Honor MagicPad 3 Review: A Keenly-Priced Alternative to the OnePlus Pad 3

Worth When Reviewed

Not avaiable within the US

Finest Costs Right now: Honor MagicPad 3

The Android pill market is a aggressive house, with many manufacturers making an attempt to re-establish themselves to satisfy the surge in demand following the pandemic. Samsung dominates gross sales, as one of many manufacturers that caught to its pill plans via thick and skinny, rivalling Apple’s dedication to the iPad.

However the previous couple of years have seen an growing variety of Android tablets pushing into this house, seeing the pill market as a chance to supply an alternative choice to a laptop computer for mild work, whereas delivering a handy and transportable leisure hub.

That’s the place we discover the Honor MagicPad 3, sitting on the juncture of labor and play, seeking to provide every thing you want in a neat package deal.

Whereas it numerically replaces the Honor MagicPad 2, it’s been repositioned, dropping one of many MagicPad 2’s greatest options: its OLED show. So is Honor’s 2025 pill worthy of consideration?

Design & Construct

• 5.79mm thickness, 595g weight
• Slim bezel
• Equipment out there

The Honor MagicPad 3 is available in two colors – gray and white – with a neat metallic body holding the composite rear in place. The pill’s again is textured, reminding me of some sorts of laminate kitchen counter.

Utilizing a plastic materials avoids each the load of glass and the fingerprints it acquires, though some could really feel that the consequence isn’t as premium as some metallic tablets which can be out there for much less, such because the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE+.

However there’s a stable really feel to this pill and it seems to be good too, though I can’t assist feeling that the massive digital camera module on the again might be smaller – however extra on that in a while.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

In direction of the underside of the pill there’s a set of pogo pins which connect with the MagicPad 3 Good Contact Keyboard which I used to put in writing this evaluate, as you’ll see in varied images. It gives a pleasant chiclet keyboard motion with trackpad, and has a full vary of shortcuts to make utilizing the pill slightly extra fluid.

Honor additionally gives the Magic-Pencil 3, which permits drawing features and is supported by the pill’s AI options, considered one of which replaces handwritten notes with AI-generated handwriting. I didn’t have the Magic-Pencil, so couldn’t take a look at it, however I’d fortunately use the Good Contact Keyboard for mild typing work and crunching via emails.

There’s no IP ranking on the Honor pill and, though that’s uncommon on tablets, it’s one thing we’re beginning to see from varied producers.

Display screen & Audio system

• 13.3-inch LCD show, 165Hz refresh price
• 1000 nits peak brightness
• Eight audio system with encompass sound virtualisation

Honor has moved from a 12.3-inch OLED show on the MagicPad 2 to a 13.3-inch LCD show on the MagicPad 3. Some may see that as a downgrade, dropping the abilities that OLED gives for a further inch of house. With that comes solely 1000 nits peak brightness – down from 1600 nits beforehand – however with a 165Hz refresh and a bump to 3200 x 2136 pixel decision.

Adopting a 3:2 facet ratio, a shift from the prior 16:10 facet, the result’s extra space, extra element, the next refresh price and a facet that’s slightly taller in panorama. That makes it extra appropriate for searching and doc work. In portrait, it makes an awesome gadget for studying too.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

The ratio facet shift brings a rise in letterboxing when watching standard motion pictures (lots of that are 16:9 or 21:9), however there’s a trick that Honor performs right here with IMAX Enhanced help, permitting extra of the display for use. About the one place you’ll discover appropriate content material is on Disney+, the place some Marvel motion pictures provide the format. I watched Thor: Ragnarok and located among the motion sequences seamlessly moved over to the taller facet, which is meant (within the cinema) to offer a extra immersive expertise for explosive scenes.

The show itself is definitely actually good. Even if it’s not OLED, it makes an excellent exhibiting for itself. It’s vivid, vibrant and detailed, though I’m not completely offered on the necessity for 165Hz. Honor suggests that it’ll clean out apps whenever you’re scrolling loads, however I can’t assist feeling that it’s a spec sheet play slightly than a necessity.

There’s a whole lot of tech crammed into this show that’s targeted on eye care, with enhanced dimming and an entire lot extra, designed to make this pill extra nice to make use of in altering mild situations. That additionally consists of Honor’s Movement Illness Aid, which places shifting dots on the display. I’ve discovered this to be extremely efficient, which means that working at the back of a taxi or on a bus is less complicated on the abdomen.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

There’s no signal of Dolby Imaginative and prescient, however HDR10+ content material appears to be plentiful from varied streaming companies.

The 1000 nits peak brightness will give HDR a carry – it’s simply much less dramatic than a whole lot of telephones nowadays. I examined a choice of photos in Google Pictures that use Google’s Extremely HDR and located a pleasant HDR pop, however highlights didn’t get the depth and brightness that they did on a telephone with the next peak brightness.

