Once upon a time, standing out in the smartphone realm was as simple as having a faster processor, some more RAM, throwing in a fingerprint scanner, and maybe upping that screen size to something bigger than the competition. In 2017, manufacturers are forced to get a bit more creative — introducing things like eye scanners, dual cameras, infinity displays, secondary tickers, and, in Meizu’s case, a brand new rear display.

As previously revealed in leaks just a few weeks back, Meizu has now taken the wraps off its unique rear display, which makes its debut in the newly announced Meizu Pro 7 and Pro 7 Plus. As you can see in the images, a secondary display is placed on the backside, not totally unlike the YotaPhone series, though this one is actually fully color and much smaller at just 2-inches. While the exact resolution hasn’t been disclosed, we can tell you its a Super AMOLED panel.

Is the rear display genuinely useful, or just another gimmick?

So is this genuinely useful, or just another gimmick? Only time will tell for sure, but it’s certainly different. Meizu touts the screen as a way to perform selfies with the rear camera, change music, and do other quick functions without turning on the bigger, more power hungry front display.

Moving past the display, the Meizu Pro 7 and Pro 7 Plus both offer dual cameras as well, with resolutions of 12MP. Essentially it’s the same setup as the new Moto Z2 Force, with the exact same sensor package onboard. On the front, you’ll find a 16MP sensor that is designed to make low-light selfies stand out with a new algorithm called “four-in-one” — though we can’t verify whether it works as well as claimed until we get hands on time with the phone.

As for the rest of the specs, that’s where things begin to differ between the two models. Starting with the Meizu Pro 7 Plus, you get a 5.7-inch QHD Super AMOLED display. 6GB RAM, 64 or 128GB storage, a 3,500 mAh battery, and MediaTek’s latest chipset, the Helio X30.

Turning to the mid-range Meizu Pro 7, you get a 5.2-inch Full HD display, a MediaTek P25, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, and a 3,000 mAh battery. To confuse matters more, there’s also a ‘higher end’ Pro 7, which has the same display but opts for the faster Helio X30 and 128GB storage. Regardless of which model you end up with, the entire series features Meizu mCharge 4.0 fast charging and the latest version of Flyme, version 6 — based on Nougat.

Both the Meizu Pro 7 and Pro 7 Plus go on sale August 5th, starting at $430 and $530 respectively. Keep in mind that it will only be available in about 17 markets, at least in an official capacity. No, the US isn’t one of them, though you will likely find it up for import in the not too distant future.

What do you think of Meizu’s latest, interested or not? Would you like to see more manufacturers embrace rear viewfinder displays? Tell us down in the comments.

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