Nexus 6P review
Buy the Nexus 6P from the Google Store
The Nexus line represents what Google views as the essential Android experience. But as good as they were, there have always been a few reasons why Nexus devices fell short of being considered the complete package. Be it a disappointing camera or lack of hardware features, each new Nexus, while highly anticipated and respected, would generally be just behind the flagships of any given year.
With the Nexus 6P, Google is hoping to continue what it started last year with the Nexus 6, by bringing to consumers a truly compelling high-end smartphone made to compete with current generation flagships. With a new partnership with Huawei in place, does Google manage to finally put all the pieces together? We find out, in this comprehensive Nexus 6P review!
Design
Design takes on a whole new outlook in the Nexus 6P. Huawei is at the helm of creating what might feel like the most premium Nexus device yet, with the device featuring a full metal unibody design with flat sides, which helps with the handling of this large smartphone.
The buttons are all on the right side, and offer a solid tactile feedback when pressed, while the power button is textured, making it very easy to find. The headphone jack is up top, and at the bottom is the USB Type-C port. This port marks the start of a new ecosystem for everyone to get used to, but it is admittedly going to take some time for that to happen. The new cord is Type-C on both sides and fully reversible, and, as useful as that is, you will need to remember to take the cable with you when you’re away from home, as Type-C charging cables are still a rarity.
The 5.7-inch display dominates the front, and above and below it is the dual-front facing speaker setup, which is always a welcome addition. Turning over to the back brings us to the new hardware offerings, but also a couple of unique design aspects as well. As seen with the last few Nexus smartphones, the Nexus logo is oriented vertically. This time, the logo is painted right onto the metal back, instead of being an insert made of a plastic that can peel off in time.
Above the logo is the new fingerprint scanner, lined by a shiny circle, and finally, there is the black bar up top, that houses the camera package, including the laser auto focus system and the flash. This bar might not have looked that great in the early product renders, but it does actually fit quite well as a new defining aesthetic for the premium Nexus phone. It does protrude however, albeit not by much.
Metal plays a big role in how the the Nexus 6P looks and feels, but the inclusion of the last two features on the back are what really make this device stand out, with the Nexus logo, the fingerprint reader, and the black bar making for a very recognizable smartphone.
Another plus is that the handling experience is fantastic. The flat sides are easy to grip, the metal feels nice and cool in the hand, and the heft makes this phone exude feelings of high build quality.
Though past Nexus smartphones have taken design cues from the manufacturer’s own offerings, Huawei benefits from a lesser known identity in the West, while of course, also designing a uniquely exquisite smartphone. Simply put, the Nexus 6P certainly lives up to the “premium” moniker.
Display
The Nexus 6P comes with a 5.7-inch AMOLED display with a 2560 x 1440 resolution, resulting in a pixel density of 518 ppi. Quad HD has become the mark of a high-end smartphone over the past year or so, and with the AMOLED construction bringing the higher color saturation levels, this display offers a very enjoyable viewing experience. Colors pop on this display, benefiting from the deep blacks that allow for a higher level of contrast. Sharpness is also impressive, as is the case with any Quad HD screen, and the display also gets plenty bright.
The only real problem we had with the display was when it came to using Ambient Display, which is meant to show a power saving overview of the notifications, but doesn’t trigger very easily. In fact, other than actually picking up the device, there is no other way of activating this otherwise nice feature, and some form of gesture controls would have certainly been useful here.
Performance
Under the hood, the Nexus 6P comes with an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor, clocked at 2 GHz, and backed by the Adreno 430 GPU and 3 GB of RAM. This processing package remains the 2015 flagship standard, and the great experiences seen with the other high-end smartphones throughout the year is also found here. Of course, the pure Android software experience plays a big part in keeping things moving along swimmingly.
Moving through the homescreens, opening and closing applications, and multi-tasking have all been an absolute breeze. Gaming on this device has also been a treat, not only because of the processing package, but also because of the display and the dual front-facing speaker setup, that all contribute towards enhancing the overall experience. Once again, the Nexus proves that it isn’t just sheer power that allows for great performance, and that software optimizations are certainly needed to properly take advantage of the all the power that is available.
Hardware
While Nexus smartphones have historically been quite bare-bones in terms of hardware, featuring just the essentials, there has been a shift in focus with the latest Nexus flagship, starting with the fingerprint scanner on the back.
Fingerprint reading is now an built-in feature of Android 6.0 Marshmallow, which Google calls Nexus Imprint, that is backed by Huawei’s pedigree of good fingerprint scanner iterations, which really shows with the Nexus 6P. The set up process is very simple, and using the scanner is even easier. All you need to do is rest the finger on the circular area on the back, and when the phone is off, it wakes up unlocked and ready to go, without even showing the lockscreen. Apart from letting you immediately replace patterns, passwords, and swipes as the unlock method, the fingerprint scanner can also be used in conjunction with Android Pay, for an additional layer of security when using the mobile payment system.
Moving to the front is where you will see the dual speaker setup, that provides a really good sound experience. They get pretty loud and provide a good amount of body to the sound, which is great, especially when compared to any of the bottom or rear-mounted speakers out there. As an alternative to using headphones when watching videos and playing games, these speakers have definitely been up to the task.
Phone call quality has been to the point, and we have used the phone on the T-Mobile and Google Fi networks without any issues. Speaking of network compatibility, the Nexus 6P is compatible with every major carrier in the US, making it a pretty easy choice as an unlocked offering.
There is no expandable storage via microSD available here, but the 32 GB of in-built storage of the base model should be enough for most. Of course, 64 GB and 128 GB options are available as well for those who want it.
Battery gets a huge boost, not only because of the large 3,450 mAh unit that the device packs, but also courtesy of a new power saving feature introduced with Android 6.0 Marshmallow, called Doze. Doze relies on all of the different sensors to put applications in a deeper state of sleep than usual. The sensors need to be left alone and not be triggered at all, which essentially means leaving the phone untouched. It does seem to work quite well, and it kept the battery from draining almost at all when in standby. The basic message here is to abstain from habitually waking your device up if you want good battery life, but at least Doze is helping make that down time count.
The large capacity of the battery is a big plus as well, allowing for an impressively long life. Though usage varies from user to user, but by leveraging Doze and doing less power intensive tasks, the Nexus 6P can go for two full days with moderate usage. When you do need the charge the device, USB Type-C makes this a very easy task. Granted, Qualcomm Quick Charge does go by the wayside here, but the higher power current Type-C still allows for a quick recharge, with the device battery going from 0 to 100 is under 90 minutes. Battery is probably one of the best parts of the Nexus 6P, because with all of the good this phone brings to the table, being able to enjoy it all for a long time is the icing on the cake.
Camera
If there was one aspect where the Nexus line consistently fell short, it was in the camera department. This year, the Nexus 6P has to contend with what has been a pretty incredible year for smartphone cameras, and fortunately, the device has risen to the challenge.
A 12.3 MP rear shooter tries to allow for more light to enter than before, thanks to a 1.5 microns sensor, that may sound minuscule, but is bigger than the sensor found with the vast majority of Android smartphones today. Unfortunately, there is no optical image stabilization, but its absence is felt primarily when recording videos. The combination of fewer, but more effective pixels, and the overall large sensor size helps with light capture and thus allows for better low-light photography. But it’s not just low light performance that sees a big boost – the overall quality is also higher than before.
That said, the camera app is lacking when compared to much of the competition out there, mostly due to the lack of manual controls. It is a good automatic shooter, and fast, even when shooting in HDR+ mode, with the processing being done in the background in the Gallery app. Aside from a few extra modes like Panorama and Lens Blur, there isn’t much else available with this camera app however. On the video side, 4K recording is available, and slow motion capture at 120 fps or 240 fps at a 720p resolution was a lot of fun as well.
Camera samples
Image quality is actually really great, with details captured very well, despite a small, yet noticeable, amount of noise reduction still at play here. Low light situations still require at least a little bit of light to differentiate the subject from the surroundings, but the enhancement here is that the subject is recognizable. Photos benefit from a subtle amount of saturation for nice and vivid colors, but the results are a little different when viewing the images on a screen other than the saturated AMOLED display of the phone.
100% crops
Panorama images were stitched together without too many problems, and HDR+ turned out quite a few good shots as well. HDR+ did strike us as a little moody however, as the highlights were crushed out in some shots, while the focus was on blowing up the shadows in others. Colors were given a much harder punch in every picture though.
HDR camera samples
Overall, we are really happy with the new Nexus camera. It’s much better than on previous iterations, and, more importantly, you no longer have to feel like you’re settling for this camera when compared to its competition.
Software
On the software side of things, Android 6.0 Marshmallow brings the crux of the Nexus experience, the latest and greatest of Android, with timely updates for the foreseeable future. Android has definitely come a long way, and Marshmallow is all about polish, rather than too many flashy new features.
