Introduction
Meizu's worldwide reputation - or rather lack thereof - isn't necessarily deserved but at home and, in broader terms, emerging Asian markets, its products are synonymous with stellar hardware at a reasonable price. The name should definitely ring a bell to our loyal readers and those who didn't miss the Meizu MX and the MX 4-core will know what to expect. But even if Meizu somehow slipped under your radar, we'll fill in the blanks for you.
The Meizu MX3 is closely related to the the original MX and the MX 4-core, by way of both design and equipment. The original Meizu MX launched with a dual-core Exynos chipset and a screen resolution of 640 x 960px - not the kind of specs anyone would call a mistake at the time. Then came the MX 4-core, which became Meizu's ace in the quad-core deck.
Meizu MX3 official photos
The original MX had the Retina resolution of the iPhone 4 and that was by no means a coincidence. The same goes for Exynos - which has been the chipset of choice for Meizu since. So, three generations into it (or four if you count the MX and the MX 4-core separately), Meizu has a full-HD five incher powered by the chipset that ticks inside half of the Galaxy S4's.
Key features
- Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE; dual-band 3G with HSPA
- 5.1" 16M-color 1080p capacitive 15:9 aspect, 412 ppi display
- Android OS v4.2.2 Jelly Bean with Flyme 3.0I
- Quad-core 1.6 GHz Cortex-A15 + four 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7 cores, PowerVR SGX 544MP3 GPU; Exynos 5410 chipset
- 2GB of RAM
- 8 MP autofocus camera with LED flash, 1.4 µm pixel size,1080p video recording @ 30fps, continuous autofocus
- 2 MP front-facing camera, 1080p video recording
- Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Wi-Fi Direct and DLNA
- GPS with A-GPS
- 16GB/32/64GB of built-in storage; 128 GB version also available
- microUSB port with USB host and MHL 2.0
- Bluetooth v4.0
- NFC on 32/64/128 GB models
- Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
- Accelerometer and proximity sensor
- Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
- 2,400 mAh battery
- Costs less than direct competitors
- Excellent audio output
Main disadvantages
- Reflective screen struggles outdoors
- Limited battery life
- Non-expandable storage
- Non-removable battery
- No FM radio
- Hard to undo back panel
- No NFC on 16 GB model
The Flyme OS does things its own way and feels more like the lovechild of Android and iOS. It's clean and minimalist, a flat interface with no app drawer - much like iOS (and compatriots Huawei's Emotion skin for Android).
Everything is tailor made - the notification area unrolls just enough to show toggles and events - not all the way down. The main homescreen can be transformed into a vertically-scrollable grid of apps while the two auxiliary homescreens strike closest to home with the generic widget and app/folder arrangement. The single capacitive home button however is another first among droids.
Built around the powerful big.LITTLE Exynos 5 Octa chipset, the Meizu MX3 is has enough speed and power. The screen has solid credentials too: 1080 x 1800 pixels on a 5.1" diagonal. Simply put, it's full-HD in 15:9 aspect ratio.
Meizu MX3 at HQ
For all its strengths and weaknesses, the Meizu MX3 is a testament to how diverse Android can be. What could spoil a perfectly good, and reasonably priced, package is the very thing that thwarted its predecessors - availability. Meizu hasn't really been able to expand its footprint beyond Asia - but that has very little to do with the quality of the actual devices.
It's now the MX3's turn to try and prove that and we'll do our best to let it demonstrate its full potential, without letting it get away with any sort of weaknesses.
Retail box inside a retail box
The retail box has always been an eye catcher. Meizus are typically shipped in booklet-style packaging, with the good stuff hiding inside the pages. What's different this year is that the booklet is placed within a bigger box. Size doesn't translate to a greater set of accessories, though - the MX3 comes with a charger only - not even a headset.
The charger consists of an A/C adapter and a separate USB cable to be used for computer charging or data transfer. The only other thing in the bundle is the peculiar back cover opener. The tool's pointed end is to be pressed against the pin that locks the back cover in place. The panel is raised just enough to insert the flat side of the tool in the tiny crevice and go all the way around until the back panel is fully undone.
Meizu MX3 retail package
It's a finicky task but one that, hopefully, you'll need to perform on very rare occasions. To place the microSIM card in its tray, that is, the phone has no memory card slot.
Meizu MX3 360-degree spin
The Meizu MX3 measures 139 x 71.9 x 9.1mm, which is within millimeters of the LG G2's impressively streamlined body. The MX3 does have a smaller screen but the difference is negligible.
Weight has been kept in check and, at 143g, we'd say the Meizu MX3 is quite comfortable to carry for a 5-incher.
Design and handling
The Meizu MX3 hasn't changed much - almost any at all. Three generations in a row, this doesn't sound particularly exciting and, honestly, while the Chinese manage to keep up in terms of specs, the Meizu MX3 will struggle to make an impression next to the likes of the Sony Xperia Z and HTC One.
Maybe that's never been the point actually - Meizu continue to insist on emulating the iPhone in an Android environment, and the MX3 is arguably the one that gets closest. The good thing is the peculiar 15:9 aspect ratio may as well keep them out of trouble.
Anyway, it's the same entirely black front - regardless of what color you choose for the rear. The back panel is made of plastic to which Meizu has applied some hyperglaze finish - a transparent layer above the coat of paint. Speaking of which, the MX3 comes in a variety of color options for the back cover. Now, that's one more scenario where users will need to go through the particularly difficult routine of removing the rear cover.
