Fingerprint on meizu 5c. Meizu m5c review: affordable first smartphone

General characteristics

Type of

Determining the type of device (phone or smartphone?) Is pretty simple. If you need a simple and inexpensive device for calls and SMS, it is recommended to opt for a telephone. A smartphone is more expensive, but it offers a wide variety of options: games, videos, the Internet, thousands of programs for all occasions. However, its battery life is significantly shorter than that of a simple phone.

smartphone Operating system (at the beginning of sales) Android 6.0 Body type classic Body material polycarbonate Number of SIM-cards 2 SIM card type

In modern smartphones, not only ordinary SIM cards can be used, but also their more compact versions of micro SIM and nano SIM. eSIM is a SIM card integrated into the phone. It takes up almost no space and does not require a separate tray for installation. ESIM is not yet supported in Russia. Glossary of terms by category Mobile phones

nano SIM Mode of operation of multiple SIM-cards variable Weight 135 g Dimensions (WxHxT) 70.51x144x8.3 mm

Screen

Screen type color, touch Touch screen type multitouch, capacitive Diagonal 5 inches. Image size 1280x720 Pixels Per Inch (PPI) 294 Aspect ratio 16:9 Automatic screen rotation there is

Calls

Light indication of events there is

Multimedia capabilities

Number of main (rear) cameras 1 Main (rear) camera resolution 8 megapixels Aperture of the main (rear) camera F / 2 Photo flash rear, LED Main (rear) camera functions autofocus Video recording there is Front-camera yes, 5 MP Audio MP3, AAC, WAV, WMA Headphone jack 3.5 mm

Connection

Standard GSM 900/1800/1900, 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A Cat. 4 Support for LTE bands FDD-LTE: bands 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 20; TD-LTE: bands 38, 40 Interfaces

Almost all modern smartphones have Wi-Fi and USB interfaces. Bluetooth and IRDA are less common. Wi-Fi is used to connect to the internet. USB is used to connect the phone to a computer. Many phones also have Bluetooth. It is used to connect wireless headphones, to connect the phone to wireless speakers, and to transfer files. A smartphone equipped with an IRDA interface can be used as a universal remote control.

Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth 4.1, USB Satellite navigation

Built-in GPS and GLONASS modules allow you to determine the coordinates of the phone using signals from satellites. In the absence of GPS, a modern smartphone can determine its own location using signals from the base stations of a cellular operator. However, finding coordinates based on signals from satellites is usually much more accurate.

GPS / GLONASS A-GPS system is

Memory and processor

CPU

In modern phones and smartphones, special processors are usually used - SoC (System on Chip, system on a chip), in which, in addition to the processor itself, there is a graphics core, a memory controller, an input-output device controller, etc. Therefore, the processor largely determines the set of functions device performance and other features Speakerphone (built-in speaker) there is Office voice dialing, voice control Flight mode has Sensors illumination, approximation, gyroscope, compass Flashlight yes USB-host yes

Few people will be surprised to learn that inexpensive smartphones are currently the most popular in the domestic market of mobile devices. Although they have drawbacks, their low cost fully covers them. Of course, the weakest side of these gadgets is their technical characteristics: not a very powerful platform, low resolution of the display and cameras. But this does not mean at all that such devices are completely devoid of attractiveness. Almost all manufacturers of devices in the budget segment are trying to create models that outwardly resemble flagship gadgets. This is exactly what Meizu GB / 16 GB is, which will be reviewed in this article. The phone went on sale in 2017. Its cost does not exceed 10 thousand rubles, which makes it quite attractive for a certain target audience. Let's figure out if the gadget justifies the stated price tag.

What's hiding in the box?

In a simple cardboard box, GB / 16 GB is supplied to Meizu stores. The dimensions of the package correspond to the dimensions of the phone. The designers chose a laconic design, completely abandoning variegation and images. All panels of the box are white. The brand logo is presented on the side faces, and the model name is on the front. If you look inside the packing box, you will notice several compartments in which all the accessories are neatly stowed. Each of them is separated by a partition.

The set of components will not surprise the buyer with anything special. It fully corresponds to the budget segment. Of course, modestly, but the manufacturer provides the most necessary to the user. This is a 1.5A / 5V power supply and a USB cable. There is also a paper clip in the box, fixed in the folder with the documentation. As for the latter, the manual, certificate and warranty card are printed in Russian.

Features of the external design

The M5c 2GB / 16GB looks pretty good looking. The device significantly stands out among other gadgets in this price segment with a stylish design. The manufacturer did not abandon the solutions that are used in more expensive models. The only thing that had to be sacrificed was the materials. In this device, instead of metal, plastic is chosen for the case. It makes no sense to dwell on the form in detail, since it is used in other smartphones of this brand.

Although at the start of sales, only black and silver variants appeared in stores, but there are four more in the lineup. If desired, owners can choose between gold, red, pink and blue. But if you believe the reviews about the Meizu M5c 2 GB / 16 GB Black, then the black case looks the most stylish.

Considering that the device is equipped with a 5-inch screen, its dimensions are quite expected. Case height - 144 mm, width - 70.5 mm. As for the thickness, everything is fine here. The manufacturer did not break modern trends, stopping at 8.3 mm. The weight of the phone also affects the usability. In this case, it is limited to only 135 BC.

