First impressions
The Nexus 5 comes with a pretty standard assortment of accessories: a longer-than-usual USB cable, a 1.2A mains plug, SIM card ejector tool and a few booklets. There are no headphones, but given that most in-box headphones tend to be fairly substandard, this isn’t a massive loss.
I ordered the 16GB white version, and it really is a beautiful thing.
Like all other Nexuses, the 5 has no branding whatsoever on the front. It only has a subtle notification light below the screen and a camera, speaker and some sensors above the screen. On the white version, the speaker is the only thing that stands out, which is helpful as it helps orientate the phone when you take it out of your pocket.
The Nexus 5 uses the newer Gorilla Glass 3 for the screen, so it’s both tougher and more scratch-resistant than that found on the Nexus 4.
On both colour models the sides are black. The power and volume buttons are in their usual places, the headphone jack is on the top and a micro-USB port is on the bottom. The volume and power buttons are made out of ceramic, although I’m uncertain of the benefit of this.
Perhaps more unusually the speaker is also on the bottom. Even though there’s two grilles at the bottom on the phone, there’s only one speaker, and the other grille is used for the microphone. This is slightly disappointing and at the moment there appears to be a bug affecting the quality of the speaker in some apps, as Android Central confirmed.
The positioning of the speaker can be a little annoying, as you can cover them with your finger and muffle the sound, especially when holding the phone landscape while playing motion controlled games like Riptide GP2.
The back itself is a wonderfully silky and smooth, high quality plastic, with a landscape Nexus logo centrally across it, a tiny portrait LG logo below it and hardly visible legal information.
The rear camera protrudes slightly out of the top-right corner of the device, with the LED flash located below it.
Finally, neither the back cover nor the battery can be removed. We’ll cover the importance of this in a moment.
Overall, the device feels solid, well made and it never creaks.
Hardware
It’s a 5 inch display with a full HD resolution at 445ppi (pixels per inch) and actually pleasing to look at. Even the smallest icons are crisp and the overall display is bright.
Aside from being, perhaps, a little bit big, there are a few niggles to be found with it. Even then, most of these only depend on how you hold the phone. It’s quite big, so it’s difficult to reach some areas of the screen sometimes. The narrow screen margins can also cause unwanted touches, but on the other hand keep the size of the phone small.
The screen is also unreasonably light, so you’ll probably end up keeping it at 5–10% (or even 0% in dark conditions, where it can still be too bright) instead of automatic brightness. Since the screen is clearly visible outside at this time of year on 10% darkness, I’d also imagine it’ll produce no visibility problems in the summer either.
Camera
There’s a 1.3MP camera on the front and an 8MP camera with optical image stabilisation at the back. While I haven’t seen that much of a change with the front camera, the back camera is a big improvement over both my Galaxy Nexus and my Nexus 10. While it’s not a mind-blowing camera, it’s now far beyond what you need to shoot with a smartphone and the photos look good. They’re crisp and the colours are vibrant.
I took a selection of shots which you can see below, but unfortunately I did not have the ability to experiment with low light shots. I’ve included both normal and HDR+ versions. The latter certainly look more pretty, but a bit oversaturated in places.
Battery
Now, the battery. This is definitely the worst thing about this phone. For the first 6 days of using it I found it to be awful, to the point where it barely lasts my usual 7–16 daily routine of tweeting, messaging and listening to music. However, on the day of writing it has improved considerably, leaving me with 33% rather than 10-15%. It’s definitely inconsistent, and the response on Google+ seems to reflect this: a few people get really great battery life and a few people can barely make it through the day.
On the brighter side, this phone does have Qi wireless charging so you can charge it without any wires (apart from the one going to the charger, of course!).
Performance
As far as the performance goes, this Nexus 5 is fantastic. It whooshes through all parts of the OS, and games too. I played popular games like Riptide GP2 and Temple Run 2 and they ran without any lag whatsoever.
The phone also scored 28696 points in the AnTuTu Benchmark, making it the second most powerful device just behind the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and with the Samsung Galaxy S4 close behind it. The previous iteration of the Nexus, the Nexus 4, is 9 places below the Nexus 5.
KitKat
Even though we’ve already covered the new features in Android 4.4, I’ll take another look at some of them here now that I actually got to use them.As with most other Nexus devices, the release of a new phone also marks the release of a new version of their Android operating system. This time it’s Android 4.4 KitKat, mainly bringing support for Android on low-power devices, not that this applies to the Nexus 5. It also bears support for many features specific to the Nexus 5 at the moment.
