Most Compact Foldable Phone
Honor Magic V5
Magic V5 feels effortless to carry and use for long sessions | Image by PhoneArena
The Honor Magic V5 was announced in July 2025 and has since expanded to markets beyond China, including parts of Europe. For Honor, it represents the company’s most ambitious global foldable yet. It combins extreme thinness with high-end performance, longer software support, and a focus on day-to-day usability. While limited availability in the U.S. remains a drawback, the Magic V5 is a statement device that shows Honor is serious about competing at the very top of the foldable market.
Why I Picked It?
Comfort does not only depend on thinness or size; it’s how a phone feels and “behaves” every time you pick it up. The Magic V5 nails the little things that make living with a foldable pleasant.
The hinge opens with gentle resistance and clicks shut with a soft, premium thud (no creaks, no wobble). The crease is among the least visible I’ve seen, so much so that my eyes stop noticing it within minutes. The 21:9 cover is a sweet spot for one-handed use, and the fingerprint reader in the power key is instant and reliable.
Both its displays support Honor’s Magic-Pen, which is surprisingly handy for annotating PDFs or quick sketches.
Performance is buttery smooth (it tops our overall chart at 7.5 in the current class), and while our battery life estimate was about 6h 21m, the 66 W wired and 50 W wireless charging makes top-ups painless. We managed to charge the phone to 80% in just 30 minutes, and it took only 47 minutes to charge it fully.
The speaker placement is my biggest gripe, as it is easily blocked during horizontal gaming. Also, availability is a bit of a hurdle. Despite its few downsides, though, the Magic V5 is a stellar foldable and it deserves its place on this list.
Who’s It For?
Users who value feel and ergonomics above all and don’t mind importing to get it. The minimal crease, smooth hinge, great cover screen, and super fast charging speeds are the V5’s biggest selling points.
Also read:
Most Comfortable Foldable Phone
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold was Google’s second attempt at a book-style foldable, released in 2024, and it addressed many of the shortcomings of the original Pixel Fold. With a taller aspect ratio and a much more practical cover screen, it quickly became the most comfortable foldable phone to actually use like a regular smartphone.
Why I Picked It?
The charm with the Pixel 9 Pro Fold wasn’t in its spec sheet, but in the way it felt when you use it on a daily basis. Unlike older Folds, which felt awkwardly narrow when closed, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s cover screen felt like using a normal phone. This made it arguably the best foldable if you wanted something closer to a regular phone experience, but with the added benefit of the larger screen when you needed it.
Typing, scrolling, and navigating all felt natural. Once unfolded, the 8-inch main display gave me the room to multitask, watch video, or edit photos with AI tools like Reimagine, all without much friction.
Google also put a lot of effort into the hinge and durability. While it’s not as thin or light as the latest Oppo or Honor foldables, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold strikes a balance between solid build quality and a comfortable in-hand feel.
It also has a decent camera system, with average battery life, but lasted enough for a full day of use.
Looking Ahead: Pixel 10 Pro Fold
Now, with the Pixel 10 Pro Fold announced and shipping October 9, Google’s foldable might take up a different title in this list. Google’s third-gen foldable brings IP68 water and dust resistance, a sturdier gearless hinge, and a slightly refined design.
It also adds a much larger 5,015 mAh battery, Qi2 magnetic charging and accessories, and the new Tensor G5 chip with smarter on-device AI features. The camera hardware hasn’t changed much, but Google has reworked the UI with new tools like Instant View to take better advantage of the dual-screen setup.
Based on what we know, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold looks set to be a stronger competitor for the best battery life on a foldable, but we will only know for sure after our tests.
Should you pre-order the Pixel 10 Pro Fold?
If you’re already sold on foldables and are considering Google’s ecosystem, then yes — the Pixel 10 Pro Fold looks like a meaningful upgrade over the 9 Pro Fold, and the good news is that there is no price hike this year.
The bigger battery, Qi2 magnetic charging, and new hinge design all address real-world concerns, and the Tensor G5 unlocks AI features that could genuinely make the foldable experience more productive.
