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MagyarHonor MagicBook 15 (2021) Review - The switch to Intel is unnecessarily expensive
With the MagicBook 15, Honor presented a 15-inch multimedia notebook with a very good price-performance ratio last year. The AMD Ryzen 4000 processor has been replaced with a current Tiger Lake chip from Intel for the latest model. However, not much else has changed, but the price climbs to 949 Euros (~$1126) for our test configuration. Thus, the MagicBook 15 also has to face competitors that are partly equipped with dedicated graphics cards.
Case & Equipment
Honor continues to use the familiar metal casing, which still leaves a good impression. The combination of gray surfaces and blue design elements (surrounding screen edge, Honor logo) looks good and there is also little to complain about in terms of stability. You can provoke slight image errors with a lot of pressure on the lid, but that shouldn't really be an issue in normal use. Honor still relies on a 16:9 panel, but the screen's edges are very narrow on the sides and upper edge, which is why the device still looks modern.
The bottom cover can be removed (Torx T5) and you get access to the fan and the M.2-2280 SSD, but the WLAN module cannot be replaced anymore. Theoretically, there would also be room for a 2.5-inch drive, but the necessary mounting parts and cables are missing.
Equipment
There are no changes in the ports. Besides the USB-C connector, which is also used for charging, there are still two regular USB-A connectors. However, there is only USB 2.0 speed on the right side, which is incomprehensible in 2021. Thunderbolt is also not available.
The WLAN module (Intel AX201) is up to date with Wi-Fi 6 and also achieves very good transfer rates in our standardized WLAN test with the router Netgear Nighthawk RAX120. Here we see a clear improvement compared to the old AMD MagicBook 15 (Wi-Fi 5).
Input devices - Honor again without keyboard illumination
The keyboard with the slightly roughened keys is still decent. The key drop is limited, but the feedback is precise and we could not detect any problems. This is also true for the ClickPad, which produces quite loud clicking noises. What we cannot understand, however, is the renewed lack of a keyboard backlight. Both the MagicBook 14 and the MagicBook Pro 16 have one, and those who often work in darker environments will quickly get annoyed about the missing illumination.
Display - MagicBook 15 with 16:9 IPS panel
The basic characteristics of the panel remain the same (Full HD, IPS, 300 cd/m²), but Honor uses a different panel from BOE. There is no PWM flickering anymore and the brightness is also a bit higher than the advertised claim. We measured an average of just under 320 cd/m² and a decent black value of 0.27 cd/m², which leads to a very good contrast ratio. The subjective picture impression of the matte panel is good and even bright surfaces do not look too grainy. There is only minimal screen bleeding at the upper edge, but that is only noticeable with full brightness and a dark background.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 87 %
Center on Battery: 329 cd/m²
Contrast: 1230:1 (Black: 0.27 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 3.3 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5, calibrated: 1
ΔE Greyscale 5.2 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
67.5% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
96.3% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
65.4% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.07
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 BOE TV156FHM-NH2, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60 | HP Pavilion 15-eg Chi Mei CMN1523, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60 | Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 IPS, 3200x2000, 15.60 | Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL LG Philips LP156WFC-SPD7, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60 | Honor MagicBook 15 4500U BOE0872, IPS, 1920x1080, 15.60 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display | -34% | 1% | -38% | -33% | |
| Display P3 Coverage | 65.4 | 42.9 -34% | 66.7 2% | 40.36 -38% | 43.51 -33% |
| sRGB Coverage | 96.3 | 64 -34% | 96.3 0% | 60.4 -37% | 64.5 -33% |
| AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 67.5 | 44.4 -34% | 68.5 1% | 41.72 -38% | 44.95 -33% |
| Response Times | 21% | 3% | -17% | -45% | |
