Meizu mx4 pro review: Meizu MX4 Pro review: Sharpened up

70 Comments

Introduction and DesignUser Interface — FlymeOSCPU, System and NAND PerformanceGPU Performance and PowerDisplay Measurement and PowerBattery Life & Charge TimeCamera — Still Pictures and Video performanceConclusion

Introduction and Design

Meizu is a company that started out as a music player manufacturer in the mid-2000’s and jumped onto the smartphone revolution in early 2008. While traditionally the company has targeted the Chinese market and its current phones are still prioritizing the Asian country, we’re seeing increasingly strong offerings that people may want to consider in other international markets such as Europe.

The MX4 Pro marks a change in Meizu’s release cadence and flagship line-up. Usually we’ve seen the company release only one flagship per year, and it seemed that the MX4 was that flagship this year. However, it took Meizu only two months to announce the slightly larger and higher-end MX4 Pro in November. Both phones are incredibly similar in design but employ very different innards, as Meizu goes back to their traditional choice of a Samsung-manufactured SoC and adopts a higher resolution 1536p screen over the 1156p screen in the MX4.

Before going into the design, let’s go over the full specifications of the unit:

Meizu MX4 Pro Specifications
SoC	Samsung Exynos 5430 (4x A7 @ 1.5GHz & 4x A15 @ 2.0GHz, Mali T628MP6 @ 600MHz)
RAM/NAND	3 GB LPDDR3-1650, 16/32GB NAND
Display	5. 46” 2560 x 1536 JDI «NEGA negative LCD» 546 PPI 15:9 aspect ratio
Network	Marvell «ARMADA Mobile PXA1802» LTE modem LTE network frequencies: FDD B1/3/7, TDD B38/39/40/41
Dimensions	(H) 150.1 x (W) 77.0 x (D) 9.0 mm, 158 grams
Camera	20.7MP Sony IMX220 sensor, F/2.2 aperture, ISP 5P lens main camera 5MP OmniVision OV5693 sensor, F/2.2 aperture, ISP 4P lens front camera
Battery	3350mAh (12.73 Wh) typical rated 3.8V battery chemistry
OS	Android 4.4.4 with Flyme 4.0 UX
Connectivity	802.11a/b/g/n/ac WiFi + BT 4.0, USB2.0, GPS/GLONASS
SIM Size	MicroSIM
Price	~$499 (32GB International price)

The MX4 Pro uses a Samsung designed and manufactured Exynos 5430 SoC. We’ve touched on this SoC in our review of the Note 4 Exynos, although I used the Galaxy Alpha as the comparison device in that article. This variant has 4x A7 little cores coming in at a higher 1.5GHz this time around, along with 4x Cortex A15 clocked at 2.0GHz. On the GPU side we have a Mali T628MP6 at 600MHz, same as the Galaxy Alpha. For RAM, we find 3GB of LPDDR3-1650 to enable memory management and multi-tasking capabilities.

The device comes in either 16GB or 32GB NAND variants, with no option for expandable storage as there is a lack of microSD slot. I was surprised to learn of this and am disappointed to see the omission of an added storage option, especially when considering the device has a removable back cover that could have easily offered the space for it.

Cell network connectivity is provided by sort of a new-comer in the high-end flagship segment, Marvell. The ARMADA Mobile PXA1802 LTE modem powers the MX4 Pro offering multi-band LTE capability. Unfortunately the current models of the MX4 Pro, including this review unit, only have a limited selection of FDD bands needed in western markets. European / South American and some Asian users might have luck as B3 and B7 (1800 and 2600MHz) are still relatively widely used in different countries. For European users especially it lacks the crucial 800 B20 EUDD band that provides best reception and power usage. For North American users, LTE is sadly completely out of the question as it doesn’t provide any band compatible with the local providers and connectivity is limited to HSDPA on GSM carriers.

The screen is a sizeable 5.46″ JDI «NEGA» negative LCD unit with a resolution of 2560×1536. The screen comes in a slightly wider 15:9 aspect ratio, employing 96 more pixels in the width of the display compared to the usual 1440p devices we’re getting accustomed to. The «negative» LCD moniker means that the crystals are in their rested default state non-permeable to light, meaning blacks should in theory consume less power compared to typical LCD screens and increase contrast.

The cameras are powered by a Sony IMX220 20.7MP sensor for the main rear unit, and an OmniVision OV5693 sensor sporting 5MP for the front facing unit.  The whole device is powered by an embedded 3350mAh 3.8V or 12.73Wh battery that should provide quite good battery life for a device of this size.

Design

In terms of design, the Meizu surprised me. Although its dimensions of (H) 150.1 x (W) 77.0 x (D) 9.0 mm put it only 1.6mm less wide than the Galaxy Note 4 for example, the ergonomics of the device far surpass the Note. The rounded edges and corners of the device make for an excellent grip in the hand, making you forget that the device remains quite thick at 9mm. The 153g weight is also very good for a device of its size and provides great balance when holding it, without it getting too tiring to hold due to its weight, an issue I noticed with heftier devices such as the Mate 7 or Note 4.

Minimal side-bezels also provide a great screen to device-footprint ratio, as the MX4 Pro has the smallest side bezels I’ve seen on a device. The front design reminds strongly of earlier iPhones and it’s pretty evident that Meizu is trying to capture a bit of the Apple design language here. Although the front isn’t very original, the sides and back are a unique design.

The device’s sides are made of solid aluminum which gives the device a premium feel and cold touch sensation. The rounded sides, as mentioned, provide a good radius in their slope that makes it very comfortable to hold as it transitions towards the plastic back-cover. What’s eye-catching are several plastic inlets throughout the edges of the device, similar to what we’ve seen in Samsung’s Galaxy Alpha and Galaxy Note 4. These are highly likely to enable the device to have better signal reception and to avoid the metal rim acting as a Faraday cage.

The bottom front face is where we find an addition to Meizu’s traditional button layout, instead of a capacitive button we have a mechanical home button with integrated fingerprint sensor. The home button can be used to turn the device on by tapping it, or turn it off by holding it for 1.5s. Additionally the fingerprint scanner can also function as a capacitive key that can be assigned a variety of functions. I’ve found it very natural to have it used as a capacitive back key for navigation as it frees up screen estate from the on-screen navigation bar. I’ll revisit how navigation on the MX4 Pro works in just a bit.

