News Google Nexus 5 unveiled

No SD meh. Milking the public to buy extra storage in phones is an Apple gimmick. You can guarantee the price difference between the 16/32/64(is there one?) is not representative of the price difference of SD storage.

Buy any other decent spec Android phone with basic 16gb and chuck a £15 32gb sd card in it.

 

Where do you insert the SIM-card?

 

"5in AMOLED screen"

"Full HD IPS"

One of these is incorrect, and I suspect it's not the one on the official Google spec list.

Also, I have no issues with the lack of an SD card slot. I bought a 32GB card for my GS3 and removed it when it started playing up, haven't missed it, still plenty of room on the (16GB) phone. I suppose if you listen to music a lot it might be an issue if you don't have unlimited data/decent signal.

 

Oh dear, not my finest hour.

 

If you're packing for a long flight, or a busy day where you know you're going to be on your feet all day it's far more convenient having a tiny little spare battery in your bag than a much bulkier recharging unit and charging cable.

Like so many things in tech, the manufacturers have followed the masses, cutting costs where they can. So if the majority of the public don't buy spare batteries or microSD cards then it makes a lot of business sense to drop them. That doesn't change the fact that the phones are better with them.

 

That's why I'm rocking a cheap chinese smartphone.

Quad core(though not a very powerful one, roughly equal to the Nexus 4 or the HTC One X+ in benches), removable back with removable 3000mAH battery, microSD slot and dual sim with a 4.5" 720p IPS screen.
Works with my USB DACs too once I'd rooted it and changed the kernel.

Not too shabby for £130 shipped.

 

Removable SD cards have lost most of their use since Google decided not to allow apps be stored on them. $400 outright for the 32GB version is a steal. Some might enjoy carrying around thousands of hours of music at one time perhaps due to the 60GB+ iPods of old they're used to.

Now music is easily streamed and stored on cloud storage.

 

Contrary to popular belief, there is plenty of music not available on the likes of Spotify and Napster. This notion that 'hey, you can just stream it all' is bunkum. Also, compare the transfer speeds of a good microSD to onboard storage and you may change your tune. Also, in terms of just general portable storage, the more the merrier - no more USB sticks.

 

I really don't want to listened to compressed, streamed music. I'll keep my locally stored flac files thanks.

 

Errr, battery, no memory card expansion... So, probably a Galaxy Note 3 as a replacement for my Galaxy Note 1, and yes, I have big hands...

2 year contracts mean I miss a step, so new phone always a big step from last one...

 

I couldn't disagree more.

With my external battery I can easily keep my device(s) topped up and ready to go. I'll never get myself into a scenario where I'm carrying around a phone with a 20% charge and dead battery in my pocket... while trying to work out how I'm going to get both batteries back up to full charge for another full day tomorrow.

I guess I could leave my phone on charge somewhere? Or not bother charging up my spare? Or pack a charging station?

 

So now it's convenient to carry around a charging cradle but it's not convenient to carry around a USB battery?

Colour me confuddled. For me convenience is having a fully charged battery at the bottom of my bag that I can use to top up ANY DEVICE I want ANY TIME and ANY WHERE.

 

One major downside of a non-removable battery is that batteries are prone to degradation after a reasonable period of time - the original battery for my S2 started to fail after less than 18 months, and wouldn't hold a charge (the famous "battery bulge" defect). Fortunately, I was able to source a replacement battery for less than a tenner and all was good, but if the battery had been non-removable then I'd have needed to buy a new phone, which quite frankly isn't acceptable.

 

You know what I'm looking for in my next phone? A *smaller* screen.
Because a smaller screen means a smaller phone, and I don't really need a whole 5" to check my emails or call someone, and I never need to watch video on my phone. A smaller phone would be that bit easier to carry around.

 

If you are in a poor signal area it's no help. But I do mainly agree, that while I'd like an SD card slot, it is not a deal breaker for me.

As for lack of a removable battery, there are decent options for smaller USB chargers. Here is a <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00CEZJT2E/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2PGPJL0BBLHLX">phone sized one</a>, and a <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B005QILJ74/ref=noref?ie=UTF8&psc=1&s=electronics">lipstick sized one</a>.

I've used a couple of Duracell ones for years, and they were great, but getting old and a pain to charge being mini USB,and not micro.
So I've just bought the one linked up the thread, and the lipstick one, to give me two options, a pocketsize and bag sized option.

 

I have a 4.7" HTC One and a 3.5" Sony Xperia U. I hate to say it, but the Sony is definitely the easier object to handle and use.

Also whilst these ridiculously high density screens on flagship handsets are undeniably beautiful, the Xperia U at 280ppi is plenty usable as well.

 

It's not a case of disagreeing. A battery that measures, say, 3x30x40mm is inherently more portable than one that measures at least twice as much (which most portable chargers do) and it means you don't have to spend a couple of hours hanging a charger of the side of your phone.

With two batteries you can guarantee lasting a whole busy day or pretty much any long haul flight. So you'll never have a dead battery in your pocket and a dead phone. The battery charger would go in your suit case. Or you can just charge both using USB once you're at your hotel/destination.

As I say, there isn't really an argument about which is more convenient, it's just whether you need that convenience. Many people feel they don't, I do.

Also, regarding being able to charge other devices as well.. what other devices? I carry a laptop and a smartphone. Even if I did carry tablet, a battery pack with enough charge to recharge that would be massive!

 

Okay, you got me there. Still doesn't address having my whole collection with me at all times. Nor the other points mentioned.