M9 -- Engadget Mobile

M9 posts

Meizu releasing upgraded M8 versions with 3G and big cams?

by Chris Ziegler posted May 14th 2009 @ 5:09PM

As decent as the M8's software might be, the one consensus area where everyone's favorite iPhone rip is clearly lacking is in the radio silicon; the current model's strictly 2G, and what's worse, the shipping units frequently come without WiFi. What's a Meizu fan to do? The company's ever-colorful CEO Jack Wong is now saying that there are a couple new versions of the M8 in the works -- which may launch in place of the previously-mentioned M9 variants -- and should include both GPS and a healthy 5 megapixel cam. An "M8 3G" would be rocking TD-SCDMA for domestic Chinese high-speed service, while a second "M8w" model would do some form of WCDMA, presumably equipped for 3G service both in and out of the country. No release dates are mentioned -- but considering the M8's seemingly perpetual delay, we wouldn't hold our breath for a 2009 outing.

[Via Meizu Me, thanks nice2know]

Meizu M9 won't be that different than the M8 -- it uses the same firmware

by Chris Ziegler posted Mar 6th 2009 @ 6:57PM

Meizu M8 owners know that the firmware still needs to bake for a while longer before it'll be ready for human consumption, but there's a problem: the M8's hardware is done, leaving a bunch of engineers without work. It seems that this little conundrum was the impetus Meizu needed to undertake its M9 project, because CEO Jack Wong has indicated on the company's forums that the new model will be strictly a hardware change from the M8 -- the software platform will be essentially the same. As he's mentioned before, the M9 will come in CDMA and TD-SCDMA flavors whereas the current M8 is strictly GSM, so that radio swap is where the real hardware re-engineering comes into play, it seems. There's still no word on how long this surgery might take, but we're sure data-hungry Chinese on TD-SCDMA spectrum are going to be putting on the full-court press to get it done sooner rather than later.

[Via Meizu Me]

Meizu looking to CDMA and China-centric 3G with M8 successor

by Chris Ziegler posted Mar 3rd 2009 @ 12:42AM

We've barely had time to digest the fact that real, actual, honest-to-goodness Meizu M8s are now available at the odd retail outlet around the globe, and Meizu's famously colorful CEO is already spouting off about a successor. Talk about a buzzkill, eh? Jack Wong made an off-the-cuff remark in a forum post today about the M9 in two flavors -- M9c for CDMA networks and M9t for China's 3G TD-SCDMA networks -- but beyond that, he's said nothing about specs or availability. Odds are, we can expect a good 18-24 months of teasers, missed launches, and brushes with vaporware status before either model actually launches, so if you had your heart set on an M8, seriously, don't feel bad about taking the plunge.

[Via Meizu Me]

Video: Meizu M8 prepped for full-scale launch, IP battle with Apple

by Thomas Ricker posted Jan 23rd 2009 @ 3:26AM

Meizu's been on a tear since our last M8 update. Sitting atop a new 0.9.0.1 firmware release complete with working copy and paste, Outlook calendar synchronization, and a "full backup system," the M8 is now supported by a published SDK and licensed to ride the Chinese airwaves for what looks to be a March, mainland China release. With all the passion it could muster, Meizu posted the following announcement to its English website:

Let's bear witness together, to the great moment of MEIZU formally entering the big stage of mobile phone industry!

Currently, the M8 handset with its iPhone roots (but a WinCE core) is only available to an abiding Chinese press and die-hard Meizu fanatics -- a population said to rival the intensity of Apple's own sheeple elite. Having watched the M8 make the transition from art to part over the last few years, we're mighty stoked at the prospective launch to say the least. And while Meizu has clearly trumped Apple's spec sheet (not user experience) in terms of software (copy paste, background task management, video recording, and plenty more) and hardware (720 x 480 pixel display and beefier silicon), we'll bet there's still enough "inspiration" to get Tim Cook and Apple's legal counsel whipped up into a frenzy of Intellectual Property defense. Latest video after the break.

Read -- Mobile license approval
Read -- SDK release
Read -- firmware 0.9 release

Continue reading Video: Meizu M8 prepped for full-scale launch, IP battle with Apple