Honor MagicBook 14 (2022), hands on: A good-value 14-inch workhorse with discrete graphics

This solid all-rounder packs a 12th-generation Core i5 CPU, Nvidia GeForce RTX 2050 graphics and delivers all-day battery life.

honor-magicbook-14-2022-review-card.jpg

pros and cons

Pros

  • 12th-gen Core i5 CPU
  • Nvidia GeForce RTX 2050 option
  • All-day battery life
  • Competitive price

Cons

  • 300 nits screen
  • 720p webcam
  • Disappointing speakers
  • Honoris known primarily as a smartphone manufacturer, but the Chinese company’s portfolio extends to tablets such as the excellentHonor Pad 8, wearables (bands, watches and earbuds) and the MagicBook range of 14-inch, 15-inch and 16-inch laptops.
    The Honor MagicBook 14 (2022), This buys you a 12-core (4 Performance, 8 Efficient) Intel Core i5-12500H processor, 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. A model with discrete Nvidia GeForce RTX 2050 graphics .
  • Honor MagicBook 14 (2022): ports

  The build is very solid, and the aluminium shell should prove resistant to knocks and scratches in the normal course of events. The 1.58kg weight, while on the high side for a 14-inch laptop, didn’t trouble me as I carried this device around in my rucksack. At 16.9mm thick it’s not super-thin either, but the chassis does allow room for a full-size HDMI port and USB-A on the right side, plus a pair of USB-C ports and a 3.5mm headset jack on the left. One of the USB-C ports is used to charge the laptop. 

  The 14-inch screen sits in bezels thin enough to earn a claimed screen-to-body ratio of 88.15%, and there’s a 720p webcam above the screen. The screen’s resolution of 2,160 by 1,440 pixels means content is sharp and clear although its 300 nits maximum brightness is on the low side. Still, I found it perfectly adequate for indoor working. The 170° viewing angle meant I could easily share content with someone sitting to one side of me. 

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Honor MagicBook 14 (2022): keyboard

   Keys have 1.5mm of travel and there’s a combined power button/fingerprint reader in the top right corner.

My review unit had a US keyboard layout, but otherwise I found it efficient and comfortable to use. There’s 1.5mm of key travel and good bounce-back, and the gentle clicking generated by typing should suit those who like to work in relative quiet. There is a fingerprint sensor in the upper right of the keyboard, integrated into the power button. The touchpad is responsive and easy to get to grips with, and as large as the wrist rest allows. 

The Honor MagicBook 14 (2022) performed well for the mainstream knowledge-worker tasks I threw at it during testing, the array of ports is quite strong, and battery life was good. If you’re looking for a workhorse laptop for everyday usage, and can find it on sale, the MagicBook 14 is worth considering.

The disappointing feature as far as the user experience is concerned is the speaker system. Their grilles are on the underside of the chassis, which muffles the sound when you’re working with the laptop on your lap or any softer surface. Top volume isn’t as high as it could be, and there’s a fuzziness to the sound output that makes music listening a little disappointing. The speakers are fine for spoken-word content, but if you’re looking for a strong audio performer for after-hours entertainment, you might want to look elsewhere. 

  The 75Wh battery is specified as good for 15 hours of 1080p local video playback. My experience during testing suggests that 10 hours of battery life might be closer to the mark. Still, that ought to be enough for a productive day away from mains power. Honor has launched a system called OS Turbo, which can recognise usage scenarios and adjust power consumption accordingly. According to the company, this can reduce power consumption by up to 20%. Honor provides a 135W charger, which it says can take the battery from empty to 100% in 80 minutes.

Honor MagicBook (2022) specifications

OSWindows 11 Home
ProcessorIntel Core i5-12500H
GPUIntel Iris Xe Graphics, Nvidia GeForce RTX 2050 (4GB)
RAM16GB
Storage512GB
Display14-inch, 2160 x 1440 (3:2, 185ppi), 300 nits, 1500:1, 100% sRGB
Ports & slots2x USB-C (10Gbps), USB-A (5Gbps), HDMI, 3.5mm audio in/out
Wi-FiWi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Bluetooth5.2
Keyboardfull size, 1.5mm key travel
Touchpad5-point multi-touch, 120mm x 72.2mm
Webcam720p
Fingerprint readerintegrated in power button
Audio2x speakers, 2x mics
Battery75Wh
ApplicationsHonor Magic-link/PC Manager
Dimensions307.51mm x 227.56mm x 16.9mm
Weight1.58kg
In the boxMagicBook 14, USB-C power adapter, quick-start guide, warranty card
Price€999.90 (16GB/512GB/Intel Iris Xe Graphics), €1,199.90 (16GB/512GB/Nvidia GeForce RTX 2050) 

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 hands-on: The foldable most people should buy gets one key upgrade

Meaningful changes under the hood and clever display capabilities make the latest Galaxy flip phone one of the best on the market.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6

The new Galaxy Z Flip 6 is thinner and lighter than ever, with flattened edges that give the phone an industrial feel in the hand. Samsung is selling the Z Flip this year in a multitude of pastel colors: Blue, Mint, Yellow, Silver Shadow, White, Peach, and Crafted Black. For a little more personality, the camera rings are accented with the color you choose.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 Online Colors

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The camera system has gotten perhaps the biggest boost from last year’s model, with an improved 50MP main sensor and a 12MP ultra-wide. Samsung tells me it decided to stick with an ultra-wide camera instead of switching to a telephoto lens like competing phone maker Motorola because it allows users to take better group photos, and I agree. The ultra-wide sensor should serve users better when taking photos of taller and wider landscapes.

