Google Nexus 5 vs. Nexus 4: Specifications Comparison

As a follow-up to the commercially successful 2012-model Nexus 4, smartphone developers, LG and Google on Thursday (31 October) announced the next generation device Nexus 5.

The new Nexus 5 comes loaded with faster, powerful chipsets and a number of praise worthy upgradation in specifications for a competitive price.

For anybody wondering what new features have been included in the new Nexus 5, check out the specification rundown of LG's Nexus 4 and its successor Nexus 5.

Display and Design:

2012-model Nexus 4 sports a 4.7-inch WXGA IPS HD (1280x768p) display and has a pixel density of 318 ppi (pixels per inch). The screen is protected by the Corning Gorilla Glass 2 scratch-resistant shield and the body is covered by a shiny glass based coat making it a bit slippery for users to handle the phone.

Many critics had advised users to use phone-cover case to avoid shattering the glass coat during an accidental fall.

As a welcome change, developers (Google and LG) have incorporated tough polycarbonate material for the Nexus 5 back cover as seen on the recently released Nexus 7. It is certain to help users have a better grip over the device.

2013 Nexus phone flaunts a 4.95 inch full HD IPS display with 445 ppi and features Corning Gorilla Glass 3 screen guard. Despite boasting a bigger display, Nexus 5 weighs less than its predecessor. It weighs 130 g, whereas Nexus 4 measures 139 g.

That's not all; LG has managed to reduce bezel size of Nexus 5 to 8.9 mm. Its predecessor had 9.1 mm thickness.

Processor, RAM and Storage:

In this aspect, Google has made one change by upgrading Nexus 4 successor with faster and efficient Snapdragon 800 series quad-core CPU, which can top up to 2.3GHz speed, while the RAM and storage specifications has kept been unchanged.

Nexus 5 will ship with 2GB physical memory. Though faced with criticism over not providing memory card slot in Nexus 4, Google has brazenly chosen to stick with same principle for Nexus 5 as well. It will be offered in 16GB and 32GB storage options with no scope of memory expansion.

Nexus 4 features 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 Pro quad-core processor with 2GB RAM and was made available in 16GB storage variant with no microSD card slot. 8GB and 32GB models though released in western market, they were made it to the Indian market.

Camera:

Google Nexus 4 flaunts an 8.0-megapixel camera backed by auto-focus, LED flash, 4X digital zoom features and on the front side, it houses1.3-megapixel camera.

The new Nexus 5 also houses same camera specifications with addition of two key features to the main camera. It flaunts 8.0-megapixel main camera boasting OIS (Optical Image Stabilizations), HDR+ (High Dynamic Range), and has the ability to take good quality picture under low-light conditions.

Like its predecessor, Nexus 5 too packs a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera.  

Mobile Operating System:

Currently, Google Nexus 5 is the only device in the market to feature Android v4.4 KitKat and comes with a slew of enhanced features such as smarter caller ID, more organised message grouping, low-power audio play playback (about 60 hours), quick access to settings, Quickoffice word document app, Bluetooth MAP (Message Access Profile) and many more applications.

Nexus 4 currently runs on the updated v4.3 Jelly Bean. Nexus 4 owners need not wait long for the new v4.4 KitKat as Google has confirmed that the new OS update will be rolled in few weeks time.

Price:

The brand new phone though upgraded with powerful and feature-rich specifications has been competitively priced ₹28,999 for16GB model and ₹32,999 for 32GB, which is certain to kill the competitions like Apple iPhones and Samsung Galaxy devices that are priced well over ₹40,000 bucks. Google Play Store India Edition has already listed the Nexus 5 with price details but, the sales are yet to kick-off.

Nexus 5 predecessor too made its debut in India with similar pricing. During its launch, Nexus 4 used to cost around 26,000, now the price is hovering around ₹24,300. The cost is expected to go down further as Google plans to launch the new Nexus 5 soon in India.

Key specifications of Google Nexus 5 and Nexus 4: