Google Nexus 5 Review, Premium Android Experience
Introduction and Specifications
The previous generation Nexus 4, like the Nexus 5, was manufactured by LG, though the Nexus 4 didn't hit the mark like Google hoped it would. With their latest Nexus device, Google is hoping to rise above the noise in the now crowded 5-inch superphone space. The Google-LG design team has stiff competition this time around, though. The Samsung Galaxy S 4, the HTC One, Nokia's Lumia 1020 and even LG's own G2 are very impressive larger screen devices. And let's not forget, Google has the iPhone 5s to contend with this holiday shopping season as well.
With a shiny new version of Android 4.4 Kit Kat to lure consumers in and a Qualcomm's smoking-hot Snapdragon 800 quad-core SoC, did Google and LG tee up Android greatness? Let's take a look.
HotHardware Hands-On Nexus 5 Video Review and Demo
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Screen 4.95” 1920x1080 display (445 ppi) Full HD IPS Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3 Processing CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon™ 800, 2.26GHz GPU: Adreno 330, 450MHz Memory 16GB or 32GB internal storage 2GB RAM Cameras 1.3MP front-facing 8MP rear-facing with image stabilization Wireless Dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4G/5G) 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac NFC (Android Beam) Bluetooth 4.0 Networks 2G/3G/4G LTE North America: GSM: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz CDMA: Band Class: 0/1/10 WCDMA: Bands: 1/2/4/5/6/8/19 LTE: Bands: 1/2/4/5/17/19/25/26/41 Rest of World: GSM: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz WCDMA: Bands: 1/2/4/5/6/8 LTE: Bands: 1/3/5/7/8/20 |
Ports and Connectors microUSB SlimPort™ enabled 3.5mm stereo audio jack Dual microphones Ceramic power and volume buttons Battery 2300 mAh Talk time up to 17 hours* Standby time up to 300 hours† Internet up to 8.5 hours Wi-Fi Up to 7 hours on LTE Wireless Charging built-in Sensors GPS Gyroscope Accelerometer Compass Proximity/Ambient Light Pressure Hall Audio Built-in speaker 3.5mm stereo audio connector Dimensions 69.17 x 137.84 x 8.59 mm 4.59 ounces (130g) Price $350 Unlocked (16GB, $399 32GB); as low as $49 on contract |
Beyond that you also get NFC communication with Android Beam, Bluetooth 4.0 and the latest 802.11ac wireless standard is supported as well, with theoretical single link throughput of 500Mb/s on compatible WiFi networks. The Nexus 5 also has an 8MP HD camera with image stabilization and LED flash, as well as a 1.3MP front facing camera.