Meizu M8 unboxed before December 8th launch
By Thomas Ricker 
posted Nov 28th 2008 6:46AM
posted Nov 28th 2008 6:46AM
[Via iTech News Net]
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Wow.. it's actually released?! Nice.
Now bring it to Europe for a cheap price so I can have a nice looking backup phone :D
Oh.. by the way.. for the ones calling it an iPhone clone (*cough*iEye*cough*Clak*cough*) it beats the iPhone solely for the reason that it has a removable battery! Suck on that :p
You just confirmed my intial thought; Apple did the right not including a removable battery, you can die for sucking on a battery for crying out loud!
Finally somebody will kick Apple ass
@Bobby
Somehow, unless Meizu suddenly turns into a mobile phone powerhouse, I doubt it will be them kicking Apple's backside. It is far more likely to be the likes of Nokia, Samsung, LG, etc who are arguably already doing so. Meizu's "me too" is unlikely to trouble Apple beyond getting their legal department excited. Sorry.
Storm. G1. Instinct. All by major corporations. All fairly well marketed. All failed to bring down the iPhone. It'll be a cold day in Hell when all the iPhone users switch to a Meizu M8s.
P.S. Low Rank me if you want, but in the end you'll know it's the truth.
P.P.S. Spit it out!!!
@ patriks >>>>> Um, (*cough*iEye*cough*Clak*cough*), a removable \ replaceable battery is a huge
plus. Currently Apple can turn your life into a train wreck with a single battery failure. It's crazy.
@ Kelmon,
Oh really? look at GM, Toyota showed them some pity by increasing the price of cars so that they GM could sell a few... The same thing can happen to any company that puts out shite!!!!
remember motorola? Nokia is next, they have been putting out oo many cookie cutter phones for too long...
M8 has a good outlook.
I had a fun Thanksgiving telling my uncle the many shortcomings of his iPhone.
He's like, "Let me take a picture of my son doing something cute!" I said,"Wouldn't you rather take some video?"
Ouch. Then he told me how his metal backed (he still has the 2G, because he couldn't afford to upgrade) phone could give me a concussion.
@Mike
"I had a fun Thanksgiving telling my uncle the many shortcomings of his iPhone."
I hope he had fun telling you how he gets to make love to a woman while you spitefully research the iPhone's shortcomings.
"remember motorola? Nokia is next, they have been putting out oo many cookie cutter phones for too long..."
Hahahahaha!
I just laughed at that..
I've never seen better phones than Nokia's.. They have them targeted at any group.. from 14 yr old girls to businessmen.. And I still have my 8 year old Nokia as a back up because I can never be sure enough with my current phone..
And the videos are in:
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASySfmogpvs
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJrqhmtEK58
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCuLrwhClHs
Part 4: www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoJrA_fQ31o
Part 5: www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhKUfufuWdI
Looks fruking awesome! Me Loveee.
I agree with who?
The Meizu M8 may have better specs than the iphone, but unless you are delusional or completely lying to yourself, anyone can see that the company is trying to sell their phones by making it look like one of the hottest phones right now.
But that's the thing, just because it looks like something else doesn't make them equal. And most people won't know the difference in specs between the Meizu and the iPhone. Most consumers know apple, know the iPhone, and if they ever see this phone, the only thing they'll think is "iPhone copycat". This phone by no means will "kill the iPhone" as they limited themselves in that way the moment they copied the design. It will always end up being a second-hand copycat phone to the iPhone. And really, I'd be completely happy with a phone coming out that has better specs than the iPhone, and can potentially "kill" it. I'd want that phone. Like.. my dream phone at the moment.. a matured Android OS on a HTC Touch HD (drool). But it needs to be a phone with originality, innovation, and its own uniqueness.
Anytime you make something that looks too similar to something already made, it will never beat it. If you're going to beat the iPhone, you need to introduce something new, not just something old. Yes, we may be able to sit there and point out all these faults with the iPhone, but at the end of the day, the iPhone will be an iPhone, and the Meizu will be.. a Meizu? No. Not in most people's minds; it'll be the iPhone-clone, whether you want it to be or not. The makers of Meizu chose that route, obviously trying to use the iPhone's hype to its own advantage, because they do not have a big enough name to come out with a random new phone to really have a chance at making a dent in these giant cellphone companies. And, probably they'll sell more phones this way, than trying the latter route, and they decided to do it to make more money. They reached up to where they can reach, and knew their limits.
