Honor Magic 7 Pro vs Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra: One fierce Android battle
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Intro
The battle for the Android crown is as fierce as ever, with contenders from the Far East gaining ground on the reigning champions. The Honor Magic 7 Pro was officially unveiled globally on January 15, boasting specs that turned more than a few heads.
Just a week later, Samsung launched its new Galaxy S25 Series—an interestingly timed move by Honor to beat the Korean company to the punch. Now, we have a serious showdown on our hands.
The Honor Magic 7 Pro and Galaxy S25 Ultra represent the latest wave of Android flagships, standing shoulder to shoulder with devices like the OnePlus 13 and Xiaomi 15. With nearly every 2025 flagship powered by the new Snapdragon 8 Elite, it will be fascinating to see who claims the Android crown.
We’ve put both the Galaxy S25 Ultra and the Honor Magic 7 Pro through rigorous testing, and now we’re ready to give you some answers.
Just a week later, Samsung launched its new Galaxy S25 Series—an interestingly timed move by Honor to beat the Korean company to the punch. Now, we have a serious showdown on our hands.
We’ve put both the Galaxy S25 Ultra and the Honor Magic 7 Pro through rigorous testing, and now we’re ready to give you some answers.
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 | 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 5,270 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 Size
- Display differences
- Performance and Software
- Camera
- Battery and Charging
- Audio Quality
- Specs
- Which one should you buy?
Also read:
- Honor Magic 7 Pro Review: The Android flagship to beat?
- Honor Magic 7 Pro vs Honor Magic 6 Pro: All differences explained
Design and Size
The future is flat!
Before we dive into the flat part, let’s first discuss the overall design of both phones. The Honor Magic 7 Pro is a direct successor to the Honor Magic 6 Pro, maintaining the same design philosophy. However, this time around, the Jade Cong camera bump is more subtle, the chamfering around the camera module is finer, and the overall design feels more conventional and rounded.
Inside, we have four cameras, though only three are capable of taking actual photos; one serves solely as a depth sensor. Honor has followed the global trend and made the device flatter. Both the front and back are subtly, gently curved, while the metal frame is completely flat. This change brings its own pros and cons. In hand, the Magic 7 Pro feels wider and a bit less comfortable compared to its predecessor, mainly due to the flatter screen and back.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra marks a slight departure from Samsung's usual design approach for its Ultra model. This year, the S25 Ultra feels much more aligned with the other two models—the vanilla S25 and S25 Plus—in terms of design. The sharp corners are gone, the slightly curved frame is no longer present, and both the display and back are entirely flat. This also translates to a different feel when you hold the device, again we feel the previous model is a tad more comfortable in the hand.
The Galaxy S25 Ultra marks a slight departure from Samsung's usual design approach for its Ultra model. This year, the S25 Ultra feels much more aligned with the other two models—the vanilla S25 and S25 Plus—in terms of design. The sharp corners are gone, the slightly curved frame is no longer present, and both the display and back are entirely flat. This also translates to a different feel when you hold the device, again we feel the previous model is a tad more comfortable in the hand.
If we take a look at the hard numbers for the dimensions and weights of both phones, it’s clear just how closely matched these two really are. The Honor Magic 7 Pro measures 162.7 x 77.1 x 8.8 mm and weighs 223 grams, while the Galaxy S25 Ultra comes in at 162.8 x 77.6 x 8.2 mm and 218 grams. We’re talking fractions of a millimeter in difference.
When it comes to materials, durability, and protection from the elements, the Galaxy S25 Ultra may have a slight edge. It continues the titanium trend and features the second iteration of Corning’s Gorilla Armor 2 glass, complete with the anti-glare coating we know and love from the previous model. The Magic 7 Pro, on the other hand, uses its own NanoCrystal Shield protection on both the front and back, no titanium, just plain old aluminum.
Display Differences
Moving to the display part of the equation. The Galaxy S25 Ultra features a 6.9-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 Honor Magic 7 Pro comes equipped with a 6.8-inch AMOLED panel with 1280 x 2800 pixels resolution, 1-120Hz refresh rate. Cited peak brightness numbers are 1600 nits in high brightness mode and 5000 nits peak.
