Nexus 5 vs Nexus 6

[bjrosen]

I'm currently using the Nexus 5 and I'm thinking about upgrading to the Nexus 6. I'd like to hear from former Nexus 5 owners about their experience with the N6. What's better, what's worse?

 

[whtchdr]

If you can appreciate the larger screen size, I would offer that the Nexus 6 improves upon the 5 in every area. Better camera, front facing speakers, QHD screen, among other hardware enhancements. However, all of these improvements are incremental, and unless you are looking for the jump in display size, it may be hard to justify the $300 increase in price. For me, the Nexus 6 was the only choice as I am on Verizon now and the 5 isn't compatible with Big Red.

 

[salmanahmad]

Unless there is something that troubles you about the Nexus 5, I wouldn't understand the need to dish out an extra $300.

 

[LeoRex]

I'm currently using the Nexus 5 and I'm thinking about upgrading to the Nexus 6. I'd like to hear from former Nexus 5 owners about their experience with the N6. What's better, what's worse?

Pretty much everything about the 6 is an improvement.... and some are just incremental... others?

Battery. They shipped the Nexus 5 with a battery that was WAY too small. I had to spend far too much time managing power with the 5. I'd typically get only about 3, 3 1/2 hours of SOT per charge. Yes, it got me through the day, but only barely and only if nothing out of the ordinary occurred. We went to DisneyWorld last year and getting the thing to last the day was a feat in and of itself. If I wasn't by a charger mid-day, I'd be playing power tricks to squeeze more time out (airplane mode, turning it off for stretches, etc). The Nexus 6 absolutely slaughters the Nexus 5 in endurance. I can get 5 1/2 to 6 hours of screen time out of a charge, which is more than I do in a typical day anyhow.... So when the fam all go to Disney in a couple of months, I won't be sweating the thought of getting the thing to last until we get back to the hotel.

Speakers. The Nexus 5's wee speaker was kind of bleh.... It made sound. Nexus 6 has stereo speakers blasting you in the face. They are louder, sound better and actually make the idea of using the phone's speakers feasible. If I had to watch something on my Nexus 5, I'd grab headphones... not so now.

Camera. When the stars aligned, the Nexus 5 took nice pictures. But far too often, it would be completely out to lunch when it came to focusing. My wife still has one (soon to be swapped out for a LG G3) and EVERY time she uses it, she curses and complains about it's ability to focus. She has all but abandoned it as a usable camera and has moved back to our compact Olympus. I've only had the 6 for about 5 weeks, but I can say that it is a marked improvement over the 5.... it focuses better, handles lighting changes quicker, adjusts white balance, etc... Borked pictures with the 6 are few and far between, the thing is pretty rock solid. It may not be the best camera available, but it can keep up with them in the corners now.

So battery performance, speakers and camera.... the 5 is very outclassed.