Gadgetory

back in 2013 Google and LG teamed up to build the original Nexus 5 that was bigger than the prior year's Nexus 4 which was also made by LG but wasn't overly large in the hand it was a phone for the masses and was relatively well received in 2014 some say that Google jumped the shark offering a phablet instead of a smartphone a move that many felt was abandoning the diehard supporters of the Nexus phone this year Google released two Nexus phones a phablet to follow up the Nexus 6 from last year and what many are calling a return to its roots with the Nexus 5x did LG build a phone worthy of the Nexus 5 name I'm Joe Levi with PocketNow and this is our video review of the Nexus 5x the first thing you'll notice when you take the Nexus 5x out of its box is just how light it is at 136 grams it's slightly heavier than the original Nexus 5 but only slightly it feels like because we've become accustomed to bulkier and heavier phones specifically 184 gram behemoths of last year's Nexus 6 the Nexus 5 doesn't support the aluminum and glass that many of this year's flagship slot instead almost is a throwback to two years ago the 5x uses some matte polycarbonate and one of three colors Carbon quartz and ice the edges feature a subtle chamfer that we've seen on other Nexus devices which provides just the right amount of grip without getting in the way of looks the Nexus 5x isn't a particularly small phone but it's not big either it's easily pocketable and can be held securely even in petite hands it's a little taller than the previous model but we don't think you'll mind other than the color the Nexus 5 comes in two configurations 16 gig and 32 gig with the latter asking a $50 premium over the $379 price of the base model we think the 32 gig version is well worth the cost to upgrade on the front of the phone is a 5.2 inch screen under slab of Gorilla Glass 3 with a resolution of 1080 by 1920 the pixel density is an impressive 423 PPI though this is slightly lower than the original Nexus 5 thanks to improvements in screen technology color saturation deep blacks and overall sharpness make the screen on the 5x very crisp and clear bright when it needs to be and able to accurately replicate colors even in sunlight and in the dark with the brightness turned down low some reviewers disagree with this sentiment when compared to the Nexus 6p but while those conclusions may be accurate they're also somewhat unfair the average user won't be dissatisfied with the screen on the Nexus 5x at all on top of the phone is a single microphone port to the right is the power button above the volume rocker on the left is the nano SIM slot at the bottom is another microphone port the headphone jack and the all-new USB type-c port the front of the phone also has an ambient light sensor handset speaker front firing speakers third microphone and a tricolor notification LED that although it's disabled by default can easily be turned on to the settings unlike other Nexus devices despite having two speaker grilles it's only got one front firing speaker the sound it produces is loud clear but doesn't have the encompassing volume that we've heard on other necks it's on the back where things get really exciting for the first time a Nexus device has a fingerprint scanner which Google refers to as Android imprint it's situated near the top of the phone where the dimple on last year's Nexus 6 and some of Motorola's other phones can be found also on the back is the reflective Nexus logo with a fairly prominent LG branding oh and the main camera too as you'd expect with carrying a phone with a nexus label the 5x runs pure Android the way Google intends it the bells and whistles are all stock but sometimes it's the simplicity the lack of superfluous features which only serves to pad a spec sheet that makes something truly elegant such is the case with Android 6.0 marshmallow on the Nexus 5 with marshmallow google continues his foray into active display pushing rich but black and white notifications to the screen rather than relying on a notification LED to get your attention unlike previous generations of Nexus phones that may have had an LED here access to your LED is tucked neatly inside the sound of notification settings Android pay also makes its debut as a pre-loaded application on the Nexus 5 replacing Google Wallet which has been a staple of the Nexus brand since it came out on the Nexus S in 2011 in the new - Nexus thread Google picked the Nexus 5 as the first device to officially support the aforementioned Android imprint fingerprint scanning and security subsystems other OEMs beat Google to the punch offering many of the same features of Android imprint though in separate proprietary ways the fingerprint scanner on the back of the Nexus 5 is perfectly located and as easy to find and use after just a few times to get oriented with where it is and how it works now does it work I think very well very fast I've only encoded two of my fingers so far both my index fingers and recognition is all but instantaneous with a very high accuracy rate when your finger is scanned at an odd angle or even upside down the software is smart enough to match your finger and still manages to quickly unlock the phone turning on the Nexus 5 