Gizmodo: minione

Meizu M8 Captured On Film: Realer Than Big Foot But Not Nearly As Interesting

Mark Wilson — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 09:30:00 EDT

Remember the Meizu M8? It was the iPhone clone, the one that we were all excited to see...back in 2007. Now that Apple's added 3G to the mix, expanded storage and lowered the price with contract, the prospect of a (still unreleased) 8GB iClone has gotten a whole lot less enticing. But just for those who thought Meizu could never do it, here's a decent walkthrough of their interface. Please note, however, that the clip contains some suggestive images of (underage?) females that you may not want to play at work. Stay classy, Meizu! [via Electronista]

Meizu M8 MiniOne UI Tweaked, Again

Haroon Malik — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 20:30:00 EDT

A whole week almost elapsed without there being any rework to Meizu's M8 MiniOne UI, which is so shocking, I almost fell of my chair. Thankfully, it was not to be, as some new images are making the rounds on the old tubes.
Update: Apparently, this is just a mockup by the guys at CNMO and not at all a UI refresh. Dammit.

The chaps at Cnmo have managed to grab pictures showing an all black M8 MiniOne cellphone and UI, which we think looks particularly hot. Unfortunately, we're not sure if the images are official, as there isn't anything confirming their validity up at Meizu Forum, but if they are accurate, it's a step in the right direction. Anything that distances the M8 MiniOne from the difficult-to-shake iPhone roots has to be a move in the right direction, or at least we would think so. Grab a batch load of UI eye candy by hitting the link. [Cnmo via PMP Today]

Meizu MiniOne UI Updated

Haroon Malik — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 10:00:00 EDT

Meizu's CEO, Jack Wong has just posted a whole bunch of new images, all showing a tweaked UI for the hotly anticipated iPhone-esque cellphone. It is not a massive rework of what we have already been shown, but the pictures showing a new color scheme and number pad should keep the fanboys happy, even if the iPhone reference has incensed them with rage. On a side note, Meizu's MiniOne is a bit iPhoneish, no? Jump for a ton of visual eye candy. [Meizu Forum; Thanks, Alvin]

Cops Shut Down Meizu's CeBIT Booth for Ripping Off Apple

Adam Frucci — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 13:10:00 EST

It looks like we weren't the only ones not impressed with Meizu's M8 iPhone ripoff — its booth at CeBIT was shut down by the local police and all products and promotional materials were removed. Yikes! Apparently some other booths were shut down as well, as this was part of a wider initiative to protect patent and copyright owners. What does this mean for the fate of our favorite junk copycat Chinese ripoff phone? Time will tell. Stay strong, my friends.
UPDATE: The shutdown was actually due to a mistaken MP3-licensing issue and the booth is now back open. Apple had nuthin' to do with it. Carry on! [Heise via Electronista]

Meizu M8, Something You Burn in a Paper Bag on Someone's Porch

Mark Wilson — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 09:59:02 EST

Engadget scored some time with a Meizu M8 mini One prototype board at CeBIT. And even while this demo is not constrained by the size of the M8 final hardware, the experience leaves a lot to be desired. The touchscreen has major, persistent lag issues (though Meizu claims it's a demo hardware issue) and, as you'll see, the software is too buggy to last two minutes before crashing. While we've been looking forward to Meizu's iPhone knockoff for a long time now, we're wondering if it's not too early for our anticipation to throw in the towel. [engadget]

Meizu M8 Goes on Sale to Suppliers?

Haroon Malik — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 09:55:00 EST

The much hyped Meizu M8 seems to have gone on sale to suppliers via Alibaba. The companies listed to be holding stock are Fujian Huaxia Trade Co., Ltd, Samsin Trade Co., Ltd and Fuzhou ZhongTianLi Trade Co among others. Update: An Adminstrator over at Meizume, the Meizu fan's forum, ensures us the M8 is not out yet. Further, it is stated in the post that the release of the M8, whenever that should be, will only be made official on the Meizume forum. Nothing is mentioned regarding the new white paint job the M8 in the above image is sporting. [Meizume]

