Review of Meizu M5 Note - an old friend in a new body. Meizu M5 Note review: pros and cons of Meizu m5 note power consumption

The Meizu M5 Note smartphone was replaced just six months later.

Apparently, the company managed to correct the shortcomings that were in the previous model.

Although, at first glance, the smartphone has not undergone many changes, the M5 Note still turned out to be interesting and innovative.

Characteristics

CPU: 8-core MediaTek MT6755 with 64-bit system (four cores with a frequency of 1.8 GHz and four cores with a frequency of 1 GHz), graphics from Mali-T860;
Memory: 3 gigabytes random access memory and 32 gigabytes of memory for data storage, expandable with a card microSD memory(instead of one of the SIM cards);
Screen: 5.5 inches with IPS matrix and a resolution of 1920x1080 megapixels;
operating system: Flyme based on Android 6;
Interface: Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0, USB 2.0 connectors for charging, as well as a headset – 3.5 mm;
Camera: the main one is 13 megapixels with autofocus and dual LED flash, video in a resolution of 1920x1080 megapixels. Front - 5 megapixels, autofocus not installed;
Additional functions: fingerprint scanning, accelerometer, light sensor, proximity sensor;
Battery: 4000 mAh, fast charging functions present.

Meizu M5 Note design

The design of Meizu M5 Note 32gb completely copies its predecessor Meizu M3e, which was released several months earlier.

The only difference between the M5 Note smartphone is the thickness of the case, which is slightly thicker in this model, since a battery with a larger capacity is installed.

In other aspects these devices are identical.

The price of the M5 Note 32gb smartphone has become higher, and it itself has become premium in comparison with its predecessor, which was equipped with plastic inserts.

This device also contains plastic inserts, but they are made in the form of thin, unnoticeable lines, so they do not affect the appearance of the phone.

Based on this, we can say that the design and materials from which the Meizu smartphone is made are included in the class of premium devices of the brand.

Also, the cost of this phone is affected by the installed 2.5D glass, which is voluminous.

Thanks to the quality of materials and execution, the smartphone looks much more expensive than it is.

The Meizu body is made in white, gold, blue and gray colors, with the white and gold models equipped with a white front panel, and the blue and gray models with a black one.

By size Meizu phone is also no different, however, as with other models of the company that have a diagonal of 5.5 inches.

The dimensions of the smartphone are as follows: 15.3 cm * 7.5 cm * 0.8 cm, and the weight is only 175 g. This makes it not very thick, but a little weighty.

Phone controls

They also didn’t bother with the location of the controls; they are located similarly to other smartphones from the brand that were released in 2016.

The power button is on the right side, the volume keys are the same, but a little higher.

The place for SIM cards is on the left side, and at the bottom there is a connector for, microphone, speaker and mini-jack measuring 3.5 millimeters.

Another microphone, which acts as a noise canceler, is located at the top.

The mechanical button is equipped with a fingerprint scanner, which also performs the “back” function. This happens due to the presence of a touch layer on the key.

Screen Features

The phone screen diagonal is 5.5 inches and the resolution is 1920x1080 megapixels. The matrix is made using technology. The display is characterized by:

maximum viewing angle;
remarkable reserve of brightness;
natural color rendition.

Although the richness and brightness of the image does not reach the MX6 and Pro6 models, for such a price it is more than good.

But in comparison with the M3 Note, the device wins, but, of course, not as much as we would like.

A special mode has been developed called “eye protection”, which involves the screen working with warm tones. The screen coverage is high.

Phone chip and memory

The device is based on the Helio P10 platform from MediaTek, which was also used in previous 2016 models.

Although it is not one of the top ones, in terms of the phone’s pricing policy it is not bad at all. The graphics are from the Mali-T860, which is pretty good.

The version of the phone with a 32 gigabyte memory provides 3 gigabytes of RAM, which is compared to previous version more (M3 – 2 gigabytes).

The smartphone is equipped with a memory card slot, which is combined with a SIM card slot (can be changed depending on requirements).

Camera

The main and front cameras are almost unchanged when compared to previous models in the series, but there are some improvements.

The main camera, which has a resolution of 13 megapixels and automatic phase focusing, started taking photographs a little better compared to the M3.

The difference is more pronounced during close-up shooting - here the phone fully justifies itself.

The front camera was developed by ArcSoft, which created one of the best algorithms for the XShot smartphone.

We can say that although you can’t get much out of this camera, it shoots at a level higher than in previous versions.

One of the main advantages of the camera is the manual shooting mode, but the fact that the smartphone does not have the ability to rotate in the landscape direction is a minus.

But, nevertheless, in daylight you can get fairly high-quality pictures, but in the absence of lighting the quality deteriorates slightly.

Example video on M5 Note

Example video on Meizu M5 Note

Battery

This device from Meizu is equipped with a battery with a capacity of 4000 mAh - this is quite decent for such a price, but the smartphone does not have good battery life.

To compare battery performance in detail, several tests were carried out.

This mode allowed the device to work for 4 hours.

Second test: turning on video from high resolution with maximum display brightness.

In this case, the device lasted for 7 hours.

During testing, the case warmed up slightly, but this is a minor minus.

Judging by the tests completed, we can conclude that of all competitors the device has almost the lowest autonomy, even in comparison with the MX6, which has a 3000 mAh battery.

The phone is also equipped with a function fast charging called mCharge, which allows you to charge your phone 90% in just 70 minutes, the remaining 10% is charged in 25 minutes.

