Meizu m2 review: A decent entry-level performer at Rs 6999

Meizu, the latest Chinese vendor to enter the Indian phone market, wants to ensure it launches phones in all price segments. After the top-of-the-line Meizu MX5 and sub-Rs 10k  m2 note , the company has now announced the entry-level Meizu m2 that will compete in the lucrative sub-Rs 7,000 segment. First triggered by Motorola, followed by Xiaomi, Lenovo, Micromax and others, the sub-Rs 7k is a very popular budget segment in India and the device will have some stiff competition to look forward to. The m2 has now reached our labs and we’ve had a thorough look at its various aspects to see how it fares. Build and design: 8/10  We received the unit with dark grey back that looked quite classy. Meizu has built a good looking device, we must say. The back also houses the rear camera sensor and LED flash while the front side will remind you of Apple’s iPhone 5c and some older Nokia Lumia devices at a glance. A 5-inch display is snugly fitted along with a single physical button on the lower side. The button also comes with touch abilities - slight tap serves as ‘back’ function, long press the button to lock it and a deep press will take you to the homescreen. [caption id=“attachment_287449” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  The multi-functional single button[/caption] The device is extremely light at 131 grams, and easy to use with one hand as it measures 140.1 x 68.9 x 8.7mm. The right edge houses the volume rocker and power button, and the left edge accommodates a SIM tray that also has space for the microSD card. However, it should be noted that the microSD card slot also functions as the second SIM slot. So, here’s some sacrifice to make for those looking for a dual SIM phone. The microUSB port and speakers are on the lower edge while the 3.5mm jack is placed on the upper edge. The camera for selfies and earpiece are placed on the upper front side.    The design is a replica of the m2 note. In fact, the m2 is simply a dwarfed, plastic-built (instead of metal seen in m2 note) cheaper version. However, it doesn’t feel cheap. Overall, there is no complaining when it comes to the design or build.   Features: 7/10 The Meizu m2 comes powered by a MediaTek MT6735 chipset clocked at 1.3GHz and coupled with 2GB of RAM. This is something we see in most devices in this price bracket. The 16GB onboard storage is expandable up to 128GB. So, roughly 10GB is accessible to users. Here’s when those looking for more storage and dual SIM ability will find themselves in a fix.    The m2 runs Android 5.1-based Flyme 4.5 OS. Meizu has heavily customised the skin, and if you’ve been a stock Android user, then you’ll take some time getting around the new UI. The Flyme OS brings some new features customised for Meizu users, but most of them are not yet available for India users, owing to Chinese content. Besides, there are many changes in the UI, which seem to make it more complicated rather than simplifying navigation across the device.  On the display front, it gets a 5-inch HD display with 1280 x 720 pixels of resolution. The device gets a Dragon Trail glass covering.  There’s 13MP rear snapper with f/2.2 aperture and LED flash and a 5MP front camera with f/2.0. The connectivity options include Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth, A-GPS and 4G support. It also gets a non-removable 2500mAh battery. Software: 6/10 Meizu’s m2 runs a layer of Flyme 4.5 UI on Android 5.1 Lollipop. As aforesaid, it has a single button embedded on the front that also features touch ability. Besides, the three soft touch buttons seen on Android are replaced with space to accommodate three easy access icons. So, if you’ve been using stock Android, then there’s a lot to learn.   [caption id=“attachment_287462” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Home page[/caption] [caption id=“attachment_287460” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Notifications[/caption] To view notifications, you can still simply swipe from top downwards. A menu grid option on the upper left side shows other shortcuts. Swiping upwards on the screen takes you to search function and swiping upwards from the lower front end brings the most-accessed apps on the screen. The Settings menu isn’t the most user-friendly we’ve seen with Meizu’s two layer design approach. The pre-installed apps like Appcenter and Personalize, cater to the Chinese market, and there is no customised content for India yet. You will get most of the Google tools, and rest can be downloaded via apps from the Play store. [caption id=“attachment_287457” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Lack of content; Rest of the Google services can be downloaded from Play store[/caption] Meizu has ensured that its device differentiates from others via highly customised skin. However, the drastic changes and unfamiliarity may lead to users finding it a little confusing. [caption id=“attachment_287461” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  The two-layered Settings page[/caption] Display: 7/10 The Meizu m2 features a 5-inch display with 1280 x 720 pixels of resolution, protected by Dragon Trail glass. The display is pretty decent and looks peppy when you opt for full brightness. However, we wouldn’t say it works smoothly outdoors under bright sunlight and also faces slight issues with viewing angles. Viewing videos was a good experience, but don’t expect a fluid crisp colour experience.  Performance: 7.5/10 Let’s begin with the most basic function - call quality. The device offers good call quality and we didn’t face issues making or receiving calls even in a packed Mumbai local train. The Dialler app is simple too.   [caption id=“attachment_287459” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Geekbench Single-Core and Multiple-Core results[/caption] The device allowed decent multitasking, however, it did start heating up after a while, especially when casual mobile gaming was combined with web surfing. We didn’t try any heavy games. The device was pretty smooth otherwise, it didn’t lag or stutter while navigating or browsing. The MediaTek MT6735 chipset clocked at 1.3GHz pulls out a decent performance, and the 2GB of RAM makes it capable of handling apps quite well.   [caption id=“attachment_287453” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Antutu and Quadrant results position the device quite well at the price point[/caption] Camera: 7/10 In line with competition and ahead of some, the Meizu m2 features a 13MP rear snapper and a 5MP front-facing camera. Both cameras can record videos up to 1080p. When it comes to camera, Meizu has crafted well-thought menu such as options like HDR, saving first in SD card, and several modes: Auto, manual, beauty, panaroma, Light field, Scan and Slowmotion. You can also add filters such as Grayness, Azure, Black&White and more.   [caption id=“attachment_287455” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Different modes and beauty options[/caption]  Here are some samples in bright sunlight, ambient light and low lighting conditions.     As you see, the pictures aren’t very detailed or brightest we’ve seen. The zoomed in sample also lacks precise details. The low light images look dull, and some even washed out. However, at the price point, it does a decent job. Battery life: 8/10  The smartphone is powered by a 2500mAh battery. Following the design principle of the m2 note, it comes with a non-removable back cover, and obviously a non-removable battery. The PCMark test showed that the device can run for 8 hours 2 minutes, which is pretty good. With average use of phone calls, social media and sporadic browsing, it easily squeezed through a day. Verdict and price In terms of hardware, it is no less than the Moto E, Redmi 2 Prime, Micromax Canvas Xpress 2 or others at a similar price point. At Rs 6,999, it is a worthy option with decent performance and display. The device does come with a fair share of flaws. The single button doubling as back and home, was one of the major hindrances we found that made it difficult to navigate smoothly and the camera was just about average. One of the major hiccups is the skinned user interface, especially if you’ve been using stock OS.   In a nutshell, if you are looking for a good looking device that performs decently at entry-level Rs 6,999 price point, then the Meizu m2 stands among the popular options available in the market at the price and is definitely worth considering.