Honor Magic 7 Pro vs Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra: One fierce Android battle coming up!
Intro
The battle for the Android crown is as fierce as ever, and there are players from the Far East gaining ground on the defending champions. The Honor Magic 7 Pro was officially unveiled in China on October 30, and the specs raised a few eyebrows.
Meanwhile, rumors about the upcoming Galaxy S25 Ultra are starting to surface, fueling the hype machine. These two phones are scheduled for a global launch very close to one another, sometime in January 2025.
The Honor Magic 7 Pro and the Galaxy S25 Ultra belong to the new wave of Android flagships, alongside devices such as the OnePlus 13 and the Xiaomi 15, but we expect those to arrive globally next year as well.
So, it's time for a preliminary comparison in order to gain some insight about who will take the Android crown next year. Of course, the specs of the Honor Magic 7 Pro are for the Chinese version, and all the information about the Galaxy S25 Ultra is still unofficial, so bear that in mind.
Meanwhile, rumors about the upcoming Galaxy S25 Ultra are starting to surface, fueling the hype machine. These two phones are scheduled for a global launch very close to one another, sometime in January 2025.
So, it's time for a preliminary comparison in order to gain some insight about who will take the Android crown next year. Of course, the specs of the Honor Magic 7 Pro are for the Chinese version, and all the information about the Galaxy S25 Ultra is still unofficial, so bear that in mind.
With that out of the way, let's compare the Honor Magic 7 Pro and the Galaxy S25 Ultra.
Honor Magic 7 Pro vs Galaxy S25 Ultra differences explained:
| Honor Magic 7 Pro | Galaxy S25 Ultra |
|---|---|
| Very similar in size and weight, flatter display | Expect more rounded design, similar in size and weight nonetheless |
| Almost identical 6.8-inch AMOLED display, not as sharp with slightly less pixels per inch | Similar 6.8-inch AMOLED with the same variable 1-120Hz refresh rate, slightly better resolution |
| Triple camera, with a 200MP periscope telephoto | Four cameras, the main one is 200MP, two telephoto lenses |
| The same RAM options 12GB on the base model, 16GB on the upper variants | Identical RAM and memory configurations |
| Larger 5,850 mAh battery that will potentially deliver better battery life, silicon-carbon tech | A smaller 5,000 mAh battery |
| Faster wired and wireless charging | Slow wired charging, potential upgrade to the wireless charging |
Table of Contents:
Design and Display Quality
The future is flat!
Before we get to the flat part, let's talk a bit about the overall design of both phones. The Honor Magic 7 Pro is already official, so we know how it looks. The phone is a direct successor to the Honor Magic 6 Pro and follows the same design philosophy. This time around, though, the Jade Cong camera bump is more subtle, the chamfering around the frame of the camera module is subtle, and it looks more conventional and round.
Inside we find four cameras, but only three can take actual photos; one is just a depth sensor. Honor has succumbed to the global trend and made the device flatter. Both the back and the front are ever so slightly, gently curved. The metal frame is absolutely flat. We have to test it in our hands to pass our judgment.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra, on the other hand, is still under wraps, and we have a couple of leaks concerning the design. These include a rumor that the body of the S25 Ultra will be more rounded and also the slimmest Ultra to date. We expect the overall design to stay the same with separate camera housings on the back and the iconic S Pen slot present as well.
When it comes to materials, durability, and protection from the elements, the Galaxy S25 Ultra may have a slight edge, as it will continue the titanium trend, plus we expect the next Gorilla Glass product to land on this phone.
Moving to the display part of the equation. The Galaxy S25 Ultra is expected with the same 6.8-inch screen diagonal, boasting 1440 by 3080 pixels resolution and LTPO 3.0 tech, allowing the display to refresh with 1-120Hz with everything in between. The Gorilla Glass Armor anti-glare coating will most likely make another appearance, probably with the next-gen model.
The Honor Magic 7 Pro comes equipped with a 6.8-inch AMOLED panel with 1280 x 2800 pixels resolution, 1-120Hz refresh rate, and a new Giant Rhino Glass on top of it for protection. Cited peak brightness numbers are 1600 nits in high brightness mode and 5000 nits peak.