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 36 ? | 22.8 ? 37% | 34.8 ? 3% | 40 ? -11% | |
| Response Time Black / White * | 24.8 ? | 23.6 ? 5% | 24 ? 3% | 30.4 ? -23% | 36 ? -45% |
| PWM Frequency | 26320 ? | 5152 | |||
| Screen | -50% | -29% | -68% | -47% | |
| Brightness middle | 332 | 294.3 -11% | 312 -6% | 288 -13% | 272 -18% |
| Brightness | 318 | 251 -21% | 298 -6% | 276 -13% | 259 -19% |
| Brightness Distribution | 87 | 76 -13% | 87 0% | 87 0% | 85 -2% |
| Black Level * | 0.27 | 0.26 4% | 0.18 33% | 0.26 4% | 0.17 37% |
| Contrast | 1230 | 1132 -8% | 1733 41% | 1108 -10% | 1600 30% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 3.3 | 4.08 -24% | 5.39 -63% | 5.9 -79% | 5.3 -61% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 7.8 | 19.49 -150% | 9.95 -28% | 18.4 -136% | 18 -131% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated * | 1 | 3.7 -270% | 3.15 -215% | 4.9 -390% | 3.8 -280% |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 5.2 | 3 42% | 6.3 -21% | 3.8 27% | 4 23% |
| Gamma | 2.07 106% | 2.21 100% | 2.192 100% | 2.34 94% | 2.03 108% |
| CCT | 7370 88% | 6616 98% | 7473 87% | 6856 95% | 7338 89% |
| Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998) | 69 | 38.1 | 41.2 | ||
| Color Space (Percent of sRGB) | 96 | 60 | 64.1 | ||
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | -21% /
-37% | -8% /
-18% | -41% /
-54% | -42% /
-43% |
* ... smaller is better
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 24.8 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 14 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 10.8 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows good response rates in our tests, but may be too slow for competitive gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 52 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (21.5 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 36 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 18 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 18 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.2 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 44 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is similar to the average of all tested devices (33.7 ms). | ||
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM not detected |  | ||
In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 17915 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 3846000) Hz was measured. | |||
The panel is not well adjusted in its state of delivery. Some colors deviate significantly from the target value (<3) and there is also a slight blue cast with a somewhat too cool color temperature. We measured and calibrated the panel with the professional CalMAN software and the X-Rite i1 Pro 2 spectrophotometer and were able to improve the display significantly. To our surprise, the maximum brightness is also only slightly reduced. Thanks to the full sRGB coverage, you can use the calibrated panel for editing pictures/videos without hesitation.
Thanks to the matte surface, the notebook can also be used in bright environments if you do not turn it directly into the sun. The viewing angle stability of the IPS panel is also very good.
Performance - Honor combines Tiger-Lake CPU with fast SSD
As with the AMD models, the pre-installed PC Manager also offers a performance mode, but we could not detect any effects on the performance or emissions. The following benchmarks and measurements were therefore all performed in normal mode.
Processor - Intel Tiger Lake i5-1135G7
The Core i5-1135G7 comes from Intel's current Tiger Lake generation and offers four cores (8 threads) that can reach a maximum of 4.2 GHz (or 3.8 Ghz for all cores). Honor sets the power limits to 65 and 28 watts, respectively. Our processor consumes a maximum of ~38 watts at 4x 3.8 GHz, but then also drops quite quickly and settles at just under 19 watts under permanent load. Thus, the system mainly benefits from the high limits during short load peaks, which also occur frequently in everyday use.
The single-core performance of the Core i5 is better than that of the Ryzen 5 4500U of the old MagicBook 15, but you will hardly notice this difference in practice. If you load all cores, the AMD chip even has advantages. All in all, the CPU performance of the new MagicBook 15 is decent, but it could be better.
The processor is allowed to consume a maximum of 28 watts in battery mode, so you have to reckon with a deficit of around 15% here.