If you study the comments of the owners, then you can draw certain conclusions. The smartphone lies well in the hand, practically does not slip. Thanks to the rounded edges, you can control the gadget with one hand. As for the soiling, even though the plastic is matte, it still collects fingerprints.

All standard connectors and keys are included in this model. Of course, it was not without the navigation button, which is located directly below the screen. The only thing that greatly disappointed the owners was the lack of a fingerprint scanner. The device works with two SIM cards, which are installed in a tray located on the side edge. If there is a need to use a flash card, then you will have to abandon the second SIM. In order for the phone to recognize the external storage, you will need to restart the device after installing it.

Let's talk about the display

The screen of Meizu M5c 2 GB / 16 GB has a diagonal of 5 inches. The matrix is ​​standard - IPS. Resolution - HD. The density is 293 ppi. Unfortunately, the display can hardly be called ideal, but the picture is displayed clearly and fairly high quality. Brightness is enough for comfortable work both in the sun and in complete darkness. The surface of the screen is glossy, but the glass has a special anti-reflective layer, so information remains readable even outdoors.

The advantages of users include that it copes well with the tasks. The prints, however, remain, but they are easily erased. There is also an automatic brightness adjustment mode. There are no special comments on his work. There is no air gap, which has a positive effect on the image display quality. It is impossible not to notice that the developers have provided multi-touch for 10 touches. But as usual, there were some drawbacks. All users attributed to them a rather thick frame, which reaches about 4 mm on the sides, and increases to 15 mm in the upper and lower parts.

A few words about cameras

After the users found out the resolution of the cameras, they immediately understood why the phone costs about six thousand rubles. Reviews of the Meizu M5c 2 GB / 16 GB in their address sound controversial. Let's figure out what exactly did not like it. This is, of course, permission. The maximum that you can count on is 8 megapixel main and 5 front. The detail is poor. In low light, getting a high-quality picture is akin to fantasy. You can see blurred areas in photographs. Only the main camera is supplemented with flash. Although it is two-position, it shines dimly, therefore, by and large, it is useless. The only thing that calms down is the low price of the gadget, which makes this disadvantage not so critical.

Meizu M5c 2GB / 16GB: performance specifications

What do the comments say about the operation of a Chinese smartphone? Each buyer understands that the manufacturer in the "state sector" will not sell top-end "stuffing". And this is understandable. If you install a powerful processor, then the price will have to be raised by at least a third. But do not think that this device does not meet modern requirements at all. The developers have implemented two gigabytes of RAM, which is already quite good. True, half is already occupied, but the remaining volume is enough for work. But which processor was installed in the Meizu M5c 2 GB / 16 GB?

The gadget operates on the basis of a 28 nm process technology indicates an insufficient level of energy efficiency. The 64-bit system row opens up great opportunities, but you need to understand that a 4-core processor will not be able to handle all modern applications. The clock frequency limit is 1250 MHz. The device also has a weak Mali-T720 video card. Native storage of 16 GB is not available in full. Only about 10 GB can be disposed of. Of course, you can expand the storage with a memory card, but you won't be able to use it to install applications.

Platform

The users were not surprised by the chosen operating system either. As usual, the 6th version of Android is installed on the phone. Not without the proprietary Flyme shell. The interface design is nice. The developers offered several updates that pleased the owners. These include animations, new icon designs, and themes. It is by this criterion that the Meizu M5c 2 GB / 16 GB received positive reviews, although a new version (seventh) of the OS has already been released.

However, there were also some drawbacks in the proprietary interface. We are talking about a large number of unnecessary applications. They are installed by default. For example, you won't be able to refuse Sberbank applications. But here, too, users find a small plus. All unclaimed programs can be removed manually afterwards.

Autonomy

The M5c 2GB / 16GB has a decent battery. The battery has a capacity of 3 thousand mAh. Although the results are modest, they are considered satisfactory for devices in this price segment. For example, you can play games for five and a half hours. In reading mode, the device will work for about 14 hours. Those who like to watch videos or movies can count on no more than 9 hours. If you use a smartphone in mixed mode, then its maximum is limited to only 20-24 hours, after which you will need to connect the gadget to the network. It will take about 3 hours to restore the battery life.

Meizu M5c 2 GB / 16 GB: owner reviews

Like any gadget in the budget segment, the M5c has both disadvantages and advantages. The latter, undoubtedly, include a low price, a screen that is not bad in terms of characteristics, a stylish design, and a decent battery life. But users are discussing the disadvantages of the phone more actively. Of course, there are many remarks about the hardware platform. By modern standards, the processor's power is already completely lacking. For example, all "heavy" applications will be inaccessible to the user. There are also angry comments about cameras. At the moment, I would already like to have a gadget with the best optical modules.

Conclusion

Summing up, we can confidently say that the company managed to release a simple and inexpensive smartphone. Note that earlier Meizu brand devices did not occupy the category up to 10 thousand rubles, so the M5c is a kind of debut. You should not expect high performance from him in work, but his 6,000 rubles. the device fully justifies.

The external speaker of the device is very loud, even in a noisy McDonald's the words in the video are understood perfectly, there are no significant overloads at the maximum, but the sound is flat, there is no bass, and the high frequencies are choked up in places. Despite the shortcomings, it is good by the standards of the class. The sound in the headphones is ordinary in quality, but very quiet - in public transport you can hardly make out the words of familiar songs.

