Chinese smartphones have become increasingly popular in recent years. Users prefer them due to their good combination of price and quality. Today we hear about two companies from the Middle Kingdom that offer fairly good phones with high-quality build and reasonable prices - Huawei and Meizu.
The most popular line under the Huawei brand is Honor. A natural question from users is whether Honor or Meizu is better. Let's try to figure this out.
About companies
Both Meizu and Huawei are very well-known and important companies for the Chinese economy. Both specialize in the production of communication devices.
Huawei, however, has a longer history. The company was founded back in 1987. It developed quite quickly. Already in 2006, according to company statistics, more than 83,000 employees were registered here. In 2010, the company already had more than 100 offices around the world.
Particular attention is paid to scientific activities, and therefore Huawei has opened research centers in China, Russia, the USA, Sweden, and India. The company cooperates with such mobile operators as France Telecom, BT Group, Deutsche Telekom, Telefonica.
The Meizu company was officially founded in 1998 thanks to a Chinese man with the pseudonym Jake Wonzu. At first, only MP3 players were produced under this brand, but over time, smartphones also began to appear on the market. The first serious developments and presentations of the brand’s products occurred in 2003.
Both brands offer their customers modern products with the latest features, and both offer virtually the same prices for their products. Therefore, it is not surprising that users often think about whose products are better - Meizu or Huawei.
When comparing two brands, it is appropriate to compare two smartphones from both manufacturers. Let's try to figure out which is better - Meizu or Huawei Honor - based on the Meizu MX5 and Huawei Honor 7 models.
Which smartphone is better?
Honor or Meizu? There will be no clear opinion. What to choose? The user needs to focus on his preferences. If you primarily need performance, a camera, and want to get aesthetic pleasure and amaze others, choose Honor 10.
If high quality images and multimedia options are your priority, take the Meizu 15. It also has an excellent screen plus stereo speakers. But keep in mind that this smartphone still has an aspect ratio of 16:9. Some consider this a disadvantage.
In the comparison, the software shells of both phones were not mentioned - EMUI for Honor and Flyme for Meizu. And all because opinions about them vary greatly. For some, the presence of a proprietary shell on a Chinese smartphone is an advantage, but for others it is a reason for irritation. But to be honest, Huawei is making great strides in introducing intelligence into its new devices. While Meizu's development engineers are putting enormous effort into improving Flyme, their competitors from Huawei have already equipped their Honor 10 with artificial intelligence. The owner of Honor has innovative opportunities for more productive work, entertainment and communication.
Design and ergonomics
Both Honor and the device from Meizu are quite similar to each other: neat, thin. In both versions, the main part of the body is made of metal, namely aluminum. The upper and lower parts of the two devices are plastic, although they are successfully disguised as metal. This is the part that usually suffers the most damage. This is undoubtedly a disadvantage of both flagships, but it can be easily eliminated by purchasing a protective case.
Honor's corners are closer to square, they are very slightly rounded. The Meizu smartphone is more rounded and therefore more neat.
In terms of weight, Honor 7 is slightly heavier: it weighs 162 grams. The MX5 weighs only 150 grams. For flagships with a screen diagonal of more than 5 inches, this is generally a huge rarity. In the hand, such a difference is felt immediately. Conclusion: Honor 7 looks rougher and larger.
Both flagships have a fingerprint scanner, but it is located on different sides of the devices. Honor 7 is equipped with a modern advanced solution Fingerprint Sense 2.0. The scanner is located on the back of the smartphone, next to the main camera.
The MX5 uses a new version of mTouch 2.0 scanners for the brand. It is particularly accurate and has good speed. It is located on the front side of the device, under the screen.
It's hard to say which is better in terms of design - Meizu or Honor. Both are very modern and stylish, but each user should make a choice according to their own taste.
Honor smartphones
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Smartphone Honor 3C 4G LTE 8GB reviews
Dmitry Sh. ★★★★★ Advantages:
modern, convenient, fast, reliable, relatively inexpensive
Disadvantages:
none found
Comments:
I have a model with 1GB of RAM - everything flies! Excellent display - bright, rich colors, not even a hint of grain. Good build quality, everything fits very tightly. Phone It’s pleasant to hold in your hands; the back panel with leather-like trim turned out to be especially successful - the device looks more expensive than it costs.
