Nexus 6 - Opened my eyes to big phones

[soccerballtux]

Tempted to make the upgrade from my current Nexus 5. I use my phone extensively and unfortunately I'm feeling the 2GB RAM limitation lately.

use Faux123's kernel and enable KSM and Frontswap. KSM de-duplicates via virtualization all the identical VM base 20MBs that exist in each app and the frontswap caches the disk FAT for immediate reads. Makes everything much faster and multitasking flies.

I do believe this would help you a lot. It certainly helped me.

It's the most important feature to me and I'm already missing it on my LG G2.

 

[sze5003]

How does the screen look outside? One of the reasons I ultimately decided against the N6 was that the screen didn't seem very bright and I read multiple reports that it was very hard to use in direct sunlight.

-KeithP

If you are outside you can turn off adaptive brightness or keep it on and it will auto adjust. Its bright enough for me. If I turn off adaptive brightness, its too damn bright even at 25-30%.

 

[Sheninat0r]

How does the screen look outside? One of the reasons I ultimately decided against the N6 was that the screen didn't seem very bright and I read multiple reports that it was very hard to use in direct sunlight.

-KeithP

saw two of my friends' nexus 6s, they are terrible, just barely readable in bright sun. it's really as bad as they say. this was compared to my note 4 on basic (srgb) screen mode and adaptive brightness/backlight off.

 

[riahc3]

Did you say the Nexus 6 has a good camera?

Compared to what?

 

[MrSquished]

OP, you seem to be going through a phone a year, is this correct?

a year and a bit yes

 

[MrSquished]

Did you say the Nexus 6 has a good camera?

Compared to what?

the dxo phone score of the nexus 6 tied with the iphone 6 plus, which is rated highet overall (when you combine the video results, the lower nexus score of 78 lowers it to 6th best overall)

so it is essentiallyy tied for top camera in smartphones according to a very good source. i don't care much for video and it's not like the video is bad either.

 

[MrSquished]

the dxo phone score of the nexus 6 tied with the iphone 6 plus, which is rated highet overall (when you combine the video results, the lower nexus score of 78 lowers it to 6th best overall)

so it is essentiallyy tied for top camera in smartphones according to a very good source. i don't care much for video and it's not like the video is bad either.

pardon, it's actually the 3rd best camera on dXo, just behind the iPhone 6 plus and iPhone 6. i've been using it, it's fantastic. best android phone camera out right now actually.

also i was just out in very bright sunlight, it's not hard to see the screen at 100% brightness outside, it's just not as good as some of the competition and of course an IPS display.

 

[dawheat]

pardon, it's actually the 3rd best camera on dXo, just behind the iPhone 6 plus and iPhone 6. i've been using it, it's fantastic. best android phone camera out right now actually.

also i was just out in very bright sunlight, it's not hard to see the screen at 100% brightness outside, it's just not as good as some of the competition and of course an IPS display.

Is there some different list? Seems like it's ranked behind the S5, Z3, and Z2. While those cameras are decent, I've found the iPhone 6 Plus to have a noticeably better camera in regular use (i.e. you pull it out and snap). They also seem to not have tested a bunch of recent phones.

http://www.dxomark.com/Phones/Column-right/Mobile-rating

On one hand, all smartphone cameras have gotten pretty good and with OIS, even low light is OK in the Nexus 6. But IMO the every day difference in all conditions, is quite a bit bigger between the Nexus 6 and 6 Plus than the scores imply. However the only important thing is that you're happy with the performance and again, I'm guessing most 2014 flagship buyers are going to be.

I've found the Nexus 6 display to be a little worse than the Note 3 in outdoor conditions, though still readable. Not IPS or Note 4 level, but acceptable.

