LG Nexus 5 vs. Motorola Moto G: unexpected comparison results
The beginning of this story was about a month ago. I informed my friend, who was in the process of choosing a smartphone, that I have Moto G in my hands. He wanted just moderately compact and overly exotic device, so, in my opinion, the Motorola model would suit him perfectly. My friend's answer surprised me: “What kind of Motorola for 200 bucks (of course, in the US, we have much more expensive - author's note), when you can buy Nexus 5 for the same dough? There, after all, Full HD and Snapdragon 800 ".
With the price, my dear friend, of course, lost his temper: the Nexus 5 with 16 GB of memory costs 349 dollars in the USA. In Russia, they mysteriously transform into official 17,990 rubles. So if you want, instead of one “Nexus” you can buy almost two copies of Moto G imported into the country by “gray” suppliers.
Moto G and LG Nexus 5
')
However, compare Moto G and Nexus 5, in my opinion, very worth it. Both devices are among the cheapest in their classes, while offering a very serious set of options and the most current version of the Android operating system at the moment - 4.4.2 KitKat. As far as I know, many buyers today choose for themselves a new smartphone from these two options - for the reasons described above.
Moto G, I actively used about three weeks, LG Nexus 5 - about a week. As a result, I have to say once again that the quality level of a modern smartphone is not always determined by the notorious “Full HD and Snapdragon 800”, as well as the amount of RAM, megapixels and other numbers.
In other words. I like Moto G much more than the more expensive LG Nexus 5. It seems like Google had a hand on both devices (the first one was released when Motorola owned the search engine, and the second one was created in LG under the strict control of comrades from Mountain View), but the output It turned out very different products.
The devil - he, as you know, does not like large forms. And Moto G is better in the details.
With the Motorola model, I learned that a small smartphone with a 2,070 mAh battery can easily work for up to two days. Yes, there is Highscreen Boost 2 SE , which has to be recharged many times less. But this is a separate case, but the usual "average" Android-backgrounds live with me no more than a day. Moto G this "record" successfully broke.
But the LG Nexus 5 asks to the outlet by the evening of the first day. Probably, the combination of Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 and a battery with a capacity of 2 300 mAh is not the most optimal. For comparison: the smartphone Sony Xperia Z1 with the same "iron" and about the same 5-inch display battery 3 050 mAh.
Well, what's the use of me personally from this Snapdragon 800? Especially since my favorite Asphalt 8 (a good toy, I recommend) and on Moto G with its Snapdragon 400, and on the Nexus 5 comes with maximum graphics settings. In the speed of the Android interface between these devices there is no difference at all. So that…
The resolution of the screen is 1920 x 1080 pixels, of course, the advantage is serious. In theory. In practice, the 4.5-inch HD screen (1280 x 720) of Moto G is noticeably more “juicy” than that of the LG Nexus 5. All this is in taste, and perhaps I just like the color rendition of the Motorola display. And you, it is possible, will like the screen of the LG Nexus 5 more. But, choosing exactly “by the picture”, and not “by numbers”, I would stop at the first option.
It has long been noticed that in Motorola phones and smartphones cool speakers are usually used. (I have a Motorola E770v in my collection, and it screams in such a way that I can’t even believe how such a small phone can be so loud.) No, I don’t listen to music from a mobile phone at the entrance while sitting on the courts and eating semchki. I just need the trill of the bell to be heard from every corner of the one-room apartment. Moto G with its loud and at the same time clean "singing" it provides. Nexus 5 with its hissing sound - no. It is quieter once in a half.
I will also say about the plastic of the case , although the situation here is not simple. The LG Nexus 5 is white, black and, more recently, red. The first version has a glossy finish, the second - with a rubber coating, and the third is hard and slightly rough. I have exactly the red Nexus 5 (at the very end of the post I will give some explanations). So after Moto G with its slightly velvety plastic, the LG product in the red version is perceived as ... well, as an inexpensive toy, or something. And the matter is not only in a less pleasant coverage, but also in the ratio of dimensions and weight. This is actually an important parameter from the field of industrial design, affecting the perception of things. So a noticeably larger Nexus 5 weighs 130 g, and a small Moto G - 143. The latter has a better ratio.
This is also worth adding a curved "back" that fits perfectly into the palm. Flat Nexus 5 in my hand is less comfortable. That is, you can live, but Moto G is really nicer. And due to the less slippery coverage, the Motorola smartphone does not slip out of the hand at all (I dropped the Nexus 5 once, well, well, on the blanket).
