Meizu has just made official one of the very first smartphones without a "hole": the Zero no longer has a charging port, no physical buttons, no loudspeaker grille or SIM drawer. The opportunity to test several alternative technologies such as fast wireless charging, piezoelectric speakers, haptic feedback or eSIM. All this in an aesthetically fascinating device.
When compared to Huawei, Vivo, Oppo, Xiaomi, Apple or Samsung, Meizu is a rather modest player in the industry. Even in China, where it only represents between 2% and 3% of the market share. Nevertheless, Meizu - a company that initially manufactured MP3 players - regularly surprises us with innovative smartphones. Meizu Zero is one of them - it seems to be the very precursor of a trend. A compact product, with no roughness or holes, this mysterious object resembles the impossible fusion of glass and metal, in a smooth, shiny rectangle, almost like a work of art. As you were told, it does not include a charging port, physical buttons, loudspeaker grille or SIM drawer. Instead, it works to use, together, a series of alternatives that have hitherto tended to be seen on other smartphones as isolated features. It is the very first in the market to do so - but it will probably not be the last.
Thus the absence of a charging port is compensated by the Meizu Super mCharge Wireless ultra-fast wireless charging technology which transmits no less than 18W to the phone by induction. The charger also allows you to connect the smartphone to the computer via a real USB port. According to the manufacturer, the technology exceeds the transfer speed limits of wireless USB. The absence of speakers is compensated by the piezoelectric mSound 2.0 technology which transforms its AMOLED 5.99″ screen into a speaker membrane. A screen that, as a bonus, integrates a fingerprint sensor that is redundant with the one on the back of the smartphone. As for the buttons, don't look for them: they are totally virtual and show up by haptic feedback on the edge thanks to the home-made device mEngine 2.0 like the Home button on iPhone 7 and 8. The SIM card is also replaced, as you guessed, by an eSIM card.
The only essential concession for the moment: a few very small holes for the microphone and noise reduction. What's the point of all this? It is first of all aesthetic: the result is this strange technological object without some visual details that we are used to identifying as the buttons or the loudspeaker grid. There is also something very technophile about having the latest sound technologies in the same smartphone through the screen, integrated fingerprint sensor, haptic feedback and fast wireless charging. Finally, all this contributes to making the smartphone much more resistant or even practically impermeable to water and dust. Meizu Zero will initially be launched only in China at an unknown date and price. What do you think of this smartphone? Would you like to see more "no holes" models like this Meizu Zero? Share your feelings in the comments.