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Honor MagicPad 4: Two-minute review
With the Honor MagicPad 4, it’s hard not to think that the Chinese tech brand read my Honor MagicPad 3 review last year and set out to address every single criticism that I raised.
Honor advertises the MagicPad 4 as the slimmest tablet on the market — and for our money, that’s true. At just 4.8mm, it’s incredibly thin (beating the already impressively slim 5.1mm iPad Pro by a slight margin), which, combined with its light 450g weight, means the MagicPad 4 is a massive 12.3-inch tablet that’s easy to travel with and even hold comfortably in one hand.
Although being the thinnest tablet makes for a decent ad campaign, it’s actually the wealth of other upgrades that put the Honor MagicPad 4 among the best Android tablets right now. Seriously, Honor fixed everything negative that I pointed out last year — it’s almost a little uncanny.
The display is a gorgeous 3K OLED with a butter-smooth 164Hz OLED (compared to last year’s less vibrant LCD) and a superb 2,400-nit peak brightness. Paired with an incredibly punchy eight-speaker stereo setup, this has become my go-to tablet for media consumption both at home and while travelling.
With a viewing experience this good, it’s almost no surprise that this is one of the few IMAX Enhanced-certified tablets on the market. An OLED panel is no small feat at this price range, too, and the vibrant colors alone put the MagicPad 4 lightyears ahead of similarly priced competitors like the OnePlus Pad 3.
The divisive plastic material of the MagicPad 3 is also out, replaced with a full metal unibody chassis that looks very premium and is so much better to the touch.
This design refresh has been paired with a subtle spec upgrade under the hood. The MagicPad 4 is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 SoC, which is not quite the latest flagship chip, but a high-end offering that powers through productivity and holds its own in demanding games. You also get a beefy 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage (upgraded to 16GB and 512GB, respectively, if you splash out for the more expensive model that I tested).
Even this tablet’s software has received a noticeable upgrade. MagicOS 10 is more Apple-like than ever (complete with its own version of Liquid Glass), but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
As an ex-Apple user, I really appreciate the familiarity of MagicOS, and find that it’s perfectly easy-to-use while still offering a decent level of customization. Importantly, though, this latest incarnation finally introduces a proper desktop mode with taskbar and apps in resizable windows, and it’s hard to overstate how much of a difference this makes to productivity.
I just about managed a full day of work with the MagicPad 3, but it was a little fiddly and awkward at times. Now, I can pack the MagicPad 4 for any business trip and, having already brought it with me on a couple, I haven’t found myself missing my laptop yet.
Obviously, your mileage will vary depending on your specific tasks and software, but for my day-to-day work of responding to emails, updating spreadsheets, and typing away in Google Docs (with the optional keyboard add-on), I can’t complain.
The only possible flaw here is the battery, which is smaller than that of the MagicPad 3. Still, the MagicPad 4’s battery life remains excellent, and this tablet will easily put up with hours and hours of video playback in a single sitting.
Honor MagicPad 4 review: price and availability
- Starts at £599.99
- Expect regular discounts and freebies
- Not available in the US or Australia
The Honor MagicPad 4 is available via Honor’s website, where it starts at £599.99 for a 12GB + 256GB model. You can upgrade to the 16GB + 512GB model that I tested for an extra £100. That’s already amazing value for the specs (you’d struggle to find anything in this price range with an OLED screen alone), but as with other Honor products, you can expect a deluge of discounts and freebies to crop up throughout the year.
At the time of writing, you can nab £100 off either version, and pay an extra £50 to add in a compatible keyboard case and the latest Honor Magic Pencil 3 stylus. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see free smartwatches, earbuds, chargers, and more thrown in over the coming months, so be sure to buy with at least a few freebies available to maximize value. Even if you pay the full asking price, you’re still getting a great deal, though.
As with other Honor devices, the MagicPad 4 isn’t officially sold in the US, so it’s very tricky to get there. Australian availability also seems limited.
