Honor brings the bling with this special edition of the new Magic V Flip2

It’s not often we get a chance to experience a China-only device here at Wallpaper* HQ, but Honor’s new Magic V Flip2 has made its way to the West to show off its designer credentials and high levels of technical expertise. Dual screen clamshell foldables are still something of an industry niche, with Motorola paving the way with its revived Razr series at the turn of the decade.

Alongside Motorola, Google and Samsung, Honor is a leading player in the foldable phone space and has designated this special edition of the new Flip2 to raise its profile. As per the latest Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7, the Magic V Flip2 (someone needs to reboot phone naming conventions) has full-sized external screen that not only handles notifications but also allows access to many apps.

Paired with this 4” exterior screen is a 6.82” interior screen, making the Magic equivalent to the new Google Pixel Pro 10 XL, only with a far smaller footprint and a lighter weight, at just 204g. One key advantage of the flip format is that all cameras are effectively selfie cameras, and the ‘rear’ 200MP main camera can be used when the phone is folded, as can the 50MP ultra-wide camera. Inside, there’s a 50MP portrait selfie camera.

Like many Chinese brands, Honor doesn’t hold back when it comes to AI-generated content, and the Flip2’s filter game is strong, as per the tastes of the local market. Our device also came pre-loaded with a stack of popular Chinese apps, from the Baidu search engine to the Weibo social platform. Leveraging Google’s own Play store onto the device is perfectly possible, but some of the services remain region specific.

That’s also the case with the OS, which is Honor’s own MagicOS 9.0.1, built on top of Android 15. This means you won’t be seeing any of the aesthetic innovations in the current Android 16 build, nor will Google’s much vaunted Material Expression design details make it to the phone.

In limited edition form, the Magic V Flip2 has been given a sparkly make-over by none other than Jimmy Choo. Choo's design team has specified a glittering rear cover in blue and silver, along with custom wallpapers and clock faces, as well as an etched title on the hinge. This flagship model gets 16GB of memory and 1TB of storage as standard.

Honor claims the 5500mAh Silicon-carbon is the largest ever fitted to a clamshell foldable, so a couple of days of usage are easily achieved, especially if you use the smaller external screen to check notifications and appointments and therefore avoid lengthy doomscrolling sessions. Ultra-fast 80W charging is possible with Honor’s own charger, and the device even supports 50W wireless charging, again with a proprietary charger.

The camera system is impressive, no question, as is the overall responsiveness and quality of the OS and screen. If you spend any time in China and need a localised phone to access all the country’s services, then the Honor Magic V Flip2 is a small, stylish and attractive option.

Honor Magic V Flip2, China only for now, for more information visit Honor.com