Tin Mok about the past, present and future of Meizu
In November, a new Meizu MX2 smartphone was presented in Beijing, and a day later we were able to interview one of the company's key employees. Our questions agreed to answer the vice president of sales and marketing - Tin Mok. Ting has been working for the company for a long time, he personally knows its founder and is actively involved in many aspects of the development of Meizu.
Tin, hello, tell us a little about the history of the company. How did you get the idea to create your own brand? Who was the founder of the company? What inspired him? What products were originally produced?
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The founder of the company was Jack Wong. Mr. Wong was originally engaged in the production and sale of OEM products, but even when selling OEM devices, he tried to make them look individual, add some of their own "tweaks" related to design or performance.
After some time, Mr. Wong realized that selling OEM devices would not go far, besides they did not allow him to reveal his full potential as a developer and designer, so he decided to establish his own company. The word “Meizu” consists of two Chinese words, Mei is a “trendy” person interested in new technologies, Zu is a group of people. In fact, literally Meizu can be translated as "a group of geeks."
Mr. Wong was not only a developer, but also a designer, so even such things as a logo were given maximum attention. First, look at how to spell Meizu in Chinese:
And here is a picture of the logo designed by Wong:
As you can see, the usual hieroglyphs Wong "converted" into a fancy drawing.
The first released under its own brand model was an mp3 player - Meizu ME. After it was a whole scattering of players from Meizu: E2, X2, E5, X6, E3, MiniPlayer.
But the company gained real fame on the Russian market thanks to the Meizu MusicCard player. We sold it under the brand name Ritmix (RF-7400). Thanks to this model, at one time, Ritmix players were considered quality in terms of sound.
After some time, Mr. Wong realized that the market of mp3-players is gradually decreasing, in their place come multifunctional “combines” - smartphones. Therefore, Meizu decided to shift to the release of smartphones. (The first model released was the Meizu M8, which impressed users with its well-thought-out shell, against the backdrop of the stock Windows CE 6.0).
It is important to note here that most of the models at that time worked on Windows Mobile, and Windows CE was installed mainly in all navigators or players (for example, Cowon Q5W).
The difference between Windows Mobile and Windows CE is best represented by the following example: Windows CE is a kind of toolkit from which a developer can “assemble” his own OS, and Windows Mobile is a “semi-finished product” already created from Windows CE.
Let me remind you that the Meizu M8 had its own shell, which rather could be called practically its own OS, because everything in it was worked out in detail: starting from the desktop and ending with all the items in the settings menu. All that was in the M8 from Windows CE - is the support programs for this OS. Otherwise, it was a unique shell, made at the level of modern HTC Sense and MIUI.
Why, after the start of sales of smartphones, you stopped releasing players?
Firstly, smartphones gradually began to force out players, and secondly, Mr. Wong believes that it is necessary to concentrate in one direction, and not be sprayed on several niches.
When and why did the company decide to make the Russian market one of the key ones? As far as I know, you even came to Russia yourself to get closer to partners who represent your company here?
Yes, we did come to Russia for this purpose. We understand that the Russian market gives the company a huge potential. In addition, we know that Russian users are interested in our products, and at one time even ordered it from China. The Russian market also allows us to show that we are interested in the development of a brand not only in China.
Whose merit is it?
Interest Ask. Vadim (Vadim Koliuh) played a huge role in establishing relations with the company. In addition to negotiating with us and representing Meizu in Russia, we are pleased to do business with Vadim also because he clearly understands the philosophy of our brand, thanks to which he can correctly position Meizu on the Russian market.
Do you also plan to release tablets?
Let me ask you another question: Do you have a tablet? Do you often use it? (Yes, I have, I use it from an hour to two a day) . What about a smartphone? - added with a smile Tin Mok.
The essence of this issue was that we use a smartphone many times more often than a tablet, therefore, it is more profitable and more promising to produce smartphones. I believe that over time they will completely be able to replace the functionality of the tablets, the Galaxy Note is only the first sign in this direction.
The company plans to release a device like the Galaxy Note?
Not at the moment. But no one excludes such plans in the future.
... in the continuation of the issue of tablets ..
In my opinion, the best tablets are now iPad. This is largely due to the quality of materials, design and of course the amount of software. At the moment, the Android tablet loses iOS. We would not like to provide our users with a “raw” product.
I know that for Meizu MX there were test firmware on the stock Android, do you plan to release alternative firmware without Flyme in the future?
In our opinion, the stock Android is currently not perfect. Take at least their lock screen or on-screen buttons. That is why we adapt it so that users get the most positive experience. Therefore - no, we do not plan to release firmware on Android without our shell.
Who is involved in the adaptation of the firmware for Russian users?