 

[MrSquished]

Is there some different list? Seems like it's ranked behind the S5, Z3, and Z2. While those cameras are decent, I've found the iPhone 6 Plus to have a noticeably better camera in regular use (i.e. you pull it out and snap). They also seem to not have tested a bunch of recent phones.

http://www.dxomark.com/Phones/Column-right/Mobile-rating

On one hand, all smartphone cameras have gotten pretty good and with OIS, even low light is OK in the Nexus 6. But IMO the every day difference in all conditions, is quite a bit bigger between the Nexus 6 and 6 Plus than the scores imply. However the only important thing is that you're happy with the performance and again, I'm guessing most 2014 flagship buyers are going to be.

I've found the Nexus 6 display to be a little worse than the Note 3 in outdoor conditions, though still readable. Not IPS or Note 4 level, but acceptable.

those include the video score which skews the number down on the camera only score. i noted that in my earlier post which you probably didn't see.

check camera only scores. video the nexus got 74 which brought down its 81 camera score. you can find those scores in each phone's individual review.

 

[dawheat]

those include the video score which skews the number down on the camera only score. i noted that in my earlier post which you probably didn't see.

check camera only scores. video the nexus got 74 which brought down its 81 camera score. you can find those scores in each phone's individual review.

Hmm - after reading through the review, I'm not sure how their scoring really works. Android phones have had superior daylight photos for a while now due to the MP race and similar sensors. iPhones have generally always been much more usable due to their excellent/fast auto-focus and being good in both day and low light. The Note 4 is one of the few phones I've found that can go toe to toe in all conditions, though auto-focus is still slower (one area the S6 looks much better in).

Reading through both reviews on that site, the Nexus 6 camera seems just like every other Android flagship from 2014 excluding the Note 4. Great in daylight, not great in low light, and relatively slow auto focus. The Nexus 6 scoring the same as the Z3 which has issues of its own in still photos also makes their scoring system odd.

Again, not disputing the Nexus 6 has a good camera, but their samples and commentary echo the subjective experience I've had - it's good, but not great all-around as low light makes up at least 1/3 of my use. I don't even mean to argue the merits of the camera, but putting too much stock on some end score by one site seems a bit like confirmation bias.

iPhone 6 Plus low light:

Nexus 6 low light:

 

[dawheat]

I'm actually not a great fan of the Z3 camera either, especially in low light. Yes you can get good photos, but you'll have to enable night mode, have a steady hand, and it's still hit and miss. Not nearly as consistent as the 6 Plus and Note 4. So them scoring the Z3 still photos 2nd best as well just seems weird to me.

 

[MrSquished]

Hmm - after reading through the review, I'm not sure how their scoring really works. Android phones have had superior daylight photos for a while now due to the MP race and similar sensors. iPhones have generally always been much more usable due to their excellent/fast auto-focus and being good in both day and low light. The Note 4 is one of the few phones I've found that can go toe to toe in all conditions, though auto-focus is still slower (one area the S6 looks much better in).

Reading through both reviews on that site, the Nexus 6 camera seems just like every other Android flagship from 2014 excluding the Note 4. Great in daylight, not great in low light, and relatively slow auto focus. The Nexus 6 scoring the same as the Z3 which has issues of its own in still photos also makes their scoring system odd.

Again, not disputing the Nexus 6 has a good camera, but their samples and commentary echo the subjective experience I've had - it's good, but not great all-around as low light makes up at least 1/3 of my use. I don't even mean to argue the merits of the camera, but putting too much stock on some end score by one site seems a bit like confirmation bias.

iPhone 6 Plus low light:

Nexus 6 low light:

low light shooting is important to me too. not sure how they were shooting their low light shooting but they did rank it best android camera of all and my low light testing blows away anything i've seen before from android. ive used the S4, N5, HTC One m8 as my 3 previous phones.

when i get home from work i'll post some shots i took to test low light in my room the other day. camera is very important to me, once i saw how good the pics are i knew this was a keeper. otherwise i was going to wait to see the new LG phone when it comes out probably in May, or just get the Moto X and deal with crummy low light shooting.

i'm a photographer as well. www.simplyathos.com

 

[MrSquished]

 

[dawheat]

Nice pic - I assume the only light is your monitor(s)?