is particularly easy using the fingerprint scanner simply rest your finger on the scanner and your screen is turned on and your phone is unlocked faster than you can raise it to look at it in addition to all that Android 6.0 marshmallow brings now on tap a renewed permissions model volume controls that finally work right and an intelligent do-not-disturb function that does exactly what it's supposed to do we covered all these in more detail in our Nexus 6p review and since they're functionally equivalent on the Nexus 5x there's no need to repeat all that over here for the last two generations of Nexus phones quality of pictures taken has been at the top of the priority list though last year's Nexus 6 had a decent camera it wasn't great that honor is reserved for the Nexus 5 the main shooter on the Nexus 5 is housed in the slight bump on the back of the phone which looks a lot bigger in pictures than it actually is in real life it features a twelve point three megapixel sensor and an F 2.0 aperture and broad spectrum CRI 90 dual flash hawai ass wasn't included because google claims that the larger pixel size and IR laser assisted autofocus negate the need moving around to the front at five megapixels and an F 2.0 aperture the front-facing selfie camera isn't anything to scoff at either despite being a technically capable camera the camera on the Nexus 5 seems to be unreachable at times it doesn't like to rotate once the camera app is fired up and is overall problematic and slow there was an update for the Nexus 5x that had begun rolling out which was thought to address some of these issues but our review unit hasn't gotten the update as we went to press when it behaves however the pictures in the video the Nexus 5 produces are nothing short of beautiful on the whole it produces amazing pictures even in low or dark light when it comes to video the Nexus 5x can shoot 4k at 30 frames per second and can capture slow-motion at 120 frames per second well walk and see how this does Halloween time so we got our decorations coming out this camera's up sides far outweigh its negatives and that's something we've never been able to say about the camera on any other Nexus of course the Nexus 6p notwithstanding which happens to use the same camera module as the Nexus 5x we've used the Nexus 5x for about a week in the Greater Salt Lake City Utah area on the t-mobile network what's nice about a phone marketed is compatible with virtually any network though is that switching carriers is literally as easy as swapping Sims and the Nexus 5x should work with virtually any of the major carriers overall the phone is fast than responsive in fact for the first few days the Nexus 5x performed faster and smoother than any other phone we've reviewed in Utah offices however over the last few days it's begun to pick up and stutter upon investigation when waking the phone seems to max out the CPU cores for a short amount of time slowing everything down whether this is the natural consequence of doze mode pulling in a handful of updates all at once when you power on the phone or the 64-bit hexa core 1.8 gigahertz Snapdragon 808 processor showing its limitations well we're not certain most of the time this has just been frustrating but occasionally it has required a reboot to get things back on track next up is battery life which has been pretty good on a full charge of the 2700 milliamp battery which takes under two hours using the included charger and USB type-c cable the Nexus 5x should last you all day and most of the evening before dropping the battery saving mode at about 15% the Nexus 5x doesn't include Qualcomm quick charge but it does support USB type-c rapid charging off the phone back on the charger for 10 minutes you'll get almost four more hours of use to achieve this you'll need to use the included charger or one of you compatible replacements however if you have access to a USB type-a 2 USB type-c cable which isn't included you'll still be able to use your old chargers they just won't charge as quickly as the one that comes in the box there are a few t-mobile specific issues that haven't been worked out just yet those and the unexplained processor utilization issue or minor inconveniences but they're still troubling on a new smartphone especially one carrying the Nexus name brand we'll keep an eye on them and report back when the Nexus 5 gets hour after the buzz treatment we feel obliged to remind potential buyers that the old adage about getting what you pay for if you want a top-of-the-line flagship the Nexus 6p is a better Buy if you've got the money and you don't mind the phablet form factor the 5x is no show horse it's the phone you toss around without worrying about scratching it up the one you buy because it's a good deal not because it's delivering a premium experience that having been said the Nexus 5x is very much like its 2013 predecessor in that it delivers a lot of capability for a very competitive price point and it manages to do so while still looking fairly sharp at $379 us the Nexus 5x is a tremendous value for the price it's big enough to be functional small enough to be pocketable and is everything you've come to expect from the Nexus brand for pocket now I'm Joe Levi catch you next time