Did you know HONOR has released Pro versions of its N Series phones? Since the brand returned to the Philippines in August 2022, the only Pro phones to come out have been in its flagship Magic lineup. That changes with the release of the HONOR 200 Pro. At P29,999, does it have enough features for customers to go for this phone over its non-Pro sibling? Find out in my full review.
Disclaimer: HONOR Philippines sent us a HONOR 200 Pro review unit in Ocean Cyan. It arrived on July 4, 2024, and I’ve been using it as my main Android phone for 2 weeks as of this writing.
Unboxing Experience
We get a typical smartphone unboxing experience here. Despite some phone makers ditching the included chargers for “the betterment of the world”, HONOR still contains one in the box. Even better, we’re getting a 100W HONOR SuperCharge power adapter. (Don’t mind the Type G plug, the units coming to the Philippines might have the usual plugs we have.) While I like the clear case, the phone’s design begs me not to use it.
Design and Build
Speaking of this phone’s design, it just screams premium to me when I held it for the first time. The HONOR 200 Pro’s Elegant Coastline Design shows off this unique two-tone back. This design combines the feel of matte and frosted glass. Only the Ocean Cyan color has the two-tone back though. The Black one has a simple matte back for those who want a no-fuss phone. It’s also nice to see an IP65 rating which provides better dust and water resistance.
The curved back with its Quad-Curved Floating Screen shows off that premium hand feel. At 8.2 mm thick and 199 g, you don’t notice the overall heft of the phone. I am not a fan of the glossy frame. However, the frame’s contrasting feel to the matte-frosted glass combo helps with the grip. The buttons are clicky enough for me. It would be nice if the power button had a different feel from the volume buttons.
Display and Speakers
The HONOR 200 Pro rocks a 6.78-inch FHD+ AMOLED that the brand calls a Quad-Curved Floating Screen. It has a 120Hz refresh rate and a resolution of 2700 x 1224. Like last year’s HONOR 90, it features HONOR’s Eye Comfort Display that aims to protect your eyes even with extended use. From 3840Hz PWM dimming to hardware-level low blue light, you can rest easy knowing that this phone helps care for your eyes.
The display’s very bright with up to 4000 nits HDR peak brightness. I can easily see what’s on the display even under bright sunlight. The Pro model has a pill-shaped cutout that can be distracting when watching full-screen videos. That detail seems like a nitpick compared to how good this display looks. I’ve seen other reviews that mention people getting accidental touches on the curved screen. While I have experienced them myself, I don’t think it’s that big of a deal unless you play games often.
I complained about the single speaker on last year’s HONOR 90 since its competitors already had dual speakers. HONOR fixed that in the HONOR 200 Series with dual stereo speakers. The brand went with a distinct second speaker compared to using the earpiece on other phones. I’m honestly happy that HONOR brought dual speakers and the good quality is just icing on the cake.
Performance and Software
The HONOR 200 Pro uses the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 processor along with 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage in the Philippines. What impressed me with this phone is not its raw performance, but how it stays cool even when playing games like the new Zenless Zone Zero! Thanks to its All-range Cooling System 2.0, the phone tends to lean on the cooler side even when it warms up for those intensive games. The phone defaults to the High image quality setting for Zenless Zone Zero.
One thing that impressed me is how good the cellular and Wi-Fi performance is on this phone. This is certainly thanks to that HONOR C1+ RF Enhanced chip which greatly improves both antenna transmission and reception.
A notable In case you need some benchmark results, here they are:
The HONOR 200 Pro runs MagicOS 8.0 based on Android 14. I pretty much have no complaints when it comes to how smooth the user interface is. While part of the look still gets inspiration from its former roots, HONOR has done a good job of making MagicOS come into its own. Features like Magic Portal and Magic Capsule enhance the user experience. While I find both of those features useful, I just end up using it less.
That’s not to say I haven’t been impressed at how smooth the overall user experience is on this phone. Upper-midrange phones are where we start to see good all-around smartphones, and HONOR did a good job on the performance front here.
Battery Experience
The HONOR 200 Pro has a 5200 mAh battery that utilizes the brand’s Silicon-Carbon battery technology. Said battery technology was previously in HONOR’s higher-end phones, so it’s nice to see this carry over to the HONOR 200 series. This phone has support for both wired and wireless charging: 100W HONOR SuperCharge and 66W Wireless SuperCharge. The latter also enables reverse wireless charging which is uncommon at its price point.
While the claim of getting from 0 to 50% charge in 15 minutes is close to what I experienced, charging to full generally takes 35 to 45 minutes depending on the starting battery percentage. This is definitely fast enough for my use, but I’ve been spoiled by another phone with even faster charging.
It’s a good thing that the HONOR 200 Pro has very fast charging as the battery life seems disappointing for a phone with a 5200 mAh battery. Yes, this phone carries flagship-level specs. But other phones at its price point offer battery life that’s at least on par with this phone despite having smaller 5000 mAh batteries. Here’s hoping this can be optimized in future updates.
Don’t get me wrong! This phone lasts me a full day of medium to heavy use including a session or two of gaming, at least 2 hours of social media use, and at least 2 hours of YouTube.