There are a few flashy features to be found of course, with one coming in the form of Google Now on Tap. While Google Now still resides beside the homescreens, it can now be used to search for anything that is currently displayed on the screen, by long pressing the home button. It basically requires text-based areas to pull information from, but the main gripe with the service is that it can be a bit hit and miss. After all, you cannot cherry pick exactly what information it pulls down, so if there aren’t any instantly recognizable Google search terms present, there likely won’t be anything on tap. It is a great feature when it works though, and we are definitely looking forward to seeing how it develops over time.
Other features are less flashy but just as important, such as Doze. The application drawer has also been given a new look, now being a vertical scrolling list. A line at the top houses the four most used applications, which is a nice touch, and there is also a search bar to help you quickly find any application. Finally, there is now a better way of checking and setting up App Permissions, which can all be done from the Settings menu. Further, Android asks if you want an app to access a particular function when the app tries to access it for the first time. For anyone who is a bit apprehensive about security on Android, the full control now available to you might bring a little peace of mind.
Of course, the main reason to get a Nexus device is to get the latest and most optimized version of Android that is available, and that is exactly what you get here. Small tweaks to the animations make Android feel that much smoother, and the overall experience is really impressively snappy. There is also the advantage of timely updates, which is always a big plus.
Specifications
| Display | 5.7-inch AMOLED display 2560 x 1440 resolution, 518ppi |
| Processor | 2 GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor Adreno 430 GPU |
| RAM | 3 GB |
| Storage | 32/64/128 GB not expandable |
| Networks | GSM 850/1900 W-CDMA 2/4/5 CDMA 0/1/10 LTE Band 2/4/5/7/12/13/17/25/26/41 |
| Software | Android 6.0 Marshmallow |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes |
| Camera | 12.3MP rear-facing camera 8MP front-facing camera |
| Battery | Non-removable 3450 mAh |
| Dimensions | 159.4 x 77.8 x 7.3mm, 178g |
Gallery
Pricing and final thoughts
The Nexus 6P is priced starting at $499, which may be less than the price of typical flagships, but is still definitely a premium price for the Nexus series. A great experience in a properly premium body means that this device is definitely worth it.
So there you have it for this in-depth look at the Nexus 6P! Some people might scoff at the price, especially those who still consider the Nexus line to be an affordable series that brings with it essential Android experiences. Last year’s Nexus 6 bucked that trend, and the Nexus 6P continues it by truly looking and feeling high-end, while offering a premium experience under the hood, including a camera that finally does justice to the flagship line. If you do want Android in its purest state, either of the two 2015 Nexus smartphones will do, but when looking for a high-end experience, the Nexus 6P takes the crown. As an Android phone that is capable of satisfying just about anyone, the Nexus 6P is definitely worthy of your consideration.
Inateck Marsbox: a Bluetooth speaker and more – review
I recently had the opportunity to review another Bluetooth speaker by Inateck called the MercuryBox. Both the MarsBox and the MercuryBox could not be any more different from each other. They are both designed with a different purpose in mind.
MarsBox overview
The MarsBox is designed to be more than a speaker. It’s meant to be a conversation piece as well. It has a unique, modern design and while I love the look of the speaker, I would love to see some other color choices other than red. It’s not that I mind the red, I just think that they are limiting the audience by limiting the speaker to one color.
While the MarsBox is technically portable, it is much larger than the MercuryBox. It comes in at a litter over 7″ long, 2.5″ thick, and 3″ tall. Not gargantuan by any means, but after using the MercuryBox, it feels like a beast in your hands.
The entire surface is covered with a soft-touch material that gives is a great feel when handling the speaker. Unfortunately, this also makes the speaker a fingerprint magnet.
The speaker has 4 buttons on top. One for answering calls / switching to the FM radio. Another for changing the volume levels / changing tracks / seeking between FM channels. And finally there is a play / pause button. On the back is the power button.
Now you may have noticed that I just mentioned an FM radio. That was not a type-o. There is an actual FM radio built into the speaker. All you need to do is press the call answer button and the speaker will switch to FM mode. Unfortunately, this will also disconnect your Bluetooth connection. So you can only use it for one purpose at a time. While it doesn’t need to be plugged in for the speaker to work, the power cable is designed to act as antennae, so you may need to plug it in while using the FM radio in order to receive your favorite station.
Other features of the MarsBox include:
- Dual 5-watt drivers
- Bluetooth 4.0 (fully backward compatible) with a range of up to 33ft/ 10m
- Alternative 3.5mm audio jack for non-Bluetooth devices
- Built-in 2200mAh rechargeable Lithium Ion battery offers 10-15 hours of play time
- Built-in high sensitivity Microphone, hands-free telephone calls
- Easy pairing and connection to Bluetooth devices without code/PIN
MarsBox setup
This speaker is super simple to setup. First charge the speaker. Once you turn the speaker on, it will automatically be put into discoverable mode. All you need to do is search for devices from your phone and select MarsBox from the list of available devices. Now you’re done. All you need to do is enjoy your music.
MarsBox usage
The sound quality of the MarsBox is pretty good, but it definitely performs best with the lower to mid range sounds at higher volumes. The higher sounds end up sounding just a little muffled. It’s not really very noticeable except that I was listening to it after the MercuryBox, which performs best at the higher range of the sound spectrum and at lower to mid volume levels. Neither were bad, they both have their own strengths.
The FM radio works pretty well, but I found that it had trouble picking up the weaker radio stations. The ones that did come through sounded great. I found that plugging in the included USB cable only produced marginally better reception, not enough to make a station listenable if it’s not already.
One thing that I really liked was the little pads on the bottom of the speaker. It made the speaker stay in place even on uneven surfaces.
Another nice touch is the color-matched USB and auxiliary cables. They compliment the look of the speaker and they give it higher end look. Like the MercuryBox, the cables are made with a braided nylon and they feel great.
What we liked
- Styling
- Bass response
- FM radio
What could be better
- More color options
- Material that wouldn’t attract as many fingerprints
- Better sound on the higher end of the sound spectrum
3.9 out of 5 stars
Overall this is a great speaker. It’ll look good in your office or on a bookshelf at home and more importantly, it’ll sound good too. The speaker normally sells for $129, but for a limited time you can pick one up on Amazon for the very affordable price of $49.99. So what are you waiting for? Get yours before it the price goes back up.
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Nexus 5X review
Buy the Nexus 5X from the Google Store
The Nexus 5 was arguably one of the most popular Nexus smartphones ever made, and with LG also manufacturing its predecessor, the company was quickly becoming a fan favorite as a Nexus manufacturer. Motorola may have been given the opportunity to create the high-end Nexus 6 after it, but here we are, two years after the Nexus 5 was launched, with its somewhat unexpected, yet highly anticipated sequel, once again from LG.
The growing number of high quality but affordable smartphones means that the competition is completely different from what the Nexus 5 had to face, but does its spiritual successor manage to improve upon what made the original so good? We find out, in this comprehensive Nexus 5X review!
Nexus 5X in video
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Design
The LG-manufactured Nexus 5X features a design language and build quality that is very similar to the Nexus 5, but in today’s landscape filled with metal-clad and glass-backed premium handsets, the latest Nexus smartphone is considered more of a mid-range device than a flagship, especially now that the more high-end Nexus 6P is in the picture. The Nexus 5X is made entirely of plastic and, therefore, feels extremely lightweight, weighing just a little over 130 grams. That’s not to say that the device feels cheap in the hand, as it is very sturdily built, but the Nexus 5X doesn’t offer the premium feel that you get with a device made with metal or glass.
It is a very attractive device as well, with its rounded corners and back that tapers slightly. The plastic rear comes in a matte finish that not only helps avoid fingerprints, but also makes it very easy to grip the phone. With a comparatively smaller 5.2-inch display, the handling experience available with the Nexus 5X is fantastic, with the phone’s relatively compact size also allowing for comfortable one-handed use.
As was the case with the last few Nexus smartphones, there is a Nexus logo on the back of the Nexus 5X, written in the landscape orientation. Unlike previous iterations where the logo was embossed or made of separate pieces, it is simply painted on this time around. This has likely been done to avoid any issues with the letters falling off, which has happened in the past, but this also means that the paint might fade over time. There is also a slight bulge with the rear camera, but it isn’t as glaring as some other devices with protruding lenses, due to the back panel tapering upwards to meet the lens.
Taking a look around the device, on the right side is the power button and the volume rocker, and while the buttons are very easy to press, the tactile feedback isn’t as solid as would be expected. The SIM card slot and a microphone are on the left and up top respectively, and at the bottom is the headphone jack and the USB Type-C port, with the Nexus 5X joining the slowly growing ranks of smartphones that have adopted this new standard. In true Nexus fashion, there is also a bright LED notification light that is cleverly hidden under the grill of the front-facing speaker.
