Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition launched (with invite) as third Ubuntu phone

Updated, June 24, 2015: Following up on its first Ubuntu smartphone, Canonical has finally started to pace the ante, as the company has announced its second smartphone. It is none other than Meizu MX4 powered by Ubuntu OS. We are not surprised as Meizu has been hoping to power its last year’s flagship with Ubuntu OS. Though, there is an interesting take here, as the company would only be selling this device on an invite basis.

MX4 Ubuntu Edition was available to developers in China since last month, but starting tomorrow the second Ubuntu smartphone would be available in Europe for €299 ($334). Both companies, Canonical and Meizu haven’t revealed how many device would be available each day, as the purchase is based on invite system. To gain an invite, you would have to visit the interactive origami wall present on their websites. Each visit to the wall would reveal certain amount of daily invites to buy the device.

Earlier, Feb 27, 2015: Recently, we had seen the first Ubuntu running smartphone, the BQ Aquaris 4.5 Ubuntu Edition, and that the first as there were some attempts, all failed, earlier to that. Now, one of the big Chinese smartphone manufacturers Meizu is about to a announce a flagship device running the Ubuntu OS. It’s the Meizu MX4 running Ubuntu OS that was teased by the company with three phones having different screens of Ubuntu interface.

Giving the device a “more than better” tag, Meizu claims this to be better than the Android counterpart, and although we await for the details on the price and availability of the device, it is clear with the timing that the device is going to mark its entry into the Mobile World Congress 2015 event. Also, the pricing is expected to be the same as the Android one.

Meizu MX4 already had two versions, one running the Flyme 4.0 OS based on Android 4.4 KitKat, and the other one being Android as well, but with Alibaba’s home grown Yun OS. The device has a 5.36″ IPS screen with the screen resolution of 1920 x 1152 pixels. There is an octa-core processor powering the MX4 and that might be the same in the Ubuntu edition as well, as the company hasn’t talked of any differences.

The device also has a 20.7-megapixel rear camera, supporting 4K video recording. The idea of having an Ubuntu edition is really interesting, as there are no devices except for one that we know, has an availability in limited regions. Meizu is targeting the larger audience with Chinese market being its first, and Ubuntu is something many would look forward to.

Let’s see how many eyes does this catch. Stay tuned for the MWC 2015 event.