Cinebench R20: CPU (Single Core) | CPU (Multi Core)
Cinebench R15: CPU Single 64Bit | CPU Multi 64Bit
Blender: v2.79 BMW27 CPU
7-Zip 18.03: 7z b 4 -mmt1 | 7z b 4
Geekbench 5.5: Single-Core | Multi-Core
HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2: 4k Preset
LibreOffice : 20 Documents To PDF
R Benchmark 2.5: Overall mean
| Cinebench R23 / Single Core | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Average of class Office (529 - 1995, n=121, last 2 years) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (1062 - 1373, n=53) | |
| Cinebench R23 / Multi Core | |
| Average of class Office (1056 - 15743, n=122, last 2 years) | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (2786 - 6136, n=55) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Cinebench R20 / CPU (Single Core) | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Average of class Office (181.3 - 764, n=120, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (375 - 527, n=62) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Cinebench R20 / CPU (Multi Core) | |
| Average of class Office (356 - 5904, n=120, last 2 years) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (979 - 2382, n=62) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Cinebench R15 / CPU Single 64Bit | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Average of class Office (82.6 - 284, n=118, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (141.4 - 205, n=61) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Cinebench R15 / CPU Multi 64Bit | |
| Average of class Office (160.8 - 2642, n=120, last 2 years) | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (431 - 941, n=65) | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Blender / v2.79 BMW27 CPU | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (499 - 1044, n=60) | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Average of class Office (214 - 2844, n=121, last 2 years) | |
| 7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 -mmt1 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Average of class Office (2233 - 6687, n=121, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (3924 - 4921, n=62) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| 7-Zip 18.03 / 7z b 4 | |
| Average of class Office (4226 - 62349, n=121, last 2 years) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (14745 - 24873, n=62) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Geekbench 5.5 / Single-Core | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Average of class Office (510 - 1974, n=122, last 2 years) | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (1147 - 1428, n=58) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Geekbench 5.5 / Multi-Core | |
| Average of class Office (1018 - 11980, n=122, last 2 years) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (3475 - 5472, n=58) | |
| HWBOT x265 Benchmark v2.2 / 4k Preset | |
| Average of class Office (1.55 - 17.4, n=120, last 2 years) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (3.57 - 7.6, n=57) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| LibreOffice / 20 Documents To PDF | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Average of class Office (31.3 - 117.5, n=120, last 2 years) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (44.2 - 62.9, n=60) | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| R Benchmark 2.5 / Overall mean | |
| Average Intel Core i5-1135G7 (0.619 - 0.727, n=59) | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Average of class Office (0.4244 - 1.397, n=119, last 2 years) | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
* ... smaller is better
System performance
The very good subjective performance impression mainly benefits from the fast PCIe-SSD and an otherwise balanced system without bottlenecks. 16 GB of RAM in dual-channel mode should also be completely sufficient for the coming years.
| PCMark 10 Score | 4690 points | |
Help | ||
DPC latencies
As already with the AMD model of the MagicBook 15 our Intel tester also performs very well in the latency test and the notebook is therefore also suitable for real-time audio applications.
| DPC Latencies / LatencyMon - interrupt to process latency (max), Web, Youtube, Prime95 | |
| Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-eg | |
| Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 4500U | |
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 | |
* ... smaller is better
Mass storage - PCIe-SSD from Western Digital
The PCIe-SSD (M.2-2280) in our test device comes from the manufacturer Western Digital (SN730) and offers a storage capacity of 512 GB, of which about 410 GB are available for the user after the first start-up. It is a fast PCIe 3.0 drive, but again, the factory partition of the SSD bothers us. There is just 74 GB available on the system drive; if you are not careful during installations or downloads, these are quickly used up. More SSD benchmarks can be found in our technology section.