The Meizu m5c multimedia tablet will not replace, and it will cope with the role of the player mediocre, but taking into account the price and other advantages, this oversight can be forgiven.

Communications, additional features

The cheapest smartphone from the manufacturer received the mBack key, which is responsible for navigating the system: "Back" by touch, "Home" by pressing, hold and hold to lock, double click to call the camera. The functionality is the same as any device with mTouch, only there is no fingerprint scanner. But, unlike some of the more expensive Meizu devices, for example, there is a slot for memory cards (up to 128 GB).

The most attractive moment was the use of the new version of the proprietary Flyme 6 shell. However, in this case it does not stand out with a set of additional features, it is also based on Android 6.0 (although we can say thank you for Marshmallow in a budget device).

As a result, we have a standard set that fights on equal terms in its segment with nice features like a compass and mBack. This is already enough to consider the Meizu m5c a fast budget employee.

The set of radio modules is expected, the stability of their work pleased, but the range of the same Wi-Fi is less than that of a comparable price. GPS works quickly, the compass also does not fail, but it correctly shows the direction only if you freeze and wait 3-5 seconds. The work of the cellular module is satisfactory (the reception strength is mediocre, but the contact is stable), the voice is transmitted clearly.

Competitors

Meizu m5c is available in black, red, blue, pink and gold cases, there is only one modification: with 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of permanent memory. The cost of the apparatus is.

The device works at a comfortable speed, goes online, launches simple games, looks good, plays music, can take pictures of ads and documents, popular software also does not fail.

Meizu m5c is the second best offer in the segment up to UAH 3000, only Redmi 4A remains more interesting in all respects, which by the time of the competitor's release managed to fall in price to a comparable mark. But if Xiaomi is not to your liking, Meizu m5c should be considered for purchase first.

3 reasons to buy Meizu m5c:

• nice appearance
• stable work speed
• price

1 reason not to buy Meizu m5c:

• Xiaomi Redmi 4A gives more for comparable money

Thanks the online store for the review.

	M5c	M5s
OS	Android 6.0, Flyme 6.0.2.0G	Android 6.0, Flyme 5.6.12.12
CPU	MediaTek MT6737 Quad Core: ARM® Cortex®-A53 ™ 1.3GHz x4	MediaTek MT6753 8 cores: ARM® Cortex®-A53 ™ 1.3 GHz x8
Memory	2 GB RAM and 16 GB Flash	3 GB RAM and 16/32 GB Flash
Display	5 inch HD	5.2 inch HD
Network	Wi-Fi b / g / n, Bluetooth 4.1, 4G LTE B1 / 3/5/7/8/20	Wi-Fi b / g / n Dual Band, Bluetooth 4.1, 4G LTE B1 / 3/7
Cameras	8 MP main and 5 MP selfie	13 MP main and 5 MP selfie
Battery	3000 mAh	3000 mAh
Finger scanner	No	Yes, mTouch 2.1
Navigation	GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS	GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
Colors	Black, blue, gold, pink, red	Black, silver, gold and pink
Dimensions (edit)	144x71x8.3 mm	148x73x8.4 mm
The weight	135 grams	143 grams

Contents of delivery

• Smartphone
• 2A AC adapter (1.5A for M5c)
• USB cable
• SIM-tray ejector

Introduction

The device Meizu M5s was released a long time ago, and I was waiting for the moment when the company finally announces something similar, that is, inexpensive and affordable, for comparison. As a result, a month ago, Meizu got a budget smartphone M5c, which stands out among all the others by the presence of the Flyme 6 OS version out of the box.

The Meizu M5s gadget costs in Russia (officially) from 11,000 rubles, depending on the amount of memory, and the M5c - 9,000 rubles.

Design, dimensions, controls

It makes no sense to talk about the appearance of Meizu smartphones (and about many other devices of some companies) for a long time: everything is the same as in the previous ten devices. It is almost impossible to distinguish them from each other, even for an advanced observer. However, the M5s is made of metal, while the M5c is made entirely of plastic. In addition, the latter boasts a lot of color: among the bright ones - pink, red and blue. The “older brother” has calmer colors.

Unfortunately, for my review of the M5c, I ended up with the most boring color - black. The back panel of soft-touch plastic quickly collects fingerprints, after which the gadget looks untidy.

With M5s it is much easier, because there is metal, the material is non-marking. It should be added that there are plastic inserts on the top and bottom on the back side, that is, the case is not all-metal, as it might seem.

The M5c turned out to be more convenient to use: sleek, thinner body, slightly less height and less weight. Compared to it, the M5s smartphone seems a bit bulky.

On top of the front panels there are light and proximity sensors, conversational speakers, indicators of missed events (for some reason they were “silent” to miss a call). Their volume is approximately equally low, but the interlocutor is heard clearly and legibly.

Below the display are mechanical buttons with an mBack touch zone. However, on the M5s, the button is also the mTouch 2.1 fingerprint reader.

At the bottom there is a microphone, microUSB and a speakerphone.

The power button and volume rocker are on the right. In the case of the M5c, they are plastic, while the M5s are metal. They are located in their places, it is convenient to use!

Left - combined metal slots (nanoSIM + nanoSIM / nanoSIM + microSD).

Above are 3.5 mm headphone jacks.

Cameras and two-section flashes (warm and cold glow) - on the rear panel.

Total for this section: if you need a light, compact and bright device, while the parameters are not very important to you, then the choice is for the M5c.

