As you may have heard, Chinese phone manufacturer Honor will release its Magic V3 foldable phone globally later this week. If you haven't heard, well, I guess I'm throwing some free advertisement Honor's way. You're welcome.
But why would I assume that most of you may have already heard about the release plans of a company few Samsung fans care about? Well, it's because, for the past few weeks, Honor used Samsung's name to promote its upcoming product, and in my opinion, it did so to an egregious extent.
Here's a quick recap. In anticipation of the Magic V3's release, Honor showed unprecedented attention-seeking levels. I don't think I've ever seen a thirstier smartphone manufacturer in all my years of blogging.
Ironically, these recent events made me wonder if the company that calls itself “Honor” has any honor and integrity whatsoever.
It all began with Honor sharing a render depicting the profile of the Magic V3 foldable phone next to a few Galaxy Z Fold models. In this render, Honor cleverly hid the Magic V3's unappealing camera design — which, by many accounts, is among the ugliest in the industry — but conveniently highlighted just how thin the Magic V3 is next to Samsung's phones.
It was a bold move and a bit tongue in cheek, but nothing too egregious. Sadly, Honor couldn't pump the brakes and cooked up another, much more desperate idea in its quest for social media attention. Its plan involved writing “Samsung” on its own upcoming phone.
Honor and the creatively bankrupt cringe hinge
The next step in Honor's desperate plan for attention was to engrave some text on the hinge of its upcoming Magic V3, openly mocking Samsung and borderline disrespecting Galaxy Z Fold users for their choices. And this might be the most ridiculous thing I have ever seen an OEM do for attention.
Firstly, it's worth noting that the engraved phone isn't for sale. It's just a one-off, or it might even be a digital render for all we know. Even if the engraved Magic V3 exists in physical form, its only purpose is to seek social media attention.
Secondly, and more importantly, the text Honor chose to slap on this one-off phone might be the most cringe-inducing thing an OEM ever wrote in the name of marketing. In short, Honor throws an apology to all Galaxy Z Fold buyers in Samsung's name, in a way calling them out for failing to see through Samsung's alleged gimmicks.
And, yes, ladies and gentlemen. Just in case it wasn't clear enough, Honor literally slapped the “Samsung” name on its Magic V3 phone with this thirsty attempt for attention. Tiny as the text might be, it still says “Samsung” and “Galaxy Z Fold” on the Magic V3's hinge. Or as I like to call it, the ‘cringe hinge.'
That's how low Honor stooped. It literally wrote another brand's name on its phone for attention, all the while passive-aggressively disrespecting Galaxy Z Fold users for supporting the Fold series. Ironically, I see no honor in Honor's message and actions.
Isn't Samsung guilty of the same attention-seeking behavior?
Now, you might be asking, hasn't Samsung done the same thing with Apple? How many ads has Samsung published where it was going after its biggest rival, the iPhone maker? How is this Honor situation any different?
That's a fair question, but my short answer is that the situations differ because of nuance — and lack thereof. And before I elaborate, I would like to remind you that I've criticized some of Samsung's marketing attempts in the past and even called some of Samsung's jabs at Apple “foolish and hypocritical.” But even I will say that Honor and Samsung are nothing alike.
You see, even as it was seeking attention, Samsung always showed creativity and restraint in its ads. When Samsung poked fun at Apple and iPhone users, it was all done cleverly and without forgetting the most important element: comedy.
We all remember the notch-shaped haircuts of the iPhone family for a reason, i.e., they were hilarious. The more recent and elegantly executed “On the Fence” ad campaign was also quite memorable.
And even though Samsung was poking fun at Apple, it did so without blatantly mentioning the brand's name or the iPhone. As far as I recall, Samsung was never desperate enough to write the word “Apple” on its Galaxy phone or use the brand's name in its ads.
The problem with Samsung — and why I criticized the company's Apple-centric marketing campaigns in the past — was that it often made fun of Apple for things it later copied, i.e., the removal of the 3.5mm headphone jack. That's why it sometimes came across as lacking sincerity. However, the ads themselves were very clever and multi-layered. Anyone can probably admit to that objectively, regardless of whether or not they found them enjoyable on a subjective level.
It wasn't the ads that made Samsung seem hypocritical at times, at least in my eyes. It was the company's actions after the fact. Either way, Samsung never stooped so low as to engrave the Apple name on its Galaxy phones to gain some traction on social media. So, no. In my mind, there's no comparison between Honor and Samsung.
The story continues after our Galaxy Z Fold 6 review video
Honor may have attempted to copy Samsung's marketing style, but in the end, it fell flat on its face. There are different levels of trying to get the attention of your rivals and their customers. Samsung is a master of this practice, while Honor happens to sit on the lowest rung.
The only thing this attempt from Honor brought to our attention is that the company lacks the tact and creativity to pull off something clever enough to rival Samsung's marketing campaigns. Nothing is amusing or creative about Honor's cringy, passive-aggressive apology to Samsung users. If you ask me, Honor should apologize for its failed marketing attempt.
But, here you go, Honor. You seem willing to do anything for attention, so if that's your only goal and nothing else matters, here's my free mention of you and your phone on the SamMobile editorials page. Congratulations, I suppose?
