Back in December, I had to play with , but it was the first to be sold in the West. It’s a Chinese market prototype with a lot of rough edges, but even so, it makes a compelling case for its own existence. Now, three months later, the company rocked the MWC with a finished version intended to be sold on this side of the equator. The big news is the price, which is pegged at €1,599 (about $1,690) for a model, with 12GB RAM and 512GB storage, the same as Samsung’s Z Flip 4. The only difference is that, on Samsung’s handset, you can get 12GB RAM but only 256GB storage.
When I spent a few days with the handset, I found many features worthy of praise, such as the fact that it folds flat. In fact, Honor feels that the second-generation hinge, which keeps the handset neatly in your pocket, is worth a shout. And it promises that the hinge can withstand 400,000 folds before coming off, and you’ll find yourself gravitating to that internal screen more than you’d expect. While not as well equipped as the 6.45-inch screen outside, the 7.9-inch foldable OLED is enough to sit back and enjoy a movie, or your emails, with. And it’s fast enough to run anything you want to throw at it without breaking a sweat.
If there is one wrinkle, these devices may not be the future of foldables like the narrower, more fashionable clamshells. The devices are likeable and both more pocket-and-wallet-friendly than their swole counterparts. And that’s important for people who don’t feel the need to lug around a small tablet when they’re scrolling through Instagram. But for the kind of people who, like me, are nerdy enough to want a machine that they can theoretically do some work from while on the go, the meatier versions are still king.
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