Google has just launched the Nexus 5, the flagship smartphone for this year along with the Android 4.4 KitKat OS. The makers are again the same – LG. The smartphone has come with quite a lot of changes, in size, in the internal power provided but the main fact that would bring in a lot of attention – same pricing. For us, it is already worth an upgrade because of the changes made, which in the current time are the best in the market for the pricing asked. But let’s see how Google has improved the overall device to release the Nexus 5.
Display, Design
Design wise there’s not a lot to talk about the Nexus 5, but some disappointment would be for the hood on the back for the camera. That would not make the phone lay flat on the table, and that again would make the glass easily prone to any scratches. The hardness of it cannot be already tested, but LG has given enough protection around the lens. But the overall design is quite decent, just like it was with the Nexus 4.
The power and volume buttons in the Nexus 5 have got a ceramic powering and there are two microphones contrary to one in the Nexus 4.
Display is changed quite a lot – you get to see a Full HD display now, with the 445 ppi pixel density, as well as a protection by Gorilla Glass 3. In the Nexus 4, it was the Gorilla Glass 2 protection on the HD display with resolution 1280 x 768 pixels, which has a pixel density of 320 ppi. With the new glass protection technology, the resistance to scratches and damage goes to 3x in the new Nexus.
Processor, RAM and GPU
The processor packed into the Nexus 5 is Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (the same which we saw in the LG G2, US version of Note 3), while it was the Snapdragon S4 Pro in the Nexus 4. The clocking speeds are 2.3 GHz and 1.5 GHz for the quad-core chipsets respectively. The graphics performance too is enhanced, with the latest Adreno 330 GPU powering the Nexus 5, while it was the Adreno 320 in the Nexus 4.
We haven’t tested the Nexus 5, but from what we get to know through the different sources, the Nexus 5 blows away the Nexus 4 in terms of overall performance. Both of them have got the 2GB RAM though.
Camera
Both the smartphones have got a 8-megapixel camera on the rear side, but two reasons why we expect the Nexus 5 camera to be easily better than that of its predecessor, are:
- Optical Image Stabilization – we mentioned quite a few times why the 13MP camera of LG G2 captured better photos than the 13MP camera of Note 3 and Galaxy S4. The same is now included in the Nexus 5 camera
- HDR+ – the list of Android 4.4 featuers included the HDR+ as a feature exclusively for the Nexus 5 for now, although the Nexus 4 might be running the 4.4 version any time soon.
The front camera is the same in both, a 1.3-megapixel shooter which is not expected to do any exceptional stuff. The rear camera in both the devices would capture 1080p Full HD videos.
Battery & Storage
The battery included in the LG Nexus 4 had a capacity of 2100 mAh, while that in the Nexus 5 is 2300 mAh and thus there are some extra hours of talk time or usage. Both the smartphones support wireless charging. The Nexus 5 has got the LTE support and it is said to provide 7 hours of battery life on LTE data connectivity.
The storage options for the Nexus 5 are – 16GB and 32GB, while the Nexus 4 had come with the 8GB and 16GB internal storage and both of them have no support for the MicroSD cards. The pricing of the versions depend on the storage included.
Connectivity Options
This is yet another area where the Nexus 5 sees some boost, because there is an addition of two new options –
- Dual Band Wi-Fi
- LTE
The other common options that we see are the Android Beam NFC, Bluetooth (4.0 version in Nexus 5) and the Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n.
Is the Nexus 5 worth an upgrade?
When you look at the price charts, there’s no question why you shouldn’t be upgrading this if you are looking for a new smartphone with the latest best specifications. The Nexus 5 shows an improvement in every aspect, and Google has kept the pricing at $349 and $399 for the 16GB and 32GB versions, which is no different from the predecessor. The operating system version should be the same very soon in both, as the Nexus 4 is one of the devices to receive Android 4.4 update.
Nexus 5 vs Nexus 4 Specs Comparison
| Specification | Nexus 5 | Nexus 4 |
| Dimensions | 137.84 x 69.17 x 8.59 mm | 133.9 x 68.7 x 9.1 mm |
| Screen | 4.95-inch | 4.7-inch |
| Display | 1080 x 1920 pixels, 445 PPI | 1280 x 768 pixels, 320 PPI |
| Processor Chipset | Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MSM8974 | Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064 |
| CPU | Quad core, 2300 MHz, Krait | Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait |
| GPU | Adreno 330 | Adreno 320 |
| RAM | 2 GB | 2 GB |
| Camera – Rear | 8-megapixel, LED flash, OIS, HDR+ | 8-megapixel, Autofocus, LED Flash |
| Video Recording | 1080p, 30 fps, HDR | 1080, 30 fps |
| Camera – Front | 1.3-megapixel | 1.3-megapixel |
| Battery | 2300 mAh | 2100 mAh |
| OS | Android 4.4 KitKat | Android 4.3 Jelly Bean {soon 4.4} |
| Storage – Internal | 16 GB / 32 GB | 8 GB / 16 GB |
| Special Features | Dual microphones, Hall Effect | – |