Don’t miss: Best Nexus 5X cases
USB Type-C is a slight inconvenience at the moment
USB Type-C does remain an inconvenience however, with the latest USB standard being so new. The reversible nature is great, but given the fact that the cable included in the box is USB Type-C on both ends, it is certainly a hassle for charging the device on the go, with you having to remember to keep the included charger and cable at hand. Unlike with the Nexus 6P, there is no USB Type-C to regular USB cable available in the box, so you will need to shell out some extra money to pick up one of these cables for your data transfer needs, depending on what your computers support.
Display
The Nexus 5X comes with a 5.2-inch IPS LCD display, with a Full HD resolution, resulting in a pixel density of 424 pixels per inch. Even though this screen isn’t of the Quad HD variety, you won’t find yourself missing the higher resolution, with this display still offering plenty in the way of sharpness. The viewing angles are fantastic, and the colors aren’t overly saturated. The drawback here is when it comes to outdoor visibility, which is still manageable with the brightness set to the highest level, but this isn’t the easiest screen to see in direct sunlight.
Performance
Under the hood, the Nexus 5X comes with a hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor, clocked at 1.82 GHz, and backed by the Adreno 418 GPU and 2 gigabytes of RAM. This is similar to the processor package found with LG’s current flagship, with the exception of a lower 2GB of RAM, which might seem a little low, but there have been zero issues with performance thus far. It handles everything from general tasks to multi-tasking to gaming very well, and things remain smooth and snappy throughout, undoubtedly helped along by the pure Android experience available on-board. It will be interesting to see how future proof this device is, but for now, it manages to hold its own quite well.
Hardware
Setting up Nexus Imprint for the first time is extremely fast
The most notable addition in hardware is the fingerprint scanner on the back, a useful addition possible because of Android 6.0 Marshmallow’s built-in fingerprint support, which Google is calling Nexus Imprint. The scanner is conveniently located to be within very easy reach of your index finger, and lets you wake up and unlock the device in one go. The setup process is also extremely fast, requiring just up to 5 taps to register a fingerprint. Waking up and unlocking the device may not be instantaneous, but is quick enough that you likely won’t even see the lockscreen, and the scanner is also surprisingly accurate, with there having been no instances of the fingerprint not being recognized so far.
16 or 32 gigabytes of on-board storage is available, but with no expandable storage via microSD card to found here, you will definitely be better off opting for the larger storage option. The device comes with a single front-facing speaker on the bottom chin, which sounds quite good, but is a little on the flat side. While a dual speaker setup would have of course been better, this implementation is still better than any rear-facing or bottom-firing speakers out there.
In the case of the battery, the Nexus 5X comes with a 2,700mAh unit, which generally lasts for a full day with average use, but not a whole lot more. The battery is also very easy to kill with heavy gaming, so you will have to remember to have the charger handy in case that is what you are planning to do. The new battery-saving feature introduced with Android 6.0 Marshmallow, called Doze, does work very efficiently. It puts the phone in a very deep state of sleep and limiting any unnecessary app activity. This will cause notifications to be delayed unless set as high priority however, with the device only periodically syncing them in this case, but it is a small price to pay for better battery life.
Unlike the last couple of Nexus iterations, the Nexus 5X doesn’t come with support for wireless charging, but you do get fasting charging on here, with the device able to charge fully from 0 in about 90 minutes.
Camera
One of the disappointing aspects of most Nexus smartphones has been the camera experience, and while the Nexus 6 has changed that to some extent, Google is hoping to continue to improve in this regard with the Nexus 5X and the Nexus 6P. There is a new 12.3 megapixel sensor to be found here with a pixel size of 1.55 microns, f/2.0 aperture, and a laser auto focus system. There is no optical image stabilization however, and while it may not be needed to take great pictures, its unavailability does make a noticeable difference when recording video. This new sensor also allows for the recording of slow motion video at 120 fps, and this feature is a lot of fun to play around with. The slow motion capture is extremely smooth, and Google’s photo editing application let’s you select exactly which parts of the video you want to slow down.
See also: Google confirms Nexus 5X and 6P ‘double-twist’ camera gesture canned
It is very easy to launch the camera, requiring only a quick double press of the home button. The camera application found here is still very minimalistic, but does bring some improvements over previous iterations. You can swipe left or right to toggle between video recording or taking pictures, and the HDR toggle is located conveniently on the viewfinder, making it easier to locate than other camera apps out there, that has the setting hidden in a sub menu.
With the Nexus 5X, we finally have a camera on a Nexus smartphone that is capable of taking some excellent photos. Images are sharp and full of detail, with just the right amount of saturation to make the subject pop, and the dynamic range is also excellent. The overall shooting experience with this camera is also very fast, with quick shutter speeds, and fast focusing courtesy of the laser-guided auto focus.
Low-light and nighttime shots are good, but they’re not as great as Google have hyped them up to be
Low-light and nighttime shots are good as well, but they may not be as great as Google might have hyped them up to be. There is still a very respectable amount of detail to be had, but you can definitely notice some heavy noise reduction being done in the darker parts of the image. If you are taking shots with HDR Auto, every shot in low light is guaranteed to be processed as an HDR image, but this is not always a good thing. The photos turn out cleaner and with punchier colors, but the processing does make the images overly yellow, and the final image doesn’t look as natural as the non-HDR version.
Overall, the Nexus 5X camera is a lot of fun to use, and with the competition extremely intense when it comes to this aspect of the smartphone experience, Google has certainly picked a great time to get things right in this regard.
Software
Where Nexus devices have always led from the front, and one of the big reasons for the existence of this series, is when it comes to software. The Nexus 5X is running Android 6.0 Marshmallow out of the box, and apart from the promise of timely updates, if you are looking for the purest Android experience available, Nexus is the only way to go.
The latest version of Android brings tons of behind-the-scenes improvements
There may not have been a dramatic upheaval in aesthetics between Android 5.0 Lollipop and Android 6.0 Marshmallow, but the latest Android OS version brings with a lot of neat improvements under the hood, such as the previously mentioned battery saving feature called Doze. There are some changes to be seen of course, with the first noticeable difference being the application drawer that is now once again a vertical scrolling list. There is a search bar at the top to quickly look up an application, and using the scroll bar results in a letter indicator popping up, to let you know exactly where you are within the list.
Related: Android 6.0 Marshmallow updates roundup – October 22, 2015
In previous versions of Android, app permissions were granted upon installation, and you couldn’t pick and choose which permissions to allow or deny. This all or nothing nature was a cause of concern for many, but that is all changed with Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Now, app permissions are only granted at the time that an app needs access to a particular feature, and you can choose which app gets what permission directly in the Settings.
One of the most highlighted features of this latest version of Android is Now on Tap, which essentially brings the power of Google Now to any application that you are using. It is contextually aware, which basically means that it analyzes the content on the screen, and offers suggestions and information based on what it thinks you are looking for. There haven’t been a lot of instances of use in a real world scenario thus far, but what it is capable of doing is really good, and is only bound to improve over time. What this results in however is the removal of the simple swipe up from the home button to access Google Now, which now requires an additional step to get to, by tapping on the G logo that pops up.
Specifications
| LG Nexus 5X | |
|---|---|
| Display | 5.2-inch LCD display 1920 x 1080 resolution, 424ppi Corning Gorilla Glass 3 |
| Processor | 2.0GHz hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 MSM8992 processor |
| GPU | Adreno 418 |
| RAM | 2GB |
| Storage | 16, 32GB |
| MicroSD | No |
| Networks | GSM 850/1900 W-CDMA 2/4/5 CDMA 0/1/10 LTE Band 2/4/5/7/12/13/17/25/26/41 |
| Dual SIM | No |
| Software | Android 6.0 Marshmallow |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes, rear-mounted |
| Camera | 12.3MP rear-facing camera, f/2.0 aperture, laser-assisted autofocus 5MP front-facing camera, f/2.2 aperture |
| Battery | 2700mAh, non-removable |
| Wireless charging | No |
| Dimensions | 147.0 x 72.6 x 7.9mm, 136g |
| Colors | Charcoal Black, Quartz White, Ice Blue |
Gallery
Pricing and final thoughts
The Nexus 5X is currently available with a price point starting at $379. Color options include black, white and a mint-blue color, or as Google likes to call them, Carbon, Quartz and Ice.
See also: Nexus 6P vs Nexus 5X
So there you have it for this in-depth look at the Nexus 5X! The $379 price tag returns the Nexus line to what was the biggest selling point of the series, quality with affordability, but there are now some great devices that offer the same, such as the OnePlus 2, the Moto X Play, or even the Moto X Style (Pure Edition). The Nexus 5X may not be the best bang for your buck smartphone of all time, but it is definitely a fantastic device with a lot to offer. If you are someone who has been waiting 2 long years to upgrade from the Nexus 5, the much-improved camera and the latest iteration of Android make the Nexus 5X completely worth the upgrade.