Our display tests revealed something interesting. It seems that Honor limits the brightness of the Magic 7 Pro above a certain APL (Average Picture Level), likely to ensure a more uniform user experience. At 20% APL, the Galaxy S25 Ultra is much brighter, while the Honor stays around 1,500 nits across most of the APL range. This approach has its own advantages and drawbacks, but the S25 Ultra has the potential to output more nits when needed.
The Honor Magic 7 Pro appears to be better color-calibrated out of the box, but the Galaxy S25 Ultra can achieve lower minimum brightness, which is particularly useful if you prefer using your phone in low-light conditions, such as at night in bed.
Finally, the biometrics have been upgraded on the Honor Magic 7 Pro. The phone now features an ultrasonic under-display fingerprint scanner, similar to the one on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. There's no clear winner in this category—it’s more of a tie. Let’s move on.
Finally, the biometrics have been upgraded on the Honor Magic 7 Pro. The phone now features an ultrasonic under-display fingerprint scanner, similar to the one on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. There's no clear winner in this category—it’s more of a tie. Let’s move on.
Performance and Software
Members of the 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. The first benchmarks from other Android flagships place it somewhere around the Apple A18 Pro chip, which is definitely a great achievement and an industry first. Time for our own benchmarks!
Performance Benchmarks:
Looking at the results above, it's worth mentioning that the Galaxy S25 Ultra comes with a slightly overclocked version of the Snapdragon 8 Elite chip, branded as "for Galaxy." This has translated into slightly higher CPU scores compared to the regular Snapdragon in the Honor Magic 7 Pro. On the other hand, the graphics performance appears to be slightly better on the Honor, which holds true for both the peak 3DMark score and the lowest score in our Extreme Stress test.
The RAM and storage situation is a bit different. The Honor Magic 7 Pro starts at 12GB of RAM with 512GB of storage, and goes up to 16GB of RAM with 1TB of onboard memory (at least in China; globally, only the 12GB/512GB version is available for now). The Galaxy S25 Ultra offers three storage variants, each with 12GB of RAM. The base model starts at 256GB, there’s a 512GB version, and the top model comes in at 1TB.
When it comes to software, AI is still the buzzword (or should we say buzz-abbreviation). Both phones come loaded with AI-powered features, and while each has proprietary AI tech—Galaxy AI for the Galaxy S25 Ultra and Honor AI for the Magic 7 Pro—Gemini is present on both. For a deeper dive into their capabilities, check out the respective reviews, but the short version is that the features are remarkably similar.
Lastly, let’s talk about software support. Samsung continues the seven-year pledge it adopted two years ago, matching Google’s long-term commitment. The Galaxy S25 Ultra ships with Android 15 out of the box and will receive updates through 2032. The Honor Magic 7 Pro, on the other hand, will last for four years.
Lastly, let’s talk about software support. Samsung continues the seven-year pledge it adopted two years ago, matching Google’s long-term commitment. The Galaxy S25 Ultra ships with Android 15 out of the box and will receive updates through 2032. The Honor Magic 7 Pro, on the other hand, will last for four years.
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 carries 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 should deliver higher detail and improved performance in low-light conditions.
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 carries 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 should deliver higher detail and improved performance in low-light conditions.
Main Camera samples
The Honor Magic 7 Pro manages to keep up with its main rival, the Galaxy S25 Ultra when it comes to images from the main camera. The quality is very similar between these two phones with minor differences in the way algorithms handle color reproduction. This year Samsung toned down things in that department and the colors in the S25 Ultra samples look much more realistic than, let's say, Galaxy S24 Ultra samples.
The Honor Magic 7 Pro, on the other hand, adds a little more pop to the colors but we wouldn't say they're too oversaturated. In the end it's down to personal preference, as dynamic range, detail, resolution and depth are all excellent on both phones. However, the S25 Ultra seems to have a slight advantage, at least in our lab, in all categories. It's hard to see it with a naked eye but that's why the camera score is so different.
Ultrawide Camera samples
The Honor Magic 7 Pro would have won this ultrawide battle if the S25 Ultra hadn't upgraded its camera. Now it's another tie. Both phones manage to maintain the color tonality of their respective wide cameras with very good detail preservation and also wide dynamic range. These two are example for how good an ultrawide camera can be and should be.