Source : OMG Chrome
On a Nexus 5 you no longer need to swipe up from the home button to access Google Now. Google Now has a permanent place on your home screen, being the screen furthest to the left. Swiping over will reveal Google Now and all of your personal cards, and of course, you can still access the service by swiping up from the home button.
For some, this feature is going to become exponentially more useful, since it's now at the ready instead of somewhat hidden. But for others, I can see how it would be annoying having it set as a dedicated home screen -- especially if you're not a huge fan of Google Now.
Removing Google Now from your home screen can be accomplished one of two ways. There are advantages and disadvantages to either method, so I'll leave it to you to decide which works best for you.
(Credit: Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET)
Turn off Google Now
The first method is to turn off Google Now altogether. You can do this by launching Google Now and tapping on the menu button followed by Settings. Toggle the Google Now switch to off and accept the warning that your cards will be reset. You'll no longer be able to swipe to the left to view any cards, but you'll still be able to quickly launch Google Search by swiping up from the home button or using the hot phrase "OK Google".
The first method is to turn off Google Now altogether. You can do this by launching Google Now and tapping on the menu button followed by Settings. Toggle the Google Now switch to off and accept the warning that your cards will be reset. You'll no longer be able to swipe to the left to view any cards, but you'll still be able to quickly launch Google Search by swiping up from the home button or using the hot phrase "OK Google".
This does indeed remove Google Now from your list of home screens, but it also kills the functionality Google Now provides. Obviously it's a somewhat small gain for a potentially big loss.
(Credit: Screenshot by Jason Cipriani/CNET)
Use another launcher
The second method is to install a third-party launcher. A launcher on Android is an app that will allow you to customize and tweak your device beyond that of the default launcher installed. Each device manufacturer has its own default launcher, but there are some really good third party launchers.
The second method is to install a third-party launcher. A launcher on Android is an app that will allow you to customize and tweak your device beyond that of the default launcher installed. Each device manufacturer has its own default launcher, but there are some really good third party launchers.
Installing a launcher such as Nova Launcher or Apex Launcher will allow you to customize not only your app icons, but it will allow you to leave Google Now enabled, while at the same time removing it from your home screen.
Source : CNET
Google's Nexus handsets and tablets consistently do well in reviews, and one major reason is the fact that they run the very latest version of the Android operating system. As we write, the newNexus 5 is the only Android 4.4 handset available, and updates are rolling out to other Nexus devices — but not to those from other manufacturers.
Google has strong hardware partners, including, most recently, Asus for its tablets and LG for its smartphones. The Nexus 5 has some high-end specifications that ensure it will be praised for being good value for money. However, there are also one or two disappointments.
The Micro-SIM sits in a pop-out caddy on the right edge of the chassis. Button and connector placement is ergonomic, with the Micro-USB slot on the bottom, headset jack on top, volume rocker on the left and power on the right. Those volume and power buttons sit proud of the chassis, making them easy to find by touch.
Good button placement is important on a handset of the size of the Nexus 5. Its 69.17mm by 137.84mm by 8.59mm measurements will make it difficult for some people to reach across the screen one-handed, although it's easy to hit the power and volume buttons with the phone cradled in one hand.
Oddly, the 130g Nexus 5 feels and looks bulkier than it is. That's got to be an illusion, perhaps because of the somewhat bland chassis design and the fact that the (non-removable) backplate is made from a separate section that's attached to the handset's edges. A curved edge with no break for the backplate would have appeared slimmer.
The Nexus 5's name might lead you to think it has a 5-inch screen, but it actually measures 4.95 inches across the diagonal — not that 0.05 of an inch makes much difference. Its resolution of 1,920 by 1,080 pixels (445ppi) gives today's top-end handsets such as the 5in. Samsung Galaxy S4 (441ppi), 5.7in. Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (386ppi) and 5in. Sony Xperia Z1 (441ppi) a run for their money. Only the 4.7in. HTC One exceeds its pixel density (469ppi).
The screen itself is an IPS panel, so it lacks what some call the overdone vibrancy and tone richness of AMOLED panels. It's sharp and bright, with clear and easy-to-read text. The screen is protected by Gorilla Glass 3.
Features
The Google Nexus 5's headline feature is that it runs the latest Android 4.4 (KitKat). If you want to stay at the front of Android versions then you need to stick with Google's devices as they are the first to receive very latest operating system updates.