Buy the Nexus 5X from the Google Store
Check out these other phone reviews
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Nexus 6P vs Nexus 5X
This year was pure bliss for Android purists, with two Nexus devices hitting market. One phone definitely doesn’t fit all, something Google learnt with the Nexus 6, a device that was significantly larger than most smartphones and came with a price tag that was heavier than usual.
We have been playing with both the Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X for some time and are ready to put them face to face. These Nexus devices have plenty of differences, but the price is obviously the first that comes to mind. The Nexus 5X costs $379, while the Nexus 6P will set you back $499 – but will this make one of these phones better than the other? Let’s find out in our full comparison of the Nexus 6P vs Nexus 5X.
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Design
These smartphones come from the same family, but you would surely think one of them is adopted. They look nothing alike. And much of that is due to the fact that they are made by different manufacturers. Also, the “P” in Nexus 6P stands for premium, which will definitely make it a bit more high-end than the Nexus 5X. “Premium” is definitely the best way to describe the bigger, badder of these two products. Huawei managed to make a good-looking smartphone with a metal design that is ever so slightly curved on the back. Of course, things change once you take a look at the large and heavy top area that houses the camera and its accessories.
Some folks are not too fond of the black bar on the 6P, but it has really grown on us. After all, it actually serves a purpose; and since it’s covered in strong glass, it should hold up under normal usage. Below said bar you will find the fingerprint reader and the landscape-oriented Nexus logo, which does manage to look quite snazzy.
Looking around the phone we can find that the sides are nice and flat, giving the device a very nice grip. Regardless, the phone is still a bit too large for one-handed use. All the buttons are on the right side, and a USB Type-C port sits lonely at the bottom of the smartphone. We are still getting used to this new port, but it’s something that’s growing on us. Aside from being double-sided, this should make a huge impact on peripheral support and accessories.
Finally, there are two front-facing speakers: one above the screen and the other one below, with the 5.7-inch panel right in between them. Front-facing speakers are definitely a must for many of us. I still don’t know why manufacturers continue making phones without them at this point.
On the other hand (quite literally), we have the Nexus 5X made by LG. It’s not only made by a different manufacturer, but it falls under a different price range. For starters, the Nexus 5X is made completely of plastic, so no metal here. And though the black bar in the back is missing, the Nexus 5X’s camera optics do pop out a bit, creating that dreaded protruding camera bump. The fingerprint sensor and landscape Nexus logo are still on board. The general button layout and ports are also the same as with the Nexus 6P, with the only exception being that the 3.5 mm headset jack is located at the bottom of the 5X.
One complaint is that the front of the handset does sport only a single front-facing speaker right below the 5.2-inch display. The good news about this smaller display is that it makes the handset much easier to handle. And though it’s not made of sturdy metal, the soft plastic does manage to feel great in the hand, similarly to the original Nexus 5.
As you can see, these phones are quite different, which is not necessarily a bad thing. We will say the the exquisitely chiseled 6P looks better than the more generic plastic-clad 5X. But I also wouldn’t say the 5X’s plastic body makes it cheap, though. After all, it’s somewhat similar to the previous-gen Nexus 5, and that phone was loved by many. It just happens to be a phone of essentials. No bells or whistles.
Does this mean the Nexus 6P is trying too hard? Certainly not. The high quality build will be familiar to Nexus fans, and it goes in line with Google’s philosophy. Just lifting the device evokes a pleasant emotion, and this phone has everything it needs to give you the best Google has to offer.
Display
Talking about premium – this Nexus 6P display is gorgeous. The 5.7-inch AMOLED panel touts a Quad HD resolution (2560×1440), which emits vibrant colors, deep blacks and steep saturation, something we can expect from high-quality AMOLED screens. Text is obviously amazingly sharp, and media is a pleasure to view.
What about the Nexus 5X display? I have always said a good 1080p panel trumps a bad QHD screen, but there are obvious differences in this case. While a Full HD resolution works just fine for most uses, there’s an obvious difference in color reproduction here. The Nexus 5X looks a bit washed, so to speak. Colors are simply not as vibrant, and this can be mostly due to the AMOLED display doing a better job of displaying black levels, which help with contrast and ultimately make colors pop better.
The spec hungry will need a larger screen and overall higher-end specs. Without a doubt, the Nexus 6P does provide a better experience. And it’s not even about the resolution.
Performance
The Nexus 6P obviously brings the best performance to the table, in this case, featuring a powerful Snapdragon 810 processor and 3 gigabytes of RAM. It has what it takes to compete against the best of the best, and quite frankly, there is very little we can do to slow it down. Going through every single part of the phone was a breeze.
In contrast, the Nexus 5X features a Snapdragon 808 chipset with 2 gigabytes of RAM. Given the demands that Android can have on the system, more RAM has become the standard and 2 gigabytes seems like the bare minimum at this point. With that in mind, the 5X is still capable of providing a great daily experience.
When you put these phones side to side though, there is a noticeable difference. We would say the Nexus 5X is a couple steps behind the Nexus 6P. It’s not a huge difference, but it just may be enough to sway some of you from one device to the other.
Hardware
This part is interesting, because much of what makes the Nexus experience has been put in both gadgets. The lower-end Nexus 5X still enjoys the benefits of the fast fingerprint reader, Nexus Imprint and awesome camera. Is there anything in which the Nexus 5X falls short, though? The speaker set-up has to be the main concern. But at the very least the single front-facing speaker LG opted for has a nice soundgate, though it could use more volume.
Battery is another point of contention – the smaller 2700mAh battery in the Nexus 5X is not made to go for long periods of time, but we did find it does much better than the older Nexus 5. We can probably thank Doze for this, which puts the phone in a deeper slumber when in sleep for extended periods of time. Overall, you should be able to get a full day of juice, but this is not great compared to the Nexus 6P.
The larger Nexus comes with a massive 3450mAh battery, allowing us to experience battery life times that go well over a full day. We managed to get over 4 hours of screen on time during our tests, without even trying to save battery.
In addition, the dual front-facing speakers provide a loud stereo experience. Once again, the Nexus 6P is simply the better of the two.
Both phones offer the USB Type-C port, which is very convenient, but does come with its downsides. Qualcomm’s Quick Charge solutions are no longer available, for one. Charging is still pretty quick, though, with both phones reaching 0% to 100% in under 90 minutes.
Finally, we have to mention that we love the circular fingerprint readers in these handsets. These are literally some of the best performers we have ever used. They are not only easy to set up, but are also a breeze to use. One can wake and unlock the devices in no time. Using these sensors really do feel like second nature, and you can have your phone ready to go in the very motion it takes to take it out of your pocket.
Camera
Perhaps the best news in terms of these phones’ similarities is the camera, which is the same in both cases. These Nexus handsets have a 12.3MP sensor that Google claims is better at registering more amounts of light. Aside from the better sensor and improved optics, these handsets also tout laser auto-focus, which makes focusing faster.
The app also brings great auto interface, but we must say the software lacks in terms of manual controls. HDR+, Photo Sphere, Panorama and Lens Blur modes do all the work on their own; all you have to do is point and shoot.
4K UHD recording is also available, as is 120 and 240 fps slow motion, though that would be recorded at 720p. What I do love is that Google has added a way to quickly launch the camera by double tapping the power button.
After some testing, we have found the images are actually very detailed. The Nexus line-up has never been known for having great cameras, so it’s definitely pleasant to see this change with the 6P and 5X. Low light performance is quite good, and HDR does a good job at keeping lighting uniform.
All in all we have a good time with these cameras despite the omission of optical image stabilization, which is most felt when shooting video – in photos, it might have been a good boost but hasn’t felt like a huge gap.
Software
You can’t go wrong with Nexus software, right? I mean, these phones offer a pure Google experience, which means the software will be as clean and simple as they get. You also get the benefit of enjoying the latest and greatest Android version, which is 6.0 Marshmallow.
One of the main differences you will find is within the app drawer, which now scrolls vertically, as opposed to horizontally. There’s also a row of favorite apps added to the top of the drawer, which is great for accessing your 4 most used applications. The flashiest addition to Android 6.0 is definitely Google Now on Tap, though. This software addition looks at what is displayed on the screen and pulls related information on the fly. You can easily access it by pressing and holding the power button. The service might be a little off at times, but overall it works great with text (not so much with images).
Other significant additions are Nexus Imprint, Doze, granular app permissions and more.