On the bottom side of the device we find the device’s main speaker pointing downwards and on the right side of the phone. The speaker is very loud and clear, much better than what we find on the Note 4 but still not near the range and depth of what can be heard on the Mate 7 or HTC BoomSound devices. On the bottom left side we have the device’s main microphone with the microUSB port in the middle. I’ve found it disconcerting that the microUSB port is inverted compared to nearly every other device I’ve seen, which made me pause for a few seconds the first time I tried to attach a cable for charging before I realized what I was doing wrong. However, anyone used to the Nexus 5 or HTC phones won’t have any issues with the microUSB orientation.

On the top of the device we have a secondary microphone for stereo recording and noise cancellation, flanked by the power button and the 3. 5mm headphone jack. Many people would critique the top location of the power button, but given the MX4 Pro’s ability to turn the screen on and off via the home button it works relatively well as it provides an opposite location for access to the functionality when holding the device in different ways.

While most of the design is quite good, I noticed that the earpiece isn’t well-designed. The front glass sits at a higher level than the earpiece, creating a little groove that is a huge dust magnet. In my experience I found the earpiece full of dust and debris in just a few days of usage. The fact that the inlay has sharp edges because of the front glass doesn’t help either when trying to clean it.

The main camera is found on the upper back middle of the phone, right over a dual-tone flash system similar to what we find in many recent flagship smartphones. The camera sticks out by a millimeter and is encased in a metal ring and protected by sapphire glass.

As mentioned the back cover of the device is removable, although this does nothing in terms of functionality as it only provides access to the microSIM slot at the top of the device. The clip system is identical to what Samsung employs in their devices and offers for a solid attachment to the phone. We find the NFC antenna on the back-cover that connects to the phone via spring-contacts. It’s interesting to see the actual battery in full view, but it’s impossible to remove or disconnect it without further dismantling of the device. Although the battery is not removable, it certainly is still relatively easily replaceable if Meizu provides new battery packs later in the device’s lifetime.

Overall, I think Meizu did pretty well in terms of design of the MX4 Pro. There’s no obvious or odd features on the phone that would disrupt its simplistic formula. The device comes in four different color options, black front with either metal grey or white back, or a white front with either matte gold or white back.

User Interface — FlymeOS
Introduction and DesignUser Interface — FlymeOSCPU, System and NAND PerformanceGPU Performance and PowerDisplay Measurement and PowerBattery Life & Charge TimeCamera — Still Pictures and Video performanceConclusion

PRINT THIS ARTICLE

Meizu MX4 Pro Review

[ooyala code=”R5bWNtdjpfEaZLHoIHybtu9x7g7343kK” player_id=”7f2b2d0412e84a188ede8d648751dc42″ width=”500″ height=”400″ auto=”false”]

With specifications and features on par with most current flagships, the Meizu MX4 Pro manages to couple high quality and an affordable price tag

The Meizu MX4, despite its shortcomings, proved to be a solid device, but following the release of this flagship, Meizu also launched a Pro version of the smartphone that took everything that was great about its flagship counterpart and brought it to a whole other level. With specifications and features that put this smartphone at par with most current flagships, at a more than competitive price point, this latest large form-factor smartphone from Meizu certainly has a lot to offer. Here is our in-depth review of the Meizu MX4 Pro!

The MX4 Pro retains the design language of its namesake, reminiscent of the iPhone 3GS, down to a home button found at the bottom front, only in a larger form factor, courtesy of the bigger 5.5-inch display. The size puts this device just outside the realm of comfortable one-handed use, but its ultra-thin bezels along the sides of the display certainly make a difference.

As mentioned, the MX4 Pro features a physical home button up front, that offers a great tactile feel, and also comes with an integrated fingerprint scanner. The volume rocker is found on the right side, but the power button is placed at the top, which can be a little difficult to reach, given the size of the device. Up top is also the headphone jack, while at the bottom is the microUSB port and a single speaker unit. All of this is held together with a nice silver lining via the metallic frame, and while this smartphone isn’t too flashy, it does manage to have a look of its own.

The back cover sports a nice non-glossy feel and is removable, but serves as access to the SIM slot, with the battery being non-replaceable. The smooth plastic does have a tendency to slip around in the hand, further exacerbated by the accentuated curves of the MX4 Pro. There weren’t many issues with keeping a grip on the phone, but a little extra care is definitely needed initially while trying to perform the hand gymnastics required to get around the screen. That being said, the reach required is at a minimum compared to some other large form-factor devices out there.

While there’s nothing to dislike about the MX4 Pro in terms of design, it doesn’t particularly stand out either, mostly because of its overt familiarity. Apart from its likeness to the older iPhone, the design language has largely remained the same since the MX3, made only bigger in the case of the MX4 Pro.

Luckily, the Pro moniker isn’t just to do with the larger size of the device, and shines through in other aspects as well, starting with the display. Apart from the bump in size to 5.5-inches, the IPS LCD display comes with a Quad HD resolution, but because of the aspect ratio that is slightly off kilter, the resolution is 1536p as opposed to 1440p, with pixel density of 546 ppi. The difference is not really noticeable, and while this display is a very nice performer, it is on par with other Quad HD panels out there.

Despite the muted aesthetic of the default Flyme OS theme, colors still look vibrant and stand out due to some good contrast, as well as showcasing the sharpness of the display. Viewing angles are good, and the brightness allows for great visibility even in broad daylight. I had a great experience doing anything on this display, including gaming, and the Gorilla Glass 3 panel offers good protection against scratches.

While the MX4 featured a MediaTek processor, Meizu has replaced that in favor of the Samsung Exynos 5 Octa 5430 processor, backed by the Mali-T628 GPU and 3 GB of RAM. There were no issues in terms of performance, with the device flying through the various elements of the Flyme OS. Multitasking is also a breeze, despite the more minimalistic interface of the Recent Apps screen, but switching between applications was quick and easy.

My main enjoyment was from gaming here, as Star Wars: Knights of the New Republic was nice and smooth at the default settings. The game was still playable when the graphics performance was pushed to the maximum settings, but at normal settings, the game never missed a beat.

On the hardware front, we start off with the speaker, found at the bottom of the device. While we keep talking about how much better front-facing or side mounted speaker setups are, Meizu has managed to make the sound experience on the MX4 Pro quite compelling. Not only does it get loud, but the sound stage is robust, bringing richness and body to mids and lows, something where a lot of other speakers just aren’t up to the task. With a Hi-Fi enhancement option available in the settings, the same great audio experience is available when a pair of headphones is plugged in.