In Nexus 5, as you know, Google Experience Launcher is used. This is such a "slap" for Android 4.4.2 KitKat, which adds, among other things, a number of interface changes. There is it only in Nexus 5 - let's say, in my existing Nexus 7 (2012), the “bare” version of the OS is used. So, I do not really like GEL. Because he has too large icons in the main menu. In this very fact, there is no evil, but here the icons of some third-party applications are too stretched to fit the basic size of the GEL icons. And therefore they look indistinct. I know that many may consider this a stupid niggle, but my eyes immediately "hooked" on the Yandex.Maps icon and realized that something was wrong with it. And the icons of the built-in applications just surrounding it are displayed normally, but the Yandex programs are stretched.
Compare the clarity of the Yandex.Maps icons and the built-in “Contacts” system
The difference in the size of the icons in the LG Nexus 5 (left) and the Samsung Galaxy S4. Both have 5 inch Full HD screens
But Google Experience Launcher has a dignity - it does not have the black background of the application menu, but exactly the same as on the desktop. Meanwhile, the Moto G with the “bare” Android 4.4.2 is just black. But the rest of the software Motorola product is not inferior to the "Nexus". True, I'm not at all sure that it will receive OS updates as quickly as Nexus devices. Especially after the acquisition of Motorola Chinese Lenovo.
Oh, and more. The screen of the Nexus 5 is locked with animation , reminiscent of turning off the lamp TV. I have seen this before in the Motorola RAZR, Atrix 2 and so on. In Moto G, this is no longer a pity . As I understand it, this great software chip was borrowed by Google from Motorola.
Finally, I will list other points in which Moto G and Nexus 5 are better.
Moto G:
- You can install removable panels for 15 bucks apiece. There are red, yellow, menthol, etc.
- Compactness. This is the best small device on the market. Although, perhaps, Sony Xperia Z1 Compact is also nothing.
- The price is really tasty. In Russia, however, it is no longer as low as in the United States.
Nexus 5:
- Support LTE. In Ukraine, where I live, did not really understand even with 3G. But in Russia, LTE is relevant.
- The device will definitely get a few more of the following versions of Android.
- The 8-megapixel camera is noticeably better than the Moto G. The photo capabilities of Motorola are generally weak.
- Localization "in the database." Moto G will have to Russify yourself or take Google Play Edition.
Something like this. Soon I will give both the Nexus 5 and Moto G. But if I later want to buy myself one of them, then the choice will fall on the “American”. It is just more convenient. Although weaker "on paper."
PS I know that on one site they hung up the news about the announcement of the red Nexus 5. It was written something like this: "LG and Google presented a bright red version of their smartphone blah blah blah." About an hour later, an angry letter from the Russian office of LG was written on the site, demanding to edit the text, replacing the word “bright red” with “neon-red”. The request is strange at first glance, but in reality this version of the Nexus 5 is really not red, but rather red-pink. Not the fact that she is very much like and generally suitable for harsh guys.
With the price, my dear friend, of course, lost his temper: the Nexus 5 with 16 GB of memory costs 349 dollars in the USA. In Russia, they mysteriously transform into official 17,990 rubles. So if you want, instead of one “Nexus” you can buy almost two copies of Moto G imported into the country by “gray” suppliers.
Moto G and LG Nexus 5
')
However, compare Moto G and Nexus 5, in my opinion, very worth it. Both devices are among the cheapest in their classes, while offering a very serious set of options and the most current version of the Android operating system at the moment - 4.4.2 KitKat. As far as I know, many buyers today choose for themselves a new smartphone from these two options - for the reasons described above.
Moto G, I actively used about three weeks, LG Nexus 5 - about a week. As a result, I have to say once again that the quality level of a modern smartphone is not always determined by the notorious “Full HD and Snapdragon 800”, as well as the amount of RAM, megapixels and other numbers.
In other words. I like Moto G much more than the more expensive LG Nexus 5. It seems like Google had a hand on both devices (the first one was released when Motorola owned the search engine, and the second one was created in LG under the strict control of comrades from Mountain View), but the output It turned out very different products.
The devil - he, as you know, does not like large forms. And Moto G is better in the details.
With the Motorola model, I learned that a small smartphone with a 2,070 mAh battery can easily work for up to two days. Yes, there is Highscreen Boost 2 SE , which has to be recharged many times less. But this is a separate case, but the usual "average" Android-backgrounds live with me no more than a day. Moto G this "record" successfully broke.
But the LG Nexus 5 asks to the outlet by the evening of the first day. Probably, the combination of Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 and a battery with a capacity of 2 300 mAh is not the most optimal. For comparison: the smartphone Sony Xperia Z1 with the same "iron" and about the same 5-inch display battery 3 050 mAh.