The most fascinating camera improvement is the new AI-powered Auto Zoom feature, which automatically detects how many people are in a frame, as well as potential background objects you may want to keep in the shot (think Eiffel Tower, the name of a storefront, etc.) and repositions accordingly.

Now, the funner part: the outer display, or, as Samsung calls it, Flex Window. It’s the same 3.4-inch screen as last year’s model, but the company’s baked in some whimsical elements:

  • Interactive Wallpapershave animations that you tap, drag, and shake the phone to interact with. One of my favorites had various emojis that would tumble around as you rotated the device.
  • Photo Ambient applies a weather and/or color temperature filter, depending on your time and location.
  • Generative Wallpaperlets you create new wallpapers by selecting key theme words.
  • You can quickly respond to text messages withSuggested Replies, which pull context from previous conversations and formulate replies based on your texting style.
  • Like the larger Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6, you can use dual-screenInterpreter Modefor live translations between two languages.
  • New Flex Window widgets include Samsung Health, SmartThings, Reminder, and News.
  • Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6
  • Ultimately, the outer display, where Samsung has the most room to innovate, feels more functional than before, and users who were already drawn to the customizability of the Z Flip are likely to appreciate the new changes. There’s even an improved Flipsuit case that, when clipped onto the back of the phone, automatically changes the wallpaper to match its design via NFC. Plus, with wireless charging, the case’s LED should light up whenever you fold and unfold the device.Stay tuned to ZDNET for a deeper dive into theSamsung Galaxy Z Flip 6. For now,withseveral promotions and offersalready active.

The 2-in-1 laptop I recommend most is not a Lenovo or Dell (and it’s cheaper than ever)

HP’s Envy x360 2-in-1 (2024) stands apart from the crowd with a well-optimized set of hardware, brilliant display, and a competitive price point.

HP Envy x360

  key takeaways

  • TheHP Envy x360 2-in-1 (2024)is available from HP.
  • It has one of the most gorgeous displays I’ve seen on a 2-in-1, with a suite of solid hardware.  
  • Configuration swapping can be buggy, and it’s on the heavier side. 

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A host of new 2-in-1 laptops have already launched in 2024, as the form factor’s popularity continues to grow. More and more laptop diehards (myself included) who have previously been unwilling to commit to a tablet are getting on board with convertibles, which give you the best of both worlds.

The HP Envy x360 16″ 2-in-1 shows up to the party with all the features that consumers actually want in a convertible: a gorgeous display, beefy speakers, and a suite of hardware to back it up, resulting in solid performance and a satisfying media experience at a mid-range price point.

Yes, a 16-inch screen is large when used as a tablet. A little unwieldy, even. The OLED display on this laptop is so good that it doesn’t matter to me. In fact, it could be bigger, and I would still happily tote it around.

The Envy x360 features a 2.8K (2880 x 1800) resolution OLED touchscreen with a variable 120Hz refresh rate and edge-to-edge glass that results in a smooth-as-silk visual experience. The 500-nit brightness is more than enough for normal use, and the glossy finish looks gorgeous (but may not be for everyone, because fingerprints are a thing).

Video playback is vibrant, smooth, and sharp, with a realistic depth of color and contrast. HP also advertises the Envy x360 as an “IMAX certified” laptop, one of the first of its kind. It earned this certification for its ability to display IMAX-formatted content in its original 1.43:1 or 1.90:1 aspect ratio. While a flashy designation, this is a laptop we’re talking about here; it’s still a 16-inch screen. It does look good, though — I’ll give it that. 

The audio is also decent. While it may seem that the two vents on either side of the keyboard are speakers, audio actually originates from the dualDTS:X ultra bar-shaped speakers on the back of the device. There isn’t a lot of bass, but mid-frequency audio and dialogue sound crisp and clear and held their own when I played Netflix in a noisy kitchen.

HP Envy x360 2-in-1

Regarding the hardware, the Envy x360 is positioned just below HP’s Spectre line of laptops to provide great performance that serves most users’ needs. We reviewed the2024 Spectre x360earlier this year and found it has truly next-gen hardware with the cutting-edge “Meteor Lake” AI processor, but it will run you hundreds of dollars more.

 buying advice

TheHP Envy x360 16 (2024)is priced well for an upper-mid-tier device with a gorgeous display and solid performance. Creators will love this laptop’s flexible form factor and impressive battery life. After using it for a few weeks, I can say that it’s my favorite big-screen 2-in-1, despite its quirks. This is a laptop for work as much as it is for entertainment, and if you’re looking for a 2-in-1 laptop, you have to consider the Envy x360.

If you’re looking for a smaller option, consider HP’s 2024 Spectre x360, which has a 14-inch display. For something more adventurous, check out theLenovo Yoga Book 9i, which has two displays.