Mentioned earlier was the fact that the physical home button up front comes with an integrated fingerprint scanner. This is a press type reader, which means that all you have to do is place your finger on it. What makes this implementation so good is the fact that you can wake and unlock the phone in a single motion. Press down the button to wake the device, and continue to hold it to scan your finger and unlock the device. Meizu claims that you can go from asleep to working in about a half a second, and while we haven’t timed it, it certainly is very fast, and extremely reliable. You can also set fingerprints to unlock specific applications and other portions of the phone.

Mobile connectivity is one point of contention for those in the US. While the MX4 Pro hasn’t seen an official release in this market, it was difficult to get more than 3G connectivity on AT&T and T-Mobile’s networks. Despite featuring 4G LTE support, the bands were just not compatible, while there have been other devices from foreign markets that have worked just fine. Of course, if the MX4 Pro does officially make it to the States, a compatible version will be released at the time. That said, call quality was still more than adequate.

Unfortunately, the experience was rather uneven on the battery front, despite MX4 Pro featuring a large 3,350 mAh unit. With the mobile network connectivity problems, administering a day to day battery test was difficult, but one incident worth mentioning is that the battery managed to drain itself overnight, while connected to Wi-Fi, something that happened a couple of times, even after checking whether a background app was the culprit. The frequency of this issue has reduced, but has still happened more times than is negligible. That said, the device does manage to go through a full day of use on a single charge before going into single digits, but this is of course with high-speed internet connectivity being a contributing factor to the battery drain.

When it comes to the camera, a powerful 20.7 MP rear unit provides a very solid performance on the MX4 Pro. Keeping up with the selfie trend, the front-facing camera also sports a little more power at 5 MP.

The camera application provides a slew of different modes and settings, found by swiping side to side on the viewfinder, including panorama and slowmotion video, with a fully manual mode available as well. Settings in the auto mode include HDR, which does a pretty good job of improving color output on a shot, though without the higher saturation, this effect is essentially what Night Mode produces.

The Macro mode proved fun to use, though I found it a little odd that the Auto mode doesn’t automatically activate the macro focus, which basically allows you to focus on a close subject when the regular mode cannot. For all you selfie lovers out there, there is a Beautify Mode available that smartphones from Asian markets are known for. That said, the camera photos from the front-facing unit weren’t bad to begin with, and the Beautify Mode was a little too aggressive for my taste.

Videos can be captured in 4K resolution, and while they look good, a lack of stabilization makes shooting them a little finicky at times. As mentioned, slow motion video capture is also possible at 720p resolution at a speed of 100 fps, exported out at 25 fps.

Picture quality was actually quite good for the MX4 Pro, as details were very well captured and colors looked appealing when you could capture them correctly. I did find the exposure and the white balance in Auto mode to be a bit jumpy, needing you to be sure that what you want to capture is what you see in the viewfinder. Even in low light situations, the camera manages nice results, with HDR and Night Modes available to enhance the shot.

The only real gripe with this camera was the somewhat slow auto focusing time. The camera of the Meizu MX4 Pro may not be the absolute best comparatively, but it is far from the worst as well.

Finally, when it comes to software, we get the Flyme OS, a rather different take on Android that is a bit more simplistic than its more well known competitors. What you see is what you get in this interface, as there is no app drawer available, requiring you to use folders if you’re looking to keep things clean and organized.

You may have noticed that there are no capacitive keys available, but contextual softkeys appear on the display when required in applications, while the home button can be used to go backward. The notification drop has a host of different options available, and different panels are used to navigate through the many options in the Settings menu. The only hidden area is the Recent Apps interface, which is accessible via a swipe up from the bottom of the screen.

Of course, everything is customisable via a theme engine, even if it will mostly be in Chinese for the moment. When it comes to translations, there are understandably a few holes in the text of the device, as there was obviously more room to foot many elements in Chinese characters, but not for the long form English phrases they mean. The literal translations themselves are a bit uneven.

That all said, what I like about the Flyme OS interface is that things are pretty simple. The contextual softkey bar that appears at the bottom remains one of my favorite aspects, as it helps keep the screen real estate open for media. Another bright spot was also the keyboard, which was easy to use, allowing me to type really quickly on it, with the useful functionality of just swiping down from the letters to easily get to numbers and symbols. There was nothing that was very overwhelming, and if you can keep things from getting too cluttered on the homescreens, everything should be fine.

Meizu’s current line of flagship devices is slowly making its way out of China and into other markets, though we don’t know if it will make it to the US anytime soon. When converting the price from Asia, the phone comes in at around $400, so we wouldn’t be surprised if the Western retail price would be closer to about $500 unlocked. It’s not a bad price point, but plenty of other phones in the Asian market have compelling experiences to offer and can rock similar or even lower price tags. It is also a good idea to wait because of the network connectivity problems stated above, but if you do want to get your hands on it, it is available from Amazon for $610.

So, there you have it – the Meizu MX4 Pro! The MX4 Pro serves as a great example of the growth we’re seeing out of China. Just a few weeks back at CES 2015, we got to see a few high-quality but affordable devices from Chinese companies, and that is a trend that looks to be on the rise.

Meizu is in the thick of this trend with a phablet offering that manages to be powerful but accessible at the same time. Its design choices aside, the shell is just a casing for all of the power that is found underneath. A QuadHD display, good performance, an enjoyable sound stage, and an above average camera all make the MX4 Pro a package we do hope to see more easily available in the US soon, which should also resolve the network connectivity issues I faced during my testing. It might not stand out very much, but dig a little deeper and you’ll find a pretty fun and powerful phone in the Meizu MX4 Pro.

Review of smartphone Meizu MX4 Pro

In recent years, it has become especially interesting to observe the development of Chinese companies. The giants of the industry represented by Samsung, LG and HTC have long reached a plateau and are pleased with their evolutionary development, Lenovo and Huawei have proven that they are no worse than the first and can act on an equal footing. The ambitious Xiaomi and Meizu remained, which also have something to say and show. The latter is especially pleasing — after attracting additional investments, the company has significantly expanded its product line and today there are as many as 4 current Meizu smartphones, assembled in two lines. We decided to get acquainted with the most interesting of them.

