Meizu 16Xs

MEIZU 16Xs 4G Smartphone

A while ago a Meizu smartphone with triple camera appeared in the Tenaa database, which obviously wants to settle in the middle class. Now the manufacturer has unveiled the smartphone under the name Meizu 16Xs. The device is probably the answer to the Xiaomi Mi 9 SE, but doesn’t really want to convince. Clear, optics and features are right. The design looks chic and is available either plain and elegant (black and white) or extravagantly colourful. But this is exactly where the first stumbling block comes in. The back is made of Plexiglas, not real glass. So the Meizu 16Xs already got the first minus point.

At least with the display, the Meizu 16Xs does a bit good again. Especially Notch opponents should see it that way. The Notch is missing. Instead, Meizu relies on slim and symmetrical edges at the chin and forehead. In addition, the display relies on AMOLED technology, offers a size of 6.2 inches, Full HD+ resolution and an integrated fingerprint sensor. In terms of brightness, however, there is again a typical Meizu deficit. At 430 Nits, this is the end of the story. The smartphone measures 152 x 74.4 x 8.3mm with a weight of 165g.

The processor used is a Snapdragon 675, which is one of the successors of the Snapdragon 660. With an Antutu score of 174,000 points, the chip is well above the Snapdragon 660, but also a bit behind the Snapdragon 712 in the Xiaomi Mi 9 SE. Meizu provides the 16Xs with 6GB LPDDR4X RAM and either 64GB or 128GB memory. Instead of UFS memory, eMMC 5.1 memory is used. A 4.000mAh battery with mCharge support is used for the power supply. Charging is via type-C, a 3.5mm connector is still available.

The camera resembles that of the competition and consists of three sensors. The main sensor resolves with 48MP and offers a large f/1.7 aperture. It is supported by a 5MP camera with f/1.9 and an 8MP camera with f/2.2. One of the secondary cameras offers a 118.8° wide-angle lens. Optical zoom doesn’t seem to exist – at least it’s not mentioned at all on the product page. The front camera is based on a 16MP sensor and offers a f/2.2 aperture. So it won’t be very bright.

Other weaknesses then arise in the wireless category. The Meizu lacks NFC 16Xs as well as support for Band 20 LTE. Whether there will be a global version remains to be seen. If one comes, it should take some time, because Meizu usually presents them with a lot of delays. An import is out of the question at this point.

The model variety of the Meizu 16Xs is limited. There is only one RAM variant – with 6GB – and only two memory options: 64GB and 128GB. The former is 1698 Yuan in China, the latter 1998 Yuan. Converted into Euro this corresponds to 221 respectively $290. If you add the additional import costs, the Meizu 16Xs becomes as expensive as the current Xiaomi Mi 9 SE and thus has not the slightest chance against the competition. And then there’s the Lenovo Z6 Lite, which costs about as much to import as the Meizu 16Xs in China and has even better features – at least as far as performance and display are concerned. Meizu should have set the price much lower in our eyes in order to be competitive with this offer.

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