Specifications
| Nexus 6P | Nexus 5X | |
|---|---|---|
| Display | 5.7-inch AMOLED display 2560 x 1440 resolution, 518ppi |
5.2-inch LCD display 1920 x 1080 resolution, 424ppi Corning Gorilla Glass 3 |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor | 2.0GHz hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor |
| RAM | 3GB | 2GB |
| Storage | 32, 64, 128GB | 16, 32GB |
| MicroSD | No | No |
| Networks | GSM 850/1900 W-CDMA 2/4/5 CDMA 0/1/10 LTE Band 2/4/5/7/12/13/17/25/26/41 |
GSM 850/1900 W-CDMA 2/4/5 CDMA 0/1/10 LTE Band 2/4/5/7/12/13/17/25/26/41 |
| Software | Android 6.0 Marshmallow | Android 6.0 Marshmallow |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes | Yes |
| Camera | 12.3MP rear-facing camera 8MP front-facing camera |
12.3MP rear-facing camera 5MP front-facing camera |
| Battery | Non-removable 3450mAh | Non-removable 2700mAh |
| Wireless charging | No | No |
| Dimensions | 159.4 x 77.8 x 7.3mm, 178g | 147.0 x 72.6 x 7.9mm, 136g |
Gallery
Pricing and final thoughts
This time around price is much less of an issue compared to other years, this is because Google’s offerings now include both an affordable and a high-end option. The Nexus 5X costs $379. On the other hand, a bigger battery, faster processor and superior build is still quite reasonably priced at $499.
We have to tip our hats to Google for bringing the best high-end Nexus they have ever put together, yet they also made a lot of Nexus 5 fans happy with the 5X. Those grabbing the mid-end device will have an amazing experience, but if what you want is to be on the cutting edge, the Nexus 6P is the obvious option. The Nexus 6P is incredible, the Nexus 5X is essential. Assess your needs, take your pick, and you can enjoy the best that Google has to offer in this year’s two great Nexus offerings.
What are your thoughts? Would you choose the Nexus 6P or the 5X? Be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
Buy the Nexus 6P from the Google Store
Buy the Nexus 5X from the Google Store
CHOETECH 19W dual-port USB solar charger (Review)
I live in sunny San Diego, CA. which is perfect for the CHOETECH 19W solar charger as sun is something we get year around. It was 83 degrees, with full sunlight today and it is not too far off from what winter will bring too. Why not use the sun to power up my devices if it is providing the energy for free?
Design
The beauty of the CHOETECH 19W solar charger is in the simplicity and durable folding design. It comes with a pouch on the back for keeping your devices out of direct sunlight. It is super light-weight and folds up to a very manageable size, making this charger perfect for throwing into a backpack or automobile glove box as a backup plan.
The solar panels themselves are made from a polymer that is much lighter than a typical silicone panel, and is sewn into canvas material for extra durability. In reality, it looks like a few sheets of thin sized dark plastic on the backside of black canvas and could pass for a folding binder. On the last panel there are magnets which keep the folding panels from opening on their own.
On the backside there is a mesh bag sewn into the panel which is there to hold USB cables and the devices you are charging. The energy converter is also on the backside as CHOETECH knows that mobile devices are not designed to be left in direct sunlight.
Overall the design is fantastic and will be a perfect source of energy for when I go on camping trips or when I am out at the beach all day with my pup who can’t get enough of the water.
Usage
The CHOETECH 19W solar charger really is one of the easiest accessories you will ever use. You plug your USB cable into the power converter, which you can plug up to two devices simultaneously, and you zip up the devices in the mesh back to keep them secure. Then open the panels and put in direct sunlight and your devices will start charging immediately.
In sunny San Diego sun, my devices were charging at 2.4 amps which isn’t quite the power needed to drive Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 2.0. But it was enough to charge my phones quicker than standard chargers we were used to from devices from just a year ago. Once I let my phones charge for free using the sun, I simply pulled my phones out, which were slightly warmed from the sun but not at all hot, and folded up the charger and was on my way.
On other days when I experimented with the charger in cloudy conditions, the charger could not draw enough energy from the sun which made it ineffective. So be aware, this charger will need full sunlight to operate properly.
The CHOETECH 19W solar charger is a must have accessory for the outdoor types and who get a lot of sunlight.
Specs
Solar Power: 19W solar panel
Transformation efficiency: 22%-25%
Output 1: 5V2.4A(Max)
Output: 2: 5V2.4A(Max)
Compact Size: 10.2×6.3×0.7inch
Opened Size: 20.9×10.2inch
Weight: 0.48kg/16.9oz
Summary
I know not everyone is fortunate to have sunlight year around like we do in San Diego. But the CHOETECH 19W solar charger is definitly a great accessory for the summer months if you’re an outdoors type of person. It is super lightweight and can recharge your devices countless times for years to come. While I’m not on backpacking or camping trips, the CHOETECH 19W solar charger is going to live in my truck’s glove box as you never know what can happen.
If you would like to purchase the CHOETECH 19W solar charger, head on over to Amazon.com. It has 92 customer ratings with an average 4.5 stars out of 5. CHOETECH is a brand you can trust and they back up their solar charger with an 18-month warranty.
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Inateck MercuryBox: A decent Bluetooth speaker for a decent price
I love music, but I’m an audiophile with wine tastes on a beer budget. I’m always on the look out for audio equipment that provides a good value. When I ordered the Inateck MercuryBox I had high hopes. Read on to see how it stacks up.
Inateck MercuryBox overview
The first thing that I noticed about this speaker was the quality of the packaging. I felt that it was something that I would expect to see from a much more expensive speaker. Inside the box was a case, a lanyard and a USB cable and a 3.5mm auxiliary cable.
The speaker itself is fairly compact and portable. It’s about 6 inches long, 1 inch thick, and two inches tall. It’s encased in metal with five lighted and rubber covered buttons on top. You can find a lanyard on one end and your charging and auxiliary ports on the other.
Specs
- Bluetooth 4.0 Speaker (fully backward compatible) with up to 33ft/ 10m Bluetooth signal
- Dual 5-watt precision-tuned drivers
- IPX5 water resistant speaker
- Built-in 1800mAh rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery offers up to 15 hours of play time.
- Built-in high sensitivity Microphone, hands-free telephone calls.
- 3.5mm audio port
Inateck MercuryBox setup
The speaker is easy to setup. First, make sure to fully charge the speaker. Then place the speaker in pairing mode by pressing the Bluetooth button for a few seconds. Finally, search for the speaker from your device and viola, the speaker is ready to go.
Inateck MercuryBox usage
Of course, the first that that I did after pairing my phone was to crank it up. It was here that I found a fairly major problem. When playing audio at the highest volume, certain tones would make the metal casing vibrate. Piano music, in particular, seemed to have this effect. By applying pressure to the metal case, I was able to stop the case from vibrating. I guess it could have been a defect unique to my speaker, but the buyer should at least be aware.
The tiny vibration noise was nonexistent at lower and mid volume levels. The actual sound quality at these levels was actually pretty good. The mid to high range sounds is really where the speaker excels.
One of my favorite features is that it is IPX5 water resistant. That means splash proof, not dunk proof. This makes it ideal for listening to music in the shower. I personally love to listen to podcasts in the morning while I shower and I found that it works great for that.
Another great feature is just how portable the speaker is. Because of its diminutive size, it will fit just about anywhere. A purse, murse, satchel, backpack, or even non-skinny jeans pockets should have more than enough room to store the Inateck MercuryBox.
One thing that I was impressed by was the fit and finish of the speaker. Not only are the materials high quality, but they all come together with a high-end feel. Even the USB and auxiliary and 3.5mm audio cable have a higher end feel to them. They come encased in a gray braided material, which has a much better feel than the more traditional rubber encased cables.
What we liked
- Small form factor
- Metal casing
- IPX5 water resistant
What could be better
- Bass response
- Vibrations in the metal
4 out of 5 stars
This really turned out to be a great little speaker. The only knock that I can give it is that certain tones resonate with the metal case at louder sound levels. I found that it sits perfectly and handsomely on my desk at work. If you’re looking for a Bluetooth speaker that will look and sound good, but you don’t need to crank it up to the maximum volume levels, then I recommend that you consider this speaker. It normally runs $99.99, but you can pick it up for $45.99 on Amazon with free shipping for Amazon Prime members.
The post Inateck MercuryBox: A decent Bluetooth speaker for a decent price appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Sony Xperia Z5 review
With Sony’s mobile future uncertain, the Japanese giant really needs to hit a home run if they want to win over today’s smartphone consumers. With that goal in mind, Sony recently unveiled three new members of the Sony Xperia family. For those that prefer smaller screens, Sony gave users the Xperia Z5 Compact, which we recently reviewed in full. Sony also surprised the world with the Sony Xperia Z5 Premium, a pricey addition that pushes the envelope with the world’s first 4K display. Holding the middle ground, we have the standard Xperia Z5.
I recently was able to get my hands on the Sony Xperia Z5, and spent a great deal of time getting familiar with it. How does this new flagship compare to its predecessors? Is this the Xperia we’ve all been waiting for? We find out in this comprehensive review of the Sony Xperia Z5.
Design
The design of the Z5 will be very familiar to those who have followed the Xperia series over the years, keeping the company’s iconic Omni-Balance language, albeit with a few tweaks that help further refine the looks. I’ll be honest, this is not my favorite smartphone when it comes to design, but I do think it has a sense of luxury and elegance to it, more so than most other phones on the market right now.
