Meizu MX6 Launched: 10-core Helio X20, 5.5-inch Full HD, ¥1999
The launch cadence for Meizu smartphones has been rather speedy as of late. Already this year we've seen the introduction of the m3, the m3 Note, the Pro 6, and at the tail-end of last year we had the Pro 5 as well. This week sees the launch of the MX6, an update to the MX5, using MediaTek's 10-core Helio X20 (MT6797) SoC.
Alongside the SoC, the MX6 uses a Full HD (1920x1080) display measuring 5.5 inches, 4GB of LPDDR3 memory with 32GB of storage, a 3060 mAh battery, a fingerprint sensor, a USB Type-C connector and Android 6.0 with Meizu's Flyme UI. While there is no microSD card slot, the MX6 will offer Dual-SIM capabilities and uses a reported '24W' peak charging mode to fully charge in 75 minutes or a 10 minute charge should give a half day of battery (though Meizu doesn't specify if that's a half 'working day' or actually 12 hours, probably the former given that the device is rated at 9 working hours on the website).
| Meizu MX Series | |||
| Meizu MX6 | Meizu MX5 | Meizu MX4 | |
| SoC | MediaTek Helio X20 (MT6797) 2 x Cortex-A72 @ 2.3 GHz 4 x Cortex-A53 @ 1.9 GHz 4 x Cortex-A53 @ 1.4 GHz Mali-T880MP4 | MediaTek Helio X10 (MT6795) 8x Cortex-A53 @ 2.2GHz PowerVR G6200 | MediaTek custom MT6595 4 x Cortex-A17 @ 2.2 GHz 4 x Cortex-A7 @ 1.7 GHz PowerVR G6200 |
| RAM | 4GB LPDDR3 | 3GB LPDDR3-1600 | 2GB LPDDR3-933 |
| NAND | 32GB | 16GB / 32GB / 64GB (eMMC 5) | 16GB / 32GB / 64GB (eMMC 5) |
| Display | 5.5-inch 1920x1080 | 5.5-inch 1920x1080 SAMOLED | 5.36-inch 1920x1152 |
| Dimensions | 153.6 x 75.2 x 7.25 mm 155 grams | 149.9 x 74.7 x 7.6 mm 149 grams | 144.0 x 75.2 x 8.9 mm 147 grans |
| Modem | MediaTek (Integrated) 2G / 3G / 4G LTE (Category 6) | MediaTek (Integrated) 2G / 3G / 4G LTE (Category 4) | MediaTek (Integrated) 2G / 3G / 4G LTE (Category 4) |
| Bands | FDD-LTE / TD-LTE / TD-SCDMA / WCDMA / GSM (Chinese Bands) | ||
| SIM Size | 2x NanoSIM (dual standby) | 2x NanoSIM (dual standby) | Micro-SIM |
| Front Camera | 5MP, f/2.0 | 5MP, f/2.0 | 2MP Sony IMX208 f/2.0 |
| Rear Camera | 12 MP, 1/2.9" Sony IMX398, 1.25 m pixels, f/2.0, PDAF, 6-element lens, dual-tone flash | 20.7MP, 1/2.3" Sony IMX220 Exmor RS, 1.2m pixels, f/2.2, Laser AF, HDR, dual-tone LED flash | |
| Battery | 3060 mAh non-replaceable | 3150 mAh (11.97 Wh) non-replaceable | 3100 mAh non-replaceable |
| Connectivity | 802.11b/g/n/ac, BT 4.1 LE, GPS/GNSS, USB Type-C | 802.11b/g/n/ac, BT 4.1 LE, GPS/GNSS, microUSB 2.0 | 802.11b/g/n/ac, BT 4.0 LE, GPS/GNSS, microUSB 2.0 |
| Launch OS | Android 6.0 with Meizu FlymeOS 5.0 | Android 5.0 with Meizu FlymeOS 4.5 | Andoid 4.4.4 with Meizu FlymeOS 4.0 |
| Launch Price | 1999 $298 | 1799 / 1999 / 2399 $290 / $320 / $386 USD |
The rear camera is a 12MP Sony IMX386, with 1.25-micron pixels, phase-detection auto focus (PDAF), an f/2.0 lens and dual tone flash. While the MP count seems to have dropped from the MX5, the use of larger pixels to increase image clarity in low light, combined with PDAF, has its own advantages. The 5.5-inch TDDI display according to the spec sheets is good for 1500:1 contrast ratio, 85% NTSC and a peak brightness of 500 nits - it's worth noting that Meizu's landing page states '500 cd/m2 Peak' but the specification sheet says '450 cd/m2 typical'. The Cat 6 modem is supported by dual-band 802.11ac and BT 4.1, while the fingerprint sensor has a rated response time of 0.2 seconds. The 7.25mm unibody design features the microphone port on the bottom next to the USB Type-C, and dual microphones (one each end) with additional noise cancelling software filters.
The MX6 will launch in China for 1,999 yuan (~$298.51), with pre-orders taken from today for a shipping date of July 30th. Gray, silver, gold and rose gold colors will be available. There is no indication yet if the MX6 will be sold outside China or in capacities other than 32GB.
Related Reading:July 2016: The Meizu m3 Note Review (with Redmi Note 3 for comparison)
June 2016: The Meizu PRO 5 Review
Feb 2015: The Meizu MX4 Pro Review