Display

In the new Meizu M5c, the screen diagonal is 5 inches exactly, and in Meizu M5s - 5.2 inches. The difference is small, but visually noticeable that the M5s is slightly taller. The resolution is the same - HD, that is, 1280 x 720 pixels, IPS matrices without an air gap, and full lamination. The bezels on the right and left are just under 4 mm.

Meizu M5c

The brightness of the white color is 340 cd / m2, and the black color is 0.23 cd / m2, the contrast is 1480: 1 (official data is 1000: 1).

Judging by all the data, we have before us a typical IPS-matrix with good colors. For such a high contrast in a budget phone - a clear credit!

Meizu M5s

Brightness of white is 390 cd / m2, and black is 0.38 cd / m2, contrast is 1030: 1 (official data is 1000: 1).

The measured data showed that the M5s uses the same settings plus or minus, only less contrast, with a weak backlight blue will dominate.

Battery

Meizu M5c and M5s use built-in 3000mAh batteries.

Despite the different chips and screen diagonals, the operating time of both smartphones is about the same, but still in favor of the M5c, which is not surprising. You can count on a full day with an above average load.

Meizu M5c

• HD video playback at full brightness - 6 hours
• Games at full brightness - 3 hours 45 minutes

Meizu M5s

• HD video playback at full brightness - 5 hours
• Games at full brightness - 3 hours 18 minutes

The M5c takes 2 hours 30 minutes to fully charge and the M5s takes 1 hour 50 minutes.

Communication capabilities

The devices are equipped with two nanoSIM slots. Both connectors support 3G / 4G (LTE CAT 6) networks in Russian frequencies: FDD-LTE / TD-LTE / TD-SCDMA / WCDMA / GSM.

Types of M5c networks:

• 4G FDD-LTE: B1 / 3/5/7/8/20
• 4G TD-LTE: B38 / 40
• 3G WCDMA: B1 / 2/5/8
• 2G GSM: B2 / 3/5/8

Types of M5s networks:

• 4G FDD-LTE (B1, B3, B7)
• 4G TD-LTE (B38, B40)
• 3G WCDMA (B1, B2, B5, B8)
• 2G GSM (B2, B3, B5, B8)

The rest is standard: Wi-Fi b / g / n dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4GHz / 5GHz) in M5s (in M5c only 2.4GHz), Bluetooth 4.1, microUSB connector (USB 2.0 with OTG support) for charging / synchronization. GPS / GLONASS navigation works the same without any problems. Meizu M5s finds more satellites and finds it faster, the sensitivity is much higher in this particular model.

Memory

The younger model is equipped with only 2 GB of RAM (dual-channel LPDDR3) and 16 GB of internal memory. Flash memory speed - 133/33 MB / s.

Meizu M5s has more RAM - 3 GB (dual-channel LPDDR3), built-in memory either 16 GB or 32 GB. Flash memory speed - 245/80 MB / s.

The memory speed of the older model is twice as high as the younger one. Both devices support memory cards up to 128 GB.

Cameras

The Meizu M5s has two cameras: the main 13 MP (f2.2, 5 lenses) with phase detection autofocus, the 5 MP selfie (f2.0, 4 lenses). There is a dual-tone LED flash.

In Meizu M5c, the cameras are a little simpler: the main one is 8 MP (f2.0, 4 lenses) with phase detection autofocus, a selfie of 5 MP (f2.2, 4 lenses). The flash is the same.

Both cameras shoot mediocre. The M5s has obvious problems with contrast and saturation, but the detailing is good - small inscriptions are easy to read. The M5c has poorer details, but overall the picture is perceived better due to better saturation and contrast.

Selfies turn out more natural on Meizu M5s, but I personally look prettier on the M5c camera :) The viewing angle is the same - slightly above average.

The older model writes video in FullHD resolution, and the younger one - HD. If you don't quibble, the quality is average here and there, but the video from the M5c looks a little nicer due to the saturation of the colors.

Sample photos of M5s

Sample photos M5c

The most affordable model in the family

Historically, the situation is such that in the Russian market, the maximum sales are for smartphones of the lower price range (costing less than 10 thousand rubles), in which Meizu products were not presented until recently. The company decided to rectify the situation and released a really budget M5c device. At the very beginning of the summer, the manufacturer announced the start of sales in Russia of this most affordable of its products - a smartphone priced at 8,990 rubles, a detailed review of which we present today.

Main characteristics of Meizu M5c (Model M710H)

• SoC MediaTek MT6737, 4 cores ARM Cortex-A53 @ 1.25 GHz
• GPU Mali-T720
• Operating system Android 6.0
• 5 ″ IPS touchscreen display, 1280 × 720, 293 ppi
• Random access memory (RAM) 2 GB, internal memory 16 GB
• Nano-SIM support (2 pcs.)
• MicroSD support up to 128GB
• GSM / GPRS / EDGE networks (900/1800/1900 MHz)
• WCDMA / HSPA + networks (900/1900/2100 MHz)
• LTE Cat.4 FDD (B1 / 3/5/7/8/20), TD (B38 / 40)
• Wi-Fi 802.11b / g / n (2.4 GHz)
• Bluetooth 4.1 BLE
• GPS, A-GPS
• Micro-USB, USB OTG
• Main camera 8 MP, f / 2.0, autofocus, video 1080p
• Front camera 5 MP, f / 2.2, fixed. focus
• Proximity sensor, lighting, magnetic field, gyroscope
• Battery 3000 mAh
• Dimensions 144 x 71 x 8.3 mm
• Weight 135 g

Contents of delivery

Meizu M5c comes in a very small cardboard box, stylishly and laconically designed, without colors and luridness. There are several compartments inside, separated by a partition.