Course

English

Is your English blog boring?
Learn language from satisfaction. Best choice to love Marvel over DC

I need the best

Content

• 1 Design and usability
• 2 Display
• 3 Hardware platform

900 17 4 Calls, multimedia

• 5 Operating system and shell
• 6 Operating time
  • • • • 6.0.0.0.1 In Reading mode, all wireless communications are disabled, including data transmission in the mobile network, and the display brightness is set to 200 cd/m². When listening to music, automatic data synchronization and data transfer worked. Headphone volume at 12 out of 15 possible levels. All music files in MP3 format, bitrate 320 Kbps. Navigation includes route guidance in the Google Navigation app. The brightness is set to 200 cd/m², all data communication modules are disabled. When playing a video, data transmission is active on the mobile network, the display brightness is set to 200 cd / m², the sound volume in the headphones is at level 12 out of a possible 15. Video file format MKV, resolution 1024×432 pixels, frame rate 24. Playing video from Youtube was accompanied not only by work on a Wi-Fi network, but also by active data transfer. Display brightness is set to 200 cd/m², headphone volume is set to 12 out of 15 possible levels.
        • 6.0.0.0.2 * — data obtained under similar conditions, but with brightness set to 50% of the possible
        • 6.0.0.0.3 You can familiarize yourself with the testing methodology in this material.
• 7 Cameras
• 8 Results

Design and usability

First announced in 201 In 4, the MX4 model became the Meizu smartphone, the older MX4 Pro was introduced a month later, no one began to radically change the appearance of the novelty . There are also few differences between the design of last year’s MX3 and the fresh MX4 Pro. The materials and design of the hull have changed, but the contours and shapes have remained similar.

Meizu MX4 Pro body base is made of a single piece of aluminum, it is visible as a beveled side frame, showing the natural color of the metal. The screen is covered with protective glass, and most of the back is made of matte plastic.

The lid is removable, there is a special recess for the nail on the bottom, so no special tools are needed. Under it there is only a slot for Micro-SIM, there is no slot for a memory card, the battery is non-removable. The cover itself is attached with many small latches, while it is easily removed and perfectly fitted to the frame.

The other parts are also perfectly matched. Despite the most simple design, devoid of bright elements, the smartphone looks and feels like a quality thing.

The layout of the controls is traditional for Meizu. The power key is located on the top right, the volume button is on the left side. Both of them are thin, have a distinct short pressure. The headphone jack is on the top left, at the bottom — MicroUSB, multimedia speaker and microphone holes.

Smartphone	Meizu MX4 Pro	Meizu MX4	Meizu M1 Note	LG G3	Samsung Galaxy Note 4
Screen size	5.5″	5.36″	5. 5″	5.5″	5.7″
Dimensions	150.1 x 77 x 9 mm	144 x 75.2 x 8.9 mm	150.7 x 75.2 x 8.9 mm	146.3 x 74.6 x 8.9 mm	153.5 x 78.6 x 8.5
Weight	158 g	147 g	145 g	149 g	176 g

Meizu MX4 Pro is a fairly large smartphone, the display with a non-standard aspect ratio makes it wide, but thanks to the well-rounded back cover, it fits perfectly in the hand, it is quite convenient to use.

The completely flat tempered glass and sidewalls create an almost sharp transition at their junction, and thanks to the chamfer you can clearly feel how the MX4 Pro «rests» against the ear during a conversation. Between the glass and the frame there is a gel, it should help to survive the fall.

Project Management course in IT.

Scientist to manage IT projects and teams in the Agile era.

Sign up

In addition to the dark gray that was reviewed, Meizu MX4 Pro is available in gold, black and white and all-white colors. The removable cover is easy to replace with a branded or compatible analogue in a bright color or unusual texture.

Display

Meizu MX4 Pro received a 5.5-inch display with a resolution of 2560 by 1536 pixels. The aspect ratio is non-standard — 15 to 9, but this does not cause any problems during operation, just when playing video, narrow black bars remain at the edges, other applications work correctly with this resolution.

Screen manufacturer — JDI, pixel density — 546 ppi, according to the last parameter, Meizu MX4 Pro is slightly ahead of other smartphones with 2K screens. According to official figures, the maximum screen brightness reaches 450 cd / m², and the contrast ratio is 1:1500. There is no air gap between Corning Gorilla Glass 3 and the matrix. A new type of IPS screens is used, called NEGA, its advantages are better image quality and reduced power consumption.

Our measurements show that the brightness varies from an impressive 2 cd/m² to 480 cd/m², measured contrast is 1:1200. The display is quite well calibrated, most of the parameters deviate minimally from the reference values. Traditionally for Meizu, the color temperature is too high up to 7400K, which makes the image a bit cold. Nevertheless, the corporate interface looks great on such a screen, the coldness of the picture comes in handy.

We really liked the display itself — an incredibly smooth and eye-pleasing picture, maximum viewing angles, clear fonts. Individual pixels are simply impossible to see, watching a video or reading on such a display is a pleasure. The automatic brightness control works fine, but the quality of the oleophobic coating can be called average, I wish there were a little less fingerprints on the glass. The screen has incredibly thin bezels, the manufacturer claims that their width is 2.8 mm, but visually they seem even thinner.

Hardware platform

Unlike the MX4, the MX4 Pro uses the Samsung platform familiar to Meizu. The Exynos 5430 chipset is familiar to us from the Samsung Galaxy Alpha. This is one of the first SoCs manufactured in compliance with the 20 nm process technology. It is built according to the big.LITTLE scheme, includes 4 processor cores Cortex-A7 and Cortex-A15, which operate at frequencies up to 1.5 and 2 GHz, respectively. The role of the GPU is assigned to Mali T628 MP6 with an operating frequency of 600 MHz.

The amount of RAM — 3 GB (dual-channel LPDDR3), built-in can be 16, 32 or 64 GB. The review was the youngest modification with a storage capacity of 16 GB, of which 11.87 GB is available. Given the lack of a slot for memory cards, it is better for the user to decide in advance on the required amount of memory. The set of communication modules is standard: dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.0 BLE, NFC, support for 4G networks, magnetic field sensors, digital compass.

In synthetic tests, the performance of the model is comparable to other flagships, in some tests the number of «parrots» is less due to the higher screen resolution. In normal use, the performance of the platform is enough for any task, whether it is working with mail, browser or games. What’s more, the difference in speed between productive, balanced and economical modes of operation is minimal. At the moment, Meizu MX4 Pro is prone to the problem of noticeable heating, which can manifest itself not only under a heavy load on the chipset, but also at high screen brightness and camera operation. The smartphone does not become scalding hot, but the heating is well felt.

Wi-Fi and GPS modules did not cause any complaints.