Finally, the biometrics have been upgraded on the Honor Magic 7 Pro; the phone now features an ultrasonic under-display fingerprint scanner, just like the one we expect on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. As you can see, these two devices are shaping out to be very similar. Let's move on.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra, on the other hand, is still under wraps, and we have a couple of leaks concerning the design. These include a rumor that the body of the S25 Ultra will be more rounded and also the slimmest Ultra to date. We expect the overall design to stay the same with separate camera housings on the back and the iconic S Pen slot present as well.
When it comes to materials, durability, and protection from the elements, the Galaxy S25 Ultra may have a slight edge, as it will continue the titanium trend, plus we expect the next Gorilla Glass product to land on this phone.
Moving to the display part of the equation. The Galaxy S25 Ultra is expected with the same 6.8-inch screen diagonal, boasting 1440 by 3080 pixels resolution and LTPO 3.0 tech, allowing the display to refresh with 1-120Hz with everything in between. The Gorilla Glass Armor anti-glare coating will most likely make another appearance, probably with the next-gen model.
Finally, the biometrics have been upgraded on the Honor Magic 7 Pro; the phone now features an ultrasonic under-display fingerprint scanner, just like the one we expect on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. As you can see, these two devices are shaping out to be very similar. Let's move on.
Performance and Software
Members of the Snapdragon Elite club
Both phones feature the latest Qualcomm chipset, the Snapdragon 8 Elite. The hype surrounding this silicon has been immense in the past couple of months. Leaked benchmarks place it somewhere around the Apple A18 Pro chip, which is definitely a great achievement and an industry first.
We don't have official benchmarks for the Honor Magic 7 Pro, but several leaks point toward a Geekbench score of around 10,000 for the multi-core test and around 3,300 points for the single-core benchmark.
One thing to keep in mind is that the specific version for the Galaxy S25 Ultra will be slightly overclocked to get the "for Galaxy" branding. This will indeed lead to performance gains, at least in short tests. When subjected to heavy loads for extended periods of time, both versions will most likely throttle down to similar results. Stay tuned for benchmarks.
The RAM and storage situation is again very similar. The Honor Magic 7 Pro starts at 12GB of RAM coupled with 256GB of storage and goes all the way up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of onboard memory. The caveat here is whether or not Honor will bring all the memory options outside China.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra is still a mystery in that department, but we expect the configuration to be similar to the predecessor, the Galaxy S24 Ultra. Namely, 12GB of RAM for the base memory, and variants up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. Identical to the Honor Magic 7 Pro indeed.
We don't have official benchmarks for the Honor Magic 7 Pro, but several leaks point toward a Geekbench score of around 10,000 for the multi-core test and around 3,300 points for the single-core benchmark.
The RAM and storage situation is again very similar. The Honor Magic 7 Pro starts at 12GB of RAM coupled with 256GB of storage and goes all the way up to 16GB of RAM and 1TB of onboard memory. The caveat here is whether or not Honor will bring all the memory options outside China.
Camera
The deciding factor?
The Honor Magic 7 Pro's camera system combines three powerful sensors. At its core is a 50 MP primary camera featuring a large 1/1.3-inch Super Dynamic HONOR Falcon Camera H9000 HDR sensor, which is likely a rebranded version of the OmniVision OV50H sensor from the previous model.
This setup is further enhanced by a 50 MP ultrawide lens and a high-resolution 200 MP telephoto sensor with a substantial 1/1.4-inch size, believed to be Samsung's S5KHP9 sensor (also found on the Vivo X100 Ultra).
Meanwhile, the Galaxy S25 Ultra is expected to carry over the same camera configuration as its predecessor, with one notable upgrade: a new 50 MP Samsung Isocell JN3 sensor for the ultra-wide lens, featuring a pixel size of 0.7 micrometers. This updated ultra-wide camera is anticipated to deliver higher detail and improved performance in low-light conditions.
The actual differences in image quality will become apparent when we snap some samples with both phones, so until then, specs are all we got.