The kit consists of a USB cable of a rather thick section, as well as a power adapter with an output current of 1.5 A and a maximum voltage of 5 V. The key for removing the cards is attached to a cardboard folder with paper documentation in Russian.

Appearance and usability

Meizu M5c looks better than most of its counterparts in the lower price range. This is the case when the manufacturer does not simplify the design by changing only the materials. The device is very similar to its older brothers in the line, only its body is made not of metal, but of plastic. Some Meizu smartphones have received a similar version of the case before: for example, Meizu M2.

The design is simple and laconic, the one-piece plastic case with a flat back surface and rounded sides looks pretty and at the same time strict. In addition, it clearly looks more expensive than it is, especially in matte black.

The five-inch device can be called medium-sized by modern standards, it fits well in the hand, fits comfortably in any pocket, and due to the matte surfaces and a small mass it practically does not slip out of the hands. Nevertheless, it cannot be said that prints are not visible at all on matte plastic, this is not the case. Remain on the plastic and stains from contact with the palms, the same can be said about the front glass. The smartphone will have to be wiped from time to time to make it look presentable.

M5c differs from its older relatives by the absence of some elements. Here, for example, there is no fingerprint scanner, there is no second microphone for the operation of the noise reduction system. Two rows of holes are cut in the bottom end, although there is, of course, only one speaker here. The universal Micro-USB connector located in the middle of this end supports connecting external devices in USB OTG mode, but this works, for some reason, not with all flash drives.

The top end contains only a 3.5 mm audio output for headphones, there is no additional microphone for the noise canceling system.

SIM cards are inserted into the side hybrid slot. It accepts either two Nano-SIM cards, or one Nano-SIM and one microSD memory card. It is curious that the device does not detect the memory card right away, there is no hot swap, you need to reboot the smartphone.

Hardware mechanical buttons are installed on the other side. The keys are large, harsh, the response is clear, and are easy to touch.

The front panel is covered with a flat protective glass, there is no 2.5D effect here. Above the screen, sensors and a front camera peephole are habitually installed without its own flash. There is also an LED event indicator that shines with a soft milky light.

Under the screen, as standard for Meizu, there is one oval-shaped hardware key. True, it does not include a fingerprint scanner, like many modern models, including Meizu devices. But the button still contains a touch pad, with which you can use gestures to perform functions that are usually assigned to two adjacent buttons, which Meizu smartphones traditionally do not have: touching the button performs the "Back" action, pressing - "Home", with a long hold you can extinguish screen.

On the back there is a camera module with a dual flash, nothing else on the back of the Meizu M5c.

At the time of the start of sales, only a version of the smartphone in a black matte case was available. A little later, red, blue, pink and gold variants should also appear on sale.

Screen

Meizu M5c is equipped with an IPS display with physical dimensions of 62 × 110 mm with a diagonal of 5 inches. The resolution is 1280 × 720, the dot density is about 293 ppi. The frame around the screen is about 4 mm wide at the sides, 15 mm at the top and bottom.

The brightness of the display can be manually adjusted or set to automatic settings based on the operation of the ambient light sensor. The AnTuTu test diagnoses support for 10 simultaneous multitouch touches.

A detailed examination using measuring instruments was carried out by the editor of the "Monitors" and "Projectors and TV" sections Alexey Kudryavtsev... Here is his expert opinion on the screen of the test sample.

The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface, resistant to scratches. Judging by the reflection of objects, the anti-glare properties of the screen are approximately the same as those of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected in the turned off screens (on the left - Nexus 7, on the right - Meizu M5c, then they can be distinguished by their size):

The screen of the Meizu M5c is slightly lighter (the brightness according to the photos is 119 versus 113 for the Nexus 7). The doubling of reflected objects in the Meizu M5c screen is very weak, which indicates that there is no air gap between the layers of the screen (more specifically, between the outer glass and the surface of the LCD matrix) (OGS type screen - One Glass Solution). Due to the smaller number of boundaries (such as glass / air) with very different refractive indices, such screens look better in conditions of intense ambient light, but their repair in the case of cracked outer glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be changed. On the outer surface of the screen there is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating (better than the Nexus 7 in terms of efficiency), so fingerprints are removed much more easily, and appear at a slower rate than in the case of ordinary glass.

With manual brightness control and when displaying a white field full screen the maximum brightness value was about 390 cd / m², the minimum - 4 cd / m². The maximum brightness is not high, but given the good anti-glare properties, even on a sunny day outdoors, you will be able to make out something on the screen. In complete darkness, the brightness can be lowered to a comfortable value. In the presence of automatic brightness control by the light sensor (it is located to the right of the front speaker slot). In automatic mode, when the ambient light conditions change, the screen brightness both increases and decreases. This function depends on the position of the brightness adjustment slider. If it is 100%, then in complete darkness, the auto-brightness function reduces the brightness to 13 cd / m2 (normal), in an office lit with artificial light (about 550 lux) it sets to 190 cd / m2 (suitable), in a very bright environment (corresponds illumination on a clear day outdoors, but without direct sunlight - 20,000 lux or a little more) the brightness rises to 390 cd / m² (to the maximum - this is what you need); if the adjustment is about 50%, then the values ​​are as follows: 4, 130 and 390 cd / m² (the first value is underestimated), the regulator by 0% - 4, 25 and 390 cd / m² (already the first two values ​​are underestimated, which is logical). It turns out that the automatic brightness control function works adequately and to some extent allows the user to customize his work for individual requirements. At any brightness level, there is no significant backlight modulation, so there is no screen flickering either.

