Nexus 5, this is the Android you want - The Mundo.es

In the last three years Google has managed to become one of the top mobile phone manufacturers. The Californian company, needless to say, is the main development of the Android platform and dominates many of the services associated with it. But in January 2010 decided to go one step further and also become the designer of his own line of phones.

These phones, baptized as Nexus, manufactured by another brand ever experienced in the hardware market as HTC, Samsung or Asus. They began as developers focused devices, phones outside the commercial circuit that keep the operators. On sale through the network or to a very limited at certain merchants, Nexus seemed a product aimed at a corner of the mobile phone market.

But the two latest phones, developed by the Korean LG seem to have touched on all the points needed to become a hit with the average home consumer. Nexus 4 could be considered the best mobile value / price of the last year. Nexus? 5? It goes further. I’ve spent the last week on the phone and I think that despite its limitations for the vast majority of Android users is the best you can buy, even if the budget is not adjusted.

But what is Android?

During the past three years the Nexus range has established the canon of what should be the Android platform. In a way it was a cry of Google to other manufacturers to show what free operating system customization layers and services that many of them choose to use to differentiate themselves from their competition.

But in the last 24 months Google seems to have slightly changed its strategy. There is an Android free, open and accessible to all manufacturers. Above him, however, increasingly outweigh the services of Google : maps, messaging, calendar, productivity tools, etc … The vast majority are available for any phone on the market. Simply download the appropriate version from Google Play. But where they really shine is in the Nexus range.

The result is that the user experience that now offer the Nexus can not be achieved in other phones. Users who are comfortable messing with the terminal can get close enough with specific ROMs but not exactly the same. We must also add that the advantage is the range receiving first operating system updates , at least for a reasonable period of time [the Galaxy Nexus, which was released in 2011, not receive the latest version of Android].

Before you could talk about the Nexus range as the range with “pure Android”. With the Nexus 5, as we noted last week The Verge in his analysis of the phone there to talk about “the pure Google”.

basic design, but sensible

The Nexus 5 continues the tradition of the Nexus 4 offer unbeatable quality / price ratio. The basic model of 16 GB, it costs $ 349 free. But for that amount promises sufficient power to measure face to face with the high-end market. It is the most powerful Android is not the fastest Android, but not far from it and it does not matter. Fluid is enough time to move by different applications and services as to not be a problem.

Its five-inch display has full HD resolution and quality rivals the best HTC-screens so far regarded as the brand with better screens of the platform. The latest generation AMOLED Samsung’s present on the Galaxy Note 3, has a bit more quality thanks in part to a higher contrast and saturation, but we’re talking very small differences that most considered unimportant in daily use terminal.

My personal phone, as I have said many times, is an iPhone 5. This means I’m used to smaller screen sizes and handle the phone with one hand. In the case of Nexus 5, obviously not so easy. The larger size makes getting to the corners with your thumb, or type are one hand can be tricky. In general it is less manageable but everything has its side and his cross, and in this case, as with other five inch terminals I’ve talked about before, the Full HD resolution and the extra surface to display help navigate the web, read a post or edit a photograph is much more comfortable. Back to the four inches after testing week has been much harder than I expected.

The Nexus 5 is not sophisticated materials and boasts a fabulous design, but you can not say that the design has been neglected. It is comfortable to use and carry in your pocket and the plastic from the housing is not at all unpleasant or slippery to the touch, although it tends to cumulate grease and fingerprints easily. It is a practical telephone, much more than many of its competitors at prices significantly higher, in fact.

A

Android called KitKat

Nexus is the phone that serves as an ambassador for the new versions of the Android OS and the Nexus 5 is no exception. Comes with version 4.4, dubbed KitKat.

KitKat

not a big change from version 4.3 operating system, but minor changes in style and graphic user interface that give more consistency to the whole. Now Google Now, for example, live to the left of the main screen (you have to slide the screen to the right to access it), the top bar is translucent and some system utilities have changed their appearance slightly.

are minor changes, but there are two fundamental differences important to the user. The first is the tool Hangouts, now, besides allowing chats and videoconferences, manages the SMS (no separate application for these posts). Unlike iMessage in iOS, however, Hangouts SMS and conversations are kept distinct.

The second is the voice recognition system, now integrated within the lock screen and main menu. Whenever the phone is in one of two screens and switch may say “Ok Google …” and asked to perform a search or do a specific task such as opening an application, all without touching a single button. At the moment only works if the phone is in English, Google will not advanced when the function into other languages. The other voice recognition capabilities, which were already implemented in previous versions of Android, do work in other languages.

Camera and drums, old betrayers

Of course not everything in the Nexus 5 is perfect, but the commitments are acceptable for most users. As with the Nexus 4 this phone limps into two sections: camera battery, although not as much as one might think.

Google has opted for a camera of eight megapixels and sensor size 1/3.2. It produces good pictures outdoors and with enough light, but indoors too trusting an image stabilizer which in practice gives good results. This means that it is easy to end up with blurry images if you are not a little careful when taking the picture.

The camera app is still a bit slow to shoot , especially when you first start, and some of the shooting modes, including the new HDR +, not very smart. This scene, for example, should have been resolved better, with much more visible background:

Regarding the battery, I find the Nexus 5 falls short with its 2,300 mAh. In general intensive days is necessary to recharge the phone in the afternoon. Measuring the battery is extremely subjective, in any case. The experience varies depending on the use made of the device and installed applications.

As was the case in previous models the battery is not removable and there is no possibility of memory expansion. The price of the 16GB model is 349 euros but worth spending $ 50 more and go for the 32GB model . Photos and videos are finished with that memory very quickly if you do not walk carefully. Even the most expensive model looks cheap when compared to other terminals Android platform star or rival iOS field.