We check out the latest flagship sliders from Honor and Xiaomi
In the quest for a true notch-free, hole-free display, there have been three solutions that have popped up to date: a motorized pop-up mechanism, two displays (one in the front and one in the rear), and a manually actuated mechanism that shows the front cameras only when they’re needed. Both Honor and Xiaomi opted for the old school slider approach with the Magic 2 and Mi MIX 3, and both phones look equally stunning.
Both use a different mechanism—neodymium magnets for the Mi MIX 3 and a butterfly multi-track mechanism for the Magic 2—but the principle is basically the same. With both being flagship phones, they offer the best set of features you can find in a smartphone. Which is the better slider flagship phone on paper? Let’s check out in this quick comparo:
Honor Magic 2 specs
- HiSilicon Kirin 980 octa-core processor
- 6GB/8GB RAM
- 6.39-inch Full HD+ AMOLED display, 2340×1080 resolution
- 128GB/256GB internal storage
- Triple rear cameras: 16-megapixel f/1.8 main camera, 24-megapixel f/1.8 monochrome camera, and 16-megapixel f/2.2 ultra-wide-angle camera; with PDAF, dual tone LED flash, 4K video recording, Night mode
- 16-megapixel f/2.0 front camera with 2x 2-megapixel f/2.4 depth sensors
- Dual SIM
- WiFi, Bluetooth, Dual band GPS, NFC
- In-display fingerprint scanner, IPX2 Rating, Yoyo assistant
- 3400mAh battery with 40W Magic Charge
- Android 9 Pie (EMUI 9)
Xiaomi Mi MIX 3 Specs
- Snapdragon 845 octa-core processor
- Adreno 630 GPU
- 6GB/8GB/10GB RAM
- 6.39-inch 19.5:9 AMOLED display
- 12-megapixel IMX363 f/1.8, 12MP S5K3M3 f/2.4 AI-powered dual rear cameras
- 24-megapixel Sony IMX576 front camera with 2MP AI-powered dual front cameras
- 128GB/256GB of storage
- Dual SIM
- 5G LTE
- WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS
- Fingerprint scanner, USB Type-C connector, fast charging, wireless charging
- 3200mAh battery
- Android 8.1 Oreo with MIUI 9
They have roughly the same flagship-grade internals
Being flagship phones, both the Magic 2 and Mi MIX 3 have the best internals to date: Kirin 980 for the Magic 2, and Snapdragon 845 for the Mi MIX 3. While the Kirin 980 has higher benchmark scores than the Snapdragon 845, both phones perform exceptionally well.
Both the Magic 2 and Mi MIX 3 come with at least 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage, though you can opt for 10GB RAM on the Mi MIX 3 with the special edition variant.
They have the same 6.4-inch AMOLED display, but…
Being borderless, notch-free, hole-free phones, both sport a 6.4-inch Full HD+ AMOLED display that delivers great colors and viewing angles. The Magic 2 has a slight advantage, as it comes with an in-display fingerprint scanner.
More cameras do not necessarily mean better photos
While the Magic 2 has a total of six cameras and the Mi MIX 3 has four cameras all in all, more cameras do not translate to better photos since their cameras have specific purposes.
In the case of the Magic 2’s triple front camera setup, two of them function as depth sensors to aid the primary 16-megapixel front camera for bokeh effects. The same goes with the Mi MIX 3, as its dual front camera setup has a depth sensor to aid the 24-megapixel primary front camera.
Going to the rear cameras, the Magic 2 has a more flexible setup, since it has a 16-megapixel f/1.8 main camera, 24-megapixel f/1.8 monochrome camera, and a 16-megapixel f/2.2 ultra-wide-angle camera. The Mi MIX 3 is no slouch either, as it uses the same 12-megapixel f/1.8 primary and 12-megapixel f/2.4 telephoto camera setup found on the Mi MIX 2s. The said setup is proven to take stellar photos, evident with its 108 Photo score in DxOMark.
Higher capacity and faster charging speeds on the Magic 2
The Magic 2 excels in the battery department for two things: one, it has a bigger battery at 3400mAh (compared to 3200mAh on the Mi MIX 3), and it comes with 40W SuperCharge that lets you juice it up fully in under an hour. However, the Mi MIX 3 has the advantage of offering wireless charging if you want to rid yourself of messy cords.
Only one is officially available (for now)
While the Magic 2 is better than the Mi MIX 3 in terms of features, the Mi MIX 3 has the advantage in terms of availability. Our Magic 2 review unit came with a China ROM, and there is no word if Honor will make it available outside of China, especially since the original Magic was exclusive to China.
Xiaomi priced the Mi MIX 3 for Php 29,990 for the 6GB/128GB model, while the 6GB/128GB variant of the Magic 2 is priced at roughly Php 29,000 in China. Should Honor make the Magic 2 available locally, expect it to be slightly more expensive than the Mi MIX 3. You should not fret either, as the premium translates to more features like 40W charging, in-display fingerprint scanner, and triple rear camera setup.
