Nexus 5 or LG G3

[matt3166]

I'm kind of in a tough spot right now. I'm really tempted to get an LG G3 but I love my Nexus.
Has anyone gone or thinking going from their Nexus to an G3 and why?

Posted via Android Central App

 

[B. Diddy]

I would guess that the rumored Nexus 6 will be based on the G3 (like how the N5 had a lot of the same hardware as the G2). If you enjoy the benefits of a Nexus device, then you might want to wait a little longer to see what Google has in store.

 

[anon(826501)]

Hello. My last phone, before my current Nexus 5, was an LG G2. The nock on nock off screen feature work until the KitKat 4.4.2 arrives. I downloaded the upgrade via OTA , carrier AT&T, stock device , no root. Then the problems begun, NO more nock on nock off on my G2 screen and had to use the zoom for open my paid apps at Google Play Store. Finaly the G2 dies and I bought my Nexus 5. Check out the LG G2 forums here in Android Central and XDA Developers the problem of nock on nock off was bring up in various threads before and after the KitKat 4.4.2 upgrade. In my opinion B. Diddy is correct, if you enjoy the benefits of a Nexus device wait for Nexus 6. LG G3 have the nock on nock off screen feature, I hope Nexus 6 will not have this nock nock screen feature. The best of LG G2 was the battery live but after my HTC ONE X, HTC ONE X+, HTC ONE and LG G2 ; my Nexus 5 is by far the best Android device. Good luck with your next phone.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

[TheDonJ77]

Matt3166, I am in the same boat as you my friend. My last three phones have been the galaxy nexus, nexus 4 and currently nexus 5. I really enjoy the bloat free, timely updates and pure vanilla android experience of a nexus device but like you something had intrigued me about the LG G3. I'm going to think about this long and hard this weekend. With a potential nexus 6 on the horizon along with Android L, it may be even harder to leave the nexus behind..........

 

[matt3166]

Matt3166, I am in the same boat as you my friend. My last three phones have been the galaxy nexus, nexus 4 and currently nexus 5. I really enjoy the bloat free, timely updates and pure vanilla android experience of a nexus device but like you something had intrigued me about the LG G3. I'm going to think about this long and hard this weekend. With a potential nexus 6 on the horizon along with Android L, it may be even harder to leave the nexus behind..........

I'll be doing the same thing

Posted via Android Central App

 

[planoman]

You should check out the G3, it is a nice device. I got mine on the 10th and returned it yesterday. In all honesty I knew I would probably return it and pay the $35 restock fee and it would have had to have blown me away to keep it. It is a nice device and I like some of the things LG has done with the UI, in many ways it is better than stock. My issue was the screen did not blow me away and LG has a throttle in place for the screen brightness as it heats up and ATT removed Qi wireless charging. My unit did heat up and get warm when watching a few videos on LTE (not wifi). The amount of bloatware surprised me. Tons!

The Nexus screen is brighter by about 10% or more in that I had my Nexus set to 50% and G3 set to 60%. Battery life, connection to network and wifi, camera and speakers were all better on the G3. I did not take any video using the G3.

At this point I am looking a importing the S5 LTE-A model with a QHD screen, Snapdragon 805, etc. Just waiting to see a few more reviews.

 

[LightaDroid]

I would guess that the rumored Nexus 6 will be based on the G3 (like how the N5 had a lot of the same hardware as the G2). If you enjoy the benefits of a Nexus device, then you might want to wait a little longer to see what Google has in store.

Boom... Nailed it. my words exactly.

 

[anon(13322)]

Go with the N5. It's cheaper. Then sale the N5 and get the N6 when it comes out in a few months to match the specs of the G3.