The MX4 Pro features an in-display fingerprint scanner called mTouch. It is inscribed in a mechanical button under the screen. It is framed in metal and covered with sapphire crystal. The system allows you to save fingerprints of five fingers. The fingerprint recognition time is declared at the level of half a second. The speed and accuracy of the scanner is at the level of the iPhone 6 and inferior to Huawei Mate7, sometimes the fingerprint is not read the first time, you have to slightly change the position of the finger. It’s nice that the key does not remain idle, if you do not use the mTouch function, it can be used to turn the screen on and off. The button is covered with a capacitive layer, so touching it can act as a back key.

Calls, multimedia

The volume of the Meizu MX4 Pro speaker can be described as average, if the interlocutor speaks relatively quietly, it will be problematic to talk in the subway, in other cases there should not be problems with a lack of volume. The sound of the speaker is pleasant, the voices remain recognizable. The multimedia speaker of the MX4 Pro is located on the bottom edge. Due to the beveled frame, it will be difficult to cover it in your pocket, this is only possible when held in a horizontal orientation while playing games or watching videos. The speaker itself has a clear and loud sound, the frequency range is relatively narrow, but this does not prevent it from playing ringtones and other sounds well. The vibrating alert of the smartphone is average, felt in the pockets of trousers.

Meizu MX4 Pro will do a great job as a video player, the built-in player has one of the widest support for third-party codecs that we have come across.

Special attention deserves the quality of music playback, which has always been famous for Meizu smartphones. Here the MX4 Pro is no exception. It received a SABER-2M sound chip (ESS ES9018K2M) and a separate Texas Instruments headphone amplifier (OPA1612). Together they make Meizu MX4 Pro the best music playback solution among smartphones. The overall sound of the MX4 Pro can be described as as detailed, spacious and clear as possible. Even when listening to mp3 tracks, new details are revealed in them. The smartphone will easily «shake» any large or small headphones that do not require stationary amplifiers. Moreover, a comparison with ASUS Essence One MKII Muses Edition showed that when using headphones costing up to $200, there is only a slight difference in sound signature, but not in the quality of playing the same tracks.

Like a video player, the music app supports popular audio file formats, including various lossless formats. The application has a clear interface, the library is built on the basis of data from tags, there is support for folders. When using headphones with an impedance of more than 20 ohms, you can select the amplifier operation mode; for popular headphone models, there are special equalizer settings (Dirac Sound).

Financial manager course0003 I want to go to the course

Operating system and shell

Meizu MX4 Pro runs on Android 4. 4.4 KitKat operating system, Flyme OS 4.1.1.3 performs the shell role. Meizu’s development is different from what MIUI, EMUI and others offer. Since there is only one key under the screen, the system management is heavily redesigned compared to other smartphones, various gestures are actively used.

To turn on the screen, you need to double-click on the glass, press the key below the screen or swipe up from the bottom of the screen, the last action simultaneously unlocks the screen and the user enters the desktop. You can turn off the screen by double-clicking on an empty area of ​​the desktop or by pressing and holding the key below the screen. All this allows you not to reach for the power button on the top end. Gestures also work when the screen is off. You can start the camera by drawing a circle, the music player by “writing” “M”, etc., these actions are configurable. In addition, from the lock screen with a gesture from right to left and left to right, you can launch the camera or; any application of your choice.

There is no separate application menu in the system, so shortcuts to all installed programs are placed on desktops. They can be sorted into folders. By holding your finger on a free space on the desktop, we get access to its settings, which allows you to group shortcuts from above or below, a list of widgets.

The list of running applications is called up by swiping from the bottom edge of the screen. By holding your finger on the application icon, you can pin it in memory, if you swipe up the application closes, by swiping down the list you can close all running programs, and tapping outside it will return to the desktop or the currently running application.

Bottom-up gesture on the desktop launches a global search, top-down opens the notification bar with radio buttons. By swiping down through the list of notifications again, you can access all the settings shortcuts. By holding your finger on individual switches, you can sort them, and some items contain additional settings items.

An additional on-screen Smart Touch key is activated in the switch bar. It can act as the back and home keys, you can use it to open the list of notifications, and side swipes allow you to switch between neighboring running applications. Double pressing this key lowers the image on the screen down and acts as a complete analogue of the Reachability function from iOS.

The Flyme OS settings menu has also been redesigned compared to stock Android. On the left are icons of individual sub-items. By swiping from left to right, you can see their names, and the right side of the screen is used to display the contents of the selected item.

As we said above, after stock Android and shells from all other manufacturers, Flyme OS looks very unusual. Nevertheless, the shell is well thought out, you can understand all the innovations in an hour. A separate “chip” of Flyme OS can be considered a “smart” panel with virtual keys. Depending on the application, its content varies, but support for third-party programs is low, in most cases it only shows the back and menu keys, so it’s good that you can just turn it off.

Flyme OS is probably the only firmware that has root access (administrator rights) out of the box. To get it, just create a Flyme account and enable the corresponding option in the settings. You can record telephone conversations, both in the process of communication, and all calls by default.

English course

Is your English blog boring?
Learn language from satisfaction. Let’s take a vikladach, who also loves Marvel, not DC

I need the best

The shell also has the ability to change the design by installing themes from the company’s store. Unfortunately, the store is not localized and most of the themes are paid, and installing extensions from third-party sources will require the user to read the instructions.

A little frustrating in Flyme OS is incomplete localization, which will probably be fixed in subsequent updates and minor roughness. For example, the system has its own keyboard, as well as TouchPal and Fleksy. If you install your own keyboard, it becomes impossible to call up a magnifying glass that allows you to place the cursor in the right place in a word, which makes it difficult to edit text. The built-in dialer is devoid of Cyrillic characters, which makes it impossible to quickly search for contacts, and in the call history all calls are grouped, there is access only to the last calls and there is no way to find out when you talked to a person before. Russian users of the MX4 Pro are faced with a problem when a newly purchased smartphone cannot register on the Megafon network. To solve the problem, you need to insert a SIM card of any other operator, wait for registration on the network and then install your card. There is a similar problem in the case of using Life:).

Operating time

At the time of writing the review, the operating time is not a strong point of Meizu MX4 Pro. From the built-in battery with a capacity of 3350 mAh, the smartphone works for about a day, showing 3-4 hours of screen operation.

This is a fairly average figure for flagships, while most of them are equipped with FullHD, not 2K screens. Using the various performance modes has little to no effect on the MX4 Pro’s run time. Perhaps the problem lies in a specific test sample or firmware dampness, but in autonomy tests, the smartphone also showed rather modest results.

