Meizu M8 reviewed, worth the wait?
Can you believe it? It's been over two years since we first got wind of what would become Meizu's high-end iPhone clone, the M8. Okay, we admit to being somewhat dubious at first, and won't be entirely won over until we get one to play with, but just a few days away from its Chinese release the handset seems to live up to its promises according to IT168's full review. Other than a few faults, including an "ear-piercing" integrated speaker and issues running third-party Windows CE applications, things sound surprisingly good. The 480 x 720 3.4-inch screen received high marks, performance was rated as very speedy, and the integrated 3 megapixel camera looks to be able to take great looking pics -- assuming you turn a few lights on. It does sound like a solid device, but is it a proper iPhone competitor? In China, where the iPhone still isn't officially available, we wonder if it isn't the iPhone that's the underdog now (cue raised eyebrow).



















I got so sick of waiting that I decided to buy Apple's M8 clone.
I see what you did thar
+1 so did I!
yes, killing a bunch of people (and ones closeby) who buy a cheaper "ripoff" constitutes upholding the law....
jackass.
Right... So no other company can manufacture anything that may resemble it? What ARE the similarities of these 2 devices? They look alike, and THAT'S ALL! One is some crappy OS while the other is WinCE (hopefully WM6 too). The touchscreens function differently, one off heat, one off actual touch. The cameras are different and the demographic is different. iPhones are for computer-illiterate while WinCE/WM6 is for those who actually use Outlook for work related purposes. Personally, I don't understand how people can live without Outlook and without a feature that syncs your phone with your computer. I want my phone to sync with my pc as soon as my pc is on and so I have all my files, contacts, music, notes, call records, and everything with me on the road. Can iPhones do that? On the most basic level, here is the difference between iPhone and M8:
M8 - Used to carry files & info in your pocket and function as a UMPC to ASSIST your life
iPhone - Used to listen to music and make calls and RUN your life
Wow WhatTheXToTheZ, I think you take the cake for the dumbest comment of the year. You very obviously come off as someone who desperately hates the iPhone for some sort of fulfillment in life that I don't think I'll ever understand, and equally as obviously have never used an iPhone.
Now, from someone who has owned and used both for an extended time:
Some crappy OS? Are you kidding me? I liked my WM6 phone, but you'd be a complete liar to say that Windows Mobile doesn't constantly crash, lag, or give you other problems. The iPhone's OS isn't perfect, but at least I've only had it hard lock or reset itself a handful of times, and app crashes maybe once a week with latest updates. With WinMo you can expect to fight the phone to keep it running half the time. I like the OS itself, but it needs major work, and certainly is the "crappy" one out of the two.
As for Outlook, again, having used both, the iPhone is light years easier to type an email on. Trust me, I was one of those people who said "the iphone keyboard is dumb, i have a real hard keyboard i can flip out" when I had my WinMo, but I realized I was full of shit once I got the iPhone. And being that it has ActiveSync for Exchange, and also MobileMe as a backup option, yes, it does sync everything, so what's your point?
I have used both the iPhone OS and WM6 many times. The iPhone doesn't lag as much and I haven't encountered a crash yet, but that's only because it's mostly all coded by Apple (the maker) and cannot do anything complicated that programs can on WM6. True, WM6 does glitch up often and requires a reset almost daily, but the functions of it outweigh those cons. Try a program called SPB Phone Suite and you'll realize why WM6 is better. I cannot type on the screen of the iPhone since it doesn't allow a stylus (or pen) and I hate the navigation for music in iPods. Unless you have all your music properly tagged and by album, it's a pain to find the song you just "downloaded legally" because you cannot navigate by folder! What I will give credit to Apple for is Safari on the iPhone. It's pretty good; however, Opera 9.5 on WM6 does it better now, but it was the inspiration that led to it.
WhatTheXToTheZ, you can't type on the iPhone because its screen doesn't support a stylus or pen? Do you have stylus fingers?
Navigating music by folders is so archaic. Nearly all the torrents I get are properly tagged, any CD ripping program made after 1993, which CDDB was created, will properly tag your files.
to Flashpoint (aka douch-silo),
The new apple iPod Nano looks exactly like the Chinese made ones which has been out for years.
Should apple be sued?
I'm gonna go buy that Honda knock off... I think it was called the Camry. Funny Toyota, always stealing there ideas. They even both have 4 wheels! It's a gas what people can get away with these days!
I used to navigate on WinMo PDAs using my bare fingers...and APPLE STOLE THAT OMG
The iPhone is an underdog in EVERY global market (sans the US). Just look at sales figures outside the US.
Agreed, I have never ever seen an iPhone in the wild. Neither in Germany nor in Finland. Only place to see one is in shops.
I saw a British guy with one, apparently they were a big hit there. Then again, they offer a prepaid iPhone there with unlimited data for a year (with no monthly bill). I'd get one too if that were the case.
Here in Norway, none of my friends have one. See them occationally on the bus (or maybe they're iPod touch's).
