M8 news 2009.01.09

Yes,really bad news,somehow it is a conclusion that might be drawn long long ago.
But having not to sell WIFIed M8 does not mean that JW does not want to.He just cannot play with the BIG BOYS(not the Apple or other company).
Perhaps fans might still continue to get TEST machines(which are no different from retail ones except that WIFI module)from Meizu stores if they are willing to sign a test contract.And they can still get after-sale services.This must be the solution or they won't go on developing on WIFI functions any more.

Recently i've email Meizu regarding the WLAN issue.In the email they mention that the international version will be equiped with WLAN module but not the China version. The international version will be out after the offical launch in china, but when i asked them how long after the offical launch, the reply with something else.

P.S I am not sure how far does this mail is true but still, it's a bit of info.

sorry for my bad english :P

The international version will be out after the offical launch in china

I've just been temporarily blinded by that shocking revelation.

but when i asked them how long after the offical launch, the reply with something else

Now I'm speechless.

Really Meizu, your planning and vision for the M8 are just breathtaking in their scope. The world is collectively holding its breath in anticipation of your next move...

(BTW, thanks Gh-x for posting your findings; any news from official sources is always appreciated)

Originally Posted by chengdude

BTW, I think waja left something out of the translation...Did Jack Wong really call that guy a 王八 ?? That's "son of a b*tch" for anyone not familiar with that charming Chinese euphemism. His nerves must really be fraying over all this.

Yeah, he lost his cool there. He said somewhere on that thread that he had some stomach problems lately (or something similar).

The problem is that there ain't many testing appliances, so if we're stuck with official wifi-less ones, its appeal has gone down a lot.

If true, this also reintroduces something that's been discussed before: The probability that both versions of the M8 will be sold in China, one officially through Meizu retailers and the other as 水货 ("water goods") imported from Hong Kong.

Even though they have said that the final version of the M8 wont have the module, is there a possibility that a disabled module will stay in there anyway?

And.. did J.Wong really call someone a SOB? I thought he called him a turtle or something.

sry to tell you that, if they remove the wlan-chip in the official china version then there isnt gona be any wlan-chip left to activate with the hack.

Well, i can only say that atleast we know now that demo units are being shipped in waves... which is good news at least until any OFFICIAL response - whatever that means at this point! Any idea of the numbers and interval between shipments of units in these waves?

Would give a rudimentary idea as to production capacities, or eventual availability at launch...

From what Waja has posted JW has somewhat admitted that there will be two versions at least for a short time, one as a test unit and one as a official version, With the test version probably shifting to a international version?? (thank you Waja, no need to be ashamed of language skills, you're already doing better than those of us who don't speak chinese!)

And.. did J.Wong really call someone a SOB? I thought he called him a turtle or something.

He did call him a turtle; a turtle egg more precisely. 王八 (wangba) or 王八蛋 (wangbadan) mean SOB and if you know anything about turtle reproductive habits you can easily get the allusion.

Since Jack Wong seems intent on playing by the rules -and if all this comes to pass- I can see whatever remaining test units they have quickly shipped out and then we get the full techno-thump, dancing girls introduction of the official M8. I don't think Meizu can afford to mess around anymore and Jack Wong's certainly not going to shoot his company in the foot by offering two versions, one of them on the sly. Makes no sense. It would also make no sense to offer an international version any time soon...they would just end up right back in China because everyone would want to buy the version with WiFi and Meizu's retailers would watch helplessly as the "water goods" sellers siphoned off all their business.

yeah, that is almost exactly what i wanted to say chengdude, i just didn't wanna say it out. since JW was so keen on going by the rules, and refused to releas the M8 earlier with wifi in HK, or other places where it's not forbidden, it would be unlikely that they would end up selling a HK version with wifi anytime soon. actually i don't think it would do much harm, since all M8-s are produced by the company, no matter where of how they sell them, they still get the money for it. it's just that keeping up all the official stores in the mainland might not be worth it, if everybody is buying HK versions (btw, as far as i know, the goods form HK are called 港行, not 水货. the latter one is for overseas stuff).

it's a pity really... i wonder if they went to CES this year. and if they did, the version there is with or without wifi.