In read mode all wireless communications are disabled, including mobile data transfer, and the display brightness is set to 200 cd/m². When listening to music automatic data synchronization was working, data transfer. Headphone volume at 12 out of 15 possible levels. All music files in MP3 format, bitrate 320 Kbps. Navigation includes route guidance in the Google Navigation app. The brightness is set to 200 cd/m², all data communication modules are disabled. When playing video video mobile data transfer active, display brightness set to 200 cd/m², headphone volume level 12 out of 15 possible. Video file format MKV, resolution 1024×432 pixels, frame rate 24. Video playback from Youtube was accompanied not only by work in the Wi-Fi network, but also by active data transfer. Display brightness is set to 200 cd/m², headphone volume is set to 12 out of 15 possible levels.

*

— data obtained under similar conditions, but with brightness set to 50% of the possible

You can get acquainted with the testing methodology at 8 material.

Cameras

Meizu MX4 Pro received two cameras. The main module is Sony IMX220 Exmor RS with a resolution of 20.7 megapixels, a lens of 5 lenses with an aperture of F / 2.2, covered with a sapphire crystal with a blue filter. Burst speed is declared at 30 fps, focusing time is 0.3 s. Front camera — OV569 module3 lens with 5 MP resolution, wide-angle (84.4°) quad-lens lens with aperture of F/2.2 and blue filter.

The camera application has been redesigned. Its settings are intuitive, there are many shooting modes: macro, manual, portrait, HDR, panorama, night and others. Switching between them is done with a swipe across the screen.

In good light, the smartphone shows excellent photo quality.

Liked:

+ design, body materials

+ display

+ good performance

+ excellent music playback quality, good external speaker

+ Fly me OS

+ cameras

— no memory card slot

— average operating time

— minor roughness of the firmware

The editors express their gratitude to the Citrus online store for the smartphone provided for the test

	Meizu MX4 Pro 16GB (Gray) Notify when available
Type	Smartphone
SIM card type	Micro SIM
Standard	GSM, WCDMA, LTE
High speed data transfer	GPRS, EDGE, HSPA, FDD/TD-LTE
Number of SIM cards	1
Operating system	Android 4. 4.4 (KitKat)
RAM, GB	3
Built-in memory, GB	16
Expansion slot	—
Dimensions, mm	150.1x77x9
Weight, g	158
Dust and moisture protection	—
Battery	3350 mAh
Operating time (manufacturer’s data)	n/a
Diagonal, inches	5.5
Approval	2560×1536
Matrix type	IPS
PPI	546
Dimming sensor	+
Touch screen (type)	touch (capacitive)
Other	protective glass Gorilla Glass 3
Processor	Exynos 5430 + GPU Mali-T628 MP6
Core type	Cortex-A15 + Cortex-A7
Number of cores	4+4
Frequency, GHz	2 (Cortex-A15) + 1. 5 (Cortex-A7)
Main camera, MP	20.7 (Sony IMX220 Exmor RS)
Autofocus	+
Video	4K
Flash	double LED
Front camera, MP	5
Other	4x digital zoom, panorama, continuous shooting 30 fps
WiFi	802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4GHz/5GHz)
Bluetooth	4.0 (BLE)
GPS	+ (A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS)
IrDA	—
NFC	+
Interface connector	USB 2.0 (micro USB)
Audio connector	3.5 mm
MP3 player	+
FM radio	—
Enclosure type	monobloc
Keyboard type	screen input
Another	mTouch fingerprint scanner, accelerometer, light sensor, proximity sensor, gyroscope, e-compass, vibrating alert

Meizu MX4 Pro review: flagship with 2K screen and fingerprint scanner

November 28, 2014

This year, Meizu managed to introduce a couple of smartphones. The trend to release devices similar in characteristics, but with different diagonals, still remains relevant. The popularity of large screens leads to the fact that most manufacturers prefer to release two smartphones at once with similar characteristics, offering buyers the right to choose. Considering that the Meizu model line itself is not at all large, the appearance of two new products within a few months becomes a truly significant event for the Chinese manufacturer.

It should be noted that in the case of Meizu MX4 and MX4 Pro, the difference in display sizes is not so significant at first glance. The MX4 Pro is very similar in appearance to the MX4, however, in terms of filling, this smartphone bypasses the previously released model. The new flagship has a larger display, a fingerprint scanner, a different processor, more battery capacity, much attention is paid to the quality of music playback. The novelty of the Chinese manufacturer will be on sale in early December. But this applies to the home region, in Russia the model will be available towards the end of the month. A pre-production sample was provided for testing, it does not have the final software, so this point should be taken into account.

Specifications

• Network: GSM/GPRS/EDGE, WCDMA/HSPA, LTE, microSIM
• OS: Android 4.4.4, Flyme 4.1
• Processor: 8 cores, Exynos Octa 5430, 4 cores Cortex A15 2GHz, 4 cores Cortex A7 1.5GHz
• RAM: 3 GB
• Built-in memory: 16, 32 or 64 GB
• Screen: 5.5», 2560×1536, 546 ppi, Gorilla Glass 3, IPS
• Front camera: 5 MP, Full HD video recording
• Main camera: 20.7 MP, autofocus, 4K video recording, sapphire crystal, 1/2.3”, f/2.2, dual flash
• Network: Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC
• Connectors: microUSB, USB-OTG, 3.5mm
• Navigation: GPS, GLONASS
• Sound: ESS ES9018K2M audio chip, TI OPA1612 amplifier
• Fingerprint scanner
• Battery: 3350 mAh, non-replaceable
• Dimensions: 150. 1x77x9 mm, weight 158 ​​g.
• Price in Russia: from 24990 rubles

Contents

The packaging is exactly the same as the MX4. This is a rather large white cardboard box, which contains a modest set of power supply and USB cable. Despite the fact that there is a recess for a box with a headset, it was not in a special hole.

Body

The base of the body, like the MX4, is also made of aircraft-grade aluminum. In general, the models can be called twins, except that the MX4 Pro turned out to be a little larger. If you pick up both smartphones, then the difference will be barely noticeable, even if the flagship model is thicker and heavier, but not by much.

A smartphone for a 5.5-inch device turned out to be not very large, the space is used wisely.

I liked the MX4 better in terms of size, but you have to pay for a larger screen and battery. Let’s compare the novelty with other devices with similar parameters:

• LG G3 146. 3×74.6×8.9 mm, weight 149 g, screen 5.46»;
• One PlusOne 152.9×75.9×8.9mm, weight 162g, 5.5” screen;
• Meizu MX4 144×75.2×8.9mm, weight 147 g, screen 5.36»;
• Meizu MX4 Pro 150.1x77x9 mm, weight 158 ​​g, screen 5.5’’;
• Note 3 151.2×79.2×8.3mm, weight 168g, screen 5.7».

