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Chinese smartphone maker Meizu launches competitive flagship

The Meizu MX4 Pro, equipped with a '2K+ screen', 'Retina Sound', and various other top-level configurations, is priced from 2,499 yuan ($408) only, to compete for a share in the high-end market.
Written by Cyrus Lee, Contributor

Smartphone maker Meizu is probably less known to the outside world, compared to its Chinese rivals Xiaomi, Huawei, and ZTE. But the release of its latest flagship smartphone model in Beijing on Wednesday still surprised the industry and consumers.

meizu

The MX4 Pro has a 5.5-inch display with a 2,560x1,536 resolution — higher than the standard 2K resolution — which gives a total pixel density of 546ppi. It is the highest screen resolution on a smartphone in the market currently.

It also provides a fingerprint-scanning technology named "mTouch", highly resembling Apple's Touch ID. The company boasts that the fingerprint sensor embedded in the home button is covered with Sapphire glass, and the response time for scanning and unlock is 0.5 seconds — the only press-to-unlock technology used on Android devices in the world.

The new model also utilises an ES9018 DAC audio processor, a new passive filter made of two film capacitors and several resistors to reduce background noise, as well as the OPA1612 professional amplifiers. Claiming a long history in producing high-end audio players, Meizu uses the name "Retina Sound" to showcase its leading position in introducing high-end audio quality, imitating Apple when it first adopted the Retina moniker on its products.

Other features of the MX4 Pro include: An octa-core Exynos 5430 processor, a Mali T628 MP6 GPU, 3GB of RAM, a 20.7-megapixel Sony IMX220 Exmor RS rear camera, a 5-megapixel front-facing camera, worldwide 4G LTE connectivity, a 3,350mAh battery, and an Android 4.4 system.

The flagship model will arrive with 16G, 32G, and 64G storage options, and the lowest 16G model is priced at 2,499 yuan ($408), the company revealed at the end of the press conference in Beijing, stirring long-lasting hurrahs in the auditorium on Wednesday.

Chinese netizens were also amazed by the prices of the MX4 Pro. Many said that Meizu's latest launch has outstripped its competitors Xiaomi and Huawei in terms of both configuration and price, and will consider placing an order.

However, technology critics are less optimistic, as they believe that the launch of the MX4 Pro, with such a pricing strategy, will further erode its profits.

What's more, the supply of the MX4 Pro is destined to be low, which will make the popular handset unattainable to consumers, Chinese commentators believe. Meizu's previous MX4 model has earned low credit, as it is very difficult for an ordinary customer to purchase.

Even if reservations are high, the hunger marketing trick will eventually ruin the brand, no matter how good the product is, one commentator said.

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