This smartphone uses an IPS-type matrix. The micrographs show the typical IPS subpixel structure:

For comparison, you can see the gallery of photomicrographs of screens used in mobile technology.

The screen has good viewing angles without a significant color shift even with large gaze deviations from the perpendicular to the screen and without inverting (except for the darkest when deviating along one diagonal) shades. For comparison, we present photographs in which the same images are displayed on the screens of Meizu M5c and Nexus 7, while the brightness of the screens was initially set to about 200 cd / m², and the color balance on the camera was forcibly switched to 6500 K.

White field perpendicular to screens:

Note the good uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field.

And the test picture:

The colors on the Meizu M5c's screen have natural saturation, the color balance of the Nexus 7 and the tested screen is noticeably different.

Now at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen:

It can be seen that the colors have not changed much for both screens, the contrast has decreased, but also not very much.

And white box:

The brightness at an angle of the screens has decreased (at least 5 times, based on the difference in exposure), but the Meizu M5c has a slightly lighter screen. The black field, when deviated along the diagonal, does not lighten very much and acquires a purple or reddish tint. The photos below demonstrate this (the brightness of the white areas in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the screens is the same!):

And from a different angle:

When viewed from a perpendicular view, the uniformity of the black field is poor:

Contrast (approximately in the center of the screen) is normal - about 800: 1. The response time for the transition black-white-black is 29 ms (16 ms on + 13 ms off). The transition between gray tones of 25% and 75% (based on the numerical value of the color) and back takes 43 ms in total. The gamma curve, plotted using 32 points with equal intervals in terms of the numerical value of the shade of gray, did not reveal a blockage in either the highlights or the shadows. The exponent of the approximating power function is 2.49, which is higher than the standard value of 2.2. In this case, the real gamma curve strongly deviates from the power dependence:

This device has an aggressive dynamic adjustment of the backlight brightness in accordance with the nature of the displayed image - the brightness of the backlight decreases in dark images in the middle. As a result, the obtained dependence of brightness on the hue (gamma curve) does not correspond to the gamma curve of a static image, since the measurements were carried out with sequential display of shades of gray on almost the entire screen. For this reason, a number of tests - determining the contrast and response time, comparing black illumination at angles - we carried out (however, as always) when displaying special templates with a constant average brightness, and not single-color fields across the entire screen. In general, such non-switchable brightness correction does nothing but harm, since a constant change in screen brightness can at least cause some discomfort, reduce the visibility of gradations in the shadows in the case of dark images and the readability of the screen in bright light, since the brightness of the backlight is not the brightest in the average image is underestimated, and its already not an excess.

The color gamut is close to sRGB:

The spectra show that the matrix filters moderately mix the components together:

As a result, colors have natural saturation and hue. The balance of shades on the gray scale is medium, since the color temperature is much higher than the standard 6500 K, but the deviation from the spectrum of the absolute black body (ΔE) is below 10, which is considered an acceptable indicator for a consumer device. At the same time, the color temperature and ΔE vary little from shade to shade - this has a positive effect on the visual assessment of the color balance. (The darkest areas of the gray scale can be ignored, since the color balance there is not very important, and the error in measuring color characteristics at low brightness is large.)

This device has the ability to correct the color balance by adjusting the hue.

However, after correction, the white point hardly changes, and the color temperature and ΔE change very much. It looks disgusting, so it makes no sense to perform the correction.

To summarize: the screen has a low maximum brightness, but has good anti-glare properties, so the device can somehow be used outdoors even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be lowered to a comfortable level. It is also acceptable to use the mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works adequately. The advantages of the screen include an effective oleophobic coating, no air gap in the layers of the screen and no flicker, as well as sRGB color gamut. Among the significant drawbacks, we attribute the poor uniformity of the black field, as well as the non-switchable dynamic adjustment of the backlight brightness. Taking into account the importance of characteristics for this particular class of devices, the screen quality can be considered relatively high.

Camera

The front module of the Meizu M5c received a 5-megapixel sensor and a four-component lens with an f / 2.2 aperture, with a fixed focus and without its own flash. Naturally, there is a portrait decoration mode with several levels of adjustment, and there is also a manual mode with adjustments to light sensitivity, white balance, contrast, saturation, exposure compensation. With all this, the selfie camera shoots rather poorly: there are areas of blur even in the central part of the frame, the detail is generally low, which is why the image is friable. The dynamic range is narrow, so there are overexposures and underexposed areas in one shot.

The main camera uses a module with an 8-megapixel sensor, a four-component lens with an aperture of f / 2.0, there is a quite nimble phase detection autofocus and a dual, but not very bright flash. There is no stabilization system.

As usual, in the settings there is a manual mode for controlling the camera settings. If you turn it on, a setting slider appears, the same as for a selfie camera, with variable values ​​for sensitivity (up to ISO 1600), exposure compensation, saturation and contrast, as well as white balance. There are few additional modes: a QR code scanner, panorama, animated GIF, there is HDR.