There are two versions of the Nexus 5 available, varying only in terms of the amount of internal storage available. The 16GB version costs £299 (inc. VAT, or $349), while the 32GB version costs £339 (inc. VAT, or $399). We were sent the 32GB model, which had 26.7GB free available for applications and data.
As with its predecessor, there's no MicroSD card slot on the Nexus 5, so you'll need to be certain that your internal storage selection is sufficient. With 64GB MicroSD cards now very affordable, it's a real shame that Google, like Apple, doesn't offer this option on its flagship smartphone. Google's online Drive storage is available, of course, but as far as we're aware you only get the standard 15GB allocation for free. On Motorola's Moto X and recently launched Moto G handsets, you get an additional 50GB of free storage for two years.
The good news is that the Nexus 5's internal storage is readily accessible: simply connecting the device to your notebook via USB makes all the internal folders available for file copy.
Google uses the 2.26GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800/450MHz Adreno 330 SoC to power the Nexus 5, with 2GB of RAM in support. This is the most capable CPU/GPU combo you'll find on a 32-bit ARM handset at present, and it's used in flagship devices like Samsung's Galaxy Note 3.
Other specs show that Google has aimed high with the Nexus 5. It supports a good range of LTE frequency bands — nine in the US, six in the rest of the world. Wireless charging and NFC (Near Field Communications) are catered for. Wi-Fi support includes the latest and fastest 802.11acstandard, which is far from ubiquitous in smartphones (it's absent from the new iPhone 5s, for example). The MicroUSB connector is SlimPort compatible, which means that, with the appropriate dongle, you can share the phone's screen to other devices such as a TV or monitor — HDMI and VGA adapters are available.
Two features disappoint, however. First, the rear camera shoots stills at up to 8 megapixels, which is no advance on the Nexus 4. The Nexus 5 does add optical image stabilisation, though, which helps to improve low-light performance. We found our test shots perfectly good enough for sharing online, and unless you need great camera performance, what's on offer here should be fine.
Battery life is rather more of a let-down. Google has only managed to fit a (non-removable) 2,300mAh battery into the Nexus 5, which is disappointing. Flagship handsets generally have more capacious batteries — 3,000mAh in the Sony Xperia Z1, for example. We could get through a day of fairly light usage on a single charge, but heavy usage involving GPS, music playing and gaming required a recharge during the day.
Android 4.4 has a familiar look and feel, but includes some handy software enhancements. We particularly like the full-screen option for some apps, which we found most useful when reading e-books. Removing all menu clutter from the screen makes reading a lot more pleasant.
We're less happy about the integration of SMS and Hangouts. You can use a separate app for SMS if you want, but there's nothing natively installed so you'll need to download one. Sadly the advertised ability to start Google Now just by saying 'OK Google' on the home screen didn't work for us; we hope this is only a software tweak away.
There's a nice note-taking app called Keep — which has actually been around before — that saves to Google Drive and is handy for taking down quick ideas or observations. For more complex tasks, QuickOffice is now included. Google clearly sees this as maintaining competitiveness with Windows Phone's document-creation features. All in all, though, there's nothing mind-blowingly new about either Android 4.4 or the preinstalled apps.
Via: ZDNet
Google’s new Android RunTime (ART) is available to use on the Nexus 5 as a part of Android 4.4, but is it really worth turning on and using? After spending the last couple of days with the heir apparent to Dalvik for Android, it’s safe to say that while there are no earth shattering changes to the overall experience, it certainly doesn’t hurt to make the switch.
ART is very simple to enable, as long as you’ve got a few minutes and about 8% of your total battery to spare if you’re not connected to an outlet). You’ll need to enable the developer settings first. Head to About Phone in your Settings and violently bash the Build Number with your finger until the OS tells you that you’re a developer. When you press the back button, there will be a new section for Developer options. Inside that menu you’ll find runtime options, where you can select ART and reboot your phone.
Source : Geek.com
For about as long as there have been cell phones, US carriers have had a stranglehold over the purchasing experience. The two-year contract has reigned supreme here in the States, with providers heavily subsidizing the cost of high-priced handsets. But for some buyers, times are changing.
T-Mobile's brassy, vocal assault on the status quo is making the retail cost of smartphones more transparent, while Google's lower-cost Nexus is a sure to lure customers away from premium-priced phones.
