Nexus 5 - My Small Review

It's been a dream for me to own a Nexus device ever since it is released. And it became a possibility this month. I had a chance to buy N5 and without much thought, I bought it. I must say that it is worthy investment for a first time Nexus owner like me. Been enjoying it for a week, so decided to write a small review as everyone wish.

Build Quality

Since I never own Nexus devices, can't compare with it's predecessors. But as an old Android user, I owned/handled a lot of device and this phone felt better in hand. Compared to the cheap plastic-y feel in most of the phones, the rubberized back is so gripping as well as looks awesome. I always thought bigger phones weigh more,but N5 proved it wrong. Yes, even with back cover it is still lighter than my Burst and my brother's S3.

The front looks good, because of its thin bazel. Phone fits my one hand usage pattern. Overall I am impressed with the build quality(Far better than any mobile I have used till now).

Performance

With no updates, the thumbnail loading in gallery was buggy. But with 4.4.2, that's resolved. Apart from that, phone is snappy and lag free. Sole reason to own Nexus device is to get vanilla OS experience and it is buttery smooth in N5. Played few demanding games and phone was fast and multi tasking is a breeze. Not much to say here as hardware is pretty notched up to compete against giants like S4 and Note 3.

Features

I guess I am too early in writing review. I feel like there is still a lot to explore. Hangouts completely took over messaging part. Clean people and contacts look. New photos sync option, which let you back up your photos to Google cloud solution. Quick office is now free and comes pre-loaded. Play music and other services undergone some cosmetic changes as well. Notification area is now lot cleaner. No options will be displayed by default(like WiFi,BT etc). Google+(!) took major revamp in my opinion. I loved it.
If I find more, will update this post.

Call, connectivity

Phone packs with all available connectivity options. Tested WiFi and 3G. Works good also drains battery a lot quicker than my Burst.

One big let down is, I can't use NFC with any Samsung phones. It sucks. Rest is just working fine. Will test 4G, if I get my hands on one of 4g Sim.

Call quality is excellent compared to my previous phones and I can hear clearly even in crowded places. Receiver also confirmed that sound quality is good. Overall this phone is good at what it is supposed to.

Audio & Video

Sound is crispy(tested with skull candy) and details are excellent indeed. Apollo player is now looking sexy and so far didn't felt the need for any music player. Video player remains same or say, I didn't noticed any difference. Video player is same as JB, plays whatever I throw in.

Camera

This time also, they are not into megapixel race. Rather, they are into making the snapping experience much more easier and fun. So, this is where google worked a lot. Since Nexus 5 is all about capturing moments, they did some good work. With 4.4, focusing was an issue. But with 4.4.2, it was fixed and now I can take snaps faster than any droid device(Seriously!). Snaps are good and I have uploaded few untouched ones. See it for yourself.

Camera UI is Now slick and changing options was never so easier. Be it switching to HDR+ mode or changing white balance, just swipe anywhere and do it.

Video recording is still same as N4(I guess). HD recording at30fps!. You can take photos while recording video. Not so great and pretty old feature, but still helpful.

Video quality is OK, and I have only S3 and Note 3. In comparison, video is good and unlike Samsung who over saturates videos, I felt the video looks real. Color absorption is good.

Low light performance : This is where most of phones shot down but not N5. It produces decent picture, less grainy more details. I felt N5 videos and images are way better than N4.

Battery

A big let down. Seriously what was Google thinking? With mere 2300 may battery, phone is struggling to get past 10-12hrs even for my usage pattern. Nothing to say apart from, that hope Google do something by tweaking OS for improved battery performance.

Display

Gorgeous. Awesome. Sunlight visibility is excellent. Never thought IPS display can be so good. Sometimes I do nothing but stare at the screen for its sexiness. Thin bezel, perfectly curved display and watching movies or playing games is a treat to watch. My Pantech Burst AMOLED looks shitty to me now.

Overall, except the battery there is not much to complain and for the price it comes, it is a well deserved phone and buy if you want vanilla android experience in gorgeous display. I would really rate it 10/10, if not for the battery. Still i am glad to get my hands on with this phone and enjoying naked Android UX...

Pros:
+ Vanilla KitKat experience
+ Gorgeous Display
+ Snappy performance
+ Plain, but sexy design
+ Improved Camera(post 4.4.2)
+ Pricing

Cons
- Battery
- Availability(It sucks, really)
- Loud Speaker volume could have been little louder
- Fingerprint prone back panel(I dressed my N5 with back case, so no issue )

Few Images for you to drool :


UI Screenshots


Camera Samples