Below the screen is the home key, which started off as a proper hardware button and has since been reduced to a tiny circle of a capacitive key with a LED border that lights up in response to taps - and serves as a breathing light too. Comparisons to the iPhone aside, evoked yet again by the single key on the front, the Home key can have vibration feedback enabled and will lock the screen upon a tap and hold. To unlock, tap and hold and then swipe up.
To make up for the missing Task Switcher key, the Meizu has another clever swipe-up gesture from the bottom of the screen that will pull up a strip with the icons of the currently running apps. Each of those can be swiped up to dismiss. And it doesn't end there - swipe that multitasking strip to the right and you'll unveil another set of extra five quick shortcuts, along with a brightness slider.
Meizu MX3
With the impressive edge-to-edge screen with almost no bezel, Meizu managed to first deliver something LG has been getting a lot of praise for lately. The Meizu MX3 is almost identical in size to the LG G2, with a 5.1" screen of 1080 x 1800 resolution against the 5.2" 1080 x 1920 unit on the South Korean flagship. The difference in screen real estate is offset by the fact that the G2 uses on-screen virtual buttons, which Meizu side-stepped by using gestures and different Home key routines. All in all, you can navigate the phone exclusively by touch, if you choose to do so.
Compared to LG G2
The back of the MX3 is nicely rounded, but it's a bit too slipper for a perfectly snug fit in hand. The flat front with minimum screen bezel nicely balances that so the handset is reasonably comfortable to operate single-handedly.
Meizu MX3
We love edge to edge screen designs and always appreciate a smartphone that offers the most screen for the available space. The MX3 delivers handsomely there and earns deserved bonus points for the Home key commands and nice gestures.
Controls
The front of the Meizu MX3 features a 2MP front-facing camera, proximity and ambient light sensor and the tiny earpiece. Under the screen there's the capacitive Home button only.
Meizu MX3 at the front
The right side of the Meizu MX3 features no controls, while the left hosts the single piece volume rocker.
The sides of the phone
The power button is placed on the top right side, which is not the most comfortable position - with the Home key handling both lock and unlock this is nothing to fret over. The only other thing at the top is the 3.5 mm headphone jack.
The bottom is where the main microphone is next to the microUSB port for charging and data transfers.
Top and bottom
At the back of the Meizu MX3, we find the 8 MP camera lens, the noise-reducing microphone and the single LED flash. There's a Meizu logo on the back and finally a small opening at the bottom for the loudspeaker grille.
On the back of the MX3
Removing the back button, fiddly as it is, reveals the smallish in appearance 2,400 mAh battery. The battery cannot be removed or replaced.
Under the hood
15:9 FullHD display
The display on the Meizu MX is a 15:9 LCD with the resolution of 1080 x 1800 resulting in crystal clear 412ppi on the 5.1" diagonal.
Colors look great and sharpness is no issue. The viewing angles are also quite good, with the relatively high reflectivity the single noteworthy issue.
The Meizu MX3 display
We took a picture of the display matrix under a microscope - the screen has an RGB matrix with the red, green and blue subpixels aligned in a typical fashion.
Meizu MX3 display matrix under a microscope
The screen on the Meizu MX3 showed good contrast and decent brightness levels throughout. It's nowhere near the top screens in business, like the HTC One or LG G2, but still looks quite pleasant and is sufficiently bright.
| Display test | 50% brightness | 100% brightness | ||||
| Black, cd/m2 | White, cd/m2 | Black, cd/m2 | White, cd/m2 | |||
| Meizu MX3 | 0.11 | 104 | 995 | 0.53 | 526 | 991 |
| HTC One Max | 0.14 | 224 | 1591 | 0.40 | 629 | 1572 |
| Samsung Galaxy Note 3 | 0 | 149 | ∞ | 0 | 379 | ∞ |
| Sony Xperia Z1 | - | - | - | 0.38 | 580 | 1513 |
| Sony Xperia Z Ultra | - | - | - | 0.47 | 467 | 1001 |
| Sony Xperia Z | - | - | - | 0.70 | 492 | 705 |
| Huawei Ascend Mate | 0.23 | 222 | 982 | 0.67 | 711 | 1053 |
| Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 | 0.12 | 160 | 1364 | 0.32 | 440 | 1379 |
| Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4 | 0 | 201 | ∞ | 0 | 404 | ∞ |
| HTC Butterfly S | 0.15 | 165 | 1117 | 0.43 | 451 | 1044 |
| HTC One | 0.13 | 205 | 1580 | 0.42 | 647 | 1541 |
Moving on to our sunlight legibility test, you can see how contrast suffers from the screen being exposed to strong light. The MX3 is very far from the likes of the Apple iPhone 5 or Samsung Galaxy Note 3, clearly not the best screen to work with in the sun.
Battery life
The battery in the Meizu MX3 is a 2,400mAh Li-Po unit quoted at around 430 hours of stand-by in 2G and 393 hours in 3G. Official talk time figures specs are 12 and 14 hours respectively, with 40 hours of continuous music playback.
Our own tests revealed that the MX3's battery can't quite handle the ample screen and capable chipsets the way some of its high-end rivals do. The talk time endurance was good, and so were the web browsing times, but video playback disappoints. There's also very high stand-by power draw, which results in an overall unimpressive score of 36h.
Meizu MX3 battery life test scorecard