With this feature, you can charge your phone in just 95 minutes, which is much faster than the standard mode.

Flyme shell

The phone is controlled using 6.0, on which the Flyme shell from the Chinese manufacturer is installed.

Like most typical shells, this one has a separate menu with applications, and shortcuts are placed on the desktop.

"Fotosklad.ru"

Meizu recently, 10 months ago, presented to the public its budget flagship smartphone M3 Note. Just six months later, the company is releasing an update to the line, jumping over index 4 and immediately releasing the M5 Note. At first glance, they are trying to hand us the same smartphone, but with a different number. Well, let's take a closer look at whether this is really so.

To begin with, here is a table where we compare the two brothers in the line:

	Meizu M3 Note	Meizu M5 Note
Display	IPS, 16 million colors	IPS, 16 million colors
Display diagonal	5.5 inches	5.5 inches
Display resolution	1920x1080	1920x1080
operating system	Android 5.1 (Flyme)	Android 6.0 (Flyme)
CPU	Mediatek MT6755 Helio P10	Mediatek MT6755 Helio P10
Video accelerator	Mali-T860MP2	Mali-T860MP2
RAM capacity	2 / 3 GB	3 / 3 / 4 GB
Volume of permanent memory	16 / 32 GB	16 / 32 / 64 GB
Memory card slot		Yes, microSD, up to 128 GB, combined with a slot for a second SIM card
Main camera	13 MP, dual flash	13 MP, dual flash
Front-camera	5 MP	5 MP
Video shooting	1080p at 30 fps	1080p at 30 fps
Number of SIM cards	2, nano-SIM	2, nano-SIM
Interfaces	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz); Bluetooth 4.0 (A2DP, LE); microUSB 2.0; GPS (A-GPS, GLONASS)	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz); Bluetooth 4.0 (A2DP, LE); microUSB 2.0; GPS (A-GPS, GLONASS); 3.5mm headphone input
Fingerprint's scanner	Yes, frontal	Yes, frontal
Fast charging	No	Eat
Battery	4100 mAh, non-removable	4100 mAh, non-removable
Weight	163 g	175 g
Dimensions	154 x 76 x 8.2 mm	154 x 76 x 8.2 mm
Colors	Grey, white, golden	Grey, silver, gold, blue

As we can see from the table, there are practically no differences. Meizu M5 Note has received an increased size of RAM and permanent memory, a fast charging function, and the weight of the device has also increased slightly. Also, out of the box, the smartphone runs Android 6.0.

Let's look at it up close.

Box and accessories

The smartphone is delivered in a standard white box, in which the device itself, a USB cable, a charger, an extractor for the SIM card tray and instructions are tightly packed. Standard equipment, neither add nor subtract.

Frame

The smartphone body is made of aluminum. There are almost no changes compared to the previous model. Fits well in the hand. No backlash, gaps or creaks were noticed. The design of the M5 Note is practically no different from the M3 Note.

Screen

The Meizu M5 Note screen is made using IPS technology. Nothing new, most smartphones are now produced using this technology. The colors are bright and contrasting. There are no complaints about him.

Operating system and software

As noted above, the smartphone comes with Android 6.0 Marshmallow on board and branded shell Flyme from Meizu. The shell is nice, there is little unnecessary software and it does not interfere. There are no lags when navigating to the menu.

Separately, it should be said about the Home button. Control in Meizu M5 Note is carried out, in fact, using this single button. It is both sensory and mechanical. In addition, it has a built-in fingerprint scanner. Click on touch button similar to the “Back” action, clicking on the mechanical button is the “To home screen” action. Long press brings up Google Now. To get a list running applications you need to swipe your finger from bottom to top from the sub-screen space on the right or left.

Processor and memory

Meizu M5 Note comes in three configurations:

3 GB RAM and 16 GB ROM;
3 GB RAM and 32 GB ROM;
4 GB RAM and 64 GB ROM.

If the RAM is enough for most needs, then the permanent memory in the younger model is still not enough. We recommend that you refrain from purchasing the weakest version. Of course, there is a slot for a microSD card, but when installing it you will have to give up the second SIM card.

The processor in the smartphone is not the newest, Mediatek Helio P10. The frequency of the main processor cores does not exceed 1.8 GHz. In demanding games its power will not be enough - they will only be used for low settings. Picky users will not be happy. Nevertheless, the performance is quite sufficient for everyday use in the “surfing - social networks - navigator - music” mode.

Fingerprint's scanner

The scanner in Meizu M5 Note is combined with Home button. When you press the mechanical button and correctly read your finger, the smartphone is unlocked. At correct setting By the way, the scanner almost always works.

Interfaces

The smartphone is equipped with a standard set of interfaces: dual-band Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP and LE profiles (sorry, not 4.2); equipped with a microUSB 2.0 port supporting OTG and a 3.5 mm headphone jack; There is GPS with support for A-GPS and GLONASS. There is no infrared port and FM radio, NFC, traditionally, too.

Battery

Meizu M5 Note is equipped with a very capacious 4100 mAh battery. The declared capacity should be enough for 1.5-2 days of work. In order to charge such a battery, the mCharge fast charging function is provided. You can charge your smartphone to 90% in just over one hour; the smartphone “catch up” with the remaining 10% in half an hour. Total time A full charge thus takes about one and a half hours. Charger designed for a current of 3A at a voltage of 5-8 V and 2A at a voltage of 12 V.