While the majority of phone customers are likely to stick with the contract formula, especially if they're on a family plan already, others are showing greater interest in no-contract commitments.
Phone choice: A better spread
If there's one poster phone for the no-contract experience, it's Google's Nexus 5. Made by LG, but sold off-contract in the US by Google through its Play Store and T-Mobile, the Nexus 5 loudly challenges the merits of higher-priced rivals with its high-end specs and affordable $350 cost.
If there's one poster phone for the no-contract experience, it's Google's Nexus 5. Made by LG, but sold off-contract in the US by Google through its Play Store and T-Mobile, the Nexus 5 loudly challenges the merits of higher-priced rivals with its high-end specs and affordable $350 cost.
Sprint and AT&T also sell the Nexus 5 on contract, but here in the US, the Nexus 5's sub-$400 sticker price is a steal for a handset that has a more up-to-date processor and OS than the Samsung Galaxy S4 and HTC OneAndroid front-runners, the latter of which has a full retail charge that costs hundreds of dollars more.
Google's Nexus line has been a strong alternative for a few years now, but is picking up more momentum with this model, which delivers the LTE that Americans crave alongside robust features and that lower price. While it's too early to collect sales data quite yet, the Nexus 5 is in a strong position going into the holiday surge.
Beyond the Nexus 5, second-tier carriers like MetroPCS (now owned by T-Mobile), Virgin and Boost Mobile, and Cricket carry a wider range of handsets, including pricey premium options like the iPhone 5S and Samsung Galaxy S4.
Customers typically pay a lower monthly data rate, but a higher up-front cost for the phone, and can leave at any time without getting smacked by an early termination penalty.
On the Windows Phone side of the house, Nokia has been chipping away at smartphone costs, driving down the full retail price of midrange models such as the $350 Lumia 1320 phablet. While that handset isn't expected to come to the US yet, it still could find a home with these prepaid carriers.
There's also the Lumia 520, which costs $100 with a prepaid AT&T GoPhone plan, and the $120 T-Mobile variant, the Lumia 521. While both are low-end models that lack LTE, they do contain some software extras to help round out the experience.
Fiercer competition
T-Mobile deserves most of the credit for making the off-contract business model more appealing, after killing off contracts last March.
T-Mobile deserves most of the credit for making the off-contract business model more appealing, after killing off contracts last March.
Backed by CEO John Legere's war of words, with Verizon and AT&T especially, T-Mobile is taking on the role of innovator, while others react.
Midrange good enough?
In mature markets like the US, contracts level the playing field of cost, making high-end smartphones seem more affordable and attainable. That often makes the choice to buy a premium handset simpler, since the off-contract difference is closer to $50 or $100, rather than a $200 or even $300 spread.
In mature markets like the US, contracts level the playing field of cost, making high-end smartphones seem more affordable and attainable. That often makes the choice to buy a premium handset simpler, since the off-contract difference is closer to $50 or $100, rather than a $200 or even $300 spread.
As in countries dominated by unlocked, off-contract phones, even a small step toward no-contract payments could see customers happy with midrange or upper-middle phones like the Nexus 5, iPhone 5C, and HTC One Mini (if the latter weren't a carrier exclusive here) -- models that come with features that are capable, but not cutting edge.
Contract carriers retain the upper hand
Despite T-Mobile's bold appeal, there are logical reasons to stay put with contract carriers.
Despite T-Mobile's bold appeal, there are logical reasons to stay put with contract carriers.
For instance, it takes no effort to stick around, but it does to calculate expenditures and cost savings with a new carrier home -- especially if you're thinking of moving the entire family over.
Then there's the argument that the contract does little harm if you're the type of person who will probably stick with the same provider for far longer than the two-year minimum.
There's also the handy subsidy, which gets you the phone at close to its manufacturing cost. For instance, IHS iSuppli's iPhone 5S teardown estimates the bill of materials at about $200, the same price you can buy the phone on contract. The counter-argument here, is that over the life span of two years, you'll likely spend more paying for pricier data with a contract carrier than you might with a no-contract competitor.
What say you?
T-Mobile's aspirations and agitations are clearly changing the way some US phone owners think about how they buy their phones, a position that's backed by a growing roster of robust phones that pack in a lot of robust features for a significantly lower cost. If we see a sustained step toward the no-contract option, these are two major reasons why.