So, yes, this may be a well spec-ed phone, but let's not go overboard and start saying it'll "kill" this or "kill" that. It is what it is.
Instinct, Storm, G1? These companies don't need topple the iphone. there is a difference between having the most popular single phone and being the top cell phone maker. These companies want sales and profit. And they get it through several phones. Right now Samsung is the U.S.'s leading cellphone provider selling more handsets. They may not have one that sells like the iphone but in total they have more. RIM and Google aren't exactly doing bad either.
I'll take one, please.
Ditto!
I cannot wait to see a formal video review of the UI in action!!!
___________________________________
anyone see the article just underneath?
Sony Ericsson X1 fuselage cracking a number of quality problems may appear to be recalled
Ha Ha! eat it up Sorny boys!
Of course you want one, check out those captions.
"Tears finally see the M8"
"Touch under the M8, feel good"
"But the back is a fingerprint Wang" (WHA?)
"Parts of the M8, the iPhone is a feeling, but the victory in the battery can be replaced"
I'm sold!
hahaha. a cheap iPhone wannabe. such a rip-off. disgusting china. ewww!!!
Psst.. where do you think your iPhone is made of? By the same factorys and most likely the same parts. Meizu is one of the best hardware producers out there. I wouldn´t even be surprised if the hardware design for the iPhone is mainly done in China/Asia while the esthetics is done by Jobs himself.
That said, can´t wait to get a mobile which supports an open software model which gives me proper file support, allowes me to feed sdd cards, lets me exchange my battery and got some quality aux-out. Oh... and and if it gets released, it is atleast avaible to the world ie the other 4 billion costumers out there.
@JZ
I'm pretty sure that the design of the iPhone is made by Jonathan Ive. Please, credit where it is due. Steve might know what he likes but he's not the designer.
"Jonathan Ive"
LOL. He designs the way it LOOKs. Then there are the engineers that make sure his generic white rectangle can actually DO something.
Thumbs down Engadget for the douche-y attitude you all consistently harbor towards this phone.
Thumbs down to idiot consumers who think that the M8 is in any way original. It's a blatant iPhone ripoff, and no, adding more features doesn't make it any less of a ripoff. The amount of support that this carbon copy has garnered from Apple haters just goes to prove that they would love everything Apple if it only didn't have the Apple logo on it.
The packaging is better than expected.
-Pleasing appearance allows for the better unboxing
Oh, you like that? Look at the iPhone packaging. It's just like that, only more original.
Can someone kindly inform me what OS this phone is running off of?
If I recall, so many years ago, it ran on WinOS.
It's running Windows CE 6 with a custom interface (throughout the whole phone, not just tackled on). You should also be able to install most apps that run on Windows CE.
Acturally,it runs on M-mobile,a WinCE-based OS developed by Meizu.
How long before someone puts Android on this thing?
bahahahaha read the translated version..hilarious
"But the back is a fingerprint Wang"
That's Numberwang!
@Joe,
Damn, that almost made me choke on my drink. You win the Intertubes for today.
I've never won anything before :)
This is pretty funny, Chinese are fascinated by numerology and the number 8 seems to rule their world of late. This is one date we know they'll stick with, but yeah good radiance to you M8, we wish you success.
perhaps they wanted to be l8
you got it! 8 is really a lucky number in our China. you know that the Beijing Olympic opening ceremony is begin at 2008-08-08 08:00pm . but i think the type number and the release day of M8 is just a coincidence of being containing the nubmer 8.
If u want to know more about the hot unboxed M8 ,please read
http://reviews.cnmo.com/2/26412.html
If you are fond of it much the latest news about it, you can email me rewo@qq.com
May u be happy ^_^
@Thomas: They needed about 2 years, maybe a bit more, to develop the phone. From scratch, without any experience in phones. Kind of reminds me of Apple, huh? The only difference is that Meizu has been more optimistic (naive) and announced the thing far to early.
