Meizu launches the MX4 Ubuntu Edition

Curtis Moldrich Read more June 23, 2015

Meizu has just launched the second-ever Ubuntu phone, and it already looks better than the first one. The Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition will cost €299 (around £212), and should be available to buy across Europe from tomorrow.

However, much like the first Ubuntu handset – the BQ E4.5 – the MX4 can only be purchased via an invite-only scheme on the manufacturer’s website. Meizu says that a number of invitations will be randomly generated on a daily basis, so there could be a bit of a wait to get one.

The hardware

Developed in partnership with Canonical, the MX4 Ubuntu Edition is based on Meizu’s existing MX4 flagship, and comes with silver- or gold-edged finishes. The handset only has 16GB of solid-state memory, but Meizu has added a weighty 20.7-megapixel rear-facing camera, with autofocus and a dual-LED flash – so it should be ideal for taking snaps. On the front, the MX4 also uses a 2-megapixel front-facing camera.

As for the screen? The MX4 uses a large, 5.36in Sharp-manufactured Retina panel, and covers it with scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass 3. But despite its impressive specs, the main draw of the Meizu will not be its hardware, but its software.

meizu_2

Ubuntu Phone

Despite being launched earlier this year, there are already more than 1,300 “scopes” and apps in the Ubuntu Store, and that number will only grow. However, Ubuntu’s success relies on the hardware complementing the software, and this wasn’t the case on the first Ubuntu phone.

Rather than a svelte flagship, the BQ Aquaris E4.5 Ubuntu Edition was a mediocre, mid-level smartphone – with the specs to match. With the release of Meizo’s MX4 Ubuntu Edition, Ubuntu could finally have the premium hardware to showcase its promising mobile experience.