Telephoto Camera samples
In the telephoto shootout both phones started quite close when at low magnification (3X) but gradually, the S25 Ultra pulled slightly ahead. At 10X Samsung's flagship was able to pull out a tad more details (take a look at the working hours sign at the door in the sample image). The reflections also show a tad more detail and overall exposure seems a bit better too on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. That said, the Magic 7 Pro is no slouch and performed good as well.
Battery Life and Charging
Silicon-carbon for (almost) everybody
When it comes to battery and charging, the Honor Magic 7 Pro holds an advantage—at least on paper. It features third-generation silicon-carbon technology in its battery, allowing it to pack a 5,850mAh cell into its slim and sleek body. However, there’s a catch: this capacity is exclusive to the Chinese model, while the global version comes with a significantly smaller 5,270mAh battery, likely due to stricter battery regulations in Europe.
Additionally, the Honor Magic 7 Pro offers much faster charging speeds, with support for 100W wired and 80W wireless charging. In contrast, the Galaxy S25 Ultra brings no upgrades in charging speeds compared to its predecessor. It sticks to 45W wired and 15W wireless charging. But these are just numbers—time for our battery and charging tests.
Additionally, the Honor Magic 7 Pro offers much faster charging speeds, with support for 100W wired and 80W wireless charging. In contrast, the Galaxy S25 Ultra brings no upgrades in charging speeds compared to its predecessor. It sticks to 45W wired and 15W wireless charging. But these are just numbers—time for our battery and charging tests.
PhoneArena Battery and Charging Test Results:
Given the same chipset in both phones and their similar battery capacities, the results above aren’t particularly surprising. Both the Galaxy S25 Ultra and the Magic 7 Pro are long-distance runners, delivering impressive performance in our browsing, YouTube, and gaming tests. If you’re into 3D gaming, the S25 Ultra will last you three and a half hours longer. However, in the other two tests, both phones are very closely matched.
When it comes to charging, the Honor device has the edge. It can fully charge its battery in just half an hour, whereas the S25 Ultra takes more than twice as long.
When it comes to charging, the Honor device has the edge. It can fully charge its battery in just half an hour, whereas the S25 Ultra takes more than twice as long.
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, 218 g |
| Screen | 6.8" OLED 1-120Hz LTPO NanoCrystal Shield | 6.9" OLED 1-120Hz LTPO Gorilla Armor 2 |
| Processor | Snapdragon 8 Elite 3nm | Snapdragon 8 Elite 3nm |
| RAM, Storage | 12/512GB LPDDR5X UFS 4.0 | 12/256GB 12/512GB 12/1TB LPDDR5 UFS 4.04 storage |
| Cameras | 50MP main 50MP ultrawide 200MP 3X telephoto 50MP front | 200MP main 50MP ultrawide 10MP 3X telephoto 50MP 5X telephoto 12MP front |
| Battery | 5,270 mAh | 5,000 mAh |
| Charging | USB-C 100W wired 80W wireless | USB-C 45W wired 25W wireless |
Which one should you buy?
The Honor Magic 7 Pro is undoubtedly a worthy Android contender. It boasts the latest and greatest tech—the Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, a third-generation silicon-carbon battery, extremely fast charging, and an impressive display.
That said, Samsung seems to have outscored its competitors without breaking much of a sweat. Despite the lack of exotic battery technology, largely unchanged cameras from last year (barring the ultrawide), and no upgrades to charging speeds, the S25 Ultra still manages to offer a more complete package. Samsung's stylus-equipped flagship topped our camera scores and performed on par with the Magic 7 Pro in all other areas.
When you consider the surprising fact that the S25 Ultra is actually cheaper than the Honor Magic 7 Pro—along with Samsung's excellent trade-in deals and the wide availability of the S25 Ultra—it becomes a no-brainer. Kudos to Honor for staying competitive for another year, though.
When you consider the surprising fact that the S25 Ultra is actually cheaper than the Honor Magic 7 Pro—along with Samsung's excellent trade-in deals and the wide availability of the S25 Ultra—it becomes a no-brainer. Kudos to Honor for staying competitive for another year, though.
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