Buy at a good price
Smartphone Honor 7X 128GB reviews
Victoria I. ★ Disadvantages:
Unfortunately, this model is not intended for Russia.
Everything is in Chinese, installing familiar programs through the play market is not possible, there are Chinese blocks, even the browser is only Huawei and neither Google nor Chrome, and even more so VK or Instagram are not allowed. There is no guarantee in Russia either, as well as instructions in Russian . Comment:
I returned this phone to the store the same day. The money for delivery through the online store, of course, was lost.
Buy at a good price
Smartphone Honor 8 Lite 3/32GB reviews
Alex N. ★★★★ Advantages:
Good screen Performance, although I don’t play games. Well built. Possibility of connecting external drives, OTG.
Disadvantages:
1. There is no swype on the keyboard.2. Bad camera. If there is not enough light, the photos will turn out bad. On the Samsung, in the same poor lighting, it is much brighter, clearer and juicier.3. Weak vibration.
Marina V. ★★★★★ Advantages:
Just a beautiful and high-quality phone for the money.
I recommend it to everyone. I took it in connection. It arrived in 2 days, everything is perfect. Disadvantages:
No
Buy at a good price
Smartphone Honor 8 Lite 64GB reviews
Alexander M. ★★★ Advantages:
works well, the screen is fast and there are no issues with the camera
Disadvantages:
very fragile glass, fell twice, changed glass twice: (even in its original plastic case) this is the first time I have such a “delicate” phone
Comment:
works well, but is made of fragile material
Evgeniy B. ★★★★★ Advantages:
For the money it's a good device, I'm satisfied.
Disadvantages:
fingerprints remain on the screen, very bad.
Comment:
in general I am satisfied with the phone, both the soldering and the battery, for me 5 points.
Buy at a good price
Smartphone Honor 8X Max 4/64GB reviews
PAVEL G. ★★★★★ Advantages:
Screen, sound, operating time.
Chic appearance. Disadvantages:
No NFC
Comment:
An excellent smartphone, unfortunately we do not sell this particular configuration. I bought it in China and it cost 12,600 rubles. and 10 days of waiting.
Ivan P. ★★★★★ Advantages:
Screen, sound and battery capacity
Disadvantages:
Camera is not great
Comment:
I bought it in China for 14 k, firmware up to global version 1.5 is worth it if you are too lazy to bother yourself, my wife just has Chinese firmware, everything works, the camera is not great, no NFC, but the screen just a song, the sound too, you quickly get used to the size
Buy at a good price
Smartphone Honor 9 6/64GB reviews
Katya Gladkikh ★★★★★ Advantages:
First of all, it’s beautiful =) It’s a good camera, the battery lasts a long time and charges quickly from the mains.
Disadvantages:
Charging from a laptop via USB is quite slow.
At the beginning there were problems with the charging connector, because... the previous phone had a different standard. After purchasing a couple of corresponding wires everything became ok. Take a spare tire right away. Comment:
So far I am very pleased with the phone. A transparent case was included. Very convenient fingerprint unlock feature. Does not slow down, lives a long time even with a low charge and without turning off the geo.
Konstantin T. ★★★★★ Advantages:
An excellent phone, it takes good photos, and the battery lasts for a day during active use.
It has a USB type-c connector, so I had to buy more cables for work. The kit included a plastic bumper. Disadvantages:
No
Buy at a good price
Smartphone Honor 6 Plus 16GB reviews
Nikita M. ★★★★★ Advantages:
Fantastic camera. Luscious display. All sorts of goodies ala USB charging. Controversial, but very beautiful EMUI shell from version 3.
Very convenient and nice Software component - camera application, file manager, optimization of battery performance, applications, etc. Long-lasting - 2 days of operation easily. Stylish, thin, status. Disadvantages:
Shovel, I like it when it fits in my hand Quiet speaker (as on almost all modern ones)
Comment:
Chasing subtlety, manufacturers pay little attention to speaker volume.
Alexander ★★★★ Advantages:
There are a lot of advantages.