This setup is further enhanced by a 50 MP ultrawide lens and a high-resolution 200 MP telephoto sensor with a substantial 1/1.4-inch size, believed to be Samsung's S5KHP9 sensor (also found on the Vivo X100 Ultra).
Meanwhile, the Galaxy S25 Ultra is expected to carry over the same camera configuration as its predecessor, with one notable upgrade: a new 50 MP Samsung Isocell JN3 sensor for the ultra-wide lens, featuring a pixel size of 0.7 micrometers. This updated ultra-wide camera is anticipated to deliver higher detail and improved performance in low-light conditions.
The actual differences in image quality will become apparent when we snap some samples with both phones, so until then, specs are all we got.
Battery Life and Charging
Silicon-carbon for (almost) everybody
When it comes to the battery and charging area, the Honor Magic 7 Pro has a significant advantage, at least on paper. The model employs the third-generation silicon-carbon tech in its battery, managing to fit a 5,850 mAh cell inside its thin and sleek body.
Furthermore, the fast charging is also much more powerful with 100W wired and 80W wireless support on the Honor Magic 7 Pro. Again, the situation might change for the global variant, and these charging speeds might be downgraded a bit due to regulations. But even then, we should at least get 80W wired and 66W wireless charging speeds as the Magic 6 Pro.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra is expected to carry over the battery capacity and charging speeds from its predecessor, which is not a good need for Samsung fans. We're talking about 45W wired and 15W wireless, although there are some rumors stating that we might get an upgrade to 25W wireless support.
Furthermore, the fast charging is also much more powerful with 100W wired and 80W wireless support on the Honor Magic 7 Pro. Again, the situation might change for the global variant, and these charging speeds might be downgraded a bit due to regulations. But even then, we should at least get 80W wired and 66W wireless charging speeds as the Magic 6 Pro.
Specs Comparison
Here's a quick specs comparison; for a more detailed one, head to PhoneArena and check out our Honor Magic 7 Pro vs Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra comparison page.
| Honor Magic 7 Pro | Galaxy S25 Ultra* | |
|---|---|---|
| Size, weight | 162.7 x 77.1 x 8.8 mm, 223 g | 162.8 x 77.6 x 8.2 mm, 219 g |
| Screen | 6.8" OLED 1-120Hz LTPO Rhino Glass | 6.8" OLED 1-120Hz LTPO Gorilla Glass Armor |
| Processor | Snapdragon 8 Elite 3nm | Snapdragon 8 Elite 3nm |
| RAM, Storage | 12/256GB 16/512GB 16/1TB LPDDR5X UFS 4.0 | 12/256GB 16/512GB 16/1TB LPDDR5 UFS 4.04 storage |
| Cameras | 50MP main 50MP ultrawide 200MP 3X telephoto 50MP front | 200MP main 12MP ultrawide 10MP 3X telephoto 50MP 5X telephoto 12MP front |
| Battery | 5,850 mAh | 5,000 mAh |
| Charging | USB-C 100W wired 80W wireless | USB-C 45W wired 25W wireless |
*rumored specs
Which one should you buy?
This battle is shaping out to be a very fierce one, as we stated in the intro. Both phones aim for the top in the Android food chain, and they also feature very similar specs. The display tech on both the Honor Magic 7 Pro and Galaxy S25 Ultra looks almost identical, the screen size is the same, and we expect the dimensions and weights to also be very close.
Both phones have the Snapdragon 8 Elite, so the performance will be similar, and there's quite an overlap in the RAM and storage configurations. On the battery front, the Honor seems to have an advantage, but before we run our test, we can't say anything concrete.
Finally, the deciding factor might turn out to be the camera system, as these two feature different specs and will produce different results. Stay tuned for a final verdict once we finish the reviews of both models.
Both phones have the Snapdragon 8 Elite, so the performance will be similar, and there's quite an overlap in the RAM and storage configurations. On the battery front, the Honor seems to have an advantage, but before we run our test, we can't say anything concrete.
Finally, the deciding factor might turn out to be the camera system, as these two feature different specs and will produce different results. Stay tuned for a final verdict once we finish the reviews of both models.
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