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 WDC PC SN730 SDBPNTY-512G | HP Pavilion 15-eg Samsung PM991 MZVLQ1T0HALB | Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 Toshiba KBG40ZNV512G | Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL Samsung PM991 MZALQ512HALU | Honor MagicBook 15 4500U WDC PC SN530 SDBPNPZ-512G | Average WDC PC SN730 SDBPNTY-512G | Average of class Office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CrystalDiskMark 5.2 / 6 | -34% | -29% | -36% | -25% | -15% | -3% | |
| Write 4K | 208.5 | 141.6 -32% | 136 -35% | 148.1 -29% | 161.1 -23% | 164.3 ? -21% | 158.7 ? -24% |
| Read 4K | 51.6 | 42.61 -17% | 60.4 17% | 47.72 -8% | 49.92 -3% | 48.2 ? -7% | 61.7 ? 20% |
| Write Seq | 2579 | 1337 -48% | 1447 -44% | 1225 -53% | 1799 -30% | 2096 ? -19% | 2427 ? -6% |
| Read Seq | 2476 | 1575 -36% | 1507 -39% | 1498 -39% | 1978 -20% | 2123 ? -14% | 2611 ? 5% |
| Write 4K Q32T1 | 602 | 397.8 -34% | 235.6 -61% | 421.1 -30% | 392.5 -35% | 451 ? -25% | 400 ? -34% |
| Read 4K Q32T1 | 680 | 454.2 -33% | 737 8% | 360.9 -47% | 506 -26% | 509 ? -25% | 519 ? -24% |
| Write Seq Q32T1 | 2706 | 1648 -39% | 1529 -43% | 1407 -48% | 1806 -33% | 2551 ? -6% | 3062 ? 13% |
| Read Seq Q32T1 | 3392 | 2388 -30% | 2357 -31% | 2362 -30% | 2460 -27% | 3330 ? -2% | 4260 ? 26% |
| AS SSD | -31% | -168% | -27% | -33% | -20% | -23% | |
| Seq Read | 2960 | 2030 -31% | 1972 -33% | 1965 -34% | 2091 -29% | 2605 ? -12% | 3168 ? 7% |
| Seq Write | 2371 | 1003 -58% | 981 -59% | 836 -65% | 1658 -30% | 1905 ? -20% | 2085 ? -12% |
| 4K Read | 46.48 | 46.74 1% | 55.8 20% | 50.3 8% | 43.46 -6% | 45.8 ? -1% | 56.3 ? 21% |
| 4K Write | 143.6 | 164.2 14% | 133.5 -7% | 189.1 32% | 141.9 -1% | 155.6 ? 8% | 158.6 ? 10% |
| 4K-64 Read | 1470 | 1098 -25% | 1277 -13% | 870 -41% | 589 -60% | 1181 ? -20% | 1069 ? -27% |
| 4K-64 Write | 1806 | 891 -51% | 313.9 -83% | 871 -52% | 1028 -43% | 1372 ? -24% | 1482 ? -18% |
| Access Time Read * | 0.088 | 0.053 40% | 0.15 -70% | 0.126 -43% | 0.064 27% | 0.0801 ? 9% | 0.08014 ? 9% |
| Access Time Write * | 0.026 | 0.062 -138% | 0.513 -1873% | 0.02 23% | 0.047 -81% | 0.04195 ? -61% | 0.06444 ? -148% |
| Score Read | 1812 | 1348 -26% | 1530 -16% | 1117 -38% | 842 -54% | 1488 ? -18% | 1442 ? -20% |
| Score Write | 2186 | 1155 -47% | 546 -75% | 1144 -48% | 1335 -39% | 1718 ? -21% | 1850 ? -15% |
| Score Total | 4899 | 3149 -36% | 2819 -42% | 2787 -43% | 2598 -47% | 3938 ? -20% | 3986 ? -19% |
| Copy ISO MB/s | 2520 | 1583 -37% | 1105 -56% | 1718 ? -32% | 1677 ? -33% | ||
| Copy Program MB/s | 790 | 682 -14% | 799 1% | 536 ? -32% | 515 ? -35% | ||
| Copy Game MB/s | 1879 | 1428 -24% | 957 -49% | 1193 ? -37% | 1186 ? -37% | ||
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | -33% /
-32% | -99% /
-117% | -32% /
-31% | -29% /
-29% | -18% /
-18% | -13% /
-16% |
* ... smaller is better
Continuous load read: DiskSpd Read Loop, Queue Depth 8
Graphics card - Xe Graphics G7 with 80 EUs
The Core i5-1135G7 is equipped with the fast integrated GPU Iris Xe Graphics G7 but in contrast to the i7 CPUs, a slightly slower version with 80 processing units is used. The iGPU also benefits from the dual-channel mode of the working memory, whereby models with faster LPDDR4x RAM have another slight advantage here.
In comparison with the Vega 6 of the AMD model the GPU performance is about 30% higher in the synthetic tests and overall on the expected level for this GPU. The comparison devices with the dedicated GeForce MX450 offer about 30-40% more performance again. Another advantage of the Xe Graphics G7 over the Vega 6 (Ryzen 4000) is the more efficient video decoder.
