The M3 note is so good in so many ways, it's really hard to know where to begin.
So let's just look at it for a bit. The brushed aluminium casing is slim and smooth, without being slippery to hold. Despite the large display, the handset isn't much bigger than many phones with smaller screens and the curved edges make it extremely comfortable in the hand.
The M3 note is light, surprisingly so. After all, it is a large phone. The metal casing means the phone still feels sturdy though. I've dropped it at least once with no visible side effects. (I should probably stop dropping phones. It's not really what they're designed for)
So, big tick for style. And another tick for screen size. I'm not sure how many other 5.5inch displays there are out there anywhere near this price. If there are any, I can pretty much guarantee they won't have the processing power behind them to effectively run a screen that big.
The Meizu M3 note does. In terms of colour, contrast and clarity, this is not the number one viewing experience on the market. But then, it's not $1200 either. And it's actually a pretty good display.
The M3 note's genuine octa-core processor provides an impressively smooth user experience. I swapped between various apps seamlessly and download and installation speeds were great. Meizu seems to be going to great lengths to improve its Flyme UI experience. Each time I use it, I find it more intuitive than the last. As I've mentioned before, there is only one navigation button at the base of the handset, but that single button handles a variety of operations depending whether you tap, press or swipe it.
It also serves as the fingerprint scanner which, on this device, I found very reliable. Unlike many other attempts from other brands, this scanner worked almost always, unlocking the handset very quickly.
The cameras are excellent without being outstanding, with a full array of settings and effects within easy reach.
Apart from its low price, there are two other features that really set the M3 note apart from the pack.
Firstly, customisation. Not only are there literally hundreds of theme packs available straight out of the box (You can even make this thing look like an iPhone. Why you would want to is another question entirely) You're actually allowed to root the M3 note for ultimate access to it's system settings and tweaks. There's no trick to it - it's just another setting on the phone. This is previously unheard of but will be welcome news to tech-tragics like me who can now fiddle around under the hood to their heart's content.
Secondly, the battery. At a whopping 4100mAh, it's the highest-capacity battery on the market. In theory, this means super long life. As usual though, the claims from the manufacturer don't quite live up to the reality. Meizu seems to think you might get 2 days standard use out of this device on a single charge. This may be true if all you did was turn it on and not connect it to any wifi or bluetooth devices. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't caught short by unexpected battery drain but I certainly wasn't looking at a 65% sign at the end of the day either. However, I certainly was impressed with how fast the battery charged. Not wirelessly though. Oh well.
What was definitely noticeable was the dramatic increase in power consumption once I connected a smart watch to this phone - and battery drain wasn't the only issue here. Meizu has made considerable progress "New Zealandising" its user experience, working hard to ensure many of our most popular apps work reliably with their devices. Unfortunately, it seems to have some way to go when it comes to non-Meizu accessories, in my case an Android-wear watch.
While I had no problem receiving notifications from the M3 note on the watch, almost nothing worked in the other direction. I couldn't start and stop music or video with the watch. I couldn't reply to texts or emails. And perhaps most frustratingly of all, none of my Google voice commands worked. Given this is the most efficient way to operate any Android-wear device, I think Meizu has got some homework to do if it wants to sell its phones to smart watch wearers.
On the other hand, little annoyances I had encountered on previous Meizu handsets, like Periscope crashing, have not only been sorted, but in cases like Periscope, it now runs better on the M3 note than on many other phones.
That's what has impressed me most about this device; Meizu's obvious commitment to providing the end-user with the experience we actually want. This is the antidote to Apple's insistence the iPhone knows best and you'll use it the way Apple wants you too.
As for the price. At the risk of sounding like an infomercial, you simply won't get more phone for your dollar.
Click here for more information and pricing on the Meizu M3 note
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