Last year’s Google Flagship, the Nexus 6, was met with a sliver of enthusiasm and a world of criticism; and in my opinion, rightfully so. From the sometimes unwieldy 5.96-inch display, to the plastic matte finish never devoid of fingerprints and smudges, the lackluster camera, the over-the-top pricing, etc., etc., etc. Well, you get my point! Several critics believed the failure of the Nexus 6 to connect with buyers, coupled with less-than-stellar sells of the Nexus 9 tablet, may lead to the eventual demise of the line. In the face of this skeptism, Google seems to have veered from what was believed as their failed new direction for the Nexus Program onto another course, a more familiar course.
Enter stage right, the Huawei Nexus and the revamped LG Nexus 5 (2015). The Huawei Nexus, based on reports, will be the higher end of the two smartphones sporting similar “flagship” specs from its current counterparts inclusive of a fingerprint sensor, a 5.7-inch display for that phablet-feel popular with Samsung’s Note line, Quad-HD resolution for stellar viewing that pop and zing, a stunning all metal aluminum chassis, with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chipset and 4 GB of ram to help this bad-boy zoom right along with ease, and a starting price in the $400-$500 range. Huawei should bring its continued smartphone success to the West, and critics and enthusiasts alike are buzzing with what could be one of the more stunning devices of this year.
But full front and center is the expected showstopper for Google in this year-end phone frenzy. The revamped LG Google Nexus 5 (2015) looks to rekindle those days of yore its older brother so masterfully garnered. The 5.2-inch 1080p display, 3 GB of RAM partnered with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 may not sound like a flagship killer (you’re welcome for the free plug, Oneplus), but should be met with the same herald the 2013 version still maintains. This should solidify to Google you don’t have to all the latest bells and whistles to make a premier smartphone, just someone who understands the language. In my honest opinion, LG certainly understands the lingo to make upper-tier mobile devices. With the yearly success of its G Line flagships, and such recent successes of the Nexus 4 and 5, LG stands to continue a great line of premium devices, which most importantly won’t break the bank. That is what Google lost sight of last year, something simple, but elegant, and I don’t need a second job at (fill-in local store name here) to afford. Heck, we all knew when we bought the Nexus 5 back in 2013, it was not the top dog of the times, but it showcased the most important things; great software, great hardware and great pricing. The three pillars to success in the ever diversifying ecosystem of mobile technology.
As a multi-billion dollar company, Google is not one to shy away from pushing the boundaries to be cutting edge. Did they toe the line too much last year with their Nexus Line Devices? Yeah, I would say so. But the Android and Nexus fan-base seems truly excited about the upcoming offerings, with the new Nexus 5 being the main attraction in it all. Now, I’m not going to say the Nexus Line would fail without a stunner this year, but bringing back a classic always seems to re-ignite the core and would-be followers. I liken the Nexus Program the way I feel about the television show Criminal Minds; you have AJ Cook, I like the show. You get rid of AJ Cook and I don’t like the show so much. You bring back AJ Cook and some how I find a way to forgive!
JA3Tech 