 

[dyana9673]

Opposite here.. I went from the Nexus 5 to the G2 , then the G3 ..Nexus is a great phone . for me though the battery and signal were weak.
I know I will probably try the 6 though.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Mobile Nations mobile app

 

[Wildo6882]

I've been thinking about the same thing, I've been stock only for 5 months and not sure I could go back to skins. I'm debating on getting a GPE M8 and going that route until I see the Nexus 6. As awesome as this phone looks, not sure I'd be any happier with it over a stock device,

 

[planoman]

I've been thinking about the same thing, I've been stock only for 5 months and not sure I could go back to skins. I'm debating on getting a GPE M8 and going that route until I see the Nexus 6. As awesome as this phone looks, not sure I'd be any happier with it over a stock device,

Be careful with a GPE device IF you want to use the sd card a lot. I had a S4 GPE that I loved until the android 4.3 update removed the ability for an app i.e. 3rd party photo app to write to or erase from the sd card. What a mess. Sold it so not sure if that was ever resolved.

 

[Wildo6882]

Be careful with a GPE device IF you want to use the sd card a lot. I had a S4 GPE that I loved until the android 4.3 update removed the ability for an app i.e. 3rd party photo app to write to or erase from the sd card. What a mess. Sold it so not sure if that was ever resolved.

I had a GPE G-Pad at one point in time. You definitely can't write much to the SD card on there. It's app specific. But you can put movies, TV shows, and music from Google Play on there, which is great for trips, or even everyday use.

 

[planoman]

I had a GPE G-Pad at one point in time. You definitely can't write much to the SD card on there. It's app specific. But you can put movies, TV shows, and music from Google Play on there, which is great for trips, or even everyday use.

Yes, with the S4 it was 16GB of internal storage and the stock camera app at that time was pretty bad so not being able to have another app write to the SD card was a no go for me. The M8 may be better since it is 32GB. But if you are ok with it my all means, enjoy!

 

[bjrosen]

I'm waiting for the Nexus 6, I'm hoping that it will have the same resolution screen as the G3, if it does then I'll get it. If the Nexus 6 disappoints then I'll consider the G3. I really don't like depending on manufacturers for updates and I really really don't want a phone company in the middle so I'd prefer to stick with Nexus devices. If there is a Google Play version of the G3 that would make the decision easier because it eliminates the phone company in the middle.

 

[pseudoware]

50% off the G Watch w/G3 purchase at AT&T pushed me over the edge. I'll definitely be in line for the next Nexus, though.

Lovin' this combo, but I had forgotten how annoying carrier/mfg bloatware is, and how much I dislike dealing w/those tools at the carrier, both in-store and on the phone.

 

[Ed Briggs]

Go with the N5. It's cheaper. Then sale the N5 and get the N6 when it comes out in a few months to match the specs of the G3.

How do you know the N6 will have the same specs as the G3? Do you have inside information? You say it as if it were fact.

 

[bjrosen]

Nobody knows what the N6 will be but I'm willing to wait to find out. If the N6 turns out to be uninteresting then perhaps their will be a Google Play version of the G3 or some other phone with a G3 like screen. There is nothing inadequate about the N5 so I don't feel a compelling reason to upgrade. The screen on the G3 is a clear step up from the N5 but having a carrier in the way of updates is a show stopper. A Nexus that had a similiar screen would be an easy choice, a Google Play version of the G3 would also be interesting but not as much as a Nexus because you would still not get early access to software (I'm running Android L on my N5 and I'm sure I'll install M as soon as it's developer release happens).

The one feature that the G3 has that's really interesting is the screen. I think that will really enhance the reading experience. The screen on the N5 was a significant imprevement over the Galaxy Nexus, so much so that I completely stopped using my Nexus 7. The G3 is a similiar step up. I want the biggest screen that I can get that will fit in my shirt pocket and the G3 is right at the shirt pocket limit.

I don't care much about a faster processor or a higher res camera, the N5 is already as fast as any phone needs to be (i.e. there is 0 lag so a faster processor wouldn't be noticible). I'm extremely happy with the camera on the N5. I don't print my pictures so more pixels won't matter, 8MP already exceeds the resolution of any screen that I'm likely to own.