The graphics performance is not reduced in battery mode.
| 3DMark 11 Performance | 5681 points | |
| 3DMark Ice Storm Standard Score | 78508 points | |
| 3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score | 17078 points | |
| 3DMark Fire Strike Score | 3232 points | |
| 3DMark Time Spy Score | 1294 points | |
Help | ||
Gaming performance
Games also run a bit faster due to the increased GPU performance, but the difference to the AMD-based MagicBook 15 is not really big. You are still limited to the minimum settings in many games if you want to play smoothly. At least the gaming performance remains constant, though. More gaming benchmarks are available here.
The Witcher 3 - continuous load test(fps)
| low | med. | high | ultra | |
| GTA V (2015) | 68.8 | 59.9 | 15.4 | 6.22 |
| The Witcher 3 (2015) | 70 | 43 | 21 | 9.48 |
| Dota 2 Reborn (2015) | 77.3 | 51.7 | 35.7 | 33.9 |
| Final Fantasy XV Benchmark (2018) | 30.8 | 16.4 | 13.2 | |
| X-Plane 11.11 (2018) | 51.7 | 32.6 | 29.1 | |
| Strange Brigade (2018) | 64.2 | 24.6 | 20.5 | 17.1 |
| F1 2020 (2020) | 65 | 35 | 26 | 16 |
Emission & Energy
Noise emissions
There is still a single fan and the noise characteristics are comparable to the AMD model. The slightly higher values are due to a different (and improved) measurement microphone. Subjectively, the MagicBook 15 remains very pleasant even under load and the noise does not seem annoying in any case. There are no other electronic noises like coil whine. Moreover, the fan almost always remains deactivated during less demanding tasks.
Noise Level
| Idle |
| 24.6 / 24.6 / 24.6 dB(A) |
| Load |
| 33.9 / 36.5 dB(A) |
 | ||
30 dB silent 40 dB(A) audible 50 dB(A) loud |
||
min:  , med:  , max:  Earthworks M23R, Arta (15 cm distance) environment noise: 24.6 dB(A) | ||
| Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 Iris Xe G7 80EUs, i5-1135G7, WDC PC SN730 SDBPNTY-512G | HP Pavilion 15-eg GeForce MX450, i7-1165G7, Samsung PM991 MZVLQ1T0HALB | Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 GeForce MX450, i7-11370H, Toshiba KBG40ZNV512G | Lenovo ThinkBook 15 Gen2 ITL Iris Xe G7 80EUs, i5-1135G7, Samsung PM991 MZALQ512HALU | Honor MagicBook 15 4500U Vega 6, R5 4500U, WDC PC SN530 SDBPNPZ-512G | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noise | -9% | -13% | -2% | -10% | |
| off / environment * | 24.6 | 25.4 -3% | 25 -2% | 24.4 1% | 29.9 -22% |
| Idle Minimum * | 24.6 | 25.6 -4% | 25 -2% | 24.4 1% | 29.9 -22% |
| Idle Average * | 24.6 | 25.6 -4% | 26 -6% | 24.4 1% | 29.9 -22% |
| Idle Maximum * | 24.6 | 25.6 -4% | 27 -10% | 27.4 -11% | 30.6 -24% |
| Load Average * | 33.9 | 39.2 -16% | 43 -27% | 30 12% | 31.5 7% |
| Witcher 3 ultra * | 33.9 | 39.1 -15% | 42 -24% | 36.3 -7% | 32.3 5% |
| Load Maximum * | 36.5 | 41.5 -14% | 44 -21% | 40.4 -11% | 34.8 5% |
* ... smaller is better
Temperature
The case heats up especially on the left side and in the center, but even in our stress test with Prime95 and FurMark, the surface temperatures only rise just above the 40 °C (104 °F) mark in two places. Overall, the metal chassis stays very cool, and even under load you can rest it on your thighs without any problems.
In terms of performance, we again see that the consumption drops off after a short time and the TDP then always fluctuates in the range of 18 to about 25 watts. After the one-hour test, this results in an average value of just over 20 watts.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 35.4 °C / 96 F, compared to the average of 34.2 °C / 94 F, ranging from 21.2 to 62.5 °C for the class Office.