The difference is the Billions US$ spent in marketing by apple, versus the 0 $ spent in marketing by Meizu.
And guess what you actually pay for this at some point customer..
I like most Apple adds, they are nice and sweet, and a simple minds-oriented (a bit like the products actually) but I'm really glad I don't pay for all this :)
"I like most Apple adds, they are nice and sweet, and a simple minds-oriented (a bit like the products actually) but I'm really glad I don't pay for all this :)"
And half the time they lie..
http://www.engadget.com/2008/11/26/uk-smacks-apple-for-another-misleading-iphone-commercial/
But I have to say those Mac vs. PC ones are not that bad, just sometimes they are really stupid :\
It didn't take Apple 2 years to develop the iPhone. They actually had an OS to work with ( kind of ) and also apple does their design work in-house but the actual manufacturing is kind of outsources. And you can't really compare the resources that Apple has with a small Chinese company that decided to stick with MS and all the restrictions that that imposes. After all there's only so much that you can change in Windows Mobile when you are not MS ...
What I can't figure out is how is the M8 circumventing Apple's patents. Sure China is kinda lenient when it comes to royalties but if I remember correctly Apple actually has a patent of the form factor of the iPhone amongst other things.
I doubt that Apple has a patent on the form factor, otherwise they could have sued about every touchscreen smartphone that has been released before and after the iPhone's release.
From what I see they did a good job on building on top of CE, and CE has its advantages too. Meizu also had an OS to work with, in this case WinCE. And yeah, of course Apple has by far more ressources, and some pretty good engineers and designers, and they have more experience with mobile devices. Yet Meizu has been able to do what Nokia hasn't been able to do. Not to mention Motorola.
by from scratch you mean they bought an iphone and needed 2 years to copy it? (even the accessories and the boxing) :D
While these devices may have similar interfaces, I doubt that they have used a single line of code from the iPhone, the hardware is different too. So yeah, they surely got inspired by Apple, but then again the iPhone interface is hardly original as well. Apple just improved on other smartphones, and Meizu improved on the iPhone.
@Iceman : just compare the 2 products different specs, different OS...
Ok the interface "LOOKS" the same and the form factor is the same, but that's it.
It has MMS and copy paste, and it will run any C/C++ based WinCe app contrary to the iPhone..
Meaning you can change the Web Browser etc..
This product isn't half bad really, and it's damn cheap !
Which brings us back to the Apple marketing bs : the specs are better on the Meizu, and the production cost is propably the same but the price is half the price of the iPhone...
Anyone seen the Earphones and the USB-Plug? It's EXACTLY Apple-ish!
Yeah, that totally makes it a clone...
I didn't realise Apple own the right to shitty white earphones that blare music to all people within a mile radius?
but it's still a clone.
Well, don't want to discuss Apple's product quality. It's copyright infringement, nothing more or less. Especially bad since these earbuds, crappy or not, are the most iconic ones on the market.
Give me the M8 with Android and I'm sold. I don't like Windows Mobile.
Not gonna happen.
But you'll have a lot of android based smartphone in 2009, so just wait and be nice.
I don't like you.
It's not Windows Mobile. It's based on Windows CE 6.0. Either way, WinMo once you get used to it.
I don't care about the phone, but Google's automatic translators get better all the time.
Finally a product that may be some competition for Apple. So what some say it's a clone, I like being able to have additional options rather than just Apple.
According to the website, "But the back is a fingerprint Wang". Hope they include a cloth.
I don't wanna sound rude or ignorant but anything coming from china or most of Asia is a big red flag to me, i don't mean assemble there i mean from companies base down there, it's just to much corruption down there and you really don't know what the heck your getting
And the "we'll start a war to get the defense industry going" US is better? ;)
Btw., if Meizu were bribing officials they would have the mobile license by now, which is the big problem right now it seems. And they also wouldn't have to lie to the officials in saying that it's a dual band Wi-Fi and BT less device when it has quad band and Wi-Fi/BT.
Just wait for the first feedback, and you'll know about the software reliability.