Honor MagicPad 4 review: specs
Here’s a look at the Honor MagicPad 4’s key specs:
|
Dimensions: |
273.4 x 178.8 x 4.8mm |
|
Operating system: |
MagicOS 10 (Android 16) |
|
Chipset: |
Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 |
|
Weight: |
450g |
|
Memory (RAM): |
12GB / 16GB |
|
Storage: |
256GB / 512GB |
|
Display: |
12.3 inch 1920 x 3000 165Hz OLED |
|
Cameras: |
12MP wide, 9MP selfie |
|
Battery: |
10,100 mAh silicon carbon |
|
Connectivity: |
USB Type-C 3.2 |
Honor MagicPad 4 review: Design
- iPad Pro-beating thinness
- Premium metal chassis
- Small bezels
The most impressive aspect of the MagicPad 4’s design is, of course, its thinness. This is currently the slimmest tablet you can buy, beating even the high-end iPad Pro, and it looks seriously thin in person. In fact, there seems to have been barely enough room to cram in the USB Type-C charging port. You might think that this slight profile would make the MagicPad 4 feel cheap or flimsy, but that’s not the case.
The tablet has a wholly metal body, consisting of a single piece with no visible manufacturing seams. There’s absolutely no flex if you try to bend it, and my unit has picked up no noticeable scratches or marks in my use so far. The MagicPad 4’s thinness isn’t just for show either — on top of being easy to chuck into your backpack, I found that it made the tablet very easy to hold in one hand.
I conducted an hour and twenty-minute-long interview with the MagicPad 4 gripped in my left hand for notes, and experienced no noticeable fatigue. The interviewee even asked what brand the tablet was when we wrapped up, and remarked on how thin and light it looked. The screen is large and spacious, with roughly 4mm bezels for a very modern appearance. There’s actually a little 9MP selfie cam nestled in there at the top, but it’s hard to see outside of direct sunlight.
This camera isn’t amazing, but it gets the job done for video calls and would be on the better end of most laptop webcams. It’s a similar story with the rear 12MP shooter, found in a square camera module alongside the flash. It’s good enough to scan documents, but you obviously shouldn’t be using (or even expect to use) a massive tablet like this for your holiday snaps. Please, just take a few extra seconds to pull out your phone like a normal person.
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For sound, you’re getting an eight-speaker stereo setup that’s impressively clear and crisp. The bass isn’t as strong as that of thicker tablets, but it still offers a detailed and well-rounded listening experience.
As someone who routinely uses tablets to watch entire concert recordings with the sound blasting at full volume, I really value a good speaker setup, and the MagicPad 4 is up there as one of the best I’ve tested at this price. Just make sure that you go into the settings and turn off all of the Honor sound features that are, for some reason, enabled by default, as they can make everything sound artificially tinny.
The tablet has all the expected buttons, namely a power button and volume rocker. There’s also a little magnetic strip for attaching the compatible Magic Pencil 3 stylus if you have one. And yes, Honor’s stylus will automatically charge and pair when stuck onto the tablet. Take notes, Lenovo.
I tested the Honor MagicPad 4 in conjunction with the white Honor MagicPad 4 Smart Touch Keyboard. It seems very similar to the keyboard I was sent with the Honor MagicPad 3, and it’s once again fantastic.
It attaches to the tablet via a magnetic accessory port on its rear and pairs automatically. The touchpad is quick and responsive, the keys have a good level of travel, and it’s not too bulky to be practical. I do also still love the folding design of the stand, which folds down to expose the top half of the tablet and show off its slimness.
Honor MagicPad 4 review: Display
- Beautiful OLED colors
- Fantastic refresh rate
- Perfect for media consumption
On the display side of things, I can’t fault the Honor MagicPad 4 in any way. This is an absurdly good screen for the price, simply decimating what OnePlus, Lenovo, and especially Apple will give you for under £600. This 12.3-inch 1920 x 3000 (3K) OLED panel is pin-sharp and delightfully crisp, with vibrant colors and rich black shades.
I’ve been on a bit of an anime binge, having recently renewed my Crunchyroll subscription, and every show that I’ve dipped into has been absolutely beautiful to watch. Games look lovely too; the high-fidelity visuals of the recently released Neverness to Everness, for instance, really blew me away. And opening the Kindle app, the 3K resolution leads to great-looking text in books and detailed panels in comics.
