Honor’s Magic 9 Pro Max has a big camera and a bigger battery

# Honor’s Magic 9 Pro Max has a big camera and a bigger battery Source: [https://www.theverge.com/tech/1001219/honor-magic-9-pro-max-arri-cameras-snapdragon-battery-design-china](https://www.theverge.com/tech/1001219/honor-magic-9-pro-max-arri-cameras-snapdragon-battery-design-china) [](https://www.theverge.com/authors/dominic-preston) Dominic Preston is a news editor with over a decade’s experience in journalism\. He previously worked at*Android Police*and*Tech Advisor*\. Honor launches its new Magic 9 flagship phones in China today, and the 9 Pro Max features a design revamp, a capable camera, and a colossal battery\. This is Honor’s first flagship launch —[Robot Phone](https://www.theverge.com/gadgets/978314/honor-robot-phone-hands-on-impressions-test-gimbal-camera)aside — since it[announced its collaboration](https://www.honor.com/global/news/honor-and-arri-collaboration/)with camera company Arri\. The initial impact is twofold\. The[new camera island](https://www.theverge.com/gadgets/991908/honors-magic-9-series-gets-an-apple-green-camera-plateau)is Arri\-inspired, drawing from the “three\-lens turret” design first introduced in 1937’s Arriflex 35, complete with a knurled texture around the main lens\. [](https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/09/20260909-143532.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100) Arri has played a part in the camera itself, contributing the ability to shoot in Arri LogC3, together with 14 preset Arri Look LUTs, access to Arri’s wider library of official and third\-party LUTs, and support for the APV 10\-bit 4:2:2 codec\. The cameras themselves include a 200\-megapixel main lens using a 1/1\.28\-inch\-type sensor, a 3\.5x telephoto using the same resolution and a 1/1\.4\-inch sensor, and a 50\-megapixel ultrawide — though this latter lens doesn’t support all the Arri Cinema Mode features\. A “cinema\-grade” directional microphone should help with video recording too\. Less technically impressive, but just as useful, will be the square\-format selfie camera, which like[Apple’s Center Stage](https://www.theverge.com/iphone/774679/iphone-17-front-facing-camera-center-stage)will be able to capture in either landscape or portrait\. Honor says that the wider camera island is more space\-efficient, leaving extra space for a huge 8,800mAh battery, now up to 40 percent silicon content\. The 9 Pro Max is powered by the[Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6](https://www.theverge.com/gadgets/998842/qualcomm-snapdragon-8-elite-extreme-gen-6)\. I asked Honor why it picked the Extreme version, given the 9 Pro Max doesn’t support the 8K60 or 4K240 video recording that chip enables, and was told it was “about delivering a complete and consistent flagship experience, rather than pursuing a single benchmark result\.” [](https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/09/honor-magic-9-pro-camera-accessories.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100) The Magic 9 series launches in China today\. Honor has confirmed that an international launch is coming, but we’re still waiting to find out when\. **Follow topics and authors**from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates\. - Dominic Preston