The Hardware is pretty much the same quality as any, since china provides most of the hardware for all the manufacturer in the world.
Yeah like there is no corruption here in the US.....
"I don't wanna sound rude or ignorant"
Too late.
@kadajawi, Am not saying that the US is better, but we don't have entire towns full of E-waste like China and also where they burn all kinds of plastics and chemicals and everything protected by their government as long as the $$$ keep flowing
You've got a point there, but the US may be heading that way too, if the economy won't recover. And don't forget who is paying them to store the waste.
Dude it's a Woldwide recession is not just the US, by the time the US goes the down under the entire wold economy would have been gone for years, Anyways enough of the political crap but just look at this video link of the crap that goes down in china
http://current.com/items/76355482/toxic_villages.htm?xid=55
@Snitch and where do you think that E-waste comes from ?
Why do you think China takes cares of it ?
Because the USA pay a lot of money for it.
(and really I mean a LOT)
You make me think of the French governement accusing india of flushing asbestos directly to the sea, when the asbestos was coming from .... the Charles de Gaulle rehab....(i.e. French Navy)
I'm not sure if you've ever looked at the back of an iPhone 3G, but mine says "Designed by Apple in California, assembled in China"
Ah, I take that last comment back
lol didn't read the part where it said "not assembled there, companies there"
although it didn't help that the entire comment was barely readable on this dinky monitor that i'm viewing it on lol
Copying the look and feel of the screen and the icons forgiven. Do they really need to copy the headset, connector and the charger. And who said white is cool? Apple did something wrong in choosing the color white, cos it get stained so easily. Meizu has copied the cheap side of the phone too. That sucks now. Want to smile but can't afford :( take that.....
Copying is NOT forbidden is China, as there is no pattent.
@Félix: They do have copyright laws. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intellectual_property_in_the_People's_Republic_of_China It's just that they tend to be somewhat reluctant in enforcing these laws.
Well Felix, that needs to change, we need to rework our trade deals with the rest of the industrialized world. We must stay competitive, and part of that is defending our patents and presence in international markets.
Thriving US and a Chinese economies are good for the rest of the world, but both and others need to be on a plane field, and that means producing your damn own goods, with your damn own innovation, vision and hard work.
Intellectual Property is not copyright.
+ I don't consider a Law to exist when it never is enforced.
That's how it works with the chineses, you can use there workforce (like they were toys) for as cheap as you want, but you have to be aware you won't be able to keep your technological secrets forever.
And it's even worse when you want to SELL to chineses, which , and correct me if i'm wrong, Apple tries to do.
Now, this may sucks for the US and Europe, but I think it's very understandable.
Oh and No trhiving US and chinese economy is good for chineses and americans...
and maybe some european investors, not for the rest of the world...
Sorry:
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Hahaha ... ha ... sniff ...
If only it is cheap and has CYdia,
Love the Engrish web translation!
Although its nice to see a removable battery on this phone, it distracts me the way it looks like an iPhone. I mean look at samsung or Blackberry with its Storm. They at least tried to improve AND avoided just ripping of the looks of the iPhone.
For its features it definately looks great, but their design is just a total ripoff which definately sucks.
Although its nice to see a removable battery on this phone, it distracts me the way it looks like an iPhone. I mean look at samsung or Blackberry with its Storm. They at least tried to improve AND avoided just ripping of the looks of the iPhone.
For its features it definately looks great, but their design is just a total ripoff which definately sucks.
I don't agree, they do try to improve :
Looking at the soecs this phone is exactly what the iPhone should have been : up to date (almost)
Now I don't say this phone is gonna be better (probably not) but you cannot just say it's a rip-off.
It has a 667MHZ Samsung processor, 256MB RAM, better sound quality than the M6, and a 720x480 LTPS LCD.
You suckers still crying for a removable battery? With so many of you tech hungry clowns willing to drop coin on every fucking new model of celly that creeps out of the sweat shops, you'll never keep your phone long enough to bitch about it not holding a charge.
And this Meizu is nothing but a rip off. Hey, the labor is cheap.
I would love to see a real showdown between that shit and the iphone. I'm talking about a real showdown and not some tired as launch of youtube and google maps.
