I believe the Honor 200 Pro is the best mid-range phone for portrait photography: Honor has teamed up with the prestigious Studio Harcourt, renowned for their stunning portrait photography. This partnership brings their expertise right into your hands with the Honor 200 Pro.
I had the incredible opportunity to visit Studio Harcourt in Paris with Honor, a studio famous for photographing icons like Keanu Reeves, Halle Berry, and Roger Moore. It’s amazing to see their level of portrait photography on a smartphone. Let’s dive into the details of this remarkable device.
Design and Build Quality
The Honor 200 Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 processor and comes with 100W supercharging, 66W wireless charging, and runs on Magic OS 8 with Android 14. The screen is a 6.78-inch OLED with a 120Hz refresh rate and an impressive 3,840Hz pulse-width modulation (PWM), ensuring no flicker or banding issues.
Upon unboxing, you’ll find a TPU case, a Type-A to Type-C charging cable, and a 100W Honor Supercharge charger, which can fully charge the 5,200mAh battery in just 41 minutes. The phone also supports 66W wireless charging, a fantastic feature for a mid-range device.
My model is the Moonlight White color, which has a pearl-like finish that resembles a kitchen countertop. It’s very comfortable to hold, thanks to the curved edges and rounded design, and weighs 199g with a thickness of 8.2mm. The power and volume buttons are conveniently located on the right-hand side, although the optical fingerprint reader is positioned a bit low, which is a common issue among many brands.
The 6.78-inch OLED display boasts a maximum brightness of 4,000 nits and HDR support, offering stunning visuals. The front camera setup includes a 50-megapixel camera alongside a 2-megapixel depth sensor, resulting in a slightly wider pill-shaped cutout, which I prefer over a single hole-punch design.
The frame of the phone is silver and mimics the look and feel of metal, although it’s made of plastic. At the top, there’s an IR transmitter, a microphone, and a loudspeaker, while the bottom houses the dual SIM tray, microphone, loudspeaker, and Type-C port (which, unfortunately, doesn’t support video out).
Performance
Under the hood, the Honor 200 Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 chipset, which, while not the top flagship chipset, delivers excellent performance. The phone feels snappy and responsive, thanks in part to the 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. The Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 handles everyday tasks and gaming with ease, providing a flagship-level experience in a mid-range device.
In benchmark tests, the Honor 200 Pro scored over 1.2 million points on AnTuTu v10.2.2, showcasing its impressive performance capabilities. The device also features excellent thermal management, with a large vapor chamber keeping it cool during intensive tasks.
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Software and User Experience
The Honor 200 Pro runs on MagicOS 8, based on Android 14. The user interface is smooth and responsive, with no noticeable lag or touch response issues. The 120Hz refresh rate makes scrolling and animations feel fluid and enjoyable.
Upon setting up the phone, you will encounter some pre-installed bloatware, including apps like Facebook, Booking.com, TikTok, AliExpress, and Amazon. While these can be easily removed, it’s worth noting their presence. The phone supports Widevine L1, ensuring that streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video can be enjoyed in full HD quality.
Audio and Haptics
The Honor 200 Pro features dual loudspeakers that provide good volume and decent sound quality with a bit of bass and clear mids and trebles. Voice call quality is excellent, making it a reliable device for communication.
The haptic feedback is also well-tuned, providing a satisfying tactile response with each touch. It’s a small detail that enhances the overall user experience.
Gaming Performance
The Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 and 12GB of RAM make the Honor 200 Pro a capable gaming device. I tested it with Genshin Impact at the highest possible settings, and the performance was smooth with minimal slowdowns. The phone only got slightly warm, thanks to the efficient thermal management system with a large vapor chamber.
Battery Life and Charging
The Honor 200 Pro comes with a robust 5200mAh battery that provides around 7 to 8 hours of on-screen time in my testing, even with the dynamic refresh rate enabled. What’s truly impressive is the charging speed. The phone supports 100W SuperCharge, allowing it to fully charge in just 41 minutes. Additionally, it offers 66W wireless charging, which is remarkable for a mid-range device.
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Camera Performance
Main Camera
The highlight of the Honor 200 Pro is its camera system, developed in collaboration with Studio Harcourt. The main camera features a 50MP sensor with optical image stabilization (OIS) and electronic image stabilization (EIS). It also includes a 2.5x optical zoom camera with a 50MP sensor, capable of up to 50x digital zoom, and a 12MP ultra-wide camera.
Portrait Mode
The partnership with Studio Harcourt truly shines in the portrait mode. The Honor 200 Pro captures stunning portraits with beautiful background blur and precise stitching. The AI-powered lighting adjustments emulate the meticulous setup of Studio Harcourt, which typically takes about two hours to perfect. The results are outstanding, with high-quality portraits comparable to those taken with professional DSLR cameras.
During my visit to Studio Harcourt, we tested the Honor 200 Pro against their DSLR, and the results were nearly identical. This is a testament to the incredible work Honor and Studio Harcourt have done to bring professional-grade portrait photography to a smartphone.
Other Camera Features
The macro mode captures intricate details with impressive clarity. The 2.5x optical zoom is not only great for portraits but also useful for getting closer to subjects without sacrificing quality. The main camera produces vibrant and detailed images with minimal fringing and accurate colors. However, the 12MP ultra-wide camera shows some edge blurring, which could be improved.
Low-light performance is another area where the Honor 200 Pro excels. Using the night mode, the camera captures well-exposed photos with plenty of detail, even in challenging lighting conditions. The night sky looks clear, and there is no noticeable pixelation or color distortion.
Front Camera
The front-facing camera is a 50MP sensor, capable of recording 4K video at 30fps. It captures a lot of detail and produces high-quality selfies. The electronic image stabilization ensures smooth video recording, making it ideal for vlogging and video calls.
Video Performance
The Honor 200 Pro supports 4K video recording at 60fps with the main camera and 4K at 30fps with the front camera. The video quality is good, with effective stabilization and minimal jitter. The ultra-wide camera, while decent for photos, is the weakest link in terms of video quality. Overall, the video performance is solid, but the phone’s strength lies in its still photography capabilities.
Conclusion
In summary, the Honor 200 Pro is an outstanding mid-range smartphone, especially for those who love portrait photography. The partnership with Studio Harcourt has resulted in a camera system that delivers professional-quality portraits with ease. The phone’s performance, display, battery life, and charging capabilities are all impressive, making it a well-rounded device.
There are a few minor drawbacks, such as the lack of microSD card support, no 3.5mm headphone jack, and the slightly low placement of the fingerprint reader. The ultra-wide video quality could be better, and the front-facing video is limited to 4K at 30fps. However, these are nitpicks in an otherwise fantastic device.
If you’re in the market for a mid-range phone that excels in portrait photography and offers great overall performance, the Honor 200 Pro should be at the top of your list. Thanks for reading my review of the Honor 200 Pro!