Cameras
I looked forward to reviewing the HONOR 200 Pro mainly because of its cameras. When I first saw the specs, the HONOR 200 Series boasts some of the most impressive camera hardware in the midrange segment.
On paper, the 200 Pro has a good set of rear cameras: a 50MP H9000 main camera, a 50MP HONOR x Sony IMX856 telephoto camera, and a 12MP ultrawide/macro camera. It also has a 50MP front camera for those selfies. The claim to fame for this generation is being the AI Portrait Master. While I’m still skeptical about how the term “AI” is being used in smartphone marketing, I am curious to know whether HONOR can back up its claims.
SPOILER ALERT: OH YES IT DOES.
Click on the photos for full-resolution versions!
Portrait Photography
It’s not every day that I can confidently mention spoiler alerts like that. The HONOR 200 Pro brings something special to its portrait photos. Thanks to its collaboration with Studio Harcourt, a popular Parisian art photography studio, HONOR created its HONOR AI Portrait Engine. The portrait photos of this phone impressed me so much that I almost want to forgive HONOR for using the AI term.
Not only did HONOR create its AI Portrait Engine, but the brand also got access to multiple lighting effects with the Harcourt Portrait mode. These effects are Harcourt Vibrant (relying more on vibrant colors), Harcourt Color (evoking the vintage film feel), and Harcourt Classic (inspired by Studio Harcourt’s black and white portrait photography). Any of these effects enhance the portrait photos you take.
I’ve never seen this level of portrait photography done well in the midrange segment. While I have seen good portrait photos in other midrange phones, none are this good. Unlike other collaborations, the one HONOR has with Studio Harcourt feels more substantial.
The more impressive portrait photos for me are those without people! This picture of the food we ate at a restaurant hasn’t looked more appealing than how it is in the photo!
I also did an up-close shot of a light bulb with the Harcourt Color and Harcourt Classic portrait filters. The amount of detail and the impressive bokeh these photos still have is impressive.
Handheld Portrait Selfies with the Rear Camera?!?
The most impressive thing about this phone is its confidence in taking portrait photos. These three photos of me are NOT selfies: they were taken using the Portrait mode of the rear camera! If the Harcourt portrait modes don’t convince you, I don’t know what will. I haven’t been able to do this with my main phone!
Not Just About the Portraits!
The HONOR 200 Pro is not just about the portrait photos it can take. Even regular photos with the 50MP main and telephoto cameras look good. Color reproduction, white balance, and exposure are surprisingly good. There may be cases when the colors can be off, but it doesn’t happen often enough for me to have a problem.
It’s good that I took the time to take more low-light photos because the 50MP H9000 main camera does a good job here. Even the 50MP telephoto camera is also good in low light thanks to that IMX856 sensor. I wouldn’t trust it beyond the default 2.5x zoom though.
When you use that telephoto camera in bright light, you get detailed photos even at 5x zoom. There may be some instances when there is slight blooming beyond that default 2.5x zoom, but that’s something I can live with.
While the 12MP ultrawide/macro camera can hang with the other rear cameras, this is the weakest of the three. This camera tends to lean heavily toward a bright subject and the darker parts of the photo lose detail. I can still share these photos on social media, but I would probably use the ultrawide camera for taking photos of large groups of people.
Front Camera
HONOR didn’t skimp on the selfie department thanks to its 50MP front camera. It does a good job even with group selfies, particularly when the subject is against the light.
Should You Buy The HONOR 200 Pro?
My prior experiences with HONOR phones have been positive. However, none of them stand out to me as soon as the year ends (apart from the durability of the X9a and X9b). I’m sure HONOR’s flagship phones and foldable are good, but I haven’t tried them beyond launch events or hands-on at stores.
The HONOR 200 Pro is the best HONOR phone I’ve used yet. This phone is a good all-around smartphone that has great cameras. The portrait photos this phone takes are some of the best I’ve seen and HONOR only compromised a little bit to achieve a good balance of performance, battery experience, and display. While the battery life of this phone isn’t up to par with other phones at its price point, the rest of the phone helps me overlook that easily.
Pros
- The Elegant Coastline Design looks beautiful, especially in the Ocean Cyan color
- A deceptively slim and light phone
- Good 6.78-inch 120Hz FHD+ AMOLED display
- Dual stereo speakers
- Good performance thanks to Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, 12GB RAM, and its All-range Cooling System 2.0
- Large 512GB storage
- A large 5200 mAh battery + 100W wired and 66W wireless charging support
- Best portrait photos that punch well above the midrange segment
- All of the 50MP cameras are good to great
Cons
- I’m still not a fan of the glossy frame
- Accidental touches on the curved screen
- MagicOS 8.0 isn’t as optimized to take advantage of the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3
- Not all AI features on MagicOS 8.0 are useful
- Battery life could be better
- The 12MP ultrawide camera is disappointing
The HONOR 200 Pro retails for P29,999 and is available in two colors in the Philippines: Ocean Cyan and Black. You can preorder from July 17 to 26, 2024, and get a pair of JBL Soundgear Frames worth P9,499! It is available at HONOR Experience and Partner Stores and online via Lazada, Shopee, and TikTok Shop.