Communication and sound

There are no complaints about the quality of communication - the interlocutor hears us well, as do we. The speaker sound is a little quiet, but clear. The vibration is not strong, you may not feel it in your jacket pocket. The sound quality in the headphones is average and the maximum volume is not enough.

Two nanoSIM cards are provided. By the way, Meizu M5 Note began to support the LTE 20 band, which is good news. Now, coupled with bands 7 and 38, the smartphone supports LTE almost throughout Russia.

Camera

The rear camera has a resolution of 13 MP and is equipped with a dual flash, the front one is 5 MP.

There are many shooting modes.

When shooting with the front camera, various enhancements are available, which we believe will be useful for girls:

The main camera takes average pictures. Autofocus occasionally blurs. In good lighting conditions there are no complaints about the camera; even in backlit conditions it takes acceptable pictures, especially if you turn on the HDR mode. When photographing with flash, colors appear almost natural. Examples can be seen below.

Results

To summarize, we can say with confidence that the Meizu M5 Note turned out to be a good update for the M3 Note - fast charging and increased memory are necessary modern smartphone. If you already have an M3 Note, then there is probably no point in buying this device, but as a first device it is quite good.

Today I will share with you my impressions of the new Meizu M5 Note. The previous generation became very popular; many of my friends bought this particular smartphone and still use it. Moreover, the majority are satisfied with the purchase, with the exception of only one case when the camera is very unsatisfactory. Yes, the camera there really isn't very good. The 5 has every chance of repeating its success or even surpassing it, now I’ll tell you why.

Video review of Meizu M5 Note

For those who are completely out of the loop, the M Note line from Meizu are inexpensive phablets with fairly large displays, excellent bodies and good specifications. They are interesting precisely because of the ratio of characteristics and price. For 150-200 dollars, no one else except Xiaomi can offer anything like this. And the mentioned Xiaomi offers Redmi 4 Pro for this money, it is also good, but I would still choose Meizu. It has a more attractive design, in my opinion, and more convenient controls. Last year, by the way, it was thinner, but at the same time had a smaller battery and fast charging. The M5 Note is a labor of love between two previously introduced models.

At first glance, the M5 Note is not much different from the M3 Note. The case has remained virtually unchanged, except that it is now completely metal, without plastic covers on top and bottom, and there is also a polished line on the back. All!

The arrangement of the elements is exactly the same as before. Unfortunately, they left the connector Micro USB, this was the most unpleasant moment for me. The smartphone with all its appearance wants to show that it belongs to the upper class, but about USB Type-C forgot.

Otherwise, there are no surprises: a hybrid slot for two SIM cards, one of which can be occupied by a memory card, a headphone jack, volume and lock keys on one side.

At the beginning of this text, I said that I like the controls of Meizu better than those of Xiaomi. The latter have completely standard touch keys under the screen, which are easy to touch during the game, for example. Meizu has their signature mBack button, which, firstly, is mechanical, and secondly, it is also touch-sensitive and you can swipe on it. Very convenient, I must say! And unlike Samsung, it is recessed into the body, which means it will not be covered with micro-scratches.

But where are the changes? After all, this is the new generation. I'll start in order. Fast charging has appeared, and it really pleases. Although the battery capacity has become smaller, it is only 100 mAh, now it is 4000 mAh. This is a lot and fast charging is just what the doctor ordered. Now the smartphone charges from 0 to 100% in just 1.5 hours, and in 30 minutes it will receive a 50% charge.

And after getting to know the phone more closely, it became clear that it was worth upgrading, because they slightly corrected the saddest moment - the camera. In terms of characteristics, it remains exactly the same as in the M3 Note – 13 MP, f2.2. But the quality of the pictures has become a little better. It's still not flagship level, but the vague shame is gone. And given direct hands, the smartphone becomes very good choice for those who want to save money, but also need to take something worthy.

In the dark, noise appears, but a little less than before. I think it was the software that was improved. But you should always remember about autofocus; even during the day it often misses. The app is simple, but there is a manual mode in which you can independently adjust ISO, shutter speed, white balance and focus. But there is no shooting in RAW, and there is also no stabilization for video.

Examples of photos and videos

Front camera video

Camera app

The display, according to the manufacturer, has become better, but I noticed something else. With the same physical characteristics (5.5″, 1080p, 403ppi), the white color in the new product is noticeably redder in comparison with its predecessor. I won't say that this is a big hindrance. When there is nothing to compare with, redness may not be noticed. But I have an M3 Note on hand, and the colors look more correct on it. Perhaps this situation will not happen with all smartphones, and, I repeat, the difference is striking only during direct comparison. But in general, for that kind of money you will rarely find Full HD resolution, IPS, a good sensor and an oleophobic coating.

It’s very nice that the minimum amount of RAM is now 3 GB, previously it was 2. You will get that much in versions with 16 and 32 GB of memory, and with 64 GB you will have all 4 GB of RAM! But I think the most popular will be basic models, since the storage capacity can be expanded using a memory card. I used the version with 3 GB of RAM and this volume was enough for everything.

Specifications

Dimensions: 153.6x75.8x8.15 mm, weight – 175 grams;
Display: 5.5-inch with Full HD resolution (1920 × 1080), 403ppi, IPS matrix;
Processor: Mediatek MT6755M Helio P10;
Video accelerator: Mali T860 MP2;
RAM: 3 GB;
ROM: 32 GB + microSD slot up to 256 GB;
Main camera: 13 MP, f2.2 (1080p at 30 fps);
Front camera: 5 MP;
Battery: 4000 mAh;
Other: Micro USB; microSD slot combined with a SIM card slot, fingerprint scanner.