The G3 has the same storage as the N5, 32G, so that's a wash. I don't care about the micro SD slot, it's completely unnecessary if you have 32G internally. I had 32G on my Galaxy Nexus and 32 on my N5, I've never come close to filling it. In fact I'm using less storage now because I don't keep any music on the phone anymore because I prefer using Pandora and iHeartRadio.

Better battery life would be welcome but with Qi charging the lousy battery in the N5 hasn't been a problem. I have several Qi chargers including a Qi car mount on my dashboard and a Qi charger with a 4000MA battery that can fit in my pocket if I'm walking around all day (that happens once a year when I goto a conference).

Better radios would also be welcome, the problem is that nobody specs the radio performance of phones so you never know if you are upgrading or downgrading when you get a new phone. It's also very difficult to know if it's the phone or AT&T thats at fault. I get almost no coverage in Vermont and in much of New Hampshire. The lions share of the blame has to be placed on AT&T but I suspect that the N5 is responsible for at least some of the problem. I wish Verizon would have a change of heart and support Nexus phones, but I don't see that happening anytime soon and I'm unwilling to put up with their glacial software upgrade policies again.

The final feature that the G3 has is 3G of RAM. I doubt that will make any difference in the near future. Some day there might be a version of Android that takes advantage of more RAM but that's probably years away.

 

[ptpcg]

I'm a noob but I've been lurking for literally years. Also, I know I kinda dug this up, but its not THAT old.

Anywho, I'd like to chime in here. I recently made the switch because of an amazing deal from my carrier(I've gone sensation -> nexus 4 -> nexus 5 -> g3). I'd been running the n5 w/ no real complaints, most solid phone I'd ever had. Loved vanilla and as a dev it was great to always have a device with latest android(fully working). I actually am missing the vanilla still a bit and I don't think that will pass. The only gripe I had was poor signal sometimes, I thought it was the network but the G3's radio seems to do about 50-100% better in the same places that I would have low signal so 1->2 bars or 2->3 or 4 bars. I have not done rigorous testing, its just what I've noticed passively.

Oh but the G3:
The screen on this G3 makes me pitch a tent every time I turn it on. It is pretty great. Also side by side, the n5's screen looks so tiny.

The camera is equally tent inspiring. The n5 took some great pictures, but the quality of the lens and that super sweet *** laser focus makes taking photos so much more of a joy w/ the g3.

In regard to software bloat(my biggest concern with the device), the G3 is surprisingly light on the extra crap. And if you install the Google Now Launcher, the home screen feels very Nexus.

The battery life is an improvement, however, I never really had a real issue with battery life in the nexus 5.

Just my $0.02.

 

[LeoRex]

As much as I loved my Nexus 5, the G3 is just straight up a better phone. Better screen, better camera, better battery, better radios. And I prefer the ergos, with the back buttons and the knock stuff (which you can get, at a price, with a custom kernel on the 5)

Yes, the Nexus does have it as far as how smoothly it runs.. The G3 is a little bit more jerky in a couple of spots, but still blazing fast and responsive.

And I was extremely apprehensive about switching.. But a month later, no qualms about swapping out the 5 for a G3.

Now, if the rumors of a 5.2", SD 805, QHD Nexus are true, and they put a decent battery in it, I might be having a similar conversation, but with the G3 in the outs.. We'll see.

 

[JeffDenver]

I'm kind of in a tough spot right now. I'm really tempted to get an LG G3 but I love my Nexus.
Has anyone gone or thinking going from their Nexus to an G3 and why?

LG G3 has better hardware in every way. But...

...it will have lag (I have seen this personally, and it's not pretty...worse than Sense, and worse than Touchwiz), and do not expect timely updates. If you are lucky, you might get one after Android L.

So it depends on what your priorities are as to which one is better. If it were me, I'd rather have the Nexus.