Google Nexus 5 Operating System - Android 4.4

Android 4.4 - Operating System:



Google's latest and greatest is on display here. Android 4.4, otherwise known as Kitkat comes pre-installed on the phone. There are some changes from Android 4.3 Jelly bean. Like all Nexus devices, operating system updates are done over the air via Google. No waiting on device manufacturers or carriers.
The launcher has changed and on the Nexus 5 (and it's exclusive to the Nexus 5), and widgets are now removed from the app screen and are accessed by pressing and holding down on a home screen.

Icon sizes have been enlarged in the app library, and formatting has been tweaked.
Android Run Time (ART) is now available as opposed to the stock Google Dalvik compiler. Allegedly, ART nets a handful more hours out of the device per some reviews, but I haven't noticed any difference. In theory, ART should speed up the device, but with the S800 Pro already blazing fast, it's questionable if anyone will notice, your mileage will vary. Also, some apps are broken under ART.

Google has prominently placed Google search on the top of the phone and included the new function of simply talking to your phone to have it fulfill requests. Simply say "Ok Google" and the Google Now function loads up where you can ask questions or request information simply by talking to it. Phone has to be unlocked for it to work as opposed to the Moto X which I believe will work without unlocking.

Hangouts has merged with text messaging for a combined app. As with all Android phones, you can download another app and make it your default over Hangouts. Currently the Hangouts change in my opinion was a mistake. Group texting via SMS has problems with sending, the app prioritizes sending to Gmail accounts over SMS and you can't mix SMS and Gmail group chats together. The separation in 4.3 was a better system.

Google kept the Sywpe like typing option on its default keyboard (drag your fingers between keys rather than typing) and notification center appears to be the same from 4.3. Colors however for notification went from blue to white. Also the notification flashing light is still there from the Nexus 4. It's sort of like the Blackberry's red flashing LED, but at the bottom.

Outside of the changes from 4.3, stock Android 4.3, stock meaning there's no "skin" over it such as Touchwiz or HTC's Sensation, runs extremely fast. Apps load instantly, everything is extremely responsive. This is not Android Honeycomb that was an unresponsive lag filled mess. It is however, less intuitive than iOS 6/7. Android verse Apple has always been like this and its personal preference. That said, if you're in to nearly complete customization, widgets, lock screen information and generally busting out of a walled garden to have your phone do what you want it to do, this is your cup of tea.

Google Nexus 5 Camera Review

The back camera is still an 8 megapixel and front is 1.3 megapixel, same as the Nexus 4. Low light has improved considerable and HDR+ alleviates many of lighting problems. HDR is a software/hardware combination that takes three photos, one underexposed, one overexposed and one regular and the software combines them to even out the lighting issues to produce the best possible shot. Graininess has been reduced as well. Google keeps the same minimal interface for the camera with the select and drag method for changing options.

Image stabilization is so-so and the camera can be slow to focus at times. The Nexus 5 camera is an improvement over the Nexus 4, but a Lumia this is not. Google released updates to the Android OS that had specific Nexus 5 camera fixes. The camera's improved, but it's still relatively slow at focusing. However, image quality has improved considerably as have night shots. The only real criticism now is that the camera is slow to focus.

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Google Nexus 5 Hardware Review

Google Nexus 5 Hardware

The device is built on a Qualcomm S800 Pro processor. Clocked at 2.2 GHz quadcore processor, the phone screams on speed. I'm not a fan of mobile benchmarks due to their inherent problems of actually measuring what they claim, but benchmarks all put the Nexus 5 at the moment in the top end of performance. Compared to my Nexus 7's Tegra 3, the Nexus 5 has a fighter jet engine compared to the first generation Nexus 7's turboprop engine.
There's also a Hynix 2 GB RAM chip running at DDR3 1600 Mhz, and either a 16 GB or 32 GB Sandisk NAND memory chip depending which model you bought. Google is charging $50 more for the 32 GB device. That's about a 625% markup over wholesale NAND prices. Take that as you will.

There are Bluetooth, NFC, GPS and unlike the Nexus 4, a slim-port compatibility, thus letting you connect the phone to a monitor or television screen. LG/Google kept the wireless charging from the Nexus 4, to which the wireless charger has to be purchased separately.

The phone comes with an Adreno 330 graphics chip. I'm not a big mobile gamer, but this per the professional reviews and FPS benchmarks will handle every game out for Android. For non-gamers, the Adreno 330 is overkill.

Microphone and talk clarity are on par with Nexus 4, meaning fine. Speaker seems to have more noise at higher volumes. Also, speaker is mono despite there being two grills at the bottom. One grill is for the microphone.

Connects via standard USB, where the device itself has a microUSB connection. Plugging the device into your computer brings it up as another removable storage device where you can simply drop and drag files into folders. Easy file movement plus standard USB makes the device very simple to use and standard charging conventions make it easy to find chargers around your house and office. Sometimes the device goes wonky on USB connection (was a Nexus 4 issue as well), so just go into settings and storage, click on the settings (3 vertical boxes) and change the connection to PTP or MPT and the phone will reappear properly.

Like all recent Nexus devices, no MicroSD slot and no removable battery. MicroSD slot is partially alleviated now that USB OTG works. See my "other" section for more details.

You can find these specific parts on iFixit's tear down which gave it a solid 8/10 for user repair. For the low price of $349/$399, there is no other phone with this quality hardware that for the price.

To read more reviews, go to the links below:



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