The processor remains the same - Helio P10 with Mali T860 graphics. It's not good or bad, it's normal. It seems that in the new generation we would like to see, first of all, a more productive processor, but oh well. For the money, let's skip this point, especially since the P10 is still good. You shouldn’t count on serious games at maximum settings, but it will work. For example, “tanks” on medium ones produce stable 50-60 fps. And for ordinary tasks the performance is sufficient.

Jumping over the “four” in the serial number of the model, into the design of the metal body of the 5.5-inch Meizu smartphone M5 Note, first of all, made some changes. How to correct a “three” to a “five”, Vesti figured it out.Hi-tech

Replenishment model range Meizu's smartphone growth looked pretty fast last year. So, if the world premiere took place in April, then the release of the M5 Note was announced in December. In the best Eastern traditions, the company in this case decided to omit the number “4”, which is associated with certain superstitions in Asia. Note that the model similar in name differs from the M5 Note quite significantly. In particular, the new product is available in three versions of RAM and internal memory - 3 GB/16 GB, 3 GB/32 GB and 4 GB/64 GB. All other technical details about the new smartphone are given below.

Specifications

Model: M5 Note (M621H)
OS: Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) with Flyme OS 5.2.11.0G shell
Processor: 64-bit MediaTek Helio P10 (MT6755), ARMv8 architecture, 8 cores ARM Cortex-A53 (4x1.8 GHz + 4x1.0 GHz)
Graphics coprocessor: ARM Mali-T860 MP2 (550 MHz)
RAM: 3GB/3GB/4GB LPDDR3 (933MHz, single channel)
Storage: 16 GB/32 GB/64 GB, eMMC 5.1, microSD/HC/XC memory card support (up to 128 GB)
Interfaces: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n (2.4 GHz + 5 GHz), Bluetooth 4.0 (LE), microUSB (USB 2.0) for charging/syncing, USB-OTG, 3.5 mm headphone jack
Screen: capacitive touch, GFF (full lamination), 5.5-inch diagonal, resolution 1920x1080 pixels, pixel density per inch 403 ppi, brightness 450 cd/sq. m, contrast ratio 1000:1, protective glass 2.5D
Main camera: 13 MP, 5-element lens, f/2.2 aperture, phase detection autofocus (0.2 s), dual dual-color flash, 1080p@30fps video
Front camera: 5 MP, 4-element lens, f/2.0 aperture
Network: UMTS 900, 2100; GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900; CDMA 800; LTE (1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 20, 38, 40); LTE Cat. 6 (300/50 Mbit/s)
SIM card format: nanoSIM (4FF)
Slot tray configuration: nanoSIM + nanoSIM, or nanoSIM + microSD/HD/XC
Navigation: GPS/GLONASS, A-GPS
Sensors: accelerometer, gyroscope, compass, Hall sensor, light and proximity sensors, fingerprint scanner
Battery: non-removable, lithium polymer, 4,000 mAh, fast charging support
Colors: dark grey, silver, gold, blue
Dimensions: 153.6x75.8x8.1 mm
Weight: 175 grams

Design, ergonomics

The new M5 Note smartphone has an all-metal body, similar to older, more advanced models, for example. Let us remind you that the rear panel has two inserts made of radio-transparent material.

In turn, for the antennas on the M5 Note body, like , only thin strips of radiotransparent material are now used. Thereby, new smartphone looks more "metallic". By the way, such a candy bar with rounded corners and edges is offered in the following colors: dark gray, silver, gold and blue (only the first three are available at the start of sales).

The overall dimensions of the M5 Note, compared to its predecessor, have remained virtually unchanged (153.6 x 75.8 x 8.1 mm versus 153.6 x 75.5 x 8.2 mm), which cannot be said about the weight (175 g versus 163 grams). However, this is easily explained, because light plastic inserts have now been replaced by heavier metal. As for the 5.5-inch “classmates”, as an example we can give similar parameters for (150.9x76.2x8.2 mm; 162 grams) and Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (151.0x76.0x8.45 mm; 165 grams).

The entire front surface of the M5 Note, including the screen, is covered protective glass with 2.5D effect (manufacturer unknown).

Above the display is traditionally a speaker grille, surrounded by light and proximity sensors (on the left), as well as a lens front camera and an LED indicator (on the right), which is not visible when not in use.

Below the display there is a mechanical key with a built-in mTouch 2.1 fingerprint scanner. Its basic functionality has not changed: tapping on this button activates the “Back” function, a short press with a hardware “click” returns to the main screen (“Home”), and a long press (and hold) turns off the screen backlight. The "Recent Apps" button is replaced by swiping up from the bottom edge of the display.

On the right edge, in a small recess, there are volume rockers of different sizes and a power/lock button.

The left edge occupies a closed slot with a dual tray,

where either two nanoSIM subscriber identification modules can be placed, or the place of the second one will be taken by a microSD memory expansion card.

The hole for the second auxiliary microphone remains at the top end.

But the 3.5 mm audio headset connector moved to the bottom end, where they assembled a hole for a “conversational” microphone, a microUSB connector between two mounting screws, as well as a decorative grille (three oblong holes) for a “multimedia” speaker.