T-Mobile's aspirations and agitations are clearly changing the way some US phone owners think about how they buy their phones, a position that's backed by a growing roster of robust phones that pack in a lot of robust features for a significantly lower cost. If we see a sustained step toward the no-contract option, these are two major reasons why.
Why do you stick with your particular carrier, and are you thinking of making the switch? If you've recently moved from contract to off-contract, what prompted the change? I'd love to hear your stance in the comments below.
Via: CNET News
Google has just posted factory images for most of the Nexus devices that will be updated to the newest OS. If you don't want to wait for an over-the-air update, which can take weeks to arrive, you can download KitKat directly from Google. The only downside is that everything on your device will be erased. You've been warned.
There are currently downloads for:
- Nexus 7 [2013] (Wi-Fi) (codename "razor")
- Nexus 7 [2013] (Mobile) (codename "razorg")
- Nexus 4 (codename "occam")
- Nexus 7 [2012] (Wi-Fi) (codename "nakasi")
- Nexus 7 [2012] (Mobile) (codename "nakasig")
- Nexus 10 (codename "mantaray")
The one device that won't be joining the KitKat party is the Galaxy Nexus. The official excuse is that the Galaxy Nexus is over 18 months old, but the real reason is that Texas Instruments, the company that made the SoC in the Galaxy Nexus, quit the smartphone business about a year ago. Official support for the chip has dried up, so there won't be a KitKat port for anything with a TI OMAP processor. A lack of official support has never stopped the modding community before, though, so if you have a Galaxy Nexus and really want KitKat, some Googling should be able to turn something up.
If you're not quite sure what to do with these images, Google has a set of instructions right here. Remember: all your apps, pictures, and data will be deleted.
Source : Ars Technica
Google's hot-selling Nexus 5 now has a new carrier: T-Mobile. This brings the total number of domestic carriers officially offering the device to two, alongside Nexus 5 launch partner Sprint.
T-Mobile's unlocked price for the16GB version of the handset is $450. It's also available for $42 up front plus $17 per month if you opt for a two-year installment plan. In keeping with T-Mobile's recent moves away from long-term contracts, the phone is sold without the requirement of a two-year service plan.
Sprint charges $50 for the phone, also in the 16GB flavor, but only with a two-year service contract. (It also lists the phone's full price at $450, but actually doesn't sell it sans contract.)
Pundits have been quick to note that both carriers are pricing the phone at a cost that isnotably higher than the $349 Google charges for the Nexus 5 if you buy it directly from the manufacturer. (The 32GB version is $399.) However, those in a rush may have no choice but to head to a carrier. Google Play lists the 16GB handset as out of inventory, with no word on when stock will be replenished. The black version of the 32GB handset is noted as "leaves warehouse in 2-3 weeks." (The 32GB version of the phone is currently not for salefrom either T-Mobile or Sprint, nor are the white versions of the phone available from the carriers.) The phone is also available through third-party retailers like Amazon and Best Buy, but pricing is similar to that offered by T-Mobile.
What about users of other networks? If you're on AT&T or a number of smaller carriers,Android Central notes that the unlocked phone will run on those networks. Verizon users however are out of luck: The Nexus 5 is not currently supported on the network.
The Google Nexus 5 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor and comes equipped with dual cameras, an 8 megapixel rear-facing shooter and a 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera. The 4.95-inch screen offers full HD resolution at 1920 x 1080 pixels and is covered by Corning Gorilla Glass 3. Android 4.4 KitKat, the latest version of the operating system, is preinstalled. The 2300 mAh battery is rated for up to 17 hours of talk time and 300 hours of standby time, and recharging can be completed via the USB connection or via a Qi-compatible wireless charging station.
Via: PCWorld
(You can, by the way, opt to buy the Nexus 5 in a more traditional carrier-based manner -- Sprint is selling the phone for $50 with a two-year contract and T-Mobile will start selling it later this week for $42 down and a two-year $17/mo. payment plan -- but most users will end up paying significantly less in the long run by buying it unlocked and going with an off-contract setup.)
So, value aside, what's the Nexus 5 like to use in the real world -- and is it an Android phone worth owning? I've been living with the device for more than a week. Here's what I've discovered.
Body and design
The Nexus 5 is actually pretty close in size to last year's Nexus 4 flagship: The phone, at 2.7 x 5.4 x 0.34 in., is just a hair longer and a touch thinner than its predecessor. At a glance, those differences are hard to detect.What you do notice when holding the device is that the new Nexus feels meaningfully lighter in the hand than its older sibling. Part of that is due to its weight -- the Nexus 5 is 4.6 oz. compared to the Nexus 4's 4.9-oz. frame -- but part of it also relates to the way the phone was designed.
