Honor’s MagicPad 3 Aims to Out-Spec the iPad – It’s Thinner Than Samsung’s Latest Flagship Phone

Nick Papanikolopoulos

June 19, 2025

Honor is set to make some noise on July 2. The company already confirmed it’ll launch its next-gen foldable, the Magic V5, at an event in China. That’s the headline product—flashy, futuristic, and ready to go toe-to-toe with Samsung’s Z Fold 7. But just behind that curtain, another device is quietly shaping up to steal the show: the Honor MagicPad 3. It’s a tablet. But not just any tablet. I know, I know—most people don’t get hyped over a new tablet. They’re tools. Screens to read on. Sometimes they’re just oversized phones. But this one? It’s different. For starters, it’s thinner than the Galaxy S25 Edge, which is already an engineering flex.

How thin, exactly? Just 5.79mm. That’s razor territory. The Galaxy S25 Edge comes in at 5.89mm. We’re talking about a 0.1mm difference—barely the thickness of a strand of hair—but in tech design, that’s not trivial. That’s deliberate.

A Big Battery in a Thin Shell

Of course, “thin” doesn’t usually go hand-in-hand with “powerful.” But Honor seems intent on pushing both ends of the spectrum. The MagicPad 3 is said to feature what Honor’s own GM of Tablet and IoT Products calls “the largest battery in the industry.” The number floating around is 12,450 mAh, which—if true—would be remarkable for a tablet this size. That’s basically laptop-level endurance.

Even more surprising? It still supports 66W fast charging. No one likes waiting for their device to recharge. This might fix that.

A Display That Tries to Be More Than Just Pretty

Then there’s the screen. Another superlative here: a 13.3-inch LCD “Oasis” eye-protection display. The name sounds marketing-heavy, but the tech under the hood is interesting. It’s running a dual DDIC setup—basically, a pair of display driver chips. This could mean smoother animations, more accurate rendering, and possibly less eye fatigue.

Honor is positioning this display as an “industry first,” and while that’s a common phrase in press releases, this one might actually deserve it. Specs haven’t been fully confirmed, but expect high resolution and refresh rate. The kind you notice without being told to look for it.

Flagship Internals, Optional Storage Overkill

Underneath all that: Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. So, top-tier performance. No real surprise there—it’s what most high-end Android tablets are leaning on now.

Where it gets a bit wild is storage: up to 1TB, and 16GB of RAM. That’s not normal tablet territory. That’s gaming laptop-level spec. Is it overkill for what most people do with a tablet? Probably. But that’s part of the appeal. Overkill sells.

Honor MagicPad 3: Floating Gold and Other Finishes

Honor teased a few official images on Weibo. They show a sleek, reflective “Floating Gold” version, which—again, this is subjective—looks great. Not subtle, but sharp. Two other colorways might show up at launch: Starry Gray and Moon Shadow White. Sounds poetic, but they’ll probably look as premium as their names suggest.

Pricing? Yeah, It’ll Sting

Honor hasn’t revealed pricing yet, but we’re not expecting good news on that front. Flagship parts, premium finish, record-setting thinness—it’s going to cost. Also worth noting: it’s launching in China first. If it ever comes west, expect the global markup to hit hard. Perhaps uncomfortably so.

Honor MagicPad 3: Is It the Best Android Tablet? Maybe. But That’s Not the Point.

Let’s be real—very few people are going to pick this over an iPad Pro. Not because it’s worse. Just because ecosystems still matter more than specs. But Honor’s clearly aiming to shift that conversation. With the MagicPad 3, they’re building something that’s technically impressive, visually appealing, and—honestly—just plain cool.

Whether that’s enough to sway consumers? That’s harder to predict. But it’s enough to make people pay attention. And that’s something.

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