Around the Z5 we have a smooth metal frame with frosted glass on the back. In the top left corner of the rear, you’ll find the 23 megapixel camera with it’s LED flash underneath. The design certainly looks rather beautiful and feels good too, but the glass does admittedly make the phone a little slippery. The phone isn’t too thick it is a little bigger than the Z3+ (aka Z4) at 7.33mm all around, though it is pretty light at 154 grams.
The front of the phone sports the 5.2 inch HD screen, with some decently sized bezels on the top and bottom. Above it, is the front facing camera and a little notification light, that by default is white, but you have the freedom to change it. If you look a little more closely at the front of the Z5, you’ll notice the front facing stereo speakers on the top and bottom, almost hidden to keep the front of the phone looking very clean. The speakers certainly sound pretty good, though they are not very loud. Regardless, the Z5’s speakers are better than any speaker found on the bottom or back of other competitor devices.
On the right side of the phone, we are greeted with the same familiar signature layout, including the beloved camera shutter button, though the volume rocker is now located even further down than before. Unfortunately, this unconventional placement makes it a little awkward to press, whether you’re using the phone in your right or left hand. The power button can still be found in the middle of the right side, though it has been supersized a bit in order to accommodate the fingerprint scanner found within.
This year, Sony designed this power button to be flush with its border so you have to kind of push into the phone to activate it. It does have a nice squishy click to it but it can be a little hard to initiate that click with it being so flush with its side. As for the quality of the scanner? It does a pretty good job, though the area is rather small for a scanner. The Z5’s scanner might not be as fast as some of its competitors, but it gets the job done. And overall, the reliability is decent.
Moving to the bottom of the phone, we’ll find the micro USB charging point and what looks like a lanyard hole. Not really much to see here.
On the left side is where we can access our sim card, as well as our micro SD card. The problem is, it’s really hard to access them. First you have to use your nail to undo the flap and then continue using your nail to pull out the thin plastic housing. One reason these may be so hard to access is because they need to be kept well protected, as this phone is IP68 certified dust proof and water resistant. Sony does say however, that this does not apply to seawater.
Display
In a world where many flagships are moving to QHD, or even 4K in the case of the Xperia Z5 Premium, the Xperia Z5 opts to stick to 1080p. The 5.2-inch IPS screen packs a resolution of 1080 by 1920, which results in a 428 ppi pixel density. It’s a pretty nice screen, and in terms of colors, it’s fantastic. Colors are very vibrant and whites are very white, maybe leaning a little towards the warm side, but they still look very nice. If you want a more saturated image, you can easily do so within settings. The screen gets pretty bright too, and though you may have trouble seeing it in direct sunlight at times, it offers better brightness than a number of its competitors.
Apart from colors though, the HD screen is not quite as beautiful as many other phone displays out there, even those that are still rocking 1080p. It almost appears that the Xperia Z5 is a slight step back from the Z3+, as it seems like there is a very slight haze over everything. Coming from the OnePlus Two that has an even lower pixel density than the Z5, the Z5 definitely is the weaker in terms of screens. When triggering fast animations, like the pull down notification menu, text and icons seem to have a subtle ghosting effect to them, more so than other HD phones.
All that being said, the display is definitely not bad and out performs a lot of displays when it comes to color representation. But in the other areas, it falls a bit behind.
Performance and hardware
Just as we saw with the Sony Xperia Z3+, the Xperia Z5 offers a Snapdragon 810, backed by the Adreno 430 GPU and 3GB RAM. There’s also 32GB internal storage and microSD for further expansion. All the normal connectivity options are here including Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, GPS, Bluetooth 4.1, 4G LTE, and NFC. As mentioned earlier, the phone also offers up a fingerprint scanner, waterproofing, and fairly high-quality front facing speakers.
Whenever you hear “Snapdragon 810”, you get curious about overheating and whether it’s a legitimate problem. So does the 810 make the phone hot? Yes and no.
When I first got the phone and installed all of my apps, it got hot. But from what I could tell, just as hot as it did on my LG G4, Note 5, and OnePlus Two when doing the same thing. In normal use however, I never noticed the phone getting the slightest bit hot. When doing more CPU intensive stuff like gaming, the Z5 did get noticeably hot but no more so than just about any other phone I’ve used.
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Technically the Z5 may overheat a bit more than other processors, but I wasn’t able to notice it just by feeling. Gary Sims tested this more in depth in his Z5 Compact review and found that for an app to stop working due to heat issues, you really have to be doing something crazy-intense like shooting 4k video for over 20 minutes.
Heat may not be a major issue for most users, but how well does the Z5 perform? Pretty good. The UI is smooth and lag-free for the most part, and the 810 provides a great experience when it comes to gaming and general performance.
One very minor annoyance is the battery size, however. With this phone being 10 grams thicker than its predecessor, you would think Sony would be able to put a bigger battery inside. For some reason, Sony went the opposite direction, with the 2900 mAh battery actually being 30 mAh smaller than the Z3+.
Does this actually make a huge difference in the long run though? Thankfully, no. Like many other flagships coming out in 2015, you’ll be able to get an entire day’s life out of it as long as you don’t overdo it on screen time. This is even more true if you use the many battery saving modes Sony packed into the software like Stamina Mode and Ultra Stamina Mode.
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Without using any battery saving modes I was able to get at least 4 1/2 to 5 hours of screen on time with the Xperia Z5 and that’s with spending a lot of time browsing the web, sending lots of text, and taking some pictures throughout the day.
Overall, the Xperia Z5 has a very reliable battery and the addition of Quick Charge 2.0 will allow you to top off the battery quickly for those days when you need a bit more oomph to make it through your day.
Camera
After keeping the same camera for the last few generations, the Xperia Z5 finally saw the sensor bump up from 20.7 MP to 23 MP. Along with this improvement, you’ll find autofocus and LED Flash, though unfortunateyl there is no optical image stabilization onboard. For what it is worth, the software video stabilization in it does a pretty nice job, even if it’s not quite the same.
I was pretty excited to test out this camera because some of the best smartphone camera sensors are supplied by Sony, and all over Sony’s website they boast about the picture quality this thing can take. They even flaunt the megapixel count on the back of the phone. Unfortunately, the camera is not as great as you would think and on top of that, the whole megapixel count is very misleading.
Even though Sony is boasting that the Xperia Z5 is a 23 megapixel camera, that should really mean 8. Yes, the Z5 is capable of shooting in 23 megapixels but for whatever reason, the camera software is not optimized for it, so when comparing a 23 MP shot to an 8 MP shot, the 8 MP shot will often times look undoubtedly better. Better color, better dynamic range, and better-looking textures. Sony seems to know this as well as 8 megapixels is enabled by default. But there are times where 23 megapixels look better, so it just makes things a little confusing. If you don’t want to have to mess around with these settings, just stick to 8.
To be fair, in normal lighting conditions pictures are actually very nice. There’s a lot of detail in these pictures and colors look very good, and they have a nice saturated look to them. There’s a little sharpening going on but most of the time it leads to a better picture. Dynamic range looks very good. Sometimes it can overexposed a little but nothing too unusual.
Medium light pictures is where the quality will begin to take a dip. They still look very nice, but you will start to see some purple creeping into the darker areas of the photos. And then when you get into low light, even more purple appears. Anything that is dark looking will have this purple hue to it, making it look pretty bad.
The same can be said for the front facing 5.1 megapixel camera. In good light, pictures look very good. Nice details and it exposes perfectly. In medium light, selfies are still great. Even in low light, selfies look pretty good. Details are lost and photos can be a bit grainy but the colors are better than the rear facing camera in low light it seems. To get that purple hue in selfies, you have to go to extreme low light.
Video looks very good on the Z5. Everything seems exposed correctly and even though there is no Optical Image stabilization, the software makes up for it and creates a pretty smooth image. I’ll admit I was pleasantly surprised. 4k is available too, although when shooting for long periods of time, the phone may overheat. There’s also tons of camera features and effects like AR effects, multicamera, face in picture, and more.
For a Sony camera so hyped up and really only good in bright lighting conditions, it definitely leaves a little more to be desired. That said, there are certainly worse cameras out there.
Software
The great thing about Sony’s Xperia phones is their software. The Xperia Z5 is running Android Lollipop 5.1.1 and it actually looks fairly close to Stock Android. There are a number of additions Sony added to the software experience, but not so much as to make stock Android’s designs unrecognizable. For example, you can change the clock style on the lockscreen to some different options, and you can rearrange the icons or even hide some in the notification pull down.
The freedom to decide which icons are shown on the status bar is present with the Z5’s software as well. So you can hide the battery percentage or time, kind of like what you’re capable of doing with Android Marshmallow. Themes are also available that include live wallpapers that move depending on where you touch.
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As far as extra apps go, Sony has included Movie Creator for making movies from your photos, TrackID which is Sony’s music recognition app, Lifelog for tracking calories and other fitness info, Wisepilot for turn-by-turn navigation, and three Playstation apps – PlayStation, PSN, and PS Video.
