Nexus 6/Shamu by Motorola?

[LeoRex]

Like I said above (and this is just my speculation, so take it for what it's worth) - I think they're doing three devices. A Nexus 5-ish phone, a Nexus Phablet (Shamu), and a Nexus 8-9. Everything appears to be in line with the Nexus 7 being done, so the Phablet could fill that void, as well as be a reference device for the other Phablets out there.

That's EXACTLY what they are doing. This fall, we might see a double whammy of a 6' phablet and a 8.9' tablet. Why no Nexus 5 replacement? Well, it doesn't make sense right now. Why? ok...

The small tablet market is shrinking a little bit.... the market is shifting those 6' ish 'phablets' that people seem so quick to deride. Problem is that they are popular... very popular, especially in Asian markets. So for a device that many here seem to dump on, people are sure buying a lot of them and phablet sales have taken a sizable chunk out of the small tablet market. If these specs are on point, that device will drop right into the thick of a very hot portion of the market, 'replacing' the Nexus 7. And then the larger tablet (possible from HTC) will fill the larger tablet void without traveling up into the 10'+ tablet no-man's land... a segment that everyone may concede to those Surface/Chromebook devices.

So where does that leave the Nexus 5? Well, right where it is, for now. Why replace it? Because upgrade? First, performance gains have plateau'd a little bit recently. New phones are only incrementally more powerful than those released about a year ago. The Nexus 5 still holds its own up against phones like the M8, S5 and even the G3. Why push out a slightly up-rated phone now when you can let the current Nexus 5 soak a little longer and replace it in 2015 with something that is more than just a refresh? Just because we might not get a 'smaller' Nexus phone this fall doesn't mean we WON'T get a Nexus 5 replacement. The Nexus 7/10 line is in far greater need for replacement and a 6' phablet 9' tablet combo fills that void if you ask me.

After all, people kind of dumped on Samsung for upgrading just for the sake of upgrading (*cough* S4 *cough*).

 

[Robbie317]

I bet they could squeeze a 5.9 inch screen into a similarly sized device as the Note 3 with a thinner bezel.... I love my Nexus 5... Why not just upgrade the current Nexus 5 with a bigger battery and a few other mild upgrades and keep it out there.... With a 5.9 inch phone I'd dump my Nexus 5 and Nexus 7 and just use that... I had been looking at the Oneplus One until they kept running their games.. Thought about the G3 or the Note 4 when it launches later in the year.. I just don't care for the overlay software... I was rooted on my EVO and GS3 but I just love the Nexus line so I don't have to be rooted and can be stock Android.... So a Nexus 6 with a 5.9 screen would be awesome.... I had been hoping they'd at least go 5.5 on the next Nexus device....

and if Moto is making it battery life should be pretty stellar.... (Hopefully) based on their history with battery life... Just depend completely on final specs but so far from the sound of it I am in...

 

[LeoRex]

Why not just upgrade the current Nexus 5 with a bigger battery and a few other mild upgrades and keep it out there....

Might not be cost effective. Any significant change would require a fair amount of fiddling to the production line, changes in the supply chain, etc, new chassis components, etc. Unless the new part fits in the EXACT same place as the previous one, there will be a domino effect in terms of R&D effort. And keep in mind that Google doesn't build these, LG does, so that adds another level of complexity if things need modification.

 

[Orion78]

I'm expecting this phablet to be a beast:

5.9 inch QHD display
Snapdragon 805 with 3 GB RAM
13 MP OIS Camera
32 GB & 64 GB
3200-3600 mAh battery

I think 1080p would be more like it.

 

[Robbie317]

Might not be cost effective. Any significant change would require a fair amount of fiddling to the production line, changes in the supply chain, etc, new chassis components, etc. Unless the new part fits in the EXACT same place as the previous one, there will be a domino effect in terms of R&D effort. And keep in mind that Google doesn't build these, LG does, so that adds another level of complexity if things need modification.

should be relatively easy to upgrade to a bigger battery.... It's somewhat easy to do on your own to upgrade to a slightly bigger battery (If your not nervous with snapping the back off and removing a few screws to get the replacement in place) if they went with a considerably bigger battery you're right you'd need to upgrade the chassis a little to accommodate the larger battery... and YES LG would have to be involved since they do the MFG process...

If rumors and quotes are to be believed LG is not aware of who is doing the next Nexus phone so at this point in the game you'd think they would have been told they would like to refresh the current model and upgrade some components to release it as a 2014 Nexus 5. (like the 2013 Nexus 7)

Maybe they just leave the Nexus 5 alone and on the market along side a Nexus 6 and a new tablet.... It's not like the Nexus 5 in it's current form is an old worn out device... It's still way closer to the top of the eco system than it is to the bottom.... again reading the news the true next generation 64 bit snapdragon chips are going to be ready until 2015.... I think next year we will see a much larger leap in technology vs 2014 vs 2013....