The display is shiny, so reflections is usually a downside, however in full sunshine it is going to struggle again, with simply sufficient brightness to make working outside attainable.

Again to IMAX Enhanced, which is meant to incorporate DTS:X multi-channel audio. That’s one thing that does crop up on the Honor MagicPad 3 spec sheet, however it’s onerous to pin down. Honor’s eight speaker array can produce a virtualised spatial audio soundscape and it’s slightly spectacular.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

It’s not the form of encompass sound that you simply get from a soundbar or house cinema setup, however it makes the sound slightly extra concerned via the audio system. Honor Spatial Audio is a world setting, so it impacts all audio that comes from the pill. You may swap to stereo, which is flatter and sounds prefer it’s coming from the centre of the display, whereas the spatial audio simply offers a much bigger efficiency, though bass general is missing.

Specs & Efficiency

• Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
• 16GB RAM
• 512GB storage

Efficiency will get a lift, with Honor turning to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 to energy this pill. That’s flagship-grade {hardware} from 2024 and located in lots of the greatest telephones of that period. It’s additionally a step above the 8s Gen 3, which powered the MagicPad 2. There’s an uplift in RAM to 16GB too, with Honor very a lot seeking to make this a powerhouse.

There’s beneficiant onboard storage at 512GB too, though no help for Micro-SD enlargement, which you’ll discover on another tablets. Nonetheless, it’ll possible swimsuit most customers’ wants and appears slightly beneficiant when in comparison with Samsung’s tablets, contemplating the worth and the {hardware} you get. It competes higher with the OnePlus Pad 3, though that pill has a more recent processor for extra energy.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

Honor has expanded the cooling system on this gadget to raised deal with extra intensive duties and I discovered that longer classes taking part in Name of Responsibility: Cellular went off with out a hitch. I’m not an enormous fan however, with severe energy on provide, pill gaming is a chance on the MagicPad 3.

Because it stands, it is a highly effective pill and that comes via within the day-to-day expertise. It’s swift and quick and customarily clean in day by day duties, however take into account that within the context of the software program earlier than making any shopping for choices.

As soon as piece of {hardware} that’s lacking is a fingerprint scanner. Honor solely gives face unlocking as a biometric technique and that’s one thing of a bind when you use apps that want safety however don’t help face unlocking. I exploit a third-party password supervisor and every time I opened it, I had to make use of the complete password. That’s good and safe, however actually inconvenient.

Honor MagicPad 3 benchmarks

Cameras

• 13Mp rear digital camera
• 2Mp macro digital camera
• 9Mp entrance digital camera

There’s a twin digital camera on the again of the Honor MagicPad 3, with a 13-megapixel primary digital camera paired up with a 2-megapixel macro digital camera, permitting pictures as shut as 4cm. The latter is pretty ignorable, seemingly simply bundled in in order that Honor can say there’s a twin digital camera on this pill. The entrance digital camera is a 9-megapixel effort, sitting within the bezel on one of many lengthy sides.

Most individuals don’t purchase a pill for its photographic abilities and that’s true of the MagicPad 3. Whereas the principle rear digital camera will snap an honest sufficient picture in daylight, as quickly as the sunshine drops – even indoors in daylight – softness and noise come creeping in. That gained’t shock anybody, nevertheless. It’s par for the course for pill cameras.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

The entrance digital camera is in place for video calls and once more there’s nothing thrilling about its high quality. It’s fastened focus, so can’t compete with one of the best cameras on the market, however when you’re simply leaping on Google Meet or a Zoom name, it does the job.

Video seize runs as much as 4K, on solely gives 30fps throughout the board. Once more, that’s unlikely to discourage anybody, as capturing video on a pill is more likely to be advert hoc slightly than one thing you need to do regularly.

There are doc scanning features to help the cameras, nevertheless, which higher swimsuit the sunshine productiveness that you simply may throw at it. It permits you to autoscan paperwork that the digital camera sees after which extract textual content you should utilize elsewhere. All of it works shortly and surprisingly properly.

Battery Life & Charging

• 12,450mAh battery
• 66W wired charging
• Silicon carbon battery know-how

Honor has been one of many proponents of silicon carbon battery tech and the impression is felt on the Honor MagicPad 3. There’s an enormous 12,450mAh battery which interprets to days of battery life. The MagicPad 2 had a ten,050mAh battery, typical of bigger tablets, and the MagicPad 3 dominates all of them.