Owning a phone that does 6-12 hours with little to regular use (with new and fresh batteries, with more intensive use I can get it down to about 30-60 minutes) I came to love replacable batteries. Especially if the manufacturer has packed another battery in the box and a docking station that charges the phone and the battery. It's just terribly reassuring to have another battery in the backpack in case I run out of battery. Even if the phone usually does a day (and what if I don't come close to a charger for a while?).
And rip-off... a rip-off that is superior, specs wise (and at least the audio quality and the screen will be better)?
But I'd like to see a review comparing both phones too.
Ps: Labour is cheap? Meizu's workers will probably earn as much or more as those making the iPhone. Still the iPhone is much more expensive. Uhm...
Sorry but you misunderstood, I tried to put emphasis on the AND because I think they improved in tech specs but not in design. Instead of having their own interpretation of a touchscreen phone they just ripped off the design of the iPhone, hoping they could attract the same group of potential buyers who bought/ would like to buy an iPhone.
The removable battery is a 1000% improvement on the iPhone.... but how good will the touch screen and the OS be?
I have seen a lot of Samsungs & LG's that look quite stunning but the screen is difficult to "press" and the OS is really laggy.
Good on them though :) Why should Apple have the monopoly?
So I'm assuming it's going to have an mSDK, an mAppStore and it's pretty much going to be renamed mPhone sooner or later.
And Meizu will become..Maple, Inc.
It kind of reminds on something...
OK, obviously:
1. Meizu got their design plans by looking at Apple's iPhone. Definitely not the first time a Chinese company has blatantly imitated a successful would-be competitor. I'm not saying it's right, but that seems to be a point we shouldn't dispute anymore.
2. Meizu announced this thing WAY too long ago, which was actually a bad move for them for a couple of reasons.
a) it caused people to get REALLY excited about it and then get bored waiting for it
b) it gave OTHER cell phone manufacturers an idea of a great spec list, which people obviously were interested in, and thus allowed them to implement ideas Meizu might otherwise have been the first (or in the top few) to offer
Even if it is a great phone with a lot of functionality, I have a feeling they will be hard-pressed to beat the UI on the iPhone, the flexibility of an Android phone, or the screen quality of an HTC device . . . HOWEVER, if they can somehow get close in ALL categories, it may be the jack of all trades that a lot of GSM users are looking for.
Of course, the jack of all trades is the ace at nothing, but in the tech world, I think that's almost better.
Not that it matters to me, I live in Korea = some alien network that you can't use any other phone on, like your beautiful SE K800i that you bought unlocked in the states and brought over . . . :-(
meizu M8 is not a phone made by chinese, but a phone made by people from the planet, such as europeans, americans, asians , australians africans etc. You may ask why? that is because all the fans and kind-hearted people contributed the whole designing process through the arudous two years, they offer opinons and suggestions. NO company but Meizu cares more about their buyers and potential customers. Now,It is not merely a cellphone, but the hope and dream of these people. what the advantages of M8 is what the diadvantages of iphone. Removable bettary, high resolution screen, higher cpu, camera able to record video, etc. PEOPLE HAVE TO CHEER FOR THE PHONE MADE BY THEMSELVES.
agree, no company like meizu listen to its customer so much! (don't believe? just go to its official bbs, check the posts over the 2 years!)
i'm kind of touched of that!!!
Oh yeah, and "definately" is spelled "definitely." Don't you have spell-check on Firefox? :-)
he uses I.E 7 D:
Can they, Meizu, legally get away with this? That phone and its accessories are identical to the iPhone, i am really surprised Apple hasn't done much (that i know of at least) to stop this. Would it be because Apple doesnt have much, if any of a market in China/Japan with the iPhone and thus are not worried?
the wait is over but still i cant wait
Awesome!
USB 2.0! Brilliant!
But the back is a fingerprint Wang
Meizu? It should be Metoo.
For those that are confused, "Wang" in Chinese is King. So the fingerprint Wang means it easily gets fingerprints.
Seriously, an EDGE phone? You guys are creaming your keyboards over an EDGE phone?