News - Google LG Nexus 5 prototype leaked specs and images

[HEXUS]

Details are from an anonymous source, so this info is for entertainment value only.

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[dbh]

Looks fake.

[Biscuit]

I hope they don't just release a single device that is over 5" as i was really hoping to get a nexus for my next phone and i simply cannot handle something with a screen size that large.

Gigantic battery in that thing though

[watercooled]

Oh no how could they? My Nexus 4 is going to promptly cease functioning!

Oh wait...

I was kind of expecting a Motorola Nexus 5, but then this is only a prototype so it may not have been decided yet? It's nice to see the inclusion of a big battery, but I think that screen is too big for a mainstream phone.

Nothing too surprising about the specs, but it's nice to see 16GB as the base model - 8GB with far less than that as usable space is too little really, especially considering the lack of microSD expansion. I'm glad I spent a bit extra on the 16GB Nexus 4, despite umming and arring over the cost difference initially.

3GB seems like a strange number for RAM, and I'm not sure how that would work for 'dual-channel'. It seems like it's mostly an attempt to give a shiny, higher number in specs, without jumping straight to 4GB, but TBH it seems like 'only' 2GB will be plenty on a phone for a while.

Don't some current Korean market handsets have some sort of digital TV reception already? AFAIK they generally use some sort of extendible antenna though. I'd be surprised if DVB-T made it to the European market.

Also, it would be great to see a move away from form-over-function design common in a lot of phones today. The RAZR Maxx or whatever it's called proves a lot of people are happy to forgo thinness in favour of increased battery life, for instance. I mean overall I'm happy with the 4, but it would be nice if it had a more rugged construction, bigger battery, and better thermal design. I just don't get the obsession with thinness considering how big the other two dimensions are? Especially considering the fragility means you realistically need to use some sort of case/cover anyway, increasing thickness and probably further harming thermals.

[borising]

Only 2.3 Ghz looks good on paper

[Biscuit]

Also, it would be great to see a move away from form-over-function design common in a lot of phones today. The RAZR Maxx or whatever it's called proves a lot of people are happy to forgo thinness in favour of increased battery life, for instance. I mean overall I'm happy with the 4, but it would be nice if it had a more rugged construction, bigger battery, and better thermal design. I just don't get the obsession with thinness considering how big the other two dimensions are?

I Agree, 4.2" ~720p screen and a bit of thickness for that added battery capacity would be ideal. It would add weight but i think that would probably help to make it feel more sturdy.

[terriblebugger]

What a load of hogwash those specs are.

[Hicks12]

Pretty much sums up my thoughts on the Nexus 4 watercooled , while I like the glass I still much prefer metal constructions like my HD2 and HTC in general (my dads sensation feels nice ). I am not sure what you mean by thermal design but if you mean the device getting hot that is in part due to the glass and the stock voltages, havent had an issue with it getting any hotter than previous devices since undervolting by 125mV across the board. I seriously think 4.7" of this nexus 4 is stretching the limit, I dont have small hands but they arent exactly massive and its annoying I am at the edge of being able to fully use the device one handed (loved my HD2 and Optimus 2x for this...), anything higher I will not buy now as it is pointless for me, I would infact like them to cut the bezel completely on the N4 and take it .1" smaller then it would probably be perfect.

I am also annoyed with this smaller is better idea yet they push these stupid screen sizes, they need to do what motorola do and provide better battery life for a bit of thickness. I would hardly notice if my N4 was a .5cm thicker and maybe even 1cm could be done , would love the extra battery!. These specs seem plausible but probably fake, I really dont mind though if it gets better it gets better for me in a few years when I change this N4 but I will be waiting a long time, loving this device and only plan to change if it breaks .

[Biscuit]

The problem with removing all bezel is that you make the edge of the phone glass (like iPhones and the HTC One) which means if the phone is dropped, its likely to shatter. I would much prefer to have a slim bezel and deal with a smaller screen.

[Hicks12]

Sorry my bad I meant get rid of the gap between the edge so its straight away the screen .

[Biscuit]

Sorry my bad I meant get rid of the gap between the edge so its straight away the screen .

Ah you mean between the bezel and the glass? Is it particularly big on the N4?

[Hicks12]

Yeah thats what I meant , its not that its a big gap but its still like 0.2cm each side, if that was removed I personally could reach the whole part of my phone with one hand using my thumb.

[Biscuit]

2mm? that is pretty hefty! I would have thought they will need some gap to actually be able to manufacture it quickly and cheaply but that's a lot!

[Hicks12]

Is it really a big gap? It looks less than the S3 and similar to the iphone 5, wouldnt say its anymore than the high end average . Well I still believe most high end smartphones are way overpriced, atleast the nexus 4 brought that down a notch, <£300 is OK for sim only I think but £500+ for iphones/samsung galaxys/optimus phones are stupid, especially when you think of how much it costs them to really make.

Be nice to see prices of £200 being the norm but that is optimistic, I can live with £300 .

[watercooled]

By thermal design, I mean effectively dissipating the heat produced by the SoC to prevent thermal throttling. The S4 Pro is a fairly powerful chip for a phone, and in the Nexus 4, like many other phones, can only dissipate heat via the PCB and radiation. As a result, it seems it can throttle by a fair amount when things heat up (whether its noticeable or not is debatable, and dependant on task of course), although the Optimus G seems to cope better with a slightly different throttle profile - whereas the Nexus seems to score better initially and slow down after it heats up, the Optimus seems to start off slower, but remain relatively consistent over time.

Having the SoC pressed against an aluminium case would be great for keeping it cool, but of course it might have a knock-on effect of harming battery life, if a powerful SoC is allowed to run full-speed constantly.

Although even if performance remained the same, a cooler-running IC isn't a bad thing.

[Hicks12]

Ah right, I do not seem to have the throttling issue now with undervolting but yeah they should have had a better method of dissipating the heat like a little passive heatsink . Try undervolting it should help, I know others have actually put copper plates infront of the chip which helps a bit but I really havent needed that, far to drastic for me lol.

The problem with the throttling on our phone is more the battery then anything if I remember rightly because 40C is the optimum operating temp and 60C is the max so thats why the temp limit is set around there, if they had a metal frame it probably would help alot more and hopefully disspiate it evenly and keeping the battery cooler overall, maybe the nexus 5 has this improvement haha.