It’s extra capacious than the OnePlus Pad 3 and, like that gadget, the result’s you could put in severe hours of labor on a number of days earlier than it wants a cost – realistically, it’ll offer you 11 hours of intensive use. In lighter use, you’ll most likely get via every week. What I like most of all, nevertheless, is that in standby it simply hangs onto cost. After I returned to the pill after every week of not utilizing it, I nonetheless had 85% within the tank.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

That is backed up by 66W charging which is, once more, sooner than most rivals. That’s actually helpful – due to its pace you’ll be able to recharge if you end up racing out of the door and it’s not totally topped up. I discovered that half-hour on a charger at peak 66W charging restored 45% of battery life. Totally charging takes about an hour and a half, as issues decelerate because the pill fills up.

You’ll want a appropriate charger, nevertheless, and I discovered {that a} 90W charger I exploit for my laptop computer was completely blissful to feed the MagicPad 3 at 66W.

Software program & Apps

• MagicOS 9 with Android 15
• Honor bloatware
• Minimal updates

The Honor MagicPad 3 launches on Android 15 with MagicOS 9 layered excessive. When you may count on new telephones to launch with the most recent from Google, only a few tablets have Android 16 but, apart from the Google Pixel Pill, so it will probably’t be judged too harshly in that regard.

What you do get, nevertheless, is the complete Honor software program expertise. Which means a great deal of customisation, a hefty wedge of pre-installed bloatware and an entire transforming of Android. On a pill, nevertheless, I don’t discover these software program adjustments as annoying as I do on a telephone, as a result of I exploit a pill in a less complicated approach.

Key to the expertise here’s a desktop-like dock so you’ll be able to shortly get to apps. It’s straightforward so as to add frequent apps right here so that you don’t should swipe into the apps tray. Honor additionally gives an AI suggestion field that’s consistently altering and principally gives you apps used just lately – in actuality, there’s not an enormous quantity of AI happening there.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

There’s easy splitscreen working, so you’ll be able to show apps side-by-side. With a display this huge, I’ve been capable of have a Phrase doc open on one facet and a reference PDF on the opposite and nonetheless be capable of see every thing. The break up between these apps will be simply dragged to fit your wants; typically it’d take a few makes an attempt to get the 2 apps you need side-by-side, however I all the time obtained there in the long run.

Honor pushes its personal workplace apps, in addition to its personal e-mail, gallery, app retailer and extra, with the latter providing updates to apps that you simply may set up from Google’s Play Retailer, which solely provides to consumer confusion. In actuality, it’s straightforward to skip over most of what Honor gives and use inventory Google apps as an alternative, whereas Microsoft Workplace additionally runs properly for these invested in productiveness with 365.

Honor AI is imbued in lots of elements of the MagicPad, so that you’ll discover choices to dive into AI writing when copy and pasting, utilizing AI to assist your composition. I’ve by no means discovered that to be very helpful, however it’s typical of the AI companies that the majority manufacturers now provide.

Chris Corridor / Foundry

Whereas I’m not the most important fan of Honor’s telephones, as a result of I believe they detract an excessive amount of from how Android is designed to work, I don’t have an issue with Honor’s providing on a pill: every thing works the best way I would like it to. There’s a draw back although: Honor confirmed to me that the MagicPad 3 would get “no less than” one OS replace and two years of safety updates, which is properly behind anticipated ranges.

Worth & Availability

The Honor MagicPad 3 launches on 28 August with a retail value of £599.99 within the UK, though at launch there’s a £100 low cost, so you may get it for £499.99 direct from Honor. It additionally comes bundled with the MagicPad 3 Good Keyboard and the Magic-Pencil 3, though that’s mentioned to be unique to the UK, so not all areas will profit from that supply.

There’s simply the one model out there, as detailed, with 512GB storage.

It’s not out there within the US.

Must you purchase the Honor MagicPad 3?

The Honor MagicPad 3 gives good worth for cash contemplating the display measurement, energy and the formidable battery. Bundled in with that keyboard and pencil it’s an awesome provide: as soon as these gives expire and this pill returns to full value, it is going to face robust competitors from the OnePlus Pad 3.

I’ve loved working and watching on the MagicPad 3 and whereas the lack of an OLED show is a disgrace, I believe there’s sufficient to compensate for that. On the similar time, Honor was a budget OLED pill of alternative with the MagicPad 2; that distinction has now gone and there’s rather less to assist Honor’s pill stand out among the many greatest tablets on provide.

Specs

• Android 15 with MagicOS
• 13.3-inch, 3200 x 2136, LCD, 165Hz
• Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
• 16GB RAM
• 512GB storage
• 13Mp, f/2.0 primary digital camera
• As much as 4K @ 30fps rear video
• 9Mp front-facing digital camera
• Eight audio system with spatial audio
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be
• Bluetooth 5.4
• 12,450mAh battery
• 66W charging
• 293.88 x 201.38 x 5.79mm
• 595g
• Colors: Gray, White