The specifications seem to be in agreement through each distributor/manufacturer. Additionally, Samsin is listing an all white edition of the M8, which we have not seen before. Word is still out on a definite release date, but the online retailer, Elite-Electronix is listing the launch date as 03 March, this year. Whenever it does hit, we'll be sure to wet our pants in excitement/relief. [PMP Today; Elite-Electronix]

Meizu Patents the Knock-Off

Mark Wilson — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 09:55:51 EST

The Meizu M8 may not seem like the most...original concept on the market, but that hasn't stopped the company from pursuing a patent on the device. Filed back in February 2007, Meizu proclaimed to the world that, sure, their M8 may be just an iPhone clone. But clones have rights too, dammit! [meizume via wired]

Meizu MiniOne M8 iPhone-Clone Triples Buttons, Tries to Patent It...in China?

Haroon Malik — Sat, 29 Dec 2007 18:00:00 EST

Meizu's CEO dropped an interesting nugget about the hardware of the highly anticipated MiniOne M8. Apparently, the smartphone will feature three physical buttons, as oppose to a single one right in the center. That means it will differ from another phone that it bears a striking resemblance to. AND they're trying to patent this. AND that is going to do them a lot of good in native China. Of course, the new information means any screenshots we have seen of the hardware in the past are now inaccurate, from the front at least.

Meizu's trio button design is currently being patented, so images have not been released. Fret not. To tide you all over, an image of the front cover, taken from behind, has been released. Yes, from behind...just how you like it pictures of phone facias. Inset is a concept for the design in question; expect it not to look anything like the image suggests. [Meizume]

Meizu M8 Gets New Look, New Price

Mark Wilson — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 10:08:45 EDT

Our favorite iPhone iClone, the Meizu M8, has gotten a face lift and new price. But interestingly enough, the M8's design (aside from growing 1/10 of an inch) has been altered to look less like the iPhone, ditching the shiny, metallic edges and rear for an iPod Touchesque charcoal shading. In fact, it looks almost just like the Touch. But I thought I was buying an iPhone knockoff! But no complaints, since the new pricing information has been released.

Still scheduled for a December release, the pricing has been slightly more finalized at $265 (4GB), $320 (8GB) and $400 (16GB). Sure, those prices don't look all that cheap...until you realize there's no two-year contract rebate involved. Wait a second...what does the iPhone really cost??? [meizume via wired]

Meizu M8 Phone Shipping 8GB First, Gets $70 Price Increase

Jason Chen — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 13:30:23 EDT

Meizu's CEO let everyone know (via a forum posting, no less) that their first Meizu M8 MiniOne version will be the 8GB mode, and it will ship for about $400. That's a $70 increase from the previous price data, but is much better than the totally off figures we saw last month. Good news, other models with 3G/3.5G support will come in the second phase of releases.

Specs:

• ARM11 667MHz CPU
• 128MB DDR SDRAM
• GSM + EDGE
• Windows CE 6.0
• 3.4-inch display (720x480 resolution)
• 1400mAH battery
• Wi-Fi
• TV Out
• USB 2.0
• USB Host mode
• H263/264 MPEG2 MPEG4 WMV RM RMVB code support

[Meizu via Meizume]

Meizu MiniOne Real Pricing, Availability

Jason Chen — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 13:20:55 EDT

Either this site is overcharging by a crapload or the previous pricing was totally off, but the Meizu MiniOne is up to $988 for the 16GB model, compared to $450, which was listed before. What could cause such a rise in price? Hard to say.

We do know that the phone should be available around December 7, but such a lofty price compared to the iPhone may just put a damper on any plans for the Meizu being any sort of real competition. Full specs after the jump. [NegriElectronics]

Update: It seeems the Negri Electronics pricing was just a guess before real pricing was announced. So far there hasn't been any change (says Meizu) that the pricing will be any different from the $450-ish for the 16GB model that they announced before. Availability is still targeted around late 2007 or early 2008. Thanks SSJMichael!