The Nexus 5 leaves behind the glass casing from last year's model and instead goes with a plastic-based body. Between that and the lack of metallic-colored accents, the phone does have a less premium look than the Nexus 4 -- it's not exactly what you'd call a striking device. However, it doesn't seem cheap, just very understated.
The back of the Nexus 5 uses a soft-touch rubberized plastic that's reminiscent of this year's Nexus 7 tablet, all the way down to the vertical etched Nexus logo. Though it's a bit of a finger-grease magnet, the material has a warmer and less slippery feel than the Nexus 4's glass and will presumably also be less fragile and prone to scratching. All in all, the Nexus 5 may be less distinctive-looking than its predecessor, but it's also more comfortable.
Even so, when I hold the two phones side by side, I can't help but think that the Nexus 5 seems less thoughtfully designed than last year's device. While the Nexus 4 is all rounded edges and smooth surfaces, the Nexus 5 has several areas that are surprisingly sharp. Its buttons, for instance -- a volume rocker on its left edge and power button on its right -- are ceramic, which sounds nice enough. But their edges are harsh and feel rough to the touch. The same goes for the prominently raised camera lens on the phone's back, which also has the perplexing effect of preventing the device from laying evenly on a surface.
Display, speaker and ports
Enough about design: Let's get onto the display. The Nexus 5 has a 4.95-in. 1080p IPS LCD display that takes up the majority of its face -- and with a whopping 445 pixels per inch, the Gorilla Glass 3-protected screen is every bit as gorgeous as you'd expect.The Nexus 5's display is bright with rich and brilliant colors, crisp text and excellent viewing angles -- a huge step up from the comparatively washed out 4.7-in. 720p screen on the Nexus 4. Like with most LCD displays, blacks on the Nexus 5's screen are less deep than what you'll see on an AMOLED-based panel -- but on the other hand, whites are noticeably more pure-looking, and the screen remains easy to see even in direct sunlight, an area where AMOLED screens tend to struggle.
My only beef with the Nexus 5's display is its auto-brightness mode, which has been pretty erratic in my experience. The screen will sometimes ramp up to full brightness for no apparent reason while I'm sitting in a dim room, then dial back down to a more reasonable level a few minutes later. In general, it seems to stay too bright most of the time. Hopefully this is something Google can address in a future software update.
Source : Computerworld
While the Nexus 5 is quite affordable (for an unlocked phone) its cases come in a wide range of prices. The premium s0ld-on-the-Play Store cases go for $35 and $50 while third-party cases on Amazon are almost all under $15.
The Nexus 5 officially landed at Android fans’ homes this week, but neither of the official cases — the Nexus 5 bumper and LG’s QuickCover — are available yet. That’s too bad as these seem like they will be the nicest cases for the phone, at least for the time being. Or they might not be a factor at all, given how they cost 3-5x what no-name/minor-name alternatives will run you.
Here is the potential list for the best Nexus 5 cases as of today:
- LG QuickCover for Nexus 5 - $50
- Nexus 5 bumper case: $35
- Ringke Fusion Google Nexus 5 - $8.99
- Spigen Google Nexus 5 slim – $8.99
- Spigen Nexus 5 slim armor – $25
- Spigen Nexus 5 Neo Hybrid – $30
Spigen Ultra Hybrid - $25 - Cruzerlite Spi-Force – $12.90
- Cruzerlite Experience – $12.90
- Diztronic matte case – $9.90
- Caseology matte slim fit flexible hybrid – $5.52
- Tudia Ultra Slim Melody TPU bumper protective case – $9.90
It’s still early days for the Nexus 5, so we can be sure that more cases will come out and at least some of the usual players — not just the Spigens and Diztronics of the world — have products on in development.
Source : Geek.com
Full auto
Every smartphone has the “default”setting. The pre-loaded point and shoot setting that is the most commonly used setting on any smartphone, especially when it comes to needing to quickly pull your phone out and take a shot. With the OIS-enhanced Nexus 5 this becomes a great deal easier, because there’s less time needed to pause for the shot. Unfortunately, right now any time you save not caring about motion is eaten up by the slightly longer focus time. This puts the Nexus 5 on the same page as everyone else, so instead of a motion test we went for a tap-to-focus test.