Our official partners in Russia.
Why did you decide to abandon the memory card slot?
This initiative comes from Google, and we support it. If you pay attention, there is no slot for memory cards in the whole Nexus series, besides it has a positive effect on power consumption.
The most popular question from our readers concerns the price, why such a big difference between the price in Russia and in China?
Here many factors play their part. Firstly, there is high competition in China, so we set a minimum markup for our Chinese users. Secondly, here we have our own sales channels, we sell our smartphones ourselves, and not through intermediaries, this also explains the low price. Thirdly, you should understand that the delivery of smartphones to Russia is also not free, plus VAT, because we trade officially, plus after-sales service, all this affects the price.
Many of our readers write that they will better order a smartphone from China and save.
Of course, they can do it, but, first, they will have to wait for his arrival, and second, not the fact that the smartphone will reach them. In addition, if something happens to their phone, they will not be able to contact the service center for free diagnostics and repair in Russia, but will have to repair it for money or send it for service to the country (that store) where they purchased .
What is the reason for choosing Samsung processors for your smartphones?
Let's take a look at the processor market as a whole: MTK are cheap processors that we cannot use in our flagship. Qualcomm is of course good, but only when it comes to supporting various communication standards. NVIDIA Tegra - no, thanks. At the moment, Samsung is a leader in the production of processors, let's not forget that until recently, even Apple products used processors from Samsung, which is very significant.
Recently, there are more and more smartphones, the main feature of which is FullHD-resolution, do they plan to release such smartphones in the company?
We think about it. While we can not give any comments.
Do you plan to install more capacious batteries in your devices?
The main problem with power consumption is associated with the operating system, and not with the capacity of mAh, which is why we focus on technologies related to the optimization of autonomous work. This direction is also important for us. In the future, with the use of new processors, the situation will improve even more.
What is the reason for adding FLAC support? Will there be a difference between FLAC and MP3 in regular headphones?
Do not forget that we were originally engaged in the players, and part of our audience (albeit small) are people who use high-quality headphones and hear the difference between MP3 and FLAC. Despite the fact that such people are few, they are also our loyal users, so support for FLAC was made just for them. Of course, the average user listening to music on headphones for $ 20 is unlikely to hear the difference between FLAC and MP3.
Tin, our interview has come to an end, maybe you want to say a few words to our readers at last?
We are pleased that our Russian users are not indifferent to the fate of Meizu and they ask questions. Official entry into the Russian market is an important achievement for us. Thank you for your interest in our company!
Tin, hello, tell us a little about the history of the company. How did you get the idea to create your own brand? Who was the founder of the company? What inspired him? What products were originally produced?
')
The founder of the company was Jack Wong. Mr. Wong was originally engaged in the production and sale of OEM products, but even when selling OEM devices, he tried to make them look individual, add some of their own "tweaks" related to design or performance.
After some time, Mr. Wong realized that selling OEM devices would not go far, besides they did not allow him to reveal his full potential as a developer and designer, so he decided to establish his own company. The word “Meizu” consists of two Chinese words, Mei is a “trendy” person interested in new technologies, Zu is a group of people. In fact, literally Meizu can be translated as "a group of geeks."
Mr. Wong was not only a developer, but also a designer, so even such things as a logo were given maximum attention. First, look at how to spell Meizu in Chinese:
And here is a picture of the logo designed by Wong:
As you can see, the usual hieroglyphs Wong "converted" into a fancy drawing.
The first released under its own brand model was an mp3 player - Meizu ME. After it was a whole scattering of players from Meizu: E2, X2, E5, X6, E3, MiniPlayer.
But the company gained real fame on the Russian market thanks to the Meizu MusicCard player. We sold it under the brand name Ritmix (RF-7400). Thanks to this model, at one time, Ritmix players were considered quality in terms of sound.
After some time, Mr. Wong realized that the market of mp3-players is gradually decreasing, in their place come multifunctional “combines” - smartphones. Therefore, Meizu decided to shift to the release of smartphones. (The first model released was the Meizu M8, which impressed users with its well-thought-out shell, against the backdrop of the stock Windows CE 6.0).
It is important to note here that most of the models at that time worked on Windows Mobile, and Windows CE was installed mainly in all navigators or players (for example, Cowon Q5W).
The difference between Windows Mobile and Windows CE is best represented by the following example: Windows CE is a kind of toolkit from which a developer can “assemble” his own OS, and Windows Mobile is a “semi-finished product” already created from Windows CE.
Let me remind you that the Meizu M8 had its own shell, which rather could be called practically its own OS, because everything in it was worked out in detail: starting from the desktop and ending with all the items in the settings menu. All that was in the M8 from Windows CE - is the support programs for this OS. Otherwise, it was a unique shell, made at the level of modern HTC Sense and MIUI.