- ARM11 533MHZ (perhaps Samsung S3C6400) processor
- 128MB DDR SDRAM cache (two 16 512Mb chip components 1024Mb 3 2)

GSM+EDGE+WCDMA

- WIN CE6.0 based on the Windows CE kernel FOR MEIZU M8

- Video decoder CODEC (Possible Samsung S3C6400 built-CODEC)

- 3.32-inch TFT VGA （720 x 480 16 million colors Touchscreen

- 3-megapixel camera and a .3-megapixel VGA for conferencing (Autofocus, no flash)

- 1600mAHBattery : 1600mAH

- Bluetooth (with GPS access) , Line Out with DMB support, Wi-Fi connectivity with wireless card

- Plays 30fps 720 x 480 AVI, MPEG4, WMV videos and other mainstream video formats, even Real Player through decoder, also video recording, and digital TV and GPS through DMB with downloadable maps.

Dimensions: 105mm*57mm*11.5mm(H*W*T)
Display: 3.32-Inch 16-Bit (720x480 px) TFT Screen
PC Interface: USB2.0 Ultra Fast Data Transfer
Flash Memory: Built-in basic Memory (4GB/8GB)
GSM + SCDMA Networks
Bluetooth Support
TV-out Support
Line-in Support
Video Playback: MPEG-4/H.263/H.264 at 30FPS
3.0 MPx + 0.3 MPx Dual Cameras (Optional)
Video Conferencing (Optional)

Operating System: Windows CE 6.0
Processor: ARM11

Meizu MiniOne Out Next Year

Mark Wilson — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 10:16:16 EDT

Meizu has confirmed that their MiniOne will be released early next year. Meanwhile, importers like Negri Electronics are still listing a December 7th launch date (which looks to be jumping the gun at this point) along with their revealed price of $989. So much for our New Year's resolution of picking up a cheap iPhone knock-off and bragging to everyone that we're better than them. Instead we'll have to rely on booze for feelings of self-worth, just like last year. CORRECTION: Meizu's formerly announced price is $450 for this model. Don't buy from Negri.

iPhone Rival Coming... [pmptoday]
Negri Electronics

New Meizu MiniOne Pic Released While World Keeps Watching Mike Matas

Addy Dugdale — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 07:49:37 EDT

Here's a new picture of the Anti-Jesus Phone just released by Meizu's CEO Jack Wong in their bulletin board. Looks like the false prophet wants to steal some thunder off the iPhone launch, because he says that there are more to come very soon. In the meantime, the rest of the world keeps watching some dude in a train again and again. – Jesus Diaz

Meizu Planning New M8 Mini One Photo Release [Meizu Me]

Meizu MiniOne Specs Revealed: It's Actually Got Some Juice

Jason Chen — Thu, 17 May 2007 18:40:58 EDT

If you thought the only thing going for the Meizu MiniOne was the fact that it looks like an iPhone, well, you'd be wrong. The recently released specs show that it's actually got a lot of stuff going for it besides its software design.

The MiniOne will have a 533Mhz Samsung processor, 128MB of DDR SDRAM, TFT touchscreen, 720x480 resolution, 3-megapixel back camera, 0.3-megapixel front camera, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, DMB TV Tuner, GPS, video output, AVI/MPEG4/WMV support, and a 4GB to 16GB size.

The best part? It's only going to be about $260 for the 4GB version and $450 for the 16GB version. Are you excited yet? We are. – Jason Chen

MiniOne, the telephone by Meizu [Akihabara News via Uber Phones]

Venzero miniONE Portable Media Player

Gizloco — Wed, 21 Jun 2006 15:21:21 EDT

Hold onto your hats because it's time for another iPod wannabe, this time from Venzero. The diminutive (2.95 x 1.73 x 0.35 inches, 0.98 ounces) miniONE comes in both 1GB and 2GB flavors and is compatible with the upcoming MusicMarker service, which supposedly makes finding and identifying unknown songs totally awesome. The miniONE supports all the usual digital music formats, including MP3 and DRM-encumbered WMA. Hooray for choice.

The 1.3-inch OLED display has a color pallet of 265,000 colors and can also be used to display JPEGs and videos. (The player only plays back its own proprietary format, meaning that users will need to convert all those legally-obtained XviDs using the included software.)

The 1GB version will sell for $119 and its 2GB partner for $169. Look for both of them this July, probably without the butterfly. – Nicholas Deleon

Product Page [Venzero via I4U News]