The back panel is decorated with a stylized Meizu logo, above which there are holes for a dual LED flash and the main camera lens.

At the bottom of the rear panel there is a place for an inscription from which you can find out about LTE support, as well as the name of the manufacturing company and the country of production.

The M5 Note feels pleasantly heavy in your hand. In principle, there are no problems with one-handed control, however, special options in the settings are designed to make it easier.

Screen, camera, sound

The M5 Note screen, like its predecessor, uses a 5.5-inch IPS matrix, on which, with a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels (Full HD) and a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9, the pixel density per inch according to the passport is 403 ppi. GFF (Glass-to-Film-to-Film) full lamination technology eliminates the air gap between the display layers, which is the basis for good anti-glare properties and reduces the reflection effect.

The stated contrast is 1000:1, and the maximum brightness is 450 cd/sq.m. At the same time, it is proposed to regulate the backlight level in a fairly wide range, either at your own discretion, manually, or automatically (the "Auto-tuning" option), based on information from the light sensor. Multi-touch technology allows you to process up to ten simultaneous clicks on capacitive screen, which is confirmed by the results of the AntTuTu Tester and MultiTouch Tester programs.

In the settings, in addition to changing the font size, the ability to adjust the color temperature has been added. So it’s easy to make the colors warmer or, conversely, colder to suit your taste. To protect your eyes, it is proposed to enable the mode of the same name, reducing the amount of “harmful” light in the blue part of the spectrum (the image on the screen will begin to “yellow”). This option can be activated using a timer. The oleophobic coating allows your finger to slide across the screen quite easily, and it is also equally easy to remove small stains from the glass.

The photo capabilities of the M5 Note seem to have remained unchanged compared to . The main camera also boasts a 13-megapixel sensor and a 2-tone LED flash with different color temperatures. The lens with 5-element optics has an f/2.2 aperture and fast (0.2 s) phase detection autofocus. The maximum image resolution is achieved with an aspect ratio of 4:3 and is 4208x3120 pixels (13 MP). Examples of photos can be viewed.

The front camera has a 5-megapixel sensor equipped with a wide-angle 4-lens lens with f/2.0 aperture. There is no autofocus or flash. Maximum size a picture in a classic proportion (4:3) - 2576x1936 pixels (5 MP).

Both cameras can record video in Full HD quality (1920x1080 pixels) with a frame rate of 30 fps, while the content is saved in MP4 container files (AVC - video, AAC - audio).

The interface of the Camera application in the M5 Note, compared to its predecessor, has also not changed at all. True, to the “Auto”, “Manual”, “Portrait”, “Panorama”, “Focus Change”, “Slow Motion”, “Macro” and “GIF” modes, they also added “Scanner” (reading bar codes) . In the settings it is easy to activate the HDR mode, as well as determine the photo size and video quality. Focus and exposure metering can be performed separately. Shooting in manual mode(M) assumes self-installation parameters of shutter speed, ISO, exposure compensation, saturation, white balance, etc. There are 11 filters available to create effects, including Black and White, Film, Oxidized, and more. It’s convenient to switch from the main camera to the front camera and back using vertical swipes. The volume rocker (both up and down) can also be used to release the shutter.

There have also been no fundamental changes in the sound capabilities of the M5 Note. Established funds smartphones allow you to listen to files with the FLAC extension, created by codecs for compressing audio data without loss of quality. After connecting the audio headset, you are offered to use a 5-band equalizer with presets and manual setting. The Voice Recorder application writes monaural recordings (44.1 kHz) to MP3 files.

Filling, performance

The M5 Note relied on the same 64-bit MediaTek Helio P10 (MT6755) platform as for .

Let us recall that the 8-core True8Core processor has four ARM Cortex-A53 cores clocked at up to 1.8 GHz, and four more at up to 1.0 GHz. At the same time, the 2-core ARM Mali-T860 MP2 (550 MHz) architecture with support for OpenGL ES 3.2 and OpenCL 1.2 is used as a graphics accelerator. At the same time, increasing energy efficiency while maintaining sufficient computing power is achieved by automatically adjusting the frequencies of the processor and video accelerator. Helio P10 can work in LTE-TDD, LTE-FDD Cat networks. 6 (300/50 Mbit/s), HSPA+, TD-SCDMA, EDGE, etc., and is also equipped with Bluetooth 4.0 LE and 2-band Wi-Fi interfaces.

The basic configuration of the M5 Note is complemented by LPDDR3 (933 MHz) RAM, which is controlled by a single-channel controller. Note that the smartphone variants with 16 GB, 32 GB or 64 GB of internal storage (eMMC 5.1) come with 3 GB, 3 GB or 4 GB of RAM, respectively. We received a device with a 3 GB/16 GB combination for testing.

On the synthetic benchmark AnTuTu Benchmark, we managed to “knock out” more than 47 thousand “virtual parrots”, which was obviously predetermined by the chosen hardware platform.

The efficiency of using the processor cores of the new smartphone looks, perhaps, more optimistic than the estimate of the amount of “horsepower” (Geekbench 4).

On a visual test of Epic Citadel with High settings Performance and High Quality, the average frame rate remained virtually unchanged - 57.3 fps, 56.9 fps, respectively. But on the Ultra High Quality setting it decreased by almost 1.7 times (33.3 fps).

Not surprisingly, the universal gaming benchmark 3DMark, where the M5 Note was tested on the recommended Sling Shot Extreme set, recorded a rather modest result (318 points).