Smartphone will be available in three colors: silver, white and gold.

The front panel is surrounded by a neat frame, a beautiful cut does not scratch. This solution looks beautiful, the design is a success. The smartphone has a special adhesive layer, which acts as a gasket between the case and the screen glass. If the device falls to the ground, it will take over the energy on impact, this should protect the glass from cracking.

The power button is located on the top end, and a 3.5 mm headphone port is located right there. At the bottom there is a microUSB connector, a speaker, a recess for removing the back panel.

Above the screen is a set of sensors, a camera and a speaker. The volume control button is located on the left side, it is quite tight and moved closer to the top, so reading books on a smartphone is not very convenient if you constantly use this key to scroll through the pages.

The battery is located under the polycarbonate cover, but it is not replaceable. Inside there is a compartment for microSIM. After a while, the panel may emit unpleasant squeaks. Moreover, it fits tightly, and is fixed in place without play and cracks, but nevertheless, sometimes you can hear an unpleasant sound if you press on it somewhere in the center. The camera lens is surrounded by a silver frame, it protrudes slightly above the surface. Below it is a dual LED flash.

Below the screen is a mechanical button. She will remind you of the old Meizu M9, where there was a similar element. Although not everyone will most likely remember it, the model with such a key was born 5 years ago. Now the famous white-backlit touch circle is gone, but the indicator light has not disappeared from the front panel. From now on, it is located above the screen and will not allow you to miss important events.

The key difference between the new Meizu and previous models of the company is the appearance of a fingerprint scanner.

It is inscribed in a large key, which, in addition to being able to recognize the user’s identity, can now also help in navigation. So, a simple gesture is enough to go back a step, and not press the on-screen key or the mechanical button itself until it clicks. The option is convenient, it is easy to get used to it and use this feature regularly.

Screen

The diagonal of the new smartphone is 5.5» with a resolution of 1536×2560 pixels and a density of 546 ppi. Usually in Meizu smartphones, the aspect ratio of the display differs from generally accepted standards, the novelty is no exception, there are also unusual numbers 15: 9. At the same time, there are no problems with application compatibility here, the software works as usual.

By the standards of smartphones, the dot density is very high, so it’s simply pointless to try to find grain on such a display, the picture is comparable to images that can be seen in albums with graphics or reproductions. Moreover, during the presentation of the smartphone, the manufacturer noted that the MX4 Pro is comparable in screen resolution to an Apple laptop with a Retina display. In my opinion, the comparison is not particularly appropriate, since it is more logical to draw parallels with representatives of their class: LG, Samsung and others have such models.

The bezels around the display are very thin, they are slightly wider than in the MX4, where they are 2.6 mm, and here 2.8 mm. But at the same time, this parameter is still impressive, and the screen itself is of excellent quality. It was created in close cooperation with such world famous companies as Sharp and JDI. There is an oleophobic coating, Gorilla Glass 3 will protect the surface from scratches, there is no air gap by itself. By the way, as in MX4, automatic backlight adjustment does not work in the best way, but they promise to fix this in future updates.

Detailed testing of the screen was carried out by our expert Mikhail Kuznetsov:

Meizu MX4 Pro screen uses IPS LCD technology. The diagonal is 5.5 inches, and the aspect ratio and resolution are non-standard: 15:9 aspect ratio and 2560×1536 pixels. The pixel density is off scale — 546 ppi. The smoothness and clarity of the image is so high that hints of individual pixels can only be seen under a magnifying glass.

Measured brightness at maximum was 540 cd/m ² , this is a solid supply for different conditions. The contrast ratio was 1530:1, almost the limit for IPS. It is curious that Meizu in the official presentation spoke about the value of 1500: 1, which completely coincides with the real figures. An effective anti-reflective filter improves image perception in the light. Due to the absence of an air gap, the image does not fade, and the viewing angles are very wide. Even the familiar purple tint on black in the IPS-matrix practically does not make itself felt.

We go further. The average gamma is about 2.3. A slight darkening of the image practically does not make itself felt, the details in the shadows do not disappear anywhere.

Color temperature takes off from 7300K to 8900K. The overall tone of the image is cold, but «walks» in the shadows. And this is visible to the naked eye.

Color balance is uneven and unstable. The average Delta E error on the gray scale reaches 11.65. The blue dot affects the entire image.

The color gamut corresponds to sRGB in terms of primary colors.

Intermediate gradations are distorted due to the blue tint, secondary colors are especially shifted. There is also a tendency to oversaturate the image.

The total score on 24 ColorChecker patterns gives an average Delta E error of 5.96. Color accuracy could be better, colors distort more than desired.

Meizu MX4 Pro’s display is outstanding in terms of brightness, contrast and clarity. Also in the pluses you can record wide viewing angles and effective anti-glare. Only the color rendition fails: the overall picture here is spoiled by a too cold shade of the image and somewhat oversaturated colors. I must say that this is not too critical for a typical smartphone usage scenario. Many users will be satisfied with the screen, if only because of the perfect clarity.

Performance

It should be said right away that we are talking about a pre-production sample with raw software. Therefore, it was possible to notice that the menu sometimes reacts with delays or the gallery works slowly. All this should be removed in software updates, in any case, judging by the speed of the MX4, there are no complaints, I think that everything will be fine with this model. Given the above, it is not surprising that in games the situation was not as we would like, it was felt that the frame rate sags in dynamic scenes. Again, there are still problems with supporting such a high resolution in Android games. Therefore, it will be more likely to use the potential of a high-quality display while viewing photos, videos or reading. But these are the problems of the software developers, not the device manufacturer. Although the owner of the MX4 will certainly be pleased with the fact that in synthetic tests, the MediaTek processor overtakes the chip from Samsung.

The smartphone received a Samsung Exynos 5430 processor. This chip was introduced at the end of the summer of 2014, the eight-core solution was the first Korean development made using 20-nm technology. 4 Cortex-A15 cores run at 2GHz, 4 Cortex-A7 cores run at 1.3GHz. Compared to chips based on the 28nm process technology, the new one consumes 25% less energy. There is support for bi.LITTLE technology, when the load varies depending on the tasks, so not all eight cores can work at once, which increases the operating time. This processor is in the Samsung GALAXY Alpha, which we have already tested. At the same time, Samsung kept the more productive Exynos 5433 for itself. It is in the GALAXY Note 4, which offers the Mali T760MP6 graphics against the T628 in the 5430 processor. The MX4 Pro has 3 GB of fast RAM, 16, 32 or 64 GB of internal memory is allocated for data storage, there is no microSD support, with external drives via USB- OTG smartphone works fine.

