The Google Nexus 6 Techtrends Review
The smartphone industry is so busy lately and with good reason, mobile users are increasing demand for phones that can do it all so what has Google got to offer with its Nexus 6 phablet?
Dimensions: It is 159.3 x 83 x 10.1mm and 184g in weight, which is quite long and heavy compared to current rival the iPhone 6 Plus, but with time, like every other smartphone, you get used to it. I’m just worried for people with hands as tiny as mine and how they will hold it. Two hands may have to come into play here.
Screen size and display: The Nexus 6 screen is impressively large at 5.96 inches so it’s great for media viewing or gaming. It has a resolution of 1440 x 2560 pixels which is bound to give you sharper images. The AMOLED screen also makes it a better screen than its predecessor, the Nexus 5.
Connectivity: It’s 3G and 4G/LTE enabled
CPU and OS: With its 2.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon 805 processor and 3GB of RAM the Nexus 6 is almost as good as the Galaxy Note 4 in terms of speed so if you were trying to make a choice between the two, well, there! It will run on the latest Android 5.0 Lollipop operating system(OS), which you can read about here. That OS promises faster performance, a better user interface, and will save on battery power
Camera: The Nexus 6 has a 13 MP rear camera with image stabilization and dual LED flash so you’re bound to have some really good photos from it. The front camera is 2MP and I’ve seen better in the Huawei Ascend Mate 7 and Ascend P6, and the latest Samsung Galaxy Note 4.
Storage size: It comes in variants of 32 or 64 GB internal storage with no microSD slot. Bummer!
Colours available: For now only Midnight Blue and Cloud White.
Battery size and life: The Nexus 6 has a large 3220mAH battery that Google says will give you up to 24 hours of use but c’mon, we know it’s usually far less than what’s on the box, right? It almost always depends on what you’re personally using the phone for.
Price and availability: The Nexus 6 is rumoured to cost about $649 (approx. K4,114), but will cost more in Zambia so I can’t yet say if it will be cheaper than both the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (which was being sold at a bundled rate of K4900 by Airtel if you pre-ordered the phone)or the iPhone 6 Plus, currently selling for over K8000 in most local stores). The Nexus 6 is expected to roll out this month, November.
Conclusion: It definitely takes a comfy seat alongside the latest iPhone 6 Plus and the Samsung Galaxy Note 4, of whom I did a comparison of before so read that and then decide what suits you.
The price tag on the Nexus 6 may be its weakest point. The previous Nexus ranges phones sold at an affordable price which may have been why they sold at all so I doubt the Nexus 6 will sell like hotcakes in its initial release stages.
The lack of a microSD card slot means data-hoarders like myself will have to depend on a cloud, while deciding what to delete on the phone itself as time passes and space runs out.
Image Credits: 3g, Design Bolts
