Ages, and ages, and ages, and ages ago, I did a blog post about Chinese clone phones. Like, a year and a half ago. And one of the things I noted in there was that Chinese cloners seemed to be starting to get away from just cloning stuff, almost like they wanted to start being taken seriously for making their own original phones. However, there’s one phone in that original blog post which is still slowly making its way to the market. It’s the Meizu M8 and it really is the phone that won’t die.
Which ain’t bad, considering it started out life as a simple iPhone clone, and now, seems to be developing into a decent phone in its own right. Even if the new interface does have a passing resemblance to the Palm Pre (come on, you can’t expect the cloners to come up with original idea overnight… it does take a bit of time, y’know).
Some people will shout that it looks just like the iPhone, and while it’s true that is shares the same one-button-only design, who actually cares? There’s only so many ways you can design a touchscreen-only phone, by essentially, making the body bulge in different places. But here’s the thing, y’see… I’ve been secretly keeping an eye on the Meizu M8 for months, even though I haven’t blogged about it directly before.
And here’s my guilty secret: I actually quite like the look of it.
Yes, I am coming out as a fan of the Meizu M8, although it’s primarily because I’m intrigued by the idea of a phone that’s been in development for at least 18 months, that hasn’t actually been released yet. It’s either, when it does get released, going to be monumentally awesome, or spectacularly awful. I get the distinct feeling there will be no middle ground. And it’s powered by Windows CE (not WinMo, although recent rumours have also said the final version might run Google Android, like the HTC Magic), which is an OS you see once in a blue moon, so that’s piqued my interest, as well.
What Meizu really need now is perceived legitimacy. Sure, the M8 may have started out as an iClone, but it’s evolved to the point where it could actually be a properly decent phone in its own right. Meizu need to shake off the image of cloners, and if they do, I reckon they might have a fair shot at becoming a respected manufacturer.
And so, I am now starting my campaign to get Meizu to send me an M8 to review. This will primarily involve me saying “awww, go on, pretty please” a lot, and I’m probably on a hiding to nothing, but if they want an unbiased review to help them get the legitimacy they need, I’m all prepared to give them a chance as a legitimate manufacturer.
Plus, it gets me a new toy to play with, which ain’t to be sneezed at.
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