Well, what's the use of me personally from this Snapdragon 800? Especially since my favorite Asphalt 8 (a good toy, I recommend) and on Moto G with its Snapdragon 400, and on the Nexus 5 comes with maximum graphics settings. In the speed of the Android interface between these devices there is no difference at all. So that…
The resolution of the screen is 1920 x 1080 pixels, of course, the advantage is serious. In theory. In practice, the 4.5-inch HD screen (1280 x 720) of Moto G is noticeably more “juicy” than that of the LG Nexus 5. All this is in taste, and perhaps I just like the color rendition of the Motorola display. And you, it is possible, will like the screen of the LG Nexus 5 more. But, choosing exactly “by the picture”, and not “by numbers”, I would stop at the first option.
It has long been noticed that in Motorola phones and smartphones cool speakers are usually used. (I have a Motorola E770v in my collection, and it screams in such a way that I can’t even believe how such a small phone can be so loud.) No, I don’t listen to music from a mobile phone at the entrance while sitting on the courts and eating semchki. I just need the trill of the bell to be heard from every corner of the one-room apartment. Moto G with its loud and at the same time clean "singing" it provides. Nexus 5 with its hissing sound - no. It is quieter once in a half.
I will also say about the plastic of the case , although the situation here is not simple. The LG Nexus 5 is white, black and, more recently, red. The first version has a glossy finish, the second - with a rubber coating, and the third is hard and slightly rough. I have exactly the red Nexus 5 (at the very end of the post I will give some explanations). So after Moto G with its slightly velvety plastic, the LG product in the red version is perceived as ... well, as an inexpensive toy, or something. And the matter is not only in a less pleasant coverage, but also in the ratio of dimensions and weight. This is actually an important parameter from the field of industrial design, affecting the perception of things. So a noticeably larger Nexus 5 weighs 130 g, and a small Moto G - 143. The latter has a better ratio.
This is also worth adding a curved "back" that fits perfectly into the palm. Flat Nexus 5 in my hand is less comfortable. That is, you can live, but Moto G is really nicer. And due to the less slippery coverage, the Motorola smartphone does not slip out of the hand at all (I dropped the Nexus 5 once, well, well, on the blanket).
In Nexus 5, as you know, Google Experience Launcher is used. This is such a "slap" for Android 4.4.2 KitKat, which adds, among other things, a number of interface changes. There is it only in Nexus 5 - let's say, in my existing Nexus 7 (2012), the “bare” version of the OS is used. So, I do not really like GEL. Because he has too large icons in the main menu. In this very fact, there is no evil, but here the icons of some third-party applications are too stretched to fit the basic size of the GEL icons. And therefore they look indistinct. I know that many may consider this a stupid niggle, but my eyes immediately "hooked" on the Yandex.Maps icon and realized that something was wrong with it. And the icons of the built-in applications just surrounding it are displayed normally, but the Yandex programs are stretched.
Compare the clarity of the Yandex.Maps icons and the built-in “Contacts” system
The difference in the size of the icons in the LG Nexus 5 (left) and the Samsung Galaxy S4. Both have 5 inch Full HD screens
But Google Experience Launcher has a dignity - it does not have the black background of the application menu, but exactly the same as on the desktop. Meanwhile, the Moto G with the “bare” Android 4.4.2 is just black. But the rest of the software Motorola product is not inferior to the "Nexus". True, I'm not at all sure that it will receive OS updates as quickly as Nexus devices. Especially after the acquisition of Motorola Chinese Lenovo.
Oh, and more. The screen of the Nexus 5 is locked with animation , reminiscent of turning off the lamp TV. I have seen this before in the Motorola RAZR, Atrix 2 and so on. In Moto G, this is no longer a pity . As I understand it, this great software chip was borrowed by Google from Motorola.
Finally, I will list other points in which Moto G and Nexus 5 are better.
Moto G:
- You can install removable panels for 15 bucks apiece. There are red, yellow, menthol, etc.
- Compactness. This is the best small device on the market. Although, perhaps, Sony Xperia Z1 Compact is also nothing.
- The price is really tasty. In Russia, however, it is no longer as low as in the United States.
Nexus 5:
- Support LTE. In Ukraine, where I live, did not really understand even with 3G. But in Russia, LTE is relevant.
- The device will definitely get a few more of the following versions of Android.
- The 8-megapixel camera is noticeably better than the Moto G. The photo capabilities of Motorola are generally weak.
- Localization "in the database." Moto G will have to Russify yourself or take Google Play Edition.
Something like this. Soon I will give both the Nexus 5 and Moto G. But if I later want to buy myself one of them, then the choice will fall on the “American”. It is just more convenient. Although weaker "on paper."
PS I know that on one site they hung up the news about the announcement of the red Nexus 5. It was written something like this: "LG and Google presented a bright red version of their smartphone blah blah blah." About an hour later, an angry letter from the Russian office of LG was written on the site, demanding to edit the text, replacing the word “bright red” with “neon-red”. The request is strange at first glance, but in reality this version of the Nexus 5 is really not red, but rather red-pink. Not the fact that she is very much like and generally suitable for harsh guys.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/214621/
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