The total number of points earned by the smartphone on the cross-platform benchmark Base Mark OS II was 279.

Of the 16 GB of declared internal memory, about 14.56 GB were available in the tested model, and about 10 GB were free. At the same time, like the one, to expand the existing storage, it is possible to install a microSD/HC/XC memory card with a maximum capacity of up to 128 GB. The dual tray into which the memory card is inserted is universal, and if you take up one place in it, you will have to sacrifice the installation of a second SIM card (nanoSIM format). You can also expand the built-in storage thanks to support for USB-OTG technology by connecting a USB drive.

When two nanoSIM cards (4FF format) are installed, one radio channel of the device operates with them in Dual mode SIM Dual Standby, in other words, both SIM cards are active, but when one is busy, the other is also unavailable. Both trays in the slot support 4G, while the SIM card for data transfer, as well as the priority network mode, is selected in the corresponding menu. The new smartphone has three main Russian FDD-LTE bands available - b3 (1,800 MHz), b7 (2,600 MHz) and b20 (800 MHz) with VoLTE support. Similar to its predecessor, the M5 Note's set of wireless communications also includes a dual-band Wi-Fi module 802.11 a/b/g/n (2.4 and 5 GHz) and Bluetooth 4.0 (LE). But, alas, they do not have an NFC interface.

To determine location and navigation, the built-in multi-system receiver uses GPS and GLONASS satellites. This is confirmed by the results of the AndroiTS GPS Test and GPS Test programs. There is also support for A-GPS technology (coordination over Wi-Fi and cellular networks).

Volume lithium polymer battery, which was equipped with the M5 Note (4,000 mAh), compared to its predecessor (4,100 mAh), decreased slightly. However, the smartphone now comes with a 24-watt power adapter UP1220E (5 V/9 V/12 V, 2 A), which supports mCharge fast charging technology.

The new product managed to earn 7,809 points in AnTuTu Tester battery tests. When the battery is 100% full, the manufacturer promises up to 30 hours of talk time, or 660 hours of standby, or up to 17 hours of watching videos, or up to 36 hours of listening to music.

In the "Power Management" settings section, depending on the expected load, you can switch the smartphone from the "Balanced" mode to the "Energy Saving" or "Productive" mode. In addition, in the "Optimize power consumption" section, it is proposed not only to manage the sleep mode of applications, but also to take advantage of flexible settings to save battery power - "Smart", "Super" or "Custom Mode".

Software Features

The M5 Note smartphone, in comparison with, received more recent firmware, represented by the operating system Android systems 6.0 (Marshmallow) and the proprietary Flyme OS 5.2.11.0G launcher (they seem to promise to update to version 6.x), where all program shortcuts, folders and widgets are traditionally placed directly on the desktops.

Using fingerprints obtained from any angle (360 degrees) on the fast (0.2 seconds) mTouch 2.1 fingerprint scanner, you can lock not only the smartphone screen, but also access to files and applications.

The “Special Features” section still contains possible smartphone control gestures, including the SmartTouch control “ring” (not shown in the screenshot) with adjustable transparency.

The M5 Note retains the ability to split the screen to simultaneously display the work of two applications (so far only three - “Settings”, “Video” and “Google Maps”).

Purchase, conclusions

Thus, the “five” (Meizu M5 Note) compares favorably with the “three” () not only with the design features of the metal case, but also with the appearance of fast charging, as well as support frequency range LTE b20 (800 MHz). In addition, do not discount the presence of a fast fingerprint scanner and the expected model variant in the 4 GB/64 GB configuration (RAM/built-in memory). Note that even with 16 GB of storage, the amount of RAM is now 3 GB (and not 2 GB, as it was).

The shortcomings of the Meizu M5 Note, along with the inherited low performance, include the alternative installation of a second SIM card and memory card, and the lack of an NFC interface.

Official prices for Meizu models M5 Note in 3 GB/16 GB and 3 GB/32 GB configurations are 16,990 and 18,990 rubles, respectively. As for the 5.5-inch “classmates” in metal cases (memory capacities 3 GB/32 GB), then, at the time of testing, in large retail chains they asked for 16,990 rubles, and for Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 - 15,990 rubles . At the same time, let us remind you that we received a dual main camera (12 MP + 2 MP) and also an NFC interface (with support for Mifare Classic technology), but, however, a less capacious battery (3,340 mAh versus 4,000 mAh) . In turn, Xiaomi Redmi Note 4, along with a faster processor, boasts a slightly more capacious battery (4,100 mAh versus 4,000 mAh), as well as the presence of an IR port.

Results of the review of the Meizu M5 Note smartphone

Pros:

Updated metal body
Capacious battery, complemented by fast charging
LTE b20 band support (800 MHz)
4 GB/64 GB RAM/internal memory option
Fast fingerprint scanner

Minuses:

Low performance
Alternative installation second SIM card or memory card
No NFC interface

Meizu continues to release a smartphone per month. the site has already gotten acquainted with the compact one, which turned out to be not so clearly improved in comparison with, and now it has reached the budget metal phablet of the new generation, Meizu m5 note. And this device, unlike its plastic counterpart, has made a much greater step forward from its predecessor.

