We subjected the Honor Magic5 Lite to our rigorous SBMARK Battery test suite to measure its performance in terms of autonomy, charging and efficiency. In these test results, we’ll analyze how it performed in a variety of tests and several common use cases.
Overview
Key Specifications:
- Battery Capacity: 5100mAh
- 40W charger (not included)
- 6.67-inch, 1080 x 2400, 120Hz OLED display
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 (6nm)
- ROM / RAM combination tested: 128GB + 6GB
Pros
- Exceptional battery life in all our use cases (calls, games, video and music streaming)
- Excellent autonomy on the move
- Very low discharge currents overall, especially in streaming videos
- Very low residual power consumption of the charger when the device is fully charged and still connected
Against
- Slightly longer than average reload time
- Inaccurate battery indicator: 16% of the actual measured capacity shows as 20% on the display
- The device switches off automatically after 60 seconds when 1% capacity is reached
- The time between 100% displayed by the user interface and full charge was 36 minutes
The Honor Magic5 Lite has reached the top of our battery ranking, with excellent results in terms of autonomy, charging and efficiency. Its autonomy has been one of the best we’ve tested so far with more than 3 days when used moderately. Battery life under heavy use was also impressive at nearly 2 full days, and among the best we’ve seen. When testing all use cases separately, the Magic5 Lite showed excellent battery life, especially in video streaming and gaming. Battery life during outdoor tests was also excellent.
The phone’s battery gauge, however, was inaccurate and proved to be the device’s main weakness in user experience. When the display showed the battery at 20%, the real capacity was actually around 16%. The device would automatically shut down even at 1%.
The charging experience was quite good, with the 40W charger taking 1 hour 51 minutes to fully recharge the battery. A quick 5-minute charge provided an average of 6 hours of battery life. However, the time between 100% displayed on screen and truly fully charged was 36 minutes.
In terms of efficiency, the device’s charge efficiency is just below the average in our database, its discharge currents were very low in almost all use cases, meaning the device is well optimized .
Compared to devices in the same price range ($200 – $399), the Honor Magic5 Lite came out on top with the best score so far. Range and efficiency scores were excellent, the first time a device has achieved top marks in both areas in this segment. The charging score was great and among the best in this segment with a 40W charger. But it was far behind its predecessor, the Magic 4 Lite, which jumped to 66W.
Trial summary
Learn about SBMARK battery tests: For scoring and analysis in our smartphone battery reviews, SBMARK engineers conduct a series of objective tests over a one-week period both indoors and outdoors. (See our introduction and how we test articles for more details on our smartphone’s battery protocol.)
The following section compiles the key elements of our extensive testing and analysis performed in the SBMARK laboratories. Detailed performance evaluations in the form of reports are available upon request. Do not hesitate to contact us.
| Drums | Battery charger | wireless | Screen | Processor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Honor Magic5 Lite 5G | 5100mAh | 40W (not included) |
– | AMOLED 1080×2400 |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 |
| Honor Magic4 Lite 5G | 4800mAh | 66W (included) |
– | LCDs 1080×2388 |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G |
| Oppo Reno6 5G | 4300mAh | 65W (included) |
– | OLEDs 1080×2400 |
MediaTek Size 900 |
How the Autonomy score is composed
The Battery Life Score is composed of three performance sub-scores: Home/Office, On the Go, and Calibrated Use Cases. Each subscore includes results from a full range of tests to measure range in all kinds of real-life scenarios.
104 hours
Light use
Active: 2h30/day
74 hours
Moderate use
Active: 4h/day
47 hours
Intensive use
Active: 7h/day
Home office
A robot housed in a Faraday cage performs a series of touch-based user actions during what we call our “typical usage scenario” (TUS) — making calls, streaming video, etc. — 4 hours of active use over the course of a 16 hour period, plus 8 hours of “sleep”. The robot repeats this series of actions every day until the device runs out.
In movement
134
Samsung Galaxy M51
Samsung Galaxy M51
Using a smartphone on the go has a negative impact on range due to additional “hidden” demands, such as continuous signaling associated with cellular network selection. SBMARK Battery experts take the phone outdoors and perform a series of precisely defined activities following the same three-hour travel itinerary (walking, taking the bus, the subway…) for each device
Calibrated
162
Samsung Galaxy M51
Samsung Galaxy M51
For this series of tests, the smartphone returns to the Faraday cage and to ours bots repeatedly perform actions related to a specific use case (like gaming, video streaming, etc.) at a time. Starting with an 80% charge, all devices are tested until they have used at least 5% battery power.
Reload
126
Realme GTNeo 3
Realme GTNeo 3
How the recharge score is composed
Charging is fully part of the overall battery experience. In some situations where range is at its lowest, knowing how fast you can charge becomes a concern. The SBMARK Battery Charging Score consists of two subscores, (1) Full Charge and (2) Fast Boost.
Charge complete
109
Black Shark 5Pro
Black Shark 5Pro
The full charge tests evaluate the reliability of the battery charge indicator; measure how long and how much energy it takes for the battery to charge from zero to 80% capacity, from 80 to 100% as shown by the user interface, and to an actual full charge.
The charging curves, in wired and wireless mode (if available) showing the evolution of the battery level indicator as well as the energy consumption in watts during the charging phases towards full capacity.
The time to full charge graph breaks down the time required to reach 80%, 100% and full charge.
Quick push
146
Realme GTNeo 3
Realme GTNeo 3
With the phone at different charge levels (20%, 40%, 60%, 80%), the Quick Boost tests measure how much charge the battery receives after being plugged in for 5 minutes. The graph here compares the average range gain with a 5-minute quick charge.
Efficiency
150
Oppo Reno6 5G
Oppo Reno6 5G
How the efficiency score is composed
The SBMARK Energy Efficiency Score consists of two subscores, charge rate and discharge rate, which combine both data obtained during a typical robot-based usage scenario, calibrated testing and charge rating, taking into consideration battery capacity of the device. SBMARK calculates the product’s annual energy consumption, shown in the graph below, which is representative of overall efficiency during a charge and when in use.
Charge Up
122
Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro
Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro
The secondary charge score is a combination of four factors: the overall efficiency of a full charge, relating to the amount of energy required to recharge the battery compared to the energy the battery can supply; the efficiency of the travel adapter when it comes to transferring power from an outlet to your phone; the remaining consumption when the phone is fully charged and still connected to the charger; and the residual consumption of the charger itself, when the smartphone is disconnected from it. The graph below shows the overall efficiency of a full charge in %.
Discharge
167
Apple iPhone 14 Pro
Apple iPhone 14 Pro
The sub-discharge score evaluates how quickly a battery discharges during a test, which is independent of battery capacity. It is the ratio between the capacity of a battery and its autonomy. A small capacity battery may have the same run time as a large capacity battery, indicating that the device is well optimized, with a low discharge rate.
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