Mostly people have Nokia's or SE's, with some Samsung, LG and HTC thrown in for good measure.
I presume they're a big hit here in the UK, but to be honest i've never actually met anyone who's bought one - speaking as a student though. Personally i'd rather stick with my cheap phone and get the functionality of the iPod Touch - i've seen much more people with Touches. I love the idea of the App Store, and GPS integration etc, but i don't really need the phone side of it.
I'm a student in the UK, and I have one as do three friends.
They're not ubiquitous, but there's a fair number floating around. At 3G launch, everywhere was sold out, so I assume they are fairly popular.
who, they are NOT a big hit in the UK. I see one (maybe two) 3g iPhones a week. I had the first one, but for the 9 months i had it, I could count the total number of individual iPhone sightings on one hand. No exaggeration. Other than jailbreaking, the phone has little appeal over its competitors. Most people look at features, and they take the phone with the best ones. N95's are big over here. Not iPhone 3G.
The UK love contracts. Apple and O2 ignored this, and they are at fault (apple, fail? blasphemy!). £35 a month for around 100 texts (for the whole month) is possibly the worst deal *ever* to hit UK soil.
At those who want to slag off winMO, get a grip, MS have been on the mobile market longer than Apple and believe it or not, WinMo is a decent platform. This Meizu looks fine, and if it has winMO on it, it's a step up ALREADY.
Answer this- Without jailbreaking, and without 3rd party intervention (appstore) what advantages does the iPhone OS actually hold to make it "DA BEST EVAR"? regurgitating lines from apple.com don't count, by the way.
"iphone rip off this, that, the other"
The iPhone is a massive hit here in Singapore.
They are quite popular among students in the UK, I've seen no less than 20 iPhones in the last month and I know lots of people with them.
I don't suppose my office is particularly representative of the UK, but I'm amazed at how many people have an iPhone. It's got to be approaching 50%, if not a little more. And everyone here can have a free work mobile and Crackberry, so there's got to be something worth having that makes people pay their own money for an iPhone.
It's a hit in Thailand too, i see at least 5 people with iphones whenever im on the Sky train.
I have to say this sounds much better then the iPhone already, pity it probably won't make it outside of China bar importing it...
Plenty of Chinese knock-offs somehow find their way to American shores, and I'm sure that this will be no exception. Granted, it's not likely to be picked up by any carriers, but I'm sure that it will be available somewhere, if Meizu does go ahead with manufacturing it.
I wonder if Apple will even have grounds to object. There's certainly no law against making a product that looks similar to another product. The Sansa Fuse looks a lot like the Fatty Nano, and you can buy that at Best Buy.
thunderf00t?
Someone in Hong Kong will make sure your needs are satisfied. At a cost
My only question is and it's the only question that really matters and it's this: Does it sync with iTunes?
No. It's not an apple device. *sigh*
Nor was my Rio Sport, but that synced fine with iTunes. Do you even try your competitor's products before ripping on them?
So does my Walkman S630. It syncs with iTunes just fine, though I prefer to use MediaMonkey than anything else.
It reminds me of something... Can't quite pinpoint it.
Your lack of original thought?
To all of the people who think this is the greatest phone ever: if you believe that, you should be comparing the iPhone to this, not this to the iPhone.
Disclaimer: Nobody believes that.
'i' don't like this iphone knock off to similar, not bad thing considering nokia also copied apples touch screen for their N97
Do you an iEye make sweet apple love under Jobs picture every night?
Maybe you and iEye watch Jobs and Gates make out?
Who are you talking to? Clak?
yes i was... but my reply's didnt work!
Just don't bother replying to him, even the Apple fans think he's an idiot. Plus the '' used in his name means he can't be replied to.
I got low ranked for an honest question? Someone is abusing the power of the -.
I pressed + for you, but to no avail.
Gotta admit though it isn't a bad looking device even though it is a clone. There is just so many other divces that are better than it.
I wanted to care about what you say, but every time you 'i', I can't...
Completely different tech being used for the touchscreen. Your trolling fails again.
Dude.
I don't know too much of the device but are we certain that it's an iPhone "Clone"? I mean the exterior looks totally different than that of an iPhone.
And it's running WinMo? how exactly is this a clone.
I can name other phones created by Samsung and other companies that look like iPhones yet nobody calls them "clones".
How can a clone out-spec the very device it's cloning?
Dude, for Apple fanbois, everything with a touchscreen is a clone..
Considering I've never owned any apple hardware nor plan to you obviously don't what you are talking about Patriks7. so get off the internet retard.
I apologise I read that totally wrong. Ignore my comment.
Does it have cut and paste? A 3 meg camera. "Apple" step your game up.
Why is Apple in quotations?
I know this is a piece of new tech. But I don't understand how engadget can support this blatent rip off of IP. China has no respect for IP and this is just another example. The only think that would make this any worse would be a backwards logo of an apple or other piece of fruit on the back.
I don't think engadget should report crap rip offs from china unless they are making a joke.