Sunday 9 November 2014

NEXUS 6 - THE BIG 6..!!!

If anyone of you thought that the battle for the best phablet of the year was limited to iPhone 6 plus and Samsung’s Note 4, think again…

Google’s Nexus 6 is finally here to take this battle to the next level. We might have assumed that the next Nexus phone from Google would have been slightly bigger in size from its predecessor, the Nexus 5 with some improved specifications. Google, however, had different plans. Instead of a logical upgrade to its Nexus line of phones, it simply invaded a new segment altogether, the PHABLET segment.

For all those who are thinking what exactly is a phablet, let me put the meaning in just one sentence. A phablet is a smartphone which sits between a smartphone and a tablet. There is no specific screen size to define a phablet. However, most of them usually come in sizes between 5.5 inches to 6.5 inches.


SPECS – Top of the line..!!

Nexus 6 is manufactured by Motorola and looks like the big brother of the new MOTO X (2014). One thing is for sure, Nexus 6 was not made with “ONE SIZE FITS ALL” philosophy kept in mind. Google has specifically targeted the fastest growing segment, the Phablet segment.

Nexus 6 has a diagonal screen size of 6 inches, which makes it bigger in screen size in comparison to the iPhone 6 plus and Samsung’s Note 4. The screen is protected by Gorilla Glass 3. The front side of the phone is dominated by AMOLED screen of 1,440 x 2,560 (Quad HD) resolution, which translates into 493 pixels per inch of resolution. At this resolution its hard to spot the individual pixels with the naked human eye. The only other premium device in this segment to flaunt a QHD resolution screen is Samsung’s Note 4.  

Powering the Nexus 6 is the latest quad core processor from Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 805, clocked at 2.7 Ghz, with 3GB of RAM. A 13 megapixel camera with optical image stabilization does a good job. However, Selfie lovers will be left disappointed. A front facing 2 Megapixel camera is just about average. Video can be recorded at 4K resolution with the primary camera, which is a plus point.

Nexus 6 will be available in 2 colour options, Midnight Blue and Cloud White with 32 GB and 64 GB options. Even though the Nexus 6 does not come with expandable storage options, 32 GB and 64 GB should be more than enough for most of your needs.



BATTERY

For a device with a 6 inch QHD screen with a beefy Quad core 2.7 Ghz processor with camera capable of 4K video recording, a non-removable Li-Po 3220 mAh battery does not look sufficient on paper at least. However, the Nexus 6 supports Motorola’s Turbo charger. All it takes is 15 minutes of charging with the turbo charger to get 6 additional hours of battery life. This compensates for a smaller 3220 mAh battery, which comes with the phablet.



ANDROID 5.0 (LOLLIPOP)


Nexus 6 is the first device to get the latest Android OS 5.0 (Lollipop). The latest android version is buttery smooth and supports ‘always on’ voice commands. Power management is another area where improvements have been made, in order to extract the maximum performance from the phone’s battery.


Price..

Google has announced the pricing of Nexus 6. The 32 GB variant will be available for Rs. 44,000 or $649.00 and the 64 GB variant for Rs 49,000 or $699.00. At this price it is definitely not cheap and will not appeal to those, who were looking for the next Nexus device at a budget price point. However, Google has cleverly positioned itself below Apple’s iPhone 6 plus and Samsung’s Note 4, both of them are priced upwards of Rs 58,000. Do keep in mind iPhone 6 plus starts with a 16 GB variant and the next variant is 64 GB. 32 GB variant is absent for reasons known only to Apple. Note 4 on the other hand starts with a 32 GB variant. Keep these figures in mind before buying one of these.


So how does it compare to note 4 ??


On specifications the Nexus 6 matches the Note 4 very closely. In fact currently it is the only device available with the latest Android 5.0 (Lollipop), which has a lot going for it. However, the Note 4, is still the big daddy of all the phabltes in the market for obvious reasons. Note 4 is equipped with a stylus which makes it more of a productivity device, whereas Nexus 6 is more of a media consumption device. No doubt Nexus 6 has the same quad core processor from Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 805, clocked at 2.7 Ghz, with 3GB of RAM as Note 4, but Note 4 comes bundled with useful extras which are missing on the Nexus 6. For instance, Note 4 has a fingerprint scanner, heart rate monitor, Samsung’s own health apps and an infrared port which can act as a remote control for your various home appliances like TV, Audio systems, DVDs etc. All these features are missing from Nexus 6.


Finally…!!


Nexus 6 is a great attempt by Google to capture a very important phablet segment of the market. Its not perfect though and could have been priced better. However it is still a lot cheaper than the big guns of this segment, Note 4 and iPhone 6 plus. Deciding on which phablet to buy is still a tricky business. But at least with the launch of Nexus 6, the premium phablet consumer is now spoilt for choices..


6 comments:

  1. SPOILT FOR CHOICES INDEED....Utter confusion

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  2. Complete information abt latest top phone in the market...Appreciated...thanks

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  3. Just so apt insight.. really informative. . ��

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  4. Great post!!! Nice details and journalism.

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  5. HTC M9 coming soon. Looking forward to its features.

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  6. Extremely well written . . Well researched..Garry you are a pro .. Good job !!

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