With HDR support and a peak brightness of roughly 2,400 nits, the MagicPad 4’s display can get jaw-droppingly bright and remains visible in even the strongest possible sunlight outdoors. Honor also deserves some kudos for applying a 5,280Hz PWM dimming rate to this screen. This subtle spec isn’t going to matter for most people, but could be a game-changer for those with sensitive eyes and massively reduces the chance of eye strain or fatigue over extended periods of use.
Even if you’re just browsing the web or flicking through the system menus, motion is seriously smooth, too, as a result of the tablet’s 165Hz refresh rate. The slightly pricier Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 is the only model I can think of that comes close to this level of display performance without asking that you pay a huge amount more, but that device has a lower refresh rate and is dimmer, so it loses to the MagicPad 4 overall in my book.
In other words, whatever you’re watching, playing, or reading on the MagicPad 4, this tablet is simply perfect.
Honor MagicPad 3 review: software
- Apple-inspired UI
- Six whole years of support in the EU
- A good level of customization
Update support is one of my biggest concerns when buying an Android tablet. There are too many brands out there that will charge iPad prices while offering only two or three years of update support. Honor was actually guilty of this last year with the MagicPad 3, which only came with one Android version upgrade and two years of security patches (something I described as the device’s “fatal flaw”).
This time around, Honor has promised six years of major Android updates for consumers in the EU. That’s without a doubt the best level of support I’ve seen for an Android tablet under £600, putting basically every other brand to shame. There’s no telling how regular these updates will be, but at least shoppers aren’t splashing out for a tablet with a looming expiration date right out of the box.
As for MagicOS 10 (which is based on Android 15), the biggest change this time around, aside from the new Liquid-Glass-like design language, is the addition of an upgraded desktop mode. It features the option of a persistent taskbar (at last!) and displays apps in easily resizable windows that you can snap to different parts of the screen. It’s much less fiddly than the equivalent ‘Floating Window mode’ of MagicOS 9 and makes serious productivity on the MagicPad 4 much easier.
Otherwise, my words from last year still ring true. In my eyes, MagicOS is the best possible middle ground between the attractive look of iOS and the customization offered by Android.
Former Apple users will find the design of menus familiar, but with a few interesting twists here and there. Quirky customization features like the 3D Avatar — a little person that you can create and set as an animated wallpaper — are still present and just as charming as before.
Honor MagicPad 4 review: performance
- Powers through productivity tasks
- Also a capable gaming tablet
- Stays cool under heavy loads
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 isn’t the latest and greatest flagship chipset, but it’s still a capable SoC that delivers great all-round performance when paired with 12GB (or 16GB) of RAM. The MagicPad 4’s interface is always quick and responsive, with no noticeable slowdown or reloading when flicking between streams on the likes of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and YouTube.
Effective multitasking is a piece of cake, too, and I’ve not had any issues running Gmail, Slack, Google Docs, and Chrome simultaneously as I work.
The MagicPad 4 is also a capable gaming tablet. It supports both WiFi 7 for speedy game downloads and holds its own in even the most demanding titles. Delta Force and Zenless Zone Zero both run very smoothly at their default graphics presets, and I’ve been particularly impressed with how well the Honor MagicPad 4 handles the extremely graphically intensive Neverness to Everness. It defaulted to the extreme graphics preset with 60fps cap and, despite the odd stutter in the most built-up areas of the city, was more than playable for driving around and tackling missions.
This particular title looks absolutely breathtaking, and paired with a compatible gaming controller, you’re easily getting a console-quality experience when playing it on the MagicPad 4.
The tablet’s cooling system is remarkably effective as well. I was a little worried that such a thin tablet would get very hot, yet it’s not actually a big problem. You’ll feel it getting slightly warmer to the touch during sustained play, but it doesn’t become uncomfortably hot or thermal throttle to the extent that it noticeably impacts performance. Honor says this is all thanks to the MagicPad 4’s dual-direction vapor chamber, which has somehow been crammed in alongside everything else.
