Google Nexus 5X

The Nexus 6 failed to impress a lot of Google’s fans as it was too large and expensive for those that enjoyed the Nexus 5. Google finally listened and released the 5X – the first real successor to the Nexus 5. It wasn’t love at first sight among experts. In fact, most consider it rather dull and uninspired with some going so far as to call it ugly. Still, they add it is quite comfortable to hold thanks to its light weight of only 136 grams and, despite being slightly taller and wider than its predecessor, easy to use one-handed. With that said, some did take issue with the build quality citing it as cheap and plastic-y especially with regards to the power and volume rocker. The biggest update to the design is the inclusion of a fingerprint scanner on the back of the device. Experts were very pleased with the new addition as they described it as lightning fast and incredibly accurate even in the rain.

The only thing that has changed with the screen is its size. Now at 5.2 inches, the IPS LCD display still sports a resolution of 1920 x 1080 for a pixel density of 432ppi. While not quadHD, experts had no qualms with its overall sharpness. They were equally impressed with the overall brightness and color accuracy though they point out the colors were fairly flat. As Alphr puts it, “the Nexus 5X won’t blow you away, but it won’t leave you crying…”

A combined 1.44GHz quad-core chip and 1.82GHz dual-core chip makes up the hexa-core CPU on the Nexus 5X and 2GB of RAM keeps the Nexus 5X humming along. On paper, the specs certainly are not on par with other flagship smartphones. When put through benchmark tests, experts noticed inconsistent performance, which ended up translating to real life use. For the most part they had no issues navigating the home screen. It was only when they tried to load up the camera app or open multiple tabs in the browser when they noticed some slowdown. While annoying, they state it is still fast enough for most people. They biggest problem for experts though is the battery life. Even with moderate use, they were only able to get a day out of it. With heavy gaming, they drained batteries to 50 percent in only two hours.

Perhaps the biggest upgrade to the 5X is the move to a 12.3MP rear camera and improved aperture and larger light sensor. These improvements allowed reviewers to take very detailed, vibrant and color accurate pictures even in low lighting situations. Of course, when they zoomed into the pictures more they did notice some noise and distorted colors for the dim light shots. Still, they were rather impressed with the quality, especially since it does not come with optical image stabilization. Instead, the 5X concentrates on its laser assisted autofocus and larger light sensor. Besides pictures, the camera can also record 4K videos. Unfortunately, the 5X does not allow for expandable storage so 4K videos ultimately will take up much needed storage space.

While the 5X is not without its flaws, reviewers still highly recommend it for consumers looking for a pure Android experience in a small package. The Verge states, “It’s compact, cheap and performs well, even if it’s not the best-looking or best-feeling phone you can get.” Tech Radar adds, ” The Nexus 5X isn’t the best phone you can get…It’s more like the perfect fit for one hand and the closest thing to a five-finger discount given the specs.”