HONOR 200 Pro Review: Turning Portrait Photos Into A Masterpiece

Featuring a powerful camera, AI-driven functionalities, and a smart interface, the HONOR 200 Pro is a top pick that ticks all boxes

Smartphone photography has become a big deal, and each year we see better sensors, larger lenses, and no shortage of software tweaks to pull off the best photos with every tap. Marketed as a phone specifically designed for portrait photography, the HONOR 200 Pro certainly makes a name for itself in the market, and has plenty of other features to make it a great phone pick, even if photography isn’t the only thing you’re going to use your phone for.

First Impression and Appearance – Ultra Slim Design & Immersive Display

As far as design goes, HONOR once again knocks it out of the park with a unique look and feel for the HONOR 200 Pro. Measuring 8.2mm thick and weighing just 199g, the phone feels sturdy in hand and easy to grip.

The HONOR 200 Pro features a vivid 6.78-inch 0 Risk AI Eye Comfort display, which excels across a variety of areas including reading text-heavy websites, watching streaming media, and gaming. It also offers excellent visibility in all lighting conditions, especially outdoors in bright sunlight with 4000nits brightness. A snappy 120Hz refresh rate ensures that the interface and scrolling is super-smooth at all times.

Built into the HONOR 200 Pro are a number of features designed to reduce eye strain and prioritize user comfort. If you’re used to using your phone extensively at night, the HONOR 200 Pro will automatically adjust the color temperature of the screen to a more calming yellow hue, which can help improve sleep quality, thanks to the AI Circadian Night Display.

As someone whose phone habits tend to be more nocturnal than most, I usually catch up on the day’s news or my social media while in bed. My current smartphone only offers the ability to turn down the screen brightness, so it was a refreshing change to browse text and images on the HONOR 200 Pro without the display glaring at my eyes. Since all the display adjustments are handled automatically by AI, there’s no need to constantly make changes for the most comfortable viewing experience.

A New Perspective of Portrait Photography

Of course, the most important feature of the HONOR 200 Pro is its camera, and it’s easy to see that HONOR has spared no expense in ensuring that this phone takes some truly incredible photos. The HONOR 200 Pro is equipped with a 1/1.3-inch Super Dynamic H9000 sensor for better light-sensing capabilities than similar smartphones, making it easy to capture bright photos in any light. At the back you’ll find the 50MP main camera and 50MP telephoto camera while in the front you have a wide-angle 50MP selfie camera that’s great for solo or group shots.

Where the HONOR 200 Pro stands out from the rest is the company’s unique collaboration with Parisian photography masters Studio Harcourt. Known predominantly for their eye-catching portrait photos, the studio worked alongside HONOR to produce three unique portrait modes that aim to recreate Studio Harcourt’s signature lighting style. This feature is available exclusively on the rear camera, so if you want to capture a truly iconic photo of yourself, you’ll need to rely on someone else to snap it for you.

The black-and-white portrait mode on the HONOR 200 Pro is probably one of the best you’ll ever see – rather than simply apply a filter like most smartphones do, the HONOR 200 Pro deftly analyses the environment and lighting sources to produce a stunning photo that you can’t replicate with just a simple filter. It’s a testament to the hours of development that have gone into this collaboration, with the end result being some of the most emotive photos you’ll take on a smartphone.

HONOR AI Portrait Engine

The collaboration alone isn’t what makes photography on the HONOR 200 Pro such a breeze. HONOR’s commitment to introducing AI into its products continues here as well, most evident with the camera features. The HONOR AI Portrait Engine does most of the heavy lifting in the background, instantly drawing upon thousands of previous lighting scenarios and millions of datasets to craft the perfect shot.

Lighting angles, subject position, shadows, and exposure settings are all analysed and tweaked automatically, ensuring that no matter what the lighting conditions are, you’re always able to capture an incredible photo. Even skin and facial characteristics are analysed via AI, ensuring that even a single strand of hair is captured accurately.

