LeoRex
Retired Moderator
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*).