While we ‘re waiting for our Galaxy S5 review unit to arrive, we wanted to mix things up a bit. To break up the constant GS5 news out there, we present to you our latest installment of smartphone battles. Last time we put the HTC One & Samsung Galaxy S4 cameras against one another and now we have the battle of the stock Android devices. We’ve already reviewed both devices and decided to put the two against each other since we have time before the new Nexus and new Moto X gets announced. We’ll pit the two in several categories to see which we think the better Android device.
Round 1. Fight!
Moto X is 10.4mm thick & the Nexus 5 is 8.6mm thick
Design
I actually love the design on both devices. LG made a streamlined body w/ sharp curves, earpiece, and unique camera lens. Motorola went for the more ergonomic approach for the Moto X. The rear has a concave-like curve to it to fit and feel better in hand. Who doesn’t love good ergonomics?
Both devices keep it simple but unique in their own individual way.
Both devices are hard to keep clean unless you get a Moto X w/ wood back. The Nexus 5 is fingerprint magnet on the rear and the standard woven or solid back Moto X will pick up dirt, grime, and such. So cleanliness will be required. But not much so on the colored or wooden back panels though.
Display
This is where the two scale away from each other a bit. The Moto X has a 4.7inch 720p AMOLED display while the Nexus 5 sports a 5inch 1080p IPS display. The pixel density is definitely noticeable w/ the Moto X has 312ppi and the Nexus 5 has 445ppi. I’m more partial to the IPS display but in this case it really is the better of the two. The AMOLED is sufficient but the IPS is brighter, more color accurate, and more crisp than the latter.
The Nexus takes this one easily.
Battery
On paper, both devices have a pretty close in size but in reality act totally different. The Moto X has a 2200 mAh battery while the Nexus 5 has a 2300 mAh battery. This is where Motorola’s innovations get the best over the competition. LG’s brilliant IPS display at no matter what the brightness level, is quite the battery drain offering less than measly 6 hours. Moto’s X8 CPU combined w/ clever use of their AMOLED display got me close to 18 hours on moderate usage.
Motorola has been and continues to reign supreme in battery consumption.
Features/Function
Now that both devices are running Android 4.4 Kit Kat its time to see who comes out on top. While the Nexus 5 is more of on the high-end device spec-wise, the Moto X has more tricks up its sleeve. The Moto X is pretty much neck-and-neck w/ the N5 on the software side of things – except for the N5 having HDR+ mode within the camera. But that’s about it. Nothing really standing out for the Nexus. On the Moto X side of things, you have a handful of standout features.
You have Active Display – notifications for your lockscreen has been evolved thanks to careful use of Motorola’s AMOLED display. Next up you have Touchless Control- a hands free version of Google Now that can make calls, play music, set reminders, and read your notifications aloud. And lastly, you have Assist – a remnant of their older Smart Actions software that allows you to create personal-based shortcuts that is location-based. This focuses on your Driving, Sleeping, and when you are in Meetings. With all of this along with Moto Maker customization , this makes it hard to beat.
Again the Moto X takes this category.
Camera
This is an area where neither companies won unfortunately. The Moto X has a 10MP rear shooter while the Nexus has a 8MP shooter but has OIS (Optical Image Stabilization) on-board. At both cameras at their purest form w/ no filters or modes, the LG is slightly better. Both results offer noticeable noise w/ the N5 offering a bit less w/ better color reproduction. Definitely disappointed as LG didn’t utilize the awesome 13MP camera seen on the G2 instead of the 8MP sensor.
This one is a draw as both shooters are bit subpar by today’s standards.
TG 2 Cents
And we chose…the Moto X. It wasn’t by a landslide either, it was a close one. At the end, it was the software and Moto Maker that pushed Motorola’s flagship ahead of the latest Nexus. There are many great features available on both devices. LG provides the perfect display + good design while Motorola knows how to handle battery life and provide us w/ useful features to make their flagship standout among the Android crowd. I know some of you may agree as some of you may think I have some sort of brain damage based on my decision. I know I’m not alone or maybe you insightful points to add to the mix. Let us know what your pick would be and why in the comments.
Comments
