I got a Nexus 5 in march. It isn't perfect. The SIM reader doesn't work, it has clearly been taken apart before. But hey, it was only £40 on eBay. I didn't buy it as a backup phone,I have a fully functional Nexus 4 for that. I bought it because it was the first Nexus phone I ever saw launch. The first Nexus phone I ever coveted.
In late 2013 I got my Galaxy S4 and I was pretty happy with it. That didn't last long, but that's a story for a different time. Shortly after the Nexus 5 launched. I remember watching the videos. The Google Now Launcher, the hot phrase and the overall design really appealed to me. I began to regret getting the S4, even though at the time I wasn't as in touch with the tech community, so I wouldn't have known to expect the N5 launch so soon.
After several years of wanting to even use one, it happened. A 32GB white Nexus 5 that, while not fully working hardware wise, is fine cosmetically and in terms of performance.
The Nexus 5 has lived up to my expectations. It isn't as fast as my 6P or Pixel XL, but it IS fast. I have it running a 7.1.1 ROM and it handles it very well. It doesn't lag all that often like you'd expect it too. Compared to a lot of phones that would cost as much as a used Nexus 5, it is far superior in terms of performance.
The camera wasn't the best when I launched. But the following updates have rapidly changed that! It's not a competitor compared to new phones in general use, but with manual controls it can take excellent photos if you're patient enough as seen here.
The screen is more than good enough. It's a 5 inch IPS display at 1080p with 445ppi. That's near enough the same as the Pixel. Although it's LCD and not AMOLED and the Pixel no doubt has the benefits of being a much newer panel. Still, it's a nice screen to use.
Battery life is... Well I wouldn't want to use it as a daily driver after getting used to the Pixel XL. But as a device to play around with and use for podcasts and music, it'll do just fine.
It feels great in the hand as well. Like the S4 I had when it launched, it's plastic. Unlike the S4, it isn't slippery or cheap feeling. It's a soft, tactile material that provides a good amount of grip. The buttons are ceramic which has an interesting feel and the rest is glass.
I think the main thing we should appreciate about the Nexus 5 is that it was a Nexus in the purest sense of the word. When it came out it packed every high-end spec you would expect, all for an incredibly low price. It had and indeed still has arguably the best developer support any device has ever seen. I had a 7.0 ROM on it within three days of it officially launching.
Now that the Nexus line is dead, all we have left are our memories. I think the Nexus 5 may might be the one we remember with the most love. It was everything a Nexus should be and even three years later is a respectable phone. They say don't meet your heroes, but I did and it didn't ruin anything. There's just something charming about it.
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