The camera can shoot video in a maximum resolution of only 720p, not only 4K video is not supported, but also Full HD. There is no stabilization function, a slight tremor of the hands is noticeable even in static shooting, but to say nothing of movement. The picture itself is juicy, bright, but there is no need to expect high details at this resolution. There are no complaints about sound recording, the sound is of high quality, without noticeable distortions, but, apparently, there is no noise reduction system here.

• Movie number 1
• Movie # 2 (18 MB, 1280 × [email protected] fps, H.264, AAC)

The camera can be called good. Despite the fact that unprocessed noises are visible in some places, details are not lost even in the distant shots, although there they are "tightened" programmatically. Sharpness is well maintained across the frame. As a result, the camera can be safely recommended for documentary photography.

Telephone part and communications

The communication capabilities of Meizu M5c include support for LTE Cat.4 (up to 150 Mbps), a number of LTE FDD and TDD frequency bands are supported, including all 3 FDD LTE bands of interest to us (band 3, 7, 20). The device behaves confidently in the city limits of the Moscow region, the quality of signal reception raises no objections.

At the same time, only one Wi-Fi band (2.4 GHz) is supported, NFC is not. You can standardly organize a wireless access point via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth 4.1 channels. The USB Type-C connector supports connecting external devices in USB OTG mode. The navigation module only works with GPS (with A-GPS). The first satellites during a cold start are detected within the first tens of seconds, the positioning accuracy is not bad. There is a built-in magnetic field sensor.

The phone app supports Smart Dial. In the contacts section, there are many settings for importing and grouping, but there are no settings for displaying a contact (last name, first name, other data) for an incoming call at all.

Software and multimedia

Google Android version 6.0 with Flyme OS proprietary shell is used as a software platform. The interface is pretty, in the new version it looks even better, all interface and application icons have been redrawn, new animation options have appeared, themes have been added.

But, unfortunately, the time of maximum laconism in Flyme OS has passed irrevocably. Now it will not be possible to say that the new Meizu smartphone does not have a lot of junk pre-installed programs. With the advent of the Hot Apps section, they are installed by default, there are many of them, there is even a separate folder with demo games that you need to buy for full use. Sberbank and Yandex applications have appeared, and you will not be able to refuse their initial download - you can only delete all this one by one manually. At the same time, Google applications (gapps), including the Play Store, will have to be installed manually - initially, Meizu smartphones no longer have them. An alternative keyboard TouchPal is preinstalled, which has a lot of additional features.

To listen to music, we use our own proprietary audio player with the usual set of settings in the form of preset equalizer values, which can only be used with connected headphones. Both in headphones and through the loudspeaker the device sounds average: the sound is clear, without impurities, the volume margin is not excessive, high frequencies prevail. There is no FM radio in the smartphone. The microphone demonstrates satisfactory sensitivity, the voice recorder is quite suitable for recording lectures.

Performance

The Meizu M5c hardware platform is based on the MediaTek MT6737 SoC, made according to the 28 nm process technology. The 64-bit platform configuration includes 4 Cortex-A53 processor cores operating at frequencies up to 1.25 GHz. The Mali-T720 video accelerator is responsible for graphics processing. RAM is 2 GB and user storage is 16 GB. Of these, in reality, less than 1 GB of RAM is free and only about 10.7 of ROM. There is a possibility of expanding memory by installing a microSD card, but you will not be able to install applications on it. It is also possible to connect external flash drives in USB OTG mode.

MediaTek MT6737 is one of the simplest in terms of capabilities of modern platforms for entry-level mobile devices, it is focused on the ultra-budget class of devices. You should not expect high performance indicators from such a platform, the hero of the review demonstrates only about 29K points in AnTuTu. The hardware capabilities of the review hero are minimal, the smartphone shows a low level in all tests. Here not only demanding games and graphical tests, such as Mortal Kombat X and Epic Citadel, slow down noticeably, but sometimes delays are noticeable even when flipping through desktops and opening applications. Such a device certainly does not have a reserve for the future.

Benchmarking AnTuTu and GeekBench:

All the results obtained by us when testing the smartphone in the most recent versions of popular benchmarks, we have summarized for convenience in tables. Several other devices from different segments are usually added to the table, also tested on similar latest versions of benchmarks (this is done only for a visual assessment of the obtained dry numbers). Unfortunately, within the framework of one comparison, it is impossible to present the results from different versions of benchmarks, therefore, many worthy and relevant models remain behind the scenes - due to the fact that they once passed the "obstacle course" on previous versions of test programs.

Testing the graphics subsystem in game tests 3DMark, GFXBenchmark and Bonsai Benchmark:

When testing in 3DMark for the most productive smartphones, it is now possible to run the application in Unlimited mode, where the rendering resolution is fixed at 720p and VSync is disabled (which can cause the speed to rise above 60 fps).