Characteristics

screen: IPS, 5.5 inches, resolution 1920×1080 pixels, 2.5D glass
platform: 8-core MediaTek Helio P10, Mali T860 graphics
memory: 3 GB RAM, 16 GB ROM + microSD
main camera: 13 MP, f/2.2, front: 5 MP
Wi-Fi (802.11 a/b/g/n; 2.4GHz/5GHz), Bluetooth 4.0 + LE, microUSB (OTG, USB-HOST), 3.5 mm headphone jack, fingerprint scanner, GPS, A- GPS, GLONASS, digital compass
Battery: 4000 mAh, support fast charging
dimensions: 153.6x75.8x8.1 mm, weight: 175 g
OS: Android 6.0, Flyme OS 5.2.11.3A

Appearance

Meizu m5 note has moved away from the traditional appearance that users are accustomed to in and, but it repeats in detail: the same polished edges of the ends of the body, the identical arrangement of all the elements, only the speaker grille is slightly different. The device is available in four colors, including blue, which was first introduced by the manufacturer in . Our sample is silver with a white front panel.

The aluminum of the new product feels more “metallic” than in its predecessors and, due to this, it seems more reliable. The device is perceived as complete and verified; similar sensations were evoked by . The case is slightly curved closer to the edges, which makes holding the device much more comfortable than the same angular one.

The overall neatness and some style are spoiled by the plastic stripes on the back of the device - they differ significantly in color from the metal, which makes you constantly look at them. The feature doesn't look as bad as it did on the iPhone 6/6s, but the implementation is still far from perfect. But where Meizu didn’t miss a beat was in the symmetry of the holes on the bottom edge – perfect.

The device feels much heavier than it seems to the eye; even after several days of use, this effect does not go away, and if you periodically use other smartphones, it only intensifies. Excessive heaviness is not a disadvantage, many will even appreciate it as an advantage, but the very fact that this feature attracts attention is slightly upsetting.

The front panel contains asymmetrical slots for sensors and the front camera, which may sadden aesthetes, but otherwise there are no complaints about appearance No. The effect of 2.5D glass is not as pronounced here as in the same one, because between the protective surface and the body there is a noticeable plastic insert that absorbs bending. But the display of the new product turned out to be much better than expected.

Display

Meizu m5 note is equipped with a 5.5-inch display with a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. Although the specifications are the same as those of , the screen of the new product is much better: at least, there is no barely noticeable pink veil. Color rendition is somewhat pale when compared with the flagship devices of 2016, but since we have much more cheap smartphone, this feature can be forgiven, especially since it is comparable in quality to the more expensive one, and even called a little better, because it is not so cold.

The settings allow you to adjust the warmth of tones, and also offer the option to turn on “eye protection”, which reduces the blue spectrum in the image. Many devices have similar functionality; it is necessary for evening gatherings in front of the screen so as not to disturb sleep (allegedly the blue spectrum disrupts the biorhythm, which is why the user sleeps on average an hour less than he could).

The maximum brightness level is high enough to use the device outdoors, but this value can only be achieved in manual mode - the maximum with automatic adjustment does not increase above about 80% of the total power, but it is just not enough even for bright days when the sun is hidden behind cloud.

The directionality of the diodes provides uniform coverage of the picture when viewed perpendicularly; significant shading of areas appears only with critical deviations. But there is no hint of color distortion.

The display pleased me in almost all usage scenarios: using it at night, watching videos and photos, reading social networks, articles and books. The more you use the device, the less you worry about some of the roughness of the matrix, since they do not affect the real experience of use, and are only noticeable when directly compared with more expensive competitors.

All screen shortcomings (with the exception of the maximum backlight at auto brightness) are more related to synthetic measurements; in practice they are not felt and become noticeable only in exceptional cases. Slight pallor, of course, is not encouraging, but in this price segment Meizu m5 note still has no serious competitors in terms of display - this is one of best screens in smartphones priced up to 5000 UAH.

Performance

Meizu m5 note received an 8-core MediaTek Helio P10 processor, as well as 3 GB (or 4 GB in the older version) of RAM. Our version with a 16 GB drive is equipped with exactly 3 GB of RAM, that is technical specifications This model is almost completely repeated.

Casual games and applications work well, frame loss is rare, and it is difficult to notice them without specialized tests, however, in some cases the program interface twitches noticeably. This is especially evident in moments when the software pulls up graphics from the Internet (often happens in social network clients).

Benchmarks:

Meizu m5 note

Although the overall performance of the device is normal, the developers have clearly saved on memory - launching applications sometimes takes place with a noticeable delay, which is especially noticeable in the keyboard, which slows down in the first seconds of use after falling out of memory and then launching.

Heavy 3D games work mediocrely: Modern Combat 5 with “optimal” graphics settings averages 20 fps with rare drops to 15 fps in scenes with a huge number of special effects. It is better not to use the network mode on the Meizu m5 note, because you will have to aim at opponents more at random - adjusted for the drop in frequency: there is no smooth cursor movement. Asphalt 8 also did not please me - after 10 minutes of play, the frame rate dropped from 20 to 13-15 fps, occasionally jumping higher.

Stable, but too slow to enjoy the game

As expected, the new product is not suitable for games, because they overclock the processor, which generates a lot of heat: the case heats up quickly (and strongly), and the stability of applications decreases. In addition, such behavior affects autonomy.

Autonomy

The main feature of Meizu m5 note was not the long operating time on a single charge, but the speed of energy replenishment. The smartphone comes with a powerful charger and a thick cable, which provide charge recovery from 3% to 45% in 30 minutes, in an hour the figure reaches 83%, and a full charge is gained in an hour and a half. Not to say that the numbers are impressive, especially after, but if you take into account the price of m5 note, then the result is phenomenal, at least taking into account the fact that fast charging in smartphones costing up to 5000 UAH is found in literally only a few.