 

[LeoRex]

Maybe they just leave the Nexus 5 alone and on the market along side a Nexus 6 and a new tablet.... It's not like the Nexus 5 in it's current form is an old worn out device... It's still way closer to the top of the eco system than it is to the bottom

Precisely my thought.

 

[Wildo6882]

Something not mentioned is the rumored size of the Shamu device at 5.9"...that would fall perfectly in line with a Nexus 6 and how Google has named their devices over the past couple of years. See: Nexus 5, 7 (2012 and 2013), Nexus 10.

 

[thebizz]

I'm looking forward to this phone. Just wondering why everyone automatically writes off the nvidia k1 Denver as a possible cpu for this phone. I would love to see it utilized

 

[Saturn1217]

I think this makes a lot of sense. Even though it has made android news a little less exciting it is kind of nice that the need to upgrade every year to stay on top of performance is waning. I could easily see being satisfied with my Nexus 5 for another year (as long as the battery holds up...)

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[RealDogBoy]

I think this makes a lot of sense. Even though it has made android news a little less exciting it is kind of nice that the need to upgrade every year to stay on top of performance is waning. I could easily see being satisfied with my Nexus 5 for another year (as long as the battery holds up...)

Posted via Android Central App

I haven't had to try it on mine but iFixIt.com says that it's not that difficult to replace the N5's battery.

 

[RealDogBoy]

If a 5.9" Nexus 6 turns out to be well reviewed and in the $400 range I may have trouble resisting.

I'd keep my N5 for times when I don't have a big enough pocket for the N6.

 

[PAC757]

Was and am really looking forward to the next Nexus, was hoping it wasn't just going to be an LG G3 copy, Motorola based Nexus sounds great.... All except for the 5.9" screen. I was all excited till I saw that, would love this phone with these specs by with a 5.2"- 5.5" screen. 5.9" is a little to big to carry around for daily use, a co- worker of mine has a Nokia 1520, 6" screen it just is to big, he's sorry he bought it, and to be honest it just looks silly when he is using it as a phone, plus a pain to carry around all day.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Orion78]

Was and am really looking forward to the next Nexus, was hoping it wasn't just going to be an LG G3 copy, Motorola based Nexus sounds great.... All except for the 5.9" screen. I was all excited till I saw that, would love this phone with these specs by with a 5.2"- 5.5" screen. 5.9" is a little to big to carry around for daily use, a co- worker of mine has a Nokia 1520, 6" screen it just is to big, he's sorry he bought it, and to be honest it just looks silly when he is using it as a phone, plus a pain to carry around all day.

Posted via Android Central App

A lot of people like big phones and guess what? It sells. Look around....I see tons of people looking ''silly'' with their big phones. This fall, I'm going to look very ''silly'' when I get this and be proud of it.

 

[MrSlippery519]

Have no problem with a 5.9" phone that said I do hope the next Nexus 6 has 2 screen size options if that is the case. Totally get that people want a phone that big, however for your everyday user 5.9" is massive.

 

[Ry]

If this is the Nexus 6, I hope there's a new Nexus 4 as well.

 

[Golfdriver97]

Is this is the Nexus 6, I hope there's a new Nexus 4 as well.

I think that would be a good idea. Even a 4.7 Nexus.

Signed, an M8, Liquidsmooth, and the AC Forums App

 

[Wildo6882]

Is this is the Nexus 6, I hope there's a new Nexus 4 as well.

I think that would be a good idea. Even a 4.7 Nexus.

Signed, an M8, Liquidsmooth, and the AC Forums App

I definitely like that idea, too!

 

[Scott7217]

I'd keep my N5 for times when I don't have a big enough pocket for the N6.

This is excellent advice. The Nexus 5 is still a great phone, and it doesn't become obsolete the minute Google releases a new Nexus phone.

If people don't want a bigger phone, they shouldn't buy one. We'll probably have lots of choices if we look at the Nexus line, Google Play editions, Android Silver, and Project Ara. Hopefully there will be a size for everyone.

 

[mrvco]

Hopefully they'll maintain a reasonably sized Nexus phone, but if they don't then I'll buy a Nexus5 and give the wife my Nexus4. I can't say I feel any motivation to upgrade from my Nexus4, but this year I'm decommissioning my wife's 3GS whether she wants me to or not.

 

[LuvMusic]

With my aging eyes, the possibility of a 6in Nexus is interesting.....