The important thing is that everything runs very smoothly. When you first turn on the phone after powering off, there will be a bit of lag for at least a couple of minutes but after that you shouldn’t notice any stutters or crashes. By default, the app opening and closing animations are bumped up to make the overall experience feel very snappy.
Specifications
| Display | 5.2-inch 1080p display |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 |
| RAM | 3 GB |
| Storage | 32GB with microSD |
| Waterproofing | IP65 / IP68, capless USB |
| Network | LTE (4G), LTE Cat6, UMTS HSPA+ (3G), GSM GPRS/EDGE, |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC, A-GPS / Glonass, USB 2.0 |
| Camera | Main cam: 23MP cam with Exmor RS sensor, fast autofocus, 4K video capture and output, 23mm wide-angle G Lens, 5x clear image, HDR, ISO 12800 photo / 4000 vide, Steadyshot tech
Front: 5MP |
| Software | Android 5.1 Lollipop with Sony UI |
| Battery | 2900 mAh |
| Dimensions | 146mm x 72mm x 7.3mm, 154 grams |
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Pricing and final thoughts
As is typical with Sony’s flagships, North American launch details are still pretty scarce, though you can get the phone throughout much of Europe and Asia right now. For those in the US, it’s also possible to easily find international versions of the phone through retailers like Amazon for around the $650 mark.
So, is the Sony Xperia Z5 worth picking up over it’s predecessor, the Z3+? Well, there’s really not much new here. There is a fingerprint scanner that works very well. There’s a new and bigger camera sensor, but it doesn’t really make much of a difference. The internals are practically identical. Personally, I don’t think it’s worth upgrading if you already own the Z3+.
That said, if you are upgrading from an older Xperia (Z2 or Z3, etc) or are someone who is simply looking for a reliable, elegant looking phone with an enhanced near-stock Android experience, the Sony Xperia Z5 could be a good choice if you can look past a few shortcomings.
So, there you have it for this in-depth look at the Sony Xperia Z5. What do you think of Sony’s latest flagship? Let us know down in the comments below!
Look at the weather in a beautiful way with Weather 360 (App Review)
Ever since the release of Google Now, I’ve pretty much done away with weather apps and widgets. Why download another app that uses resources when I can usually look in my notification shade for the weather? Well, Weather 360 would like to make an argument for space on your device. Lets hear it out.
Weather 360 is a fairly basic weather app, except that it looks to provide the information in a beautiful way, and even meets some Material Design guidelines. It also allows you to customize the way the app, notification widget, and homescreen widget looks, either with pre-set themes, or custom themes.
Setup
When you first open the app up, it gives you information on what you should expect. This includes animations, widgets, customization, and more.
Once you’ve gone through the intro, the next step is to set up the design of the app, notification widget, and homescreen widget. This can be done via the settings, accessible through the slider menu on the left. Set your location, change the weather provider, change the icons, and other stuff. There are themes that you can change to as well, but you have to purchase those separately in the app’s store. The prices range from $1.59-$2.99 according to the Play Store. I tried looking myself, but there are plenty of options. If you don’t want ads, and you want to unlock the Full Version, that is $2.99. This includes:
“Go unlimited with no boundaries
More than 80 widgets layouts
Unlock more than 100 store items
Detailed weather forecast
More weather providers options
Removes ads“
Anyways, unlocking any of the above items gives more access to customization for the app and the widget.
Features
A lot of the app’s abilities lie in the customization. However, the app itself does have a beautiful set up, with “smart animations” that change dependent on the weather. They’re hard to explain without you seeing them, but they really are nice.
The app has three views: current weather, hour-by-hour, and ten-day. There are plenty of details here, from temperature to humidity, wind speed, and more. I always appreciate the “feels like” temperature, and this app offers that.
There isn’t a whole lot more to the app, but that’s not a bad thing. The app is easy to use, performs its functions well, and is easy to manage. This app does all of this beautifully as well. A weather app, in my opinion, shouldn’t be overly complicated when all you’re going to use it for is mostly glancing for information. The app performed well. It never crashed on me, never stuttered despite its animations. It worked well.
I guess if I _had_ to complain about something, I would’ve liked more options of weather information providers. But really, this isn’t that big of a deal. I just was trying to find something. And that was really the only thing that irked me, but I quickly got over it.
One thing worth mentioning is the app offered a free Halloween theme as we got closer, which was a nice touch.
What we liked
- Easy to set up
- Beautiful design
- Works well
What we didn’t like
- Nothing, really
4.92 out of 5 stars
This is a weather app that works well, seems accurate, and is beautiful looking. What’s more, is there is no end to the customization you have for just about every aspect of the app. There isn’t a whole lot more you can ask for.
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Samsung Gear S2 review
Samsung has been in the smartwatch game for a while now, long before the introduction of Android Wear even, though these earlier devices were compatible only with the company’s flagship smartphones of the time. The only exception to this was Samsung’s only Android Wear smartwatch, the Gear Live. The latest wearable from Samsung continues the company’s tradition of pushing Tizen as their primary smartphone OS, though this time the watch adds some firsts for the Tizen-powered Gear family: a circular display, support for nearly all Android devices, and a new form of input that goes beyond just touch.
Does this device manage to stand tall against the growing competition in the wearable space? We find out, in this comprehensive review of the Samsung Gear S2!
Buy Gear S2 on Amazon
Buy Gear S2 Classic on Amazon
Design
There are a couple of iterations of the Samsung Gear S2 available, with the Classic edition featuring a more conventional construction, especially when considering the lugs on the top and bottom that allow for the easy replacement of the watch straps. On the other hand, the original version, which is featured in this review, puts all that aside for a more durable, and decidedly sportier look.
The silicone bands that are used here are actually proprietary and connect to the stainless steel body via some specific connectors. This means that you won’t really be able to change the look of the watch, but rather just the overall size of it, with the inclusion of a different sized set of these straps in the box.
As mentioned, the body of the watch is of a stainless steel construction, and there are a couple of buttons on the right side for going back, going to the home screen, or opening the apps screen, as well as a heart rate sensor on the back of the watch. The most important part about this device however is its bezel, which brings some added functionality to the mix, rather than just being a design element that lines the 1.2-inch display.
The bezel rotates with a very audible and satisfying click, and is the main way for users to interact with the different screens and elements that would otherwise be swiped through. From an aesthetic point of view, the Classic Gear S2 comes with ridges on this rotating bezel that add to its more stylish look and makes it easier to turn as well, but the smooth bezel in this edition doesn’t prove difficult to rotate either.
Overall, the Samsung Gear S feels pretty nice on the wrist, with the body featuring a noticeable, but manageable, amount of weight. While there aren’t different sizes available for this smartwatch, it won’t look out of place on most wrists, and in fact, may even be a little small if you have really large wrists. The round construction keeps the device inconspicuous as well, until the curious stares begin when you start rotating the bezel.
While we might be a little more inclined towards the Classic edition because of its style-forward look, the more neutral aesthetic of this iteration does make it more accessible. It may not be suited for formal wear, but for all other forms of dress, it manages to fit right in. In a long line of odd choices with regards to their smartwatch designs, we do think that the latest Gear smartwatch from Samsung does finally get it right.
Display
The Samsung Gear S2 comes with a 1.2-inch Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 360 x 360. With Samsung’s signature Super AMOLED tech in tow, the expected high saturation is available, and colors do tend to pop on this display, with the Tizen OS user interface looking really good here. Even though there is no auto adjustment to be found, the brightness of this screen is more than enough in most situations without needing to be at the highest levels.
The device does benefit from the AMOLED construction when it comes to aspects like keeping the display always on, with only the hour and minute hands showing up on the display in this case. Samsung did run into some difficulties with the round display however, with any applications and menus that haven’t been adapted to the round shape becoming quite difficult to navigate on.
Performance
Under the hood, the Gear S2 comes with a dual-core processor, clocked at 1 GHz, and backed by 512 MB of RAM, which seems to be just enough to keeping the device moving along nicely. Luckily, the bit of stutter that was found during our past experiences with the Tizen OS on previous Samsung smartwatches is no longer to be seen this time around, with all of the menus and elements moving about smoothly, and moving along screens is about as snappy as the click of the rotating bezel would suggest.
Hardware
It’s important to note that unlike its predecessor, the Samsung Gear S2 does not allow for making voice calls directly from the watch itself, with there being no speakerphone on the device. While voice dictation and voice commands are possible, Samsung’s S Voice doesn’t offer as many options as the other, bigger smartwatch systems.
Connectivity is possible via Bluetooth to a smartphone, or with a dedicated Wi-Fi connection. The great news here is also that the Gear S2 can be used with non-Samsung devices as well, but it does require the installation of a number of Samsung specific applications on thie device in order to make everything work. When not connected to its paired smartphone, the watch can still receive notifications and alerts from it, as long as both devices have connectivity and are signed into the same Samsung account. This is a nice function, made even better by the availability of a 3G edition of the Gear S2 that will remain perpetually connected to the Internet. The version seen in this review is of the Wi-Fi-only variant however.
