Anyone else wish the Pixel 2 was more like the Nexus 5?

[scgf]

I got my old red Nexus 5 out of the cupboard and it really is the perfect form factor for a small phone. The screen is the same size as the Pixel 2 but the bezels are smaller and the polycarbonate/plastic body means you never had to cosset it or put it in a case. I've ordered the Pixel 2 but so wish Google had released an updated Nexus 5. A little beauty.

 

[maxburn]

The black Nexus 5 soft touch plastic was fantastic, we need to bring this back. So much better than aluminium.

The 5 is a legend, the peak of the Nexus line IMO.

 

[KrisYYC]

The Nexus 5 was my first Anrdoid phone. So it has a special place in my heart haha. I loved that phone, other than the camera, however I was coming from a Lumia 1020 so pretty much any phone at the time would have been a disappointment camera wise compared to the Lumia.

 

[ultravisitor]

I hate that we have to have breakable phones now because people think plastic is cheap. Sure, it can be cheap--like the ugly shiny plastic that Samsung used to use--but it can also look very nice and be very practical.

 

[Almeuit]

No. I think that thing is ugly :x.

 

[DarkNeo]

No.

 

[anon(10092459)]

Issa no for me..

 

[codeda]

A friend and I were just talking about that this week. I’d love a revamped nexus 5 and not that nexus 5x which was very meh

 

[psteve2005]

My wife had my old 5X and I replaced it with a Pixel XL which I've had for 12 months now but, having handled the 5X again today, I do wish I could have a Google phone that size with better battery life. Ordered a Pixel 2 but changed my mind and replaced it with a Pixel 2 XL order as I've lived with the XL for a year. Bigger battery wins.

 

[vzwuser76]

My wife had my old 5X and I replaced it with a Pixel XL which I've had for 12 months now but, having handled the 5X again today, I do wish I could have a Google phone that size with better battery life. Ordered a Pixel 2 but changed my mind and replaced it with a Pixel 2 XL order as I've lived with the XL for a year. Bigger battery wins.

I must be the only person who gets great battery life with the regular Pixel. I regularly get 4hrs SOT with 14-18hrs up time and around 10-15% remaining. That's actually the best I've gotten of any phone I've owned, and I had the Droid Maxx and Droid Turbo, which had 3400 & 3900mAh batteries respectively. I could maybe hit 3hrs SOT with them.

The thing to look at is that while the regular Pixel (or Pixel 2 for that matter) have smaller batteries than the XL models, they also have a smaller screen at a lower resolution, and that helps battery life a lot. The screen is probably the biggest draw on battery (except for camera maybe, but the screen is used more than the camera).

The XL is a good looking device, but I just can't go back to a phone that size again. I had the 6p, and while I could deal with it, the regular Pixel is much easier to handle. Since the screen is only 5", it doesn't need a high resolution, and I don't do VR so that's not a concern either.

As for the OP, I wouldn't mind a polycarbonate phone, if they went with something along the lines of the old Nokia Lumia models. Those seemed to be pretty solid, they looked good, and I'd imagine different colors would be easier to do on polycarbonate than anodizing aluminum.

 

[openwheelracing]

I am on Pixel at the moment and I get between 4 hour 15 minutes to almost 5 hours screen on time depending on usage. For a little battery it is very efficient. I can only imagine what SD835 can do. I would expect roughly the same.

 

[bjrosen]

What I hate is the lack of Qi charging because of the silly metal case. I don't get why a metal case connotes a more premium device. Plastic is durable and more importantly transparent to radio waves which allows for more optimal antennas and wireless charging. I had the Palm Pre and the Nexus 5, both of which had wireless charging. They dropped wireless charging on the Nexus 6P and we still don't have it back on the Pixel 2XL even though even friggin Apple has it now. Although note what Apple did to make wireless charging possible, they made the backs of their phones out of glass which is incredibly stupid. Plastic doesn't break, glass does. I hope the Pixel 4XL gets wireless charging back.

 

[Mike Dee]

What I hate is the lack of Qi charging because of the silly metal case. I don't get why a metal case connotes a more premium device. Plastic is durable and more importantly transparent to radio waves which allows for more optimal antennas and wireless charging. I had the Palm Pre and the Nexus 5, both of which had wireless charging. They dropped wireless charging on the Nexus 6P and we still don't have it back on the Pixel 2XL even though even friggin Apple has it now. Although note what Apple did to make wireless charging possible, they made the backs of their phones out of glass which is incredibly stupid. Plastic doesn't break, glass does. I hope the Pixel 4XL gets wireless charging back.

Why not Pixel 3XL?

 

[bjrosen]

Why not Pixel 3XL?

Because I've already ordered the 2XL. I replace phones every two years, I'm replacing the 6p which replaced the Nexus 5, which replaced the Galaxy Nexus.

 

[Eggmundo]

We need to bring plastic back. My first smartphone was a Lumia 800, one of the most beautiful devices to this day.

That was unibody polycarbonate and was very premium.

This material facilitates wireless charging and is more robust than both metal and glass.

 

[scgf]

The Lumia 920 was a little beauty too. That plastic was so shiny and bright and so durable. If it got messed up you could buy a replacement case on eBay for around £10. You needed to open up the phone and re-locate some of the innards, but it was pretty straightforward. The phone had a bit of heft to it too which I found quite desirable.

 

[ChuckG73]

I might have to buy a Nexus 5 now...thanks lol

 

[Zendroid1]

I just don't get why people equate cheap with plastic? Some of the most beautiful and even high end products in the world are made out of plastic.

 

[drone3]

I think Google are just dipping their toes in with these designs in a few years we will see much better aesthetics and cohesive design across all their products. They are pushing the software side first which is great and should be the priority. For design they are still trying to find their footing.

 

[AustinIllini]

I just don't get why people equate cheap with plastic? Some of the most beautiful and even high end products in the world are made out of plastic.

Generally in engineering plastic is functional, not particularly stylish or high end. Whether it's headphones, cars, phones, or anything else, plastic is a very pedestrian (albeit necessary) material choice and no one really wants it on a $650+ phone