Nighttime photography is similarly excellent, with the HONOR 200 Pro picking out details of individual streetlights behind a subject to produce a spectacular bokeh effect. With my current smartphone, I normally spend a good amount of time framing my subject correctly, readjusting to adapt to poor lighting conditions, or even resorting to using the camera flash to get a decent photo. On the HONOR 200 Pro, I simply have to point at a subject and take a photo, and the moment is framed perfectly.

This is perfect for when you don’t have a lot of time to get your subject in focus – say at a kid’s sports day or snapping a photo of your excited pet. Having AI assist with your phone photography is something that is really life-changing, and you’ll never know how you survived without it.

The New Powerhouse of Speed and Performance

Powering the HONOR 200 Pro is the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 AI chipset paired with 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.

The HONOR 200 Pro was more than capable of keeping up with everyday tasks, whether it was quick video calls, streaming music, watching a few videos, or playing games on your daily commute. In fact, the HONOR 200 Pro has no problem running games like Genshin Impact or Diablo Immortal, showcasing just how adept this chipset really is.

Despite long periods of usage, the HONOR 200 Pro didn’t get too warm to hold, thanks to a All-range Cooling System 2.0 that helps to keep temperatures in check.

Impressively, the HONOR 200 Pro squeezes in a 5,200mAh silicon-carbon battery for all-day connectivity. For me, this was one of the best points about using this phone, as I tend to stream a lot of video content that easily takes up precious battery life.

On my current smartphone I often struggle to stay above 50% battery life by early afternoon, so I’m naturally reaching for a charger by lunchtime. But on the HONOR 200 Pro, my usual video-watching routine barely affect the battery life.

Bundled in the box is a 100W charger for when you do need a recharge, and thanks to HONOR SuperCharge, you can go from zero to full battery in just under 45 minutes. The phone also supports 66W Wireless HONOR SuperCharge with compatible wireless chargers, for when you just need to top up your battery during the day. This was great for when I was driving or sat at my desk – I could just place the HONOR 200 Pro on a wireless charger if it needed a quick battery boost.

Smart User Experience Like Never Before

The HONOR 200 Pro runs Android 14, and layered on top is HONOR’s MagicOS 8.0. It’s got several new tweaks, most importantly being more AI-fuelled features that aim to make it easier to interact with your phone.

For example, the AI-empowered Magic Portal, understand the context of user queries and provide helpful shortcuts. For example, when chatting with someone about meeting up for coffee, you can highlight your message and drag it to Magic Portal. The system will then automatically interpret your message and suggest the Maps application to find directions to the nearest coffee shop. I happen to be watching a video and noticed a very nice looking keyboard on the desk – I was able to drag a picture of that keyboard to Magic Portal and instantly see more details on the product as well as where I could buy it.

Verdict

With an array of AI-powered features, exceptional camera skills, superior performance, and outstanding battery life, the HONOR 200 Pro is a great device for portrait photography lovers. Even for everyone else, the HONOR 200 Pro offers plenty to love in a mid-range phone that delivers features that hit far above its modest price range.

Pricing and Availability

Showcasing an elegant design inspired by nature, the HONOR 200 Pro is available for pre-order in three colorways: Ocean Cyan, Moonlight White, and Black at an exciting price of SAR 2699.

Upon purchase, consumers will get free gifts worth SAR 1299 including HONOR CHOICE Watch, Wireless Charger Stand and HONOR Care+ including 12-Months Screen Protection Service for 1 time, 12-Month Back Cover Protection Service for 1 time and 30-Day Device Replacement Warranty

HONOR 200 is available in Moonlight White, Emerald Green, and Black. The (12GB+512GB) version will be available at a price of SAR 1999 and (12GB+256GB) version will be available at a price of SAR 1699. Upon purchase, consumers will get free gifts worth SAR 599 including HONOR Choice Watch and 12-Month Screen Protection Service for 1 Time.

HONOR 200 Pro and HONOR 200 are available for pre-order at HONOR Online Store, HONOR Experience Store, Jarir Bookstore, Extra, STC, Amazon, Lulu, Noon and other stores.