The smartphone has Wi-Fi 802.11ac, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS and GLONASS. Finding a location on the street will not take more than 20 seconds, the phone accurately shows the coordinates. There is LTE, of course, the smartphone also works with 2G and 3G networks. The device has one microSIM slot. Unlike MX4, NFC appeared here.

The Flyme 4.1 shell in our case is truncated, more functions will be available in the final version. Therefore, it is too early to talk about the capabilities of the phone. You can read about the features of the shell in the MX4 review.

But already now we can say that the MX4 Pro offers a very rich set of settings for managing your smartphone on the lock screen. If 4 gestures are offered in the MX4, then there are 11 of them. Thus, without unlocking the smartphone, you can immediately launch most frequently used programs by setting them to launch on a specific gesture, depicting a specific character on the screen. Although it also happens that in standby mode, using a smartphone, you can accidentally activate the function. For example, if you listen to the player and reach into your pocket for the phone, involuntarily touching the screen. If necessary, these gestures can be turned off.

In the battery settings, you can select the operating mode: economical, balanced, productive. The 3350 mAh battery is non-replaceable, the battery lasts for a day of work with 3-4 hours of active screen, active background synchronization and LTE. In Full HD video playback mode at maximum screen brightness, we got 7 hours of work. This is not so much, but apparently, the final software is not yet affecting. According to my feelings, the smartphone lasts longer than the MX4, it’s noticeable. In games or when watching a movie for a long time, the smartphone gets very hot, in games the smartphone lives for about 3.5 hours. In AnTuTu Tester we get 6043 points. For comparison, Lenovo Z2 in this test is gaining 6367 points, Samsung GAALXY Note 4 — 5481 points, Huawei Ascend Mate 7 5842 points. Autonomy cannot be called a strong quality of the model, the performance is average for its class. Still, a 2K screen requires the most capacious battery possible and careful work on optimizing the filling.

Camera

The MX4 Pro uses the latest generation Sony IX220 1/2.3” sensor, the exact same sensor found in the Japanese flagship Xperia Z3 and MX4. Camera with 5-lens optics, the lens is protected by sapphire glass, not Gorilla Glass, like the MX4. The sensor in both smartphones is the same, but the Pro uses an improved processor responsible for processing images. The front wide-angle camera takes pictures in 5 MP quality.

The front camera can record video in Full HD, the main one records in 4K, mono sound. There is also a slow motion mode, in which case we get 120 frames / sec and 720p. You can see the properties of the video below.

By default, photos are taken in automatic mode, but if you wish, you can select one of the ready-made scene modes: panorama, night, macro, slow motion, QR code reading, skin color enhancement.

The camera starts in 2.5 seconds, it can be launched not only from the menu, but also from the lock screen. Unfortunately, the HDR mode does not work quickly here and pictures with this effect are saved for a very long time, a number of analogues take such frames without delay at all. In general terms, the camera deserves high praise, the smartphone takes high-quality pictures in various conditions.

Fingerprint scanner

The added privacy feature has become one of the important features of smartphones in the last two years. During its presentation, Meizu rightly noted that not every Android smartphone manufacturer can offer a convenient implementation of a fingerprint scanner. Therefore, it was interesting to try the Chinese company’s own development in order to understand how convenient it is to work with the scanner in practice. I must say that the efforts were not in vain, the sensitivity of the sensor is on top. Very fast unlocking of the smartphone is easily felt against the background of analogues, the operation takes place without delays or delays.

The scanner, which Meizu called mTouch, is located in a convenient place, it is easy to reach it with one hand, there is no need to press the button on the top end. In the future, the scanner will allow you to make purchases, but so far this is only relevant for the Meizu branded store. Meizu notes that the user may not be afraid of leakage of personal data. Fingerprints are stored in a secure section of the device’s memory. This is especially true for the only manufacturer on the market that offers full access to the smartphone’s file system. In other words, root. Unlocking is simple — just put your finger on it, it is instantly read, without delays and errors. The memory stores data for up to 10 fingers.

Sound

The brand, which began with the release of players that have rightfully earned a reputation as very worthy devices for listening to music, continues to improve this parameter in their smartphones. Meizu MX4 Pro can offer very high quality sound in headphones. This is the merit of a dedicated RA1612 amplifier, the smartphone produces 123 dB in the dynamic range, and in terms of signal-to-noise ratio we get 114 dB for the ES9018 audio processor. It is stated that background noise due to such a solution is minimized, interference is excluded. During the presentation of the smartphone, the term Retina Sound was even mentioned, with which Meizu emphasizes the high quality of music playback. This borrowing of Apple’s idea looks somehow strange, but Chinese companies are usually not shy and copy ideas with a clear conscience.

If you download a lot of music into your smartphone’s memory and start listening to well-known tracks, you can’t help but hear how familiar melodies are transformed. Paired with high-quality headphones, the potential of the MX4 Pro is revealed, the smartphone will surprise you with how bright and voluminous the music plays. I think that in this parameter the model has no analogues on the market. There is support for Dirac HD, but the function is not for everyone, I personally liked listening to music without it more. The phone produces a sound rich in low frequencies, it plays different formats by standard means: FLAC/APE/AAC/OGG/MP3. In terms of playback quality, the model will definitely please, lately it has been the best among smartphones on which I have had to listen to music. The external speaker is loud, the ring tone is heard perfectly, and if desired, you can listen to music without distortion through it. There is no FM radio in the smartphone.

Opinion Hi-Tech.

Mail.Ru

During its presentation, Meizu noted that the smartphone is cheaper than its competitors. But we are talking primarily about China, where the smartphone really turns out to be a very attractive option for the price. But we are in Russia and evaluate the device based on our specifics. It is expected that the model with 16 GB of memory will cost at least 24-25 thousand rubles. For comparison, in China, the starting price starts at 2499 yuan, which is about 20,000 rubles. Given that the smartphone does not have a memory card, and buying a solution for audiophiles with a modest 16 GB is somehow irrational, it is more logical to consider more expensive versions — 32 or 64 GB. Modifications with a minimum of memory for a model of this level are not particularly attractive, and versions priced at about 30 thousand rubles automatically increase the class of competitors.

If a memory card is critical, then in Russia for the same 25 thousand you can buy LG G3, Samsung Galaxy Note 3 or Galaxy S5, Sony Xperia Z2.