	Meizu M5c (MediaTek (MT6737)	Micromax Canvas Juice A1 (Qualcomm Snapdragon 210)	Honor 6C (Qualcomm Snapdragon 435)	HTC One X10 (MediaTek Helio P10 (MT6755))	Honor 8 lite (HiSilicon Kirin 655)
3DMark Ice Storm Sling Shot ES 3.1 (more is better)	101	—	254	421	398
GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (Onscreen, fps)	3	—	11	5	5
GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (1080p Offscreen, fps)	1	—	5	5	5
GFXBenchmark T-Rex (Onscreen, fps)	10	9	28	17	19
GFXBenchmark T-Rex (1080p Offscreen, fps)	6	5	16	17	18

Browser cross-platform tests:

As for benchmarks for evaluating the speed of the javascript engine, you should always make allowances for the fact that the results in them significantly depend on the browser in which they are launched, so that the comparison can be truly correct only on the same OS and browsers, and this possibility is available when testing not always. In the case of Android OS, we always try to use Google Chrome.

AndroBench memory speed test results:

Thermal imagery

Below is a thermal image back surface obtained after 10 minutes of battery test in the GFXBenchmark program:

Heating is more localized in the upper part of the device, which, apparently, corresponds to the location of the SoC chip. According to the heat chamber, the maximum heating was 38 degrees (at an ambient temperature of 24 degrees), which is not very much.

Video playback

To test the "omnivorous" video playback (including support for various codecs, containers and special features, such as subtitles), we used the most common formats that make up the bulk of the content available on the Web. Note that it is important for mobile devices to have support for hardware video decoding at the chip level, since it is often impossible to process modern versions using processor cores alone. Also, do not expect a mobile device to decode everything, since the leadership in flexibility belongs to the PC, and no one is going to challenge it. All results are tabulated.

Format	Container, video, sound	MX Video Player	Native video player
1080p H.264	MKV, H.264 1920 × 1080, 24 fps, AAC	reproduced normally	reproduced normally
1080p H.264	MKV, H.264 1920 × 1080, 24 fps, AC3	reproduced normally	video plays fine, no sound
1080p H.265	MKV, H.265 1920 × 1080, 24 fps, AAC		the video does not play, there is sound
1080p H.265	MKV, H.265 1920 × 1080, 24 fps, AC3	reproduced with significant delays	video does not play, there is no sound

Further video playback testing was done by Alexey Kudryavtsev.

We did not find the MHL interface, like Mobility DisplayPort, in this smartphone, so we had to limit ourselves to testing the output of video files on the screen of the device itself. To do this, we used a set of test files with an arrow and a rectangle moving one division per frame (see "Testing technique for video playback and display devices. Version 1 (for mobile devices)"). Screenshots with a shutter speed of 1 s helped to determine the nature of the frame output of video files with various parameters: the resolution varied (1280 by 720 (720p), 1920 by 1080 (1080p) and 3840 by 2160 (4K) pixels) and the frame rate (24, 25, 30, 50 and 60 fps). In our tests we used the MX Player video player in the "Hardware" mode. The test results are summarized in the table:

OK No OK No OK No OK No

Note: If both columns Uniformity and Skips green ratings are set, this means that, most likely, when watching movies, artifacts caused by uneven alternation and skipping of frames will either not be visible at all, or their number and visibility will not affect the viewing comfort. Red marks indicate possible problems with the playback of the respective files.

According to the criterion for outputting frames, the quality of video playback on the screen of the smartphone itself is good, since in most cases frames (or groups of frames) can (but are not required) to be displayed with a more or less uniform alternation of intervals and without frame drops. The refresh rate of the screen is 58 Hz, so in the case of files with 60 fps, at least two frames per second are skipped, but sometimes more, and several in a row. When playing video files with a resolution of 1280 by 720 pixels (720p) on a smartphone screen, the image of the video file itself is displayed exactly along the edge of the screen, one to one pixel by pixel, that is, in the original resolution. The brightness range displayed on the screen corresponds to the standard range of 16-235: in shadows and highlights, only about a couple of shades merge with black and white, respectively.

Battery life

The non-removable battery installed in the Meizu M5c has a capacity of 3000 mAh. With such a battery, the hero of the review demonstrates modest but satisfactory autonomy results. In real operating scenarios, the charge is enough for half a day or a day, depending on the load, but you should not count on more for sure.

The tests were traditionally carried out at the usual level of power consumption without using power saving functions, although these, of course, are provided in the device.

Continuous reading in the Moon + Reader program (with a standard, light theme) at a minimum comfortable brightness level (the brightness was set to 100 cd / m2) with auto-scrolling lasted about 14 hours until the battery was fully discharged, and with continuous video viewing in high quality (720p) with the same brightness level via a Wi-Fi network, the device operates for about 9 hours. In 3D games mode, the smartphone can work up to 5.5 hours.

From a standard power adapter with a maximum output current of 1.5 A, the smartphone is charged for 3 hours with a current of 1.28 A at a voltage of 5 V. The smartphone does not support wireless charging.

Outcome

The Meizu M5c smartphone is pretty simple in all respects. Low screen resolution, very weak hardware platform, lack of a fingerprint scanner, NFC, support for the H.265 codec and satellite systems Glonass and BeiDou, as well as a modest level of autonomy and the presence of a large number of junk pre-installed useless applications, including demo games. - all this is not very happy. On the other hand, Meizu products traditionally boast high workmanship, no obvious defects, and imperfections. Everything stated is in place, there are no shortcomings. For a certified smartphone priced at 8990 rubles in Russian retail, this product is quite suitable, but you need to understand that this is a typical "workhorse", and not a versatile device for multimedia entertainment. For them, the Meizu M5c does not have enough strength and capabilities.