It consists entirely of advantages. But…. Disadvantages:
Why didn’t anyone write that this magnificent device does not work with Russian LTE frequencies.
Comment:
The overall impression is good, except for the above.
Buy at a good price
Smartphone Honor 7X 32GB reviews
Dmitry S. ★★★★★ Advantages:
A good screen (oleophobic coating is nothing like that), the camera is great. The battery lasts a day, 10-15% remains in stock with normal use, with passive use for a day and a half. For surfing the Internet or social media.
networks are just that. Disadvantages:
If you take the phone for games, then the processor obviously won’t let you, the stabilization is crappy when shooting video. And on the back cover, fingerprints are collected once or twice.
Comment:
I bought it at the beginning of September. Despite the shortcomings, it works stably, I haven’t noticed any lags. Otherwise, the phone is very good for the money.
Dmitry A. ★★★★★ Advantages:
Beautiful, fast, convenient.
Disadvantages:
the case is too thin and slippery for me, I immediately bought a case.
Comment:
I bought it in November to replace the ancient Lenovo A766. Internet, video viewing and camera work well. I don't play games.
Buy at a good price
Smartphone Honor 6X 4/32GB reviews
Nikolay E. ★★★★★ Advantages:
Price, fast, smart, fingerprint, reliable, you can install a bunch of programs and applications, enough memory, good audibility during conversations and music.
Disadvantages:
The battery may not be enough for the whole day, but if you use it all day from 7 am, calls, internet by 20 o'clock there is still 15-20 percent charge left.
Comment:
Great phone for the price. I recommend
Display
Meizu MX5 is one of the few models of the brand and flagships in general with a 5.5-inch screen. Huawei Honor 7 is only 5.2 inches. The resolution in both versions is 1920x1080.
The IPS touchscreen is a distinguishing feature for both devices. Honor uses Gorilla Glass to protect the front panel from damage.
Both MX5 and Honor 7 boast multi-touch technology, which allows you to simultaneously handle up to 10 touches on the screen.
Both devices are distinguished by high brightness. The image can be viewed normally even in very bright sunlight. But in Meizu the brightness is slightly better than in the “seventh” Honor, because it uses an AMOLED panel.
The oleophobic coating successfully protects the screen from marks both in the case of Meizu and in the case of Huawei.
Comparing Meizu and Honor in terms of display quality does not allow us to give preference to one or another flagship; both are of quite high quality.
Which smartphone to choose
Due to the sanctions imposed on Huawei, the company has lost access to a number of components, which forces it to produce similar models under different names, slightly changing their technical characteristics. Therefore, often under the Honor brand, the user can get a slightly simplified version of Huawei with a more youthful design at an interesting price.
If we compare the models with competitors, Honor is not inferior to them in terms of technical characteristics, but has one radical drawback. The problem with Google services remains acute - the company's application store does not have such a large selection to deprive the smartphone owner of the need to install applications in an unusual, more complex way.
The Meizu model range is updated slowly; models released a year ago remain relevant, not always able to meet the needs of the buyer. At the same time, the phones are reliable, have a nice design, and are able to provide the user with the necessary set of tools to solve everyday problems.
If a buyer wants to get a smartphone that is easy to use with good functionality, it is better to choose Meiza. For those who are ready for the absence of pre-installed Google services for the sake of advanced design and camera, the Honor smartphone will be a top solution.
Performance
Honor 7 uses a single-chip eight-core HiSilicon Kirin 935 processor. Core frequencies are 1.5 and 2.2 GHz. The device works quite quickly, in fact it never freezes. The processor built into the “seventh” Honor is capable of competing with such a powerful system as Qualcomm Snapdragon, which is used by Samsung.
For Meizu MX 5, manufacturers decided to use the no less successful and well-known MediaTek single-chip system. Like Honor, the latter has 8 cores, each core with a frequency of 2.2 GHz.
Both devices have the same amount of RAM - 3 GB each (2 GB of which remain free).
The built-in memory in Honor 7 is 16 GB, but more than 9.85 GB of this is used for the smartphone’s own needs. If desired, the user has the opportunity to expand this volume up to 128 GB using a microSD memory card.
Meizu MX5 is available with various internal memory options: 16, 32, 64 GB. This device does not allow the use of additional memory cards, but it is possible to connect flash drives via microUSB to transfer information.
