Google Nexus 5

GOOGLE HAS AGAIN PROVED THAT you don’t need flashy launches or celebrity endorsements to sell a phone. If you build it well – with help, this time, from LG – and slap a head-turningly low price tag on it, they will come. The Nexus 5 has already sold out, with delivery estimates for latecomers hovering around the Christmas-week period.

It’s the uniquely Nexus combination of affordability – just £299 SIM-free – and a no compromise approach to specs that’s sparked this buying frenzy. The only other company we can think of who could do something similar is Amazon, and it doesn’t make smart phones… yet.

At 8.6mm deep the 5 is also thinner than an iPhone 5C. Gracing the front there’s a 4.95-inch, 920x1080p screen whose 445 pixels per inch easily trumps the Retina Display found on iPhones 5S and 5C.

The overall look remains the same as the Google Nexus 4: utilitarian, with an ultrathin bezel surrounding the screen and no buttons. The result is quite dull but it’s also well constructed, and refreshingly free of distractions and gimmickry.

The top-drawer spec continues with a 2.26GHz quadcore Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, 2GB of RAM and a choice of 16GB or 32GB storage.

On the back there’s an eight-meg camera with the ability to shoot 1080p video – it’s good, but Google has admitted it needs improving via a software update. There’s also a 1.3-meg front-facing camera for Skype chats and Google+ Hangouts.

Wireless charging comes as standard and a brand new square charger, an update to the puck-shaped one released with the Nexus 4, is due very soon, pricing TBC. Connectivity is what you’d expect in 2014, with 4G, NFC and Bluetooth 4.0 LE, which consumes less power for theoretically extended battery life.

Being a Google phone, the Nexus 5 also gets first dibs on Android 4.4 – aka, no doubt to Nestlé’s delight, KitKat. It’s been simplified, minimizing homepage clutter and focusing on widgets. Google Now has also been updated, and gives Siri (an apps to recognize your voice) a run for his money with its Google Glass-like voice commands – just unlock your phone, bark “Okay Google” and have it snap a photo, scour the web, take a note or set a reminder.

Other nifty features include intelligent Caller ID, which looks up unknown numbers when they ring you, scouring Google Maps Business lists for the name of your cold caller.

The best bit of news? The Nexus 5 is a five star product, out now – give or take a bit of waiting for delivery – going cheap. Is it time for you to join the Nexus generation?

Detail :

1. Camera : The Nexus 5 sports an eight-meg sensor with HDR+ that combines dual exposures to get the  

    best possible results.

2. Charging : Wireless charging is built in and compatible with the Orb (£60). A new, square Google charger     is rumoured to be joining it soon.

3. Screen : The 4.95-inch 1080p screen has 445 pixels packed into every inch, all protected by ultra-tough       Gorilla Glass 3.

4. Google Now : Just say “Okay Google” (by using SIRI apps.) to get its attention. Can’t talk right now?           Scroll up from the bottom of the screen to launch it manually.

5. Specification :

·         Processor/ RAM : 2.26GHz quadcore/2GB.

·         Screen : 4.95-inch, 1920x1080, 445 ppi.

·         Rear camera : 8-meg/1080p.

·         Front camera : 1.3-meg/720p.

·         Storage : 16 Gb/ 32 Gb.

·         Connectivity : 4G, N Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth 4.0 LE.

·         Battery : up to 17 hours talk time.

                  ·      Dimensions : 69x138x8.6mm/136g

Source : T3-Gadget Magazine