Energy consumption turned out to be problematic - initially the device arrived with firmware 5.2.11.1A, which worked terribly in the background, and the culprit was Flyme OS itself. System services overtook the screen in terms of energy consumption, which is why during active use the operating time was 11 hours with 4 active hours of the display, and this was without launching games at all. Moreover, if you use a smartphone (constantly look at the screen), then 12-15% is lost in an hour, therefore, potential autonomy should be much higher.

The problem was solved by installing more new version firmware, 5.2.11.3A, which restored adequate operating time to a smartphone with a 4000 mAh battery. 5-5.5 hours of screen time, and also just over an hour telephone conversations with 28-30 hours of autonomy. These results were obtained in a balanced energy saving mode with a ban on unloading messengers from memory, mail clients and social networks to receive push notifications. Slack was never able to get it to work normally, although other programs on the exception list regularly reported new notifications.

In total, we have two days of operation on a single charge under normal loads, which is gradually becoming the standard for smartphones. But fast charging is still rare in inexpensive devices, which seriously adds bonuses to the new Meizu product.

Camera

Meizu m5 note takes mediocre photos with the 13-megapixel main camera. The main shortcomings, which ruined about a quarter of the frames, were erroneous autofocus and processing algorithms that, at the slightest lack of light, smooth out the entire texture. The latter is normal for low-cost smartphones, as is low dynamic range, but autofocus is a complete failure.

The smartphone cannot capture objects even from an average distance. For example, the cat photo from the gallery below was created on the sixth attempt. Moreover, the problem is most pronounced in medium plans, which are most often recorded on a smartphone. There are no problems with macro though.

Bright sunlight at moments when autofocus did not fail provides excellent results when shooting with the Meizu m5 note: colors are reproduced accurately, the shape of objects and the smallest details of texture are preserved. In addition, HDR works well here - it extends the range well and creates photos quickly enough so as not to triple the image due to slight shaking of the hands.

No HDR

HDR

I'm glad that the problems with autofocus will almost certainly disappear soon, since the original version of the software (on which we had problems with autonomy) gave noticeably worse results than after the update. Hence, the developers are trying to fix the bug. It is unclear, however, why it was then necessary to release a smartphone before the software had been improved to an acceptable level, but this, apparently, is the price to pay for being cheap.

Sound and communications

Meizu m5 note received a typical budget smartphone a set of radio modules, the quality of their work does not raise any questions. Voice transmission and mobile connection support are excellent, although in places with unstable reception the device restores communication with base stations slower than many competitors.

The volume in the headphones is high, but the quality is average: good for movies, games, podcasts and audiobooks, you can also listen to music, but users who are particularly sensitive to quality are unlikely to be satisfied. The external speaker is also loud, the quality at maximum is mediocre, but no worse than that of almost all competitors in this price segment.

The new product has the same fingerprint scanner as – it reads the pattern very quickly, it is one of the fastest sensors on the market. But, as in more compact smartphone, does not work when the display is locked, which is why this feature is useful only for show; in fact, unlocking a smartphone is as fast as new iPhones or OnePlus 3 will not work here.

Competitors

Which uses m5 note grade aluminum, it doesn't look like an attractive replacement due to serious background optimization issues and critical throttling in games. However, if the single-tasking of a smartphone doesn’t bother you too much, and you like MIUI, you can consider this option. This alternative is especially valuable due to its high-quality display.

The previous one can also be considered as an alternative to the new product, at least due to its lower cost. Another argument in favor is slightly better autonomy. How big the difference is in other parameters, whether it is worth the overpayment and whether current m3 note owners need to run for the new generation, the site will tell you in a comparison that is already being actively carried out.

conclusions

Meizu m5 note, in contrast, received a sufficient number of innovations to call it a worthy successor to the extremely successful Meizu m3 note. The most strengths a more massive aluminum body, support for fast charging, a high-quality display and a fast fingerprint scanner. All these features have significantly improved the overall user experience and turned the Meizu m5 note into a good budget phablet for early 2017.

The device is not perfect, which is not so much due to the mediocre processor as to software problems that are fixed with new firmware versions. It’s difficult to say how quickly the manufacturer will solve the shortcomings, but significant problems such as abnormal charge consumption of Flyme OS itself have been resolved, and autofocus operation is gradually being debugged. If not for these features, the gadget could easily be called excellent.

If you need demanding games to perform well or are into mobile photography, no amount of upgrades will make the Meizu m5 note suitable for you. We can recommend the device for purchase to others, but you should be prepared that if the software version is older than 5.2.11.3, you will have to find out how to flash the smartphone. This one-time torment is probably worth the low price and other advantages that the Meizu m5 note has. Or, as an option, you can wait a month or two until a stable OS is available on your smartphone out of the box.

It is difficult to predict the popularity of Meizu m5 note, especially after the successful sales of the previous generation, which many still use and do not plan to change in the near future. Nevertheless, the new product has all the makings of repeating its success.

5 reasons to buy Meizu m5 note:

fast charging
good display
convenient case
Accurate and fast fingerprint scanner
good autonomy

2 reasons not to buy Meizu m5 note:

problems with software in early batches
poor autofocus behavior (should be fixed in the future)