Why, after the start of sales of smartphones, you stopped releasing players?
Firstly, smartphones gradually began to force out players, and secondly, Mr. Wong believes that it is necessary to concentrate in one direction, and not be sprayed on several niches.
When and why did the company decide to make the Russian market one of the key ones? As far as I know, you even came to Russia yourself to get closer to partners who represent your company here?
Yes, we did come to Russia for this purpose. We understand that the Russian market gives the company a huge potential. In addition, we know that Russian users are interested in our products, and at one time even ordered it from China. The Russian market also allows us to show that we are interested in the development of a brand not only in China.
Whose merit is it?
Interest Ask. Vadim (Vadim Koliuh) played a huge role in establishing relations with the company. In addition to negotiating with us and representing Meizu in Russia, we are pleased to do business with Vadim also because he clearly understands the philosophy of our brand, thanks to which he can correctly position Meizu on the Russian market.
Do you also plan to release tablets?
Let me ask you another question: Do you have a tablet? Do you often use it? (Yes, I have, I use it from an hour to two a day) . What about a smartphone? - added with a smile Tin Mok.
The essence of this issue was that we use a smartphone many times more often than a tablet, therefore, it is more profitable and more promising to produce smartphones. I believe that over time they will completely be able to replace the functionality of the tablets, the Galaxy Note is only the first sign in this direction.
The company plans to release a device like the Galaxy Note?
Not at the moment. But no one excludes such plans in the future.
... in the continuation of the issue of tablets ..
In my opinion, the best tablets are now iPad. This is largely due to the quality of materials, design and of course the amount of software. At the moment, the Android tablet loses iOS. We would not like to provide our users with a “raw” product.
I know that for Meizu MX there were test firmware on the stock Android, do you plan to release alternative firmware without Flyme in the future?
In our opinion, the stock Android is currently not perfect. Take at least their lock screen or on-screen buttons. That is why we adapt it so that users get the most positive experience. Therefore - no, we do not plan to release firmware on Android without our shell.
Who is involved in the adaptation of the firmware for Russian users?
Our official partners in Russia.
Why did you decide to abandon the memory card slot?
This initiative comes from Google, and we support it. If you pay attention, there is no slot for memory cards in the whole Nexus series, besides it has a positive effect on power consumption.
The most popular question from our readers concerns the price, why such a big difference between the price in Russia and in China?
Here many factors play their part. Firstly, there is high competition in China, so we set a minimum markup for our Chinese users. Secondly, here we have our own sales channels, we sell our smartphones ourselves, and not through intermediaries, this also explains the low price. Thirdly, you should understand that the delivery of smartphones to Russia is also not free, plus VAT, because we trade officially, plus after-sales service, all this affects the price.
Many of our readers write that they will better order a smartphone from China and save.
Of course, they can do it, but, first, they will have to wait for his arrival, and second, not the fact that the smartphone will reach them. In addition, if something happens to their phone, they will not be able to contact the service center for free diagnostics and repair in Russia, but will have to repair it for money or send it for service to the country (that store) where they purchased .
What is the reason for choosing Samsung processors for your smartphones?
Let's take a look at the processor market as a whole: MTK are cheap processors that we cannot use in our flagship. Qualcomm is of course good, but only when it comes to supporting various communication standards. NVIDIA Tegra - no, thanks. At the moment, Samsung is a leader in the production of processors, let's not forget that until recently, even Apple products used processors from Samsung, which is very significant.
Recently, there are more and more smartphones, the main feature of which is FullHD-resolution, do they plan to release such smartphones in the company?
We think about it. While we can not give any comments.
Do you plan to install more capacious batteries in your devices?
The main problem with power consumption is associated with the operating system, and not with the capacity of mAh, which is why we focus on technologies related to the optimization of autonomous work. This direction is also important for us. In the future, with the use of new processors, the situation will improve even more.
What is the reason for adding FLAC support? Will there be a difference between FLAC and MP3 in regular headphones?
Do not forget that we were originally engaged in the players, and part of our audience (albeit small) are people who use high-quality headphones and hear the difference between MP3 and FLAC. Despite the fact that such people are few, they are also our loyal users, so support for FLAC was made just for them. Of course, the average user listening to music on headphones for $ 20 is unlikely to hear the difference between FLAC and MP3.
Tin, our interview has come to an end, maybe you want to say a few words to our readers at last?
We are pleased that our Russian users are not indifferent to the fate of Meizu and they ask questions. Official entry into the Russian market is an important achievement for us. Thank you for your interest in our company!
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/166293/
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