That said, you might want to wait for our review before pulling the trigger. In our experience, Google’s foldables often excel in usability but sometimes struggle with durability or battery life under heavy use. Pre-order deals can sound appealing, but it’s best to be cautious and patient. After all, large foldable phones are not exactly cheap…
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What to look for in a foldable phone?
When choosing a foldable, it’s best to start with the display and the hinge. The internal screen should be bright, sharp, and smooth, with reinforced glass or protective layers to handle daily use. A sturdy hinge is just as critical, as it makes the phone last longer and allows for hands-free use at different angles.Just as important, however, are the design and the size/weight. Companies are starting to push towards thinner, but also more durable designs, which is great news since you will be carrying this thing around all day every day. The more it feels like a regular-sized phone in your pocket, the better!
Software is the next big factor. The best foldables make use of their big screens with fluid multitasking, app continuity between cover and main displays, and clever extras that make use of this unique form factor.
Finally, performance and battery life. I’d say that the latter is more important since you have so much screen real estate, which makes the phone extremely power hungry. But a strong processor is aslo important if you intend to use the phone for any more demanding tasks for work or creativity.
When is the best time to buy a foldable?
Typically, the best time to pick up a foldable is during its launch window. Samsung and Google, in particular, tend to offer the strongest trade-in values and free storage upgrades right out of the gate. If you miss that window, big shopping events like Black Friday or back-to-school sales are a close second, often bundling accessories or discounts.
Another viable option is to wait two to three months after launch, when the early-adopter tax wears off and certified-refurbished models start showing up at lower prices.
How durable are foldables?
The latest foldable phones are definitely tougher than early generations, but still more delicate than a traditional smartphone. New hinges and thicker ultra-thin glass help, but sand and dust particles remain major enemies to the foldable form factor. Keep your pockets clean, avoid sketchy screen protectors, and close the phone before throwing it in a bag.
Are foldable phones water-resistant?
Most foldable phones carry an IPX8 rating, which means they have been tested to survive continuous immersion in fresh water beyond one meter, usually around 1.5 to 3 meters for up to 30 minutes depending on the manufacturer’s specific test. That should mean they are safe from splashes, rain, or even an accidental drop in the sink or tub.Keep in mind that the IPX8 rating does not guarantee resistance against salt water, chlorinated pools, soapy water, or high-pressure jets. These tests are done in controlled lab environments, and real-world conditions such as movement, temperature changes, or long-term wear and tear can reduce the effectiveness of the protection.
If your foldable does get exposed to salt water, you should rinse it with fresh water and leave it to dry on its own (no hair dryers!). Avoid charging while the device is wet, and always keep in mind that the protection is about water resistance, not full waterproofing.
Do foldable phones have a crease?
Yes. How visible/feelable it is varies. Oppo and Samsung’s latest are the least distracting from the ones we’ve reviewd; with content on screen, you can even forget it’s there.
Is Apple making a foldable iPhone?
Rumors about a foldable iPhone keep coming in. The latest state we can expect Apple’s first foldable iPhone in 2026, so it might be worth waiting if you are an iPhone user and want to try out the foldable form factor.
How we test phones
We put every foldable through the same lab and real-world process:
- Battery: Three standardized runs: scripted web browsing, YouTube streaming, and 3D gaming. All of these are done at 200-lux ambient light and calibrated screen brightness, a fixed refresh (60/120Hz as applicable), with a fresh install, and identical network conditions. We publish each result plus a general estimated battery life score.
- Display: Calibrated colorimeter for peak/typical brightness, color error (∆E), gamma, and reflectance. Crease visibility is evaluated side-by-side under matched lighting.
- Performance: Synthetic benchmarks plus a 30-minute sustained load to assess throttling and chassis temperatrues (logged at multiple points).
- Camera: Controlled scene chart (artificial lighting, identical subjects and angles).
- Ergonomics: At least three days of daily carry per device, noting pocket feel, one-hand reach on the cover screen, hinge stability at multiple angles, and comfort.
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