The S5 is an Android with TouchWiz phone with expandable storage and a removable battery.Comparing the S5 with the Nexus 5 seems like comparing two different visions of Android. It is actually comparing a skinned version of Android with a TouchWiz interface with a pure Android OS.
Design
The S5 comes in different colors like copper gold and electric blue and has a fresh design. It is bigger than the Nexus 5. Both the phones are plastic, but the Nexus 5 has a rubbery feel. It is also available in colors like red, white and black. The Nexus 5 is rather compact being 2.73 inches in width with the S5 at 2.85 inches. The Nexus is shorter being 5.43 inches compared to the S5 at 5.59 inches. The Nexus 5 is also thinner being 0.32 inches compared to the 0.34 of the S5 and lighter at 4.59 oz compared to the S5’s 5.11 oz. However, the S5, though large comes with IP67 certification for protection against dust and water.
S5 – Unique Features
The fingerprint scanner and the heart rate monitor are two of the unique features present on the S5, lacking in the Nexus 5. The fingerprint scanner is very useful for authenticating payments in case of PayPal. The heart rate monitor is on the back of the phone and can measure the pulse, by sending infra red light on the finger placed on the sensor. The readings are accurate but may not be suitable for athletes who want to measure the changes during a workout. The infrared beamer can also be used combining it with WatchON, for controlling electronic devices, such as your television.
Display
The S5 has a bigger display of 5.1 inches as against the 5 inches of the Nexus 5. Both have the same resolution of 1080 x 1920 p with the Nexus 5 having a higher ppi of 441 against 432 of the S5. The Nexus 5 uses the LCD display with backlight, whereas the S5 uses the Super AMOLED technology. The S5 is better to use outdoors, but the Nexus 5 offers accurate colors.
Camera
The S5 has a 16-MP ISOCELL camera, whereas the Nexus 5 has only an 8-MP rear camera. The sensor is also 28% bigger in the S5. The S5 also has a six-element lens with Nexus 5 having a five element one. Both the cameras have LED flash, however. The interface of the S5 is very user friendly and it has several shooting modes as well as manual settings. Image and video buttons are separate and there is a special Mode button. The settings for adjustments in the Nexus 5 are a little limited by contrast and the interface is also not that intuitive.
Battery
The S5 comes with a 2800 mAh battery, whereas the Nexus comes with a slightly lesser capacity of 2300 mAh. Battery is one of the weak points of the device, whereas the S5 is much better. In addition, the S5 battery is removable and can be accessed, whereas the battery of the Nexus 5 is sealed. However, the Nexus 5 offers wireless charging with QI standard out of the box, not present in the S5.
Verdict
Both are top end devices with excellent hardware. The S5 is newer in the market and, as such, as the Snapdragon 801 system chip with the 16 MP cameras. On the other hand, the Nexus 5 is available for nearly half the cost of the S5, but has equally good features and hardware. However, the Nexus 5 battery cannot be replaced and it does not have a card slot for expanding the memory.
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