(±) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 40.8 °C / 105 F, compared to the average of 36.7 °C / 98 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 24.8 °C / 77 F, compared to the device average of 29.5 °C / 85 F.
(±) Playing The Witcher 3, the average temperature for the upper side is 33.2 °C / 92 F, compared to the device average of 29.5 °C / 85 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are reaching skin temperature as a maximum (32.2 °C / 90 F) and are therefore not hot.
(-) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 27.7 °C / 81.9 F (-4.5 °C / -8.1 F).
Speaker
The two stereo speakers are still average. Bass is lacking, but the mids and trebles are reproduced quite well. The modules are definitely sufficient for occasional YouTube videos and some background music, but you should use headphones or external speakers for more sound quality.
Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7 audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (79.5 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 22.2% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (10.9% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 4.5% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (6.3% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 2.4% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (3.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (18.4% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 27% of all tested devices in this class were better, 7% similar, 66% worse
» The best had a delta of 7%, average was 22%, worst was 53%
Compared to all devices tested
» 35% of all tested devices were better, 8% similar, 57% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
Xiaomi RedmiBook Pro 15 audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (81 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 21.6% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (11.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 4% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (6.3% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(±) | higher highs - on average 6.5% higher than median
(±) | linearity of highs is average (9.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (20.7% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 66% of all tested devices in this class were better, 9% similar, 25% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 18%, worst was 45%
Compared to all devices tested
» 50% of all tested devices were better, 8% similar, 42% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
HP Pavilion 15-eg audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (81.3 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 18% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (12.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2.8% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (4% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 1% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (3% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (13.2% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 20% of all tested devices in this class were better, 4% similar, 76% worse
» The best had a delta of 5%, average was 18%, worst was 45%
Compared to all devices tested
» 10% of all tested devices were better, 3% similar, 87% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
Energy consumption
In our consumption measurements, the Intel model of the MagicBook 15 is practically on par with the AMD model. Only under maximum load does the processor's high power limit become noticeable. Since the maximum 65.2 watts are only applied for a short time, the included 65-watt power supply is perfectly sufficient.
| Off / Standby | 0.35 / 0.84 Watt |
| Idle | 3.4 / 7.7 / 8.3 Watt |
| Load |
32 / 65.2 Watt |
   
| |
Power consumption in The-Witcher-3 endurance test
Battery life
The battery capacity has not changed (42 Wh), but the runtimes in our WLAN test are still worse than in the predecessor. In our WLAN test, the processor is also challenged from time to time, so the higher short-term power limit is noticeable here. About 7.5 hours at a brightness of 150 cd/m² and almost 6 hours at full brightness are not bad rates, but the AMD model lasted noticeably longer (+1.5 to 2 hours).
Pros
Cons
Verdict - The MagicBook 15's high price is not justified
The current MagicBook 15 with the Tiger Lake processor is only a minor update. The case and also the connectivity with the slower ports remain the same and although the Intel processor offers a bit more single-core performance as well as a slightly faster iGPU, you will hardly notice these differences in everyday use.
The display has been improved and now shines a bit brighter, and there is no PWM flickering anymore. However, the endurance of the new Intel model is worse than before in our practical WLAN test. Furthermore, we cannot understand why there is still no keyboard illumination for the 15-inch model.
The improved single-core performance of the Intel processor is not noticed in practice, but the surcharge of 300 Euros (~$356) compared to the AMD model is.
The increased price is the big sticking point. The MagicBook 15 with the Ryzen 4000 processor is available for about 600 Euros (~$712) and is therefore much more attractive. Even the larger MagicBook Pro 16 is available for around 900 Euros (~$1068), but you get a better overall package. The new MagicBook 15 with the Intel Tiger-Lake processor is certainly not a bad device, but the price is simply too high in view of the low additional performance compared to the AMD version and especially the missing features. The comparison devices RedmiBook Pro 15, HP Pavilion 15 or ThinkBook 15 offer more in this respect.
Price and availability
Our review unit of the Honor MagicBook 15 is currently available at Cyberport for 949 Euros (~$1126).
Honor MagicBook 15 i5 1135G7
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12/25/2022 v7
Andreas Osthoff
Pricecompare