So does this confirm it all? Is there any room of misinterpretation of Jack's words?

Judging by his wangba comment, I guess he is also stressed about this issue. Has he written what he'll do next?

If the WiFi chip is small and only a few dollars, it wouldn't be impossible for third parties to release an add-on to the gray market.

It's sad that he won't cut the price down after removing all those features.
Could you guys remind me what was the point of getting the license in the first place?? AFAIR it had something to do with Wi Fi. Somebody mentioned that they got the license so what the heck did they remove that wireless module for??
BTW that Palm Pre looks promising.

A detached analysis would indeed hold true that it would be counter-intuitive for Meizu to simultaneously market both versions - at least not at the same price.

But, then again, an similar analysis for me (having owned both a N95 and a touch diamond) i hardly ever use the wifi or gps on them... i used it more often on the HTC simply because of all the widgets, etc... which was cool, but not necessarily life changing, and only when i was near a known hotspot, which is not that often nor is the productivity aspect of the widgets... so, i guess i could live without wifi, as long as i had a phone that worked! Isn't the new blackberry without wifi? (maybe it has 3G though)...

It could be possible to introduce a grey market wifi upgrade but commercially would only be viable for Meizu itself... otherwise be a DIY thing, no?
Based on how the module/antenna interacted with the mainboard it may not be that simple (cost/benefit wise) to mess with your phone, not nearly the same as adding a stick of RAM. But then again, if they left enough room in the case we could add GPS as well the module doesn't cost much, or change the GPRS module to support 3G... the list could go on...

I had checked with my friend in China and the Shenzhen store (at least in her words) is expecting a shipment of demo units for the people on the waitlist this week.

Could you guys remind me what was the point of getting the license in the first place??

Pretty simple: no license, no sell.

For anyone interested, that blue sticker is what they need:



You'll find inside the battery/sim compartment of any mobile phone in China. 进网许可 means 'network permit'.

Originally Posted by sere83

I know it has edge but it's so slow I don't even consider that proper internet.

Remember those photos from some guy in Nanjing downloading something? Speeds up to 90 kb/s if I'm not mistaken.

Originally Posted by chengdude

Pretty simple: no license, no sell.

For anyone interested, that blue sticker is what they need:



You'll find inside the battery/sim compartment of any mobile phone in China. 进网许可 means 'network permit'.

Yes, M8 with WIFI = no 'network permit'. But that's just for China mainland market. The International version will have WIFI, definitely.

Originally Posted by hinsky

Yes, M8 with WIFI = no 'network permit'. But that's just for China mainland market. The International version will have WIFI, definitely.

If Meizu dosn't go bankrupt, that is
Or if they care to release it outside China at all ...

international version? hahahaha when can we expect that then, 2035 maybe? People have got to get serious. I am pretty much giving up on the M8, no wifi is the straw that broke the camels back. There is a whole load of other tech that is on my hit list, starting with the pandora, although It is admittedly sad to see the M8 go this way.

I mean come on though, the M8 is no iphone competitor without wifi, pull one out and you will get laughed at as some cheap ass clown who can't afford an iphone. What you gonna say 'oh but it plays flac and xvid'. At least with wifi it could be considered a proper smart phone. Taking it out, removes so much functionality. I hope we see an international version with it included but i'm not holding my breath.

Originally Posted by sere83

international version? hahahaha when can we expect that then, 2035 maybe? People have got to get serious. I am pretty much giving up on the M8, no wifi is the straw that broke the camels back. There is a whole load of other tech that is on my hit list, starting with the pandora, although It is admittedly sad to see the M8 go this way.

I mean come on though, the M8 is no iphone competitor without wifi, pull one out and you will get laughed at as some cheap ass clown who can't afford an iphone. What you gonna say 'oh but it plays flac and xvid'. At least with wifi it could be considered a proper smart phone. Taking it out, removes so much functionality. I hope we see an international version with it included but i'm not holding my breath.

i do agree on you.

imo meizu should have placed or should place a periphery slot, where u can put in either a gps or wlan module or something else which has been mentioned in the beginning but got cut out later.