When put up against the Nokia Lumia 928, HTC One, and Moto X, the Nexus 5 did a great job. It’s not the best photo of the group — that title goes to the Lumia in this round — but it’s a far better shot than the HTC One or Moto X.
What made this photo complicated was multiple light sources. The light from the rear window combined with direct sunlight from the window to the right made it difficult to choose what would be the best way to compensate. The HTC One let in way too much light, while the Moto X just looks washed out. The Nexus 5 does a great job of being color accurate, but didn’t handle the light quite as well as the Lumia.
HDR outdoors
Being able to take HDR photos is supposed to be something the Nexus 5 should be really good at. Qualcomm has included burst-mode computational photography in the Snapdragon 800, which allows multiple photos to be taken and stitched together to form an HDR photo instead of just using a software blending. This should mean that the phone will take great HDR photos that would be much better for editing and enhancing.
Compared to the iPhone 5S, Motorola Droid Maxx, and HTC One, the Nexus 5 took great HDR photos. The color accuracy was much better than the over-saturated HTC One and the washed out Droid Maxx, and managed to be quite similar to the photo taken by the iPhone 5S. If you look up in the top left corner of the phone taken by the 5S and compare it to the Nexus 5 you can see that the iPhone did a better job capturing the sky, but otherwise they are both great photos.
Low light
Over the past year, low light photography is a topic that has come up a lot. Nokia, HTC, Motorola, and many others have used the ability to take low light photos as a big selling point for the cameras on their smartphones. In fact, in a low light shootout done earlier this year on Geek.com we found that the HTC One was at the head of the class when it came to shooting in the dark, where other top phones (like the Galaxy S4) fell far behind.The Nexus 5 makes no bold claims regarding superior low light performance, but it’s still an important thing to look at.
The end result was more than a little surprising. While the Nexus 5 is the darkest of the four photos, it is by far the most accurate. HTC cranks up the ISO to reveal light that even the human eye can’t see, while the Moto X just looks like a blotchy mess. The Lumia 928 cheats a little bit with its Xenon bulb that fires even when the flash is turned off, revealing a clear and bright foreground photo but completely unrealistic and inaccurate sky in the background. The Nexus 5 is almost exactly what I saw in the foreground, but is unfortunately grainy and blurry in the background.
Technically the winner here in the HTC One, but the Nexus 5 did a much better job than I had anticipated
Source : Geek.com
Image : Geek.com
Google’s new flagship, the Nexus 5 offers the most straightforward rooting experience of any modern Android device. Google doesn’t really do anything to stop you from rooting it, but you’ll still have to jump through some hoops. Here’s how to do it.
The very easy way to root the Nexus 5
If you just want to get root access and don’t much care about how the process works, there is a (nearly) one-click solution from noted developer Chainfire. It’s called CF-Auto-Root and you can get it directly from Chainfire’s site for free. This is a zipped folder that includes all the files needed to unlock and root the Nexus 5.To use it, simply put the files on your computer and connect the Nexus 5 via a USB cable. Boot the phone into the bootloader by turning it off, then holding volume up+down+power. Click on the script file in the CF-Auto-Root directory that matches your desktop OS, and watch the magic happen.
Getting your hands dirty
The best way to root your Nexus 5 is to do it step-by-step yourself — it isn’t even very hard with this phone. You will be able to check along the way to make sure things are working correctly, and you’ll have a better handle on how to fix problems that might crop up later.The first thing you need to do is download the official Android SDK from Google. Run the SDK manager and install the suggested components, which will include the Android USB drivers. This should allow your computer to see the device when it is plugged in via USB. On some systems, you may have to change the phone’s USB access mode from MTP to PTP for it to be recognized.
Open a command prompt (or terminal on Mac) from the SDK’s platform-tools folder. It should contain a few files, two of which are ADB and fastboot. Plug in the Nexus 5 and input the following to make sure the device is found:
adb devices (add ./ to the beginning of all commands on a Mac)
The first thing you have to do is unlock the bootloader, which will factory reset the device. Here are the steps to make that happen:
adb reboot bootloader
fastboot oem unlock
fastboot flash recovery twrp-file-name.img
This should only take a few seconds, then you can use the volume toggles on your device to select recovery and activate it with the power button. TWRP will load, which has a touch interface. Tap on Reboot, then System. TWRP will ask if you want to install the root package — go ahead and say yes.
Image : Geek.com
Source : Geek.com
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