Honor MagicPad 4 review: battery
- Great battery life
- Easily lasts more than one day
- A small downgrade compared to last year
The battery is the only area where the Honor MagicPad 4 falls short in comparison to the MagicPad 3. This year’s tablet is powered by a slightly smaller 10,100mAh silicon-carbon cell, which shaves a few hours off the total running time. Luckily, you’ll likely not notice a dramatic difference, as the MagicPad 4 still packs a very big battery, and its battery life is still pretty impressive as a result.
This tablet will easily last for a full day of use, with a mix of browsing the web, watching videos, and even a few hours of gaming thrown in there. I packed the tablet for a 14-hour flight and finished with more than 70% left in the tank after completing some decently heavy tasks with brightness cranked up and an intermittent WiFi connection.
You can expect well over a week of juice from the MagicPad 4 if you only use it for an hour or two a day, which makes this a great choice if you’re looking for a tablet to keep around the house. When it does run low, charging times are refreshingly quick as well, with 66W wired speeds that should see it back up to full from zero in under an hour and a half with a compatible charger.
Should you buy the Honor MagicPad 4?
|
Attributes |
Notes |
Rating |
|
Value |
Strong specs, a gorgeous OLED screen, premium build quality, and six years of software support. You’re not going to find a better value tablet at this price. |
5 / 5 |
|
Design |
Record-breaking slimness aside, the new metal body is a huge upgrade compared to last year’s plastic and leads to a tablet that feels as good as it looks. |
5 / 5 |
|
Display |
A bright and colorful 3K OLED panel with a high refresh rate, HDR support, and IMAX Enhanced certification. What more could you want? |
5 / 5 |
|
Software |
The Apple-inspired UI is familiar and practical with some quirky features thrown in. |
4.5 / 5 |
|
Performance |
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chipset powers through general use and gaming. |
5 / 5 |
|
Battery |
A small downgrade compared to the Honor MagicPad 3, but still more than enough juice to last through days of heavy use. |
4 / 5 |
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
Also consider
After some Honor MagicPad 4 alternatives? The older OnePlus Pad 3 is available at a lower price, while the iPad Air 13-inch is a good (albeit much more expensive) option for those who prefer the Apple ecosystem.
| Row 0 – Cell 0 |
Honor MagicPad 4 |
OnePlus Pad 3 |
iPad Air 13-inch (2024) |
|
Starting price |
£599.99 |
£529 |
$799 / £799 / AU$1,299 |
|
Operating system |
MagicOS 10 (Android 16) |
OxygenOS (Android 15) |
iPadOS 17 |
|
Chipset |
Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 |
Snapdragon 8 Elite |
Apple M2 |
|
Memory (RAM) |
12GB / 16GB |
12GB / 16GB |
8GB / 16GB |
|
Storage |
256GB / 512GB |
256GB / 512GB |
128GB / 256GB / 512GB / 1TB |
|
Display |
12.3 inch 1920 x 3000 165Hz OLED |
13.2-inch 3.4k LCD, 144Hz |
13-inch Liquid Retina Display |
|
Cameras |
12MP wide, 9MP front |
13MP wide, 8MP front |
12MP wide (rear), 12MP ultra-wide (front) |
|
Battery |
10,100mAh |
12,140mAh |
c. 10,000mAh |
|
Connectivity |
USB Type-C 3.2 |
USB Type-C 3.2 |
USB-C (Thunderbolt/USB 4) |
|
Weight |
450g |
675g |
617g |
|
Dimensions |
273.4 x 178.8 x 4.8mm |
289.61 x 209.66 x 5.97mm |
280.6 x 214.9 x 6.1mm |
How I tested the Honor MagicPad 4
I tested the 16GB + 512GB version of the Honor MagicPad 4 for multiple months, using it on an almost daily basis as my go-to tablet for work and play.
I watched a vast amount of video content on it, read some digital books and comics, and spent plenty of time browsing the web and gaming. I also took it with me on multiple business trips in place of my laptop, where I used it to edit documents and respond to emails.
Throughout my time with the tablet, I frequently compared it to other models I’ve tested, including multiple iPads and both the Honor MagicPad 3 and Honor MagicPad 2.
First reviewed May 2026
Read the full article here