Bluetooth also gets a boost, as local music files can be stored on the device with its 4 GB of inbuilt storage, and then listened to via any paired Bluetooth headset. If you are already listening to music on your phone, controlling tracks is also very nice when using the rotating bezel.
Moving on to the health aspect of the Samsung Gear S2, S-Health is at the helm, and can keep track of a number of different metrics. For example, how much water or caffeine one is drinking is a homescreen widget. When actually being active, S-Health can act like a coach of sorts by tracking your heart rate during a workout. GPS support is available only with the 3G version of the phone however, so saving one’s actual running route is out of the question with this Wi-Fi only iteration. It also has to be mentioned that the Nike application is the only one that currently works with this current version of Tizen, with other popular apps like RunKeeper not supported as yet.
Finally, in battery, Samsung has done well to include an easy to use magnetic charging dock that gets the watch back to a full charge in about an hour. The 250 mAh capacity of the battery may sound pretty small, but it manages to work quite well under the right circumstances. With the ambient watch face turned off, brightness turned down, and average use when it comes to general tasks, the Gear S2 manages to last for as long as 2 days, which is nice. It is probably best to charge the device every night, but if you do forget, it is possible to get along without too many problems on that second day.
Software
On the software side of things, the Samsung Gear S2 brings Tizen back to the smartwatch game, and that proves to be both a good and bad thing.
Starting with what is good, Tizen is a welcome breath of fresh air from Android Wear, with the rotating bezel actually making it very easy to use. The software does feel far more intuitive than other software suites, even though the back and apps buttons might take some getting used to in terms of where they take you. Tizen also adds in a number of different functions, including the availability of a T9 keyboard to accompany the voice dictation. Granted, typing on such a small screen isn’t a particularly comfortable experience, but is still welcome as an alternative input method in situations where using your voice may not be the best option.
With the rotating bezel, there is a marriage of different forms of input, with users allowed to swipe or roll around the screens, but you’ll still tap the screen to select elements, or swipe up to dismiss any notifications, while using the buttons to to either return to the previous screen or the home screen. The great thing here is that Samsung somehow manages to make this mix and match work very naturally together.
When it comes to notifications, the rotating bezel provides another benefit, allowing for scrolling through text. Notifications are found to the left of the watchface, where they are listed one after the other, and can be expanded when they’re tapped on. From there, the entirety of the e-mail or message can be scrolled through, making it possible to actually read an entire notification on this device, without one’s finger covering the action. A small menu button on the right will lead to the different actions one can take, such as replying or muting the application, for example.
There are some negatives here as well, however. For starters, the number of applications that aren’t readily available for usage on the Gear S2 is glaring, even though Tizen is not a very young operating system by any means. For example, the lack of Google Maps support makes navigation on this smartwatch moot, and anyone that is used to getting reminders and contextual notifications from Google won’t get them here either. Productivity apps like Evernote, third party music streaming controls, and fitness trackers like RunKeeper are other applications that come to mind.
Widgets, found on the right side of the watchface, are also pretty limited, and are mostly relegated to Samsung and S-Heath information. Just one look in the Gear Manager shows this lack of app support, and it might not get too much better, with Android Wear now considered the standard when it comes to Android wearables. Applications that are available, such as Yelp, are great examples of how the rotating bezel can be leveraged, but until more apps do appear, the software experience of the Gear S2 remains quite limited.
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Pricing and final thoughts
The Samsung Gear S2 is priced at $299 for the Original edition, with the Classic version setting you back an additional $150, putting them squarely among the typical Android Wear offerings out there.
So there you have it for this in-depth look at the Samsung Gear S2! Whether this smartwatch offers enough to justify its price point is going to be a personal decision, but so far, we’ve had a love/hate relationship with the Gear S2. An accessible, and actually fun design with the rotating bezel keeps us coming back for more, but the lack of essential applications supported in this version of Tizen makes for consistent frustration. Samsung actually gets a lot right with its best smartwatch yet, and in an increasingly saturated market, it will perhaps result in some out of the box thinking from other OEMs as well. When it comes to applications and overall features however, the S2 will likely be a let down, and this is where competing devices may actually have the upper hand.
Chromecast (2nd gen) review: a worthy upgrade?
I was part of the Google fans who were ecstatic when Google announced the original Chromecast. I mean, it was nothing revolutionary, but something that was genuinely missing. Especially as the wireless world dominates ever-so, unifying our mobile devices and TV was an important step. And at only $35, it was affordable enough for anyone to join in and splurge a little bit for convenience.
The first Chromecast had a fairly long run, launched back in the summer of 2013 (time flies doesn’t it?). For the most part, it did it’s job, and I don’t think anyone was dying for an update. But of course, Google wouldn’t just leave it at that. There are always improvements to be had.
While the core purpose of the 2nd gen Chromecast is the same (as well as the $35 price tag), there are some welcomed updates. Which leads me to the question: Is it worth upgrading your previous Chromecast? Let’s find out!
Design
Google felt that the Chromecast needed a drastic design change. The body of the device very much resembles a hockey puck. The HDMI plug extends from the side via a short, flat cord.
The change wasn’t just for aesthetics, there’s a reason behind it. All TV setups aren’t the same. Some folks found that the original’s dongle-stick build did not fit in the allotted space between their TV and wall (or any other obstruction).
Therefore, while the Chromecast’s new shape may seem odd at first glance, the intent was to alleviate the cramped-space concern. The drawback is that it doesn’t feel like a thought-out design, because it just hangs off of the HDMI port. This may not be a big deal if your HDMI port is behind your TV, you won’t see the device. But if your HDMI port is near enough to the edge of the TV, it my prompt you to want to tape the Chromecast down or something. It would’ve been nice is Google included a little Velcro sticky, for cases like this.
However, a nice touch is that when you’re transporting the Chromecast, the HDMI plug is magnetically attracted the the body. So it won’t be there just flopping around.
Despite the fact that the Chromecast will most likely live behind your TV and away from sight, Google still felt the need to liven things up with color. This Chromecast comes in two bright colors, aside from standard black – Lemonade (yellow) or Coral (red).
The device is pretty small, and the length of the cord is 4 inches. The body is mostly hard plastic, with the glossy cap that has a slight curve and the Chromecast symbol etched on the center. Around the side, you’ll only find a microUSB port (for power input) and a power button.
Functionality
Installation of the new Chromecast is the same as before. The plug goes into the TV’s HDMI port. It receives power from either a nearby USB port or with the supplied AC adapter.
Setting up the software for the first time is brisk. Like before, it requests that you install the Chromecast app on your mobile device. You verify a code that it displays to make sure you’re communicating correctly, and then enter the password into your WiFi network.
After that, you’re all set and ready to start playing. The default Backdrop wallpapers show up on the TV screen, just like before. The Chromecast app is essentially your remote controller. Supported media apps that are installed on your device will populate content suggestions on the launch page.
Making a selection will launch the corresponding app, where you then press the Cast button to display it on the TV. There is also a search bar, which will find which sources can play that title. Chromecast has support for the main media providers (with the exception of Amazon Instant – you can probably thank Amazon for that).
If you’re coming from the original Chromecast, you’ll know notice how quickly content launches on the TV. It is blazing fast in comparison. It is with this that you realize you’re using a different Chromecast. Part of the improvement is due to the dual-band WiFi now on-board (with an adaptive antenna system).
One of the most annoying things to me about the original Chromecast was upon launching content, I would get a delayed response when trying to lower the volume as the content initiated. And of course, each time the Chromecast is powered back on, the volume restarts to highest setting (instead of remembering the last set volume level). While the new Chromecast follows suit, it actually listens to me when I try to quickly lower the volume before my speakers blasts my face with audio.
Also, mirrored content from the PC or phone is now smooth. Previously, I had lag too frequently occurring in the feed, or stuttering in videos. The largest supported resolution is still 1080P. This is a bit disappointing, considering the growth of 4K TV’s. Maybe we’ll have it on the next iteration.
Final Thoughts
So is it worth it to upgrade to the 2nd gen Chromecast from the original? I wouldn’t say so. That is, it’s not $35 worth to upgrade. If you can sell the previous Chromecast or get a good discount on the new one, then maybe.
In a nutshell, functionality is basically the same. You’re still plugging a small device into your HDMI port, you’re still getting 1080P video output, and you have access to everything you had before. Only, now it’s all faster. Not to underplay the niceness of the speed boost, just saying I don’t feel it’s $35 worth.
All in all, the 2nd gen Chromecast is a fantastic device, and you’ll love it if you haven’t made the leap yet. But it certainly won’t make the waves that the original Chromecast did when it launched.
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AIVAnet 