Meizu launches m3-successor m3s with fingerprint scanner and metal body: Price, specifications

Responding to the ever-increasing demand for budget smartphones in China, Meizu launched a new handset and the successor to the popular m3 smartphone, the m3s, on Monday. The Chinese smartphone maker launched two variants of the handset -- one with 2GB RAM + 16GB storage and another with 3GB RAM + 32GB storage priced at Â¥699 (around Rs. 7,200) and Â¥899 (around Rs. 9,200), respectively.

Meizu m3s is notable upgrade compared to the recently-launched m3 smartphone. The m3s is slightly larger and heavier than the m3 and the main reason being the bigger battery unit packed inside the latest handset. The m3s packs a 3,020mAh battery, which is 150mAh more than the m3 smartphone, adding most of the additional 6 grams to the weight.

The m3s smartphone also has a metal unibody, which is a welcome addition to those who detested the polycarbonate structure found on the m3. The handset also gets the much-needed fingerprint scanner, which makes it a stronger contender against its rivals in the market.

Other specifications remain unchanged in the m3s, including the design with a physical mBack button. The new smartphone comes with a 5-inch HD display with 2.5D curved glass and 296ppi. It is powered by the same 1.5GHz MediaTek MT6750 octa-core processor with either 2GB or 3GB RAM. Both models have hybrid microSD card slot, which doubles up as a dual SIM card slot when not in use.

The camera setup is also intact in the m3s, which sports a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera with PDAF, f/2.2 aperture and dual LED flash. On the front side of the device, there is a 5MP snapper with f/2.0 aperture and FotoNation 2.0. The m3s runs Android 5.1 Lollipop-based Flyme 5 OS for an intuitive and simple system app layout.

The handset is available only in China and will go on sale from Friday. There is no information about its international availability, but it could be a while seeing that the company is yet to launch the former m3 smartphone in India. The last release by Meizu in India is the M3 Note, which was received with great admiration by consumers and critics. It remains to be seen whether the new smartphones will be able to generate similar interest in the competitive Indian market.