When thinking about which phone is better - Honor or Meizu, the user must take into account his needs and the required amount of memory.
Comparison of Honor 10 and Meizu 15
It is easier and more convenient to compare two companies based on similar devices taken from the same price category, for example, Honor 10 and Meizu 15.
If we consider multimedia capabilities, then the Meizu 15 smartphone wins in this regard. But at the same time, Honor 10 has a higher performance indicator, as well as a rather interesting and unique appearance of the mobile device.
Meizu's display has excellent color reproduction and has a built-in AMOLED matrix. Thus, when using this mobile device, users can enjoy deep blacks while enjoying rich and rich colors. Moreover, Meizu 15 has better sound quality compared to the Honor 10 smartphone. In addition, Meizu even has better camera capabilities than Honor 10. Moreover, even in the twilight or in low light conditions, the photos are still of extremely high quality.
Despite these parameters, Honor 10 has a very powerful Kirin 970 processor with 8 cores and a frequency of 2.4 GHz. Honor also has high performance. In addition, a high-capacity battery of 3400 mAh is introduced here, while Meizu has only 3000 mAh.
Cameras
In terms of cameras, both Honor 7 and Meizu MX 5 are good phones. In both devices, the main camera has a 20 megapixel module. The aperture, however, is different. So, Huawei has F/2.0, and Meizu has F/2.2.
The front camera in Honor 7 is equipped with an 8 megapixel module and f/2.4 aperture. You can quickly take a photo from it by touching your finger to the fingerprint scanner. The advantage of the flagship is the presence of the “Smile Tracking” function. In addition, the device has such a useful mode as “Perfect Selfie”. Thanks to this, it is possible to use various effects and manually edit the captured image.
Meizu has a 5 MP front camera with an f/2.2 aperture. The downside is the lack of flash and autofocus. You can take pictures using the hardware volume button.
The lens in the Meizu device is protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 3. The Huawei device uses ultra-strong sapphire glass for this purpose.
If we compare Huawei with Meizu in terms of front cameras, then it’s worth saying that selfies come out well in both versions, but with Honor they turn out to be of higher quality and more detailed. Shooting from the main camera (especially panoramic ones) is better with the MX 5.
Huawei
Flagship Huawei Mate 10 Pro
This giant mobile technology manufacturer is head and shoulders above any other Chinese company that makes mobile phones. If Xiaomi and Meizu simply assemble gadgets based on third-party hardware, Huawei has its own processor production base.
The HiSilicon brand (owned by Huawei) produces mobile chipsets that compete even with the legendary processors from Qualcomm and Exynos (Samsung). One of the latest HiSilicon Kirin 970 chips, made using a 10nm process technology, received improved Mali-G72 graphics with 12 video processors, and now its capabilities and performance are comparable to the power of the top Snapdragon 835 CPU. Huawei with its Kirin processors has long moved to the big league, where Mediatek is heading.
Next, the cameras in Huawei smartphones are among the best in the world. If we take the Dxomark rating (the studio analyzes mobile cameras), then the flagship from Huawei - Mate 10 Pro - is in 4th place. Only Samsung S9 Plus, Google Pixel 2 and Apple with their iPhone X are higher. Not a single Xiaomi or Meizu gadget is included in the first 10 models of the ranking, and only the new Xiaomi Mi Note 3 smartphone is in 11th position, and Meizu phones are absent at all.
This is what the rating looks like at the end of March 2021:
As you can see, Huawei holds the leading position, Xiaomi is far behind, and the Meizu flagships did not even make it into the TOP20 smartphones with good cameras.
Note that Huawei pays a lot of attention to camera development and works closely with specialists from the legendary Leica brand. In addition, Huawei very unusually uses 2 rear modules of its cameras: one takes a picture in monochrome mode and “catches” light, the other module takes a color photo and receives color information. Then the 2 frames are combined using special software, and at the output the user sees a high-quality image with accurate colors and a wide dynamic range. Most other smartphone manufacturers use a second camera to detect depth of field, which allows for blurring of the background, but only indirectly affects photo quality. This is a big plus for Huawei flagships with two cameras.
