the kind of speed and stability you’d expect from top-tier foldables.
The Battery Life
Battery life is one area where the Honor Magic V5 clearly takes the upper hand. With its 5,820mAh battery, it packs one of the largest cells we’ve seen in a foldable, translating to all-day endurance even with heavy multitasking and extended use of the inner display. Paired with 66W wired charging, the V5 also tops up significantly faster, getting you back to full power in under an hour — a huge plus for users who are constantly on the move.
The Galaxy Z Fold7, by comparison, relies on a 4,400mAh battery with 25W wired charging. While this setup is enough to comfortably last through a day of balanced use, it doesn’t offer quite the same stamina or charging speed as the Magic V5. That said, Samsung has optimized its software well, ensuring efficient power management even during demanding tasks, and for most users, it remains more than sufficient.
In the end, the Honor Magic V5 wins on sheer numbers and charging speed, but the Galaxy Z Fold7 balances its smaller battery with strong optimization, making both devices reliable daily drivers in real-world use.
The Cameras
As far as photography is concerned, both the Honor Magic V5 and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 bring serious flagship credentials, but they take slightly different approaches.
The Honor Magic V5 is equipped with a versatile triple-camera setup. Its 50MP main camera with a bright f/1.6 aperture and OIS delivers excellent low-light performance and balanced detail in everyday shots. The 50MP ultra-wide camera shows decent consistency in colour reproduction, making wide landscapes and architecture look natural without losing sharpness. Where Honor makes a big statement is with its 64MP periscope telephoto lens. Not only does it feature OIS for stability, but it also supports 3x optical zoom and stretches all the way to 100x digital zoom, giving it a clear edge for users who want reach and detail at a distance.
The Galaxy Z Fold7, meanwhile, leans on Samsung’s most powerful imaging tech. Its 200MP main camera — borrowed from the Galaxy S25 Ultra (Review) — captures staggering levels of detail, even when cropped in, while OIS ensures stability in handheld shots. The 12MP ultra-wide is reliable for everyday shooting, with natural colors and good corner sharpness. For zoom, Samsung offers a 10MP telephoto with 3x optical zoom and up to 30x digital zoom, which is more modest than Honor’s reach but still very usable for portraits and medium-range subjects.
In practice, the Z Fold7 shines when you want raw detail and flagship-grade consistency across lighting conditions, thanks to its massive 200MP sensor. The Honor Magic V5, however, appeals to those who want more flexibility in zoom and a strong all-around triple-camera balance. Both are highly capable, but where Samsung pushes resolution, Honor leans on versatility.
The Verdict
The Honor Magic V5 and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 each bring compelling strengths to the foldable arena. Honor takes the lead in slimness, battery life, and price, offering a sleek package at S$2,199 that feels hard to ignore. Samsung, on the other hand, leans on refinement, proven durability, and its industry-leading camera system to justify its higher S$2,698 price tag. Neither feels like a compromise — one is about pushing value and design boundaries, while the other doubles down on maturity and reliability.