Honestly, my feeling is that the better photographer you are, the more you can mask the differences between phones. I think even on the S5/Note 3/Nexus 6, you can get very good low light photos if you can manage the relatively slow auto focus and can stay very steady.

My wife always makes fun of my photos as they're always worse than hers, especially in low light, as I can't keep my hands as steady. On my older phones, it was hit and miss on getting a good photo, though eventually I could.

The Note 4 and iPhone 6 Plus make it much more idiot proof - you point and press and most of the time get a pretty good low light photo. My low light photos have gotten much better than my older phones (Note 3, S4, OPO) b/c it takes me out of the equation.

 

[MrSquished]

Nice pic - I assume the only light is your monitor(s)?

Honestly, my feeling is that the better photographer you are, the more you can mask the differences between phones. I think even on the S5/Note 3/Nexus 6, you can get very good low light photos if you can manage the relatively slow auto focus and can stay very steady.

My wife always makes fun of my photos as they're always worse than hers, especially in low light, as I can't keep my hands as steady. On my older phones, it was hit and miss on getting a good photo, though eventually I could.

The Note 4 and iPhone 6 Plus make it much more idiot proof - you point and press and most of the time get a pretty good low light photo. My low light photos have gotten much better than my older phones (Note 3, S4, OPO) b/c it takes me out of the equation.

you are correct, just the monitor was the light. and you can read everything on that snapple bottle crystal clear.

which phone do you have?

 

[dawheat]

you are correct, just the monitor was the light. and you can read everything on that snapple bottle crystal clear.

which phone do you have?

I currently have the Note 4, wife has the iphone 6. I've recently owned the S5, Note 3, OPO, and G2. My work also has a bunch of devices for internal testing including the 6 Plus and Nexus 6.

 

[MrSquished]

I currently have the Note 4, wife has the iphone 6. I've recently owned the S5, Note 3, OPO, and G2. My work also has a bunch of devices for internal testing including the 6 Plus and Nexus 6.

I've heard a lot of good about the Note 4 but after the S4 I want the closest to naked Android device I could get.

today I turned on my HTC One m8 that's for sale to see some apps and it felt small and quaint in my hand lol like an iphone 4 or something. i was like how did i get by on something so small for so long? how quickly we adapt. now I want nothing much smaller than the nexus 6. having such a great camera is a big deal and how fast the OS is ridiculous.

 

[sze5003]

I've heard a lot of good about the Note 4 but after the S4 I want the closest to naked Android device I could get.

today I turned on my HTC One m8 that's for sale to see some apps and it felt small and quaint in my hand lol like an iphone 4 or something. i was like how did i get by on something so small for so long? how quickly we adapt. now I want nothing much smaller than the nexus 6. having such a great camera is a big deal and how fast the OS is ridiculous.

Same here when I picked up my HTC m7. I couldn't believe how small it was compared to my nexus 6. I don't know how I used it like that lol.

 

[tuan209]

I found the N6's camera to be pretty decent.

Here was a blind comparison by Phonearena.

http://www.phonearena.com/news/Nexu...a-mile-in-our-blind-camera-comparison_id64437

 

[sweenish]

With the Nexus 6, a camera2 app will pretty much eliminate focus and shutter lag.

 

[MrSquished]

With the Nexus 6, a camera2 app will pretty much eliminate focus and shutter lag.

i use manual camera. it's super fast.

 

[looper]

Retired guy here w/ a little part-time job 3 days a week to get away from the Boss for a bit. I currently have a dumbphone, an old Moto flip from @ 2003. Ha!!

A computer home-hobbyist/PC gamer since @ '93, and have built my last 7-8 comps. This will be my first smartphone, as it's not something I 'need', but surely something I want.

The more open-ended N6 appeals to me. I'm going with Ting, as I will not need much data at all being home much of the time. I'm really looking forward to the new 'toy'.

 

[holden j caufield]

how is the reception on the n6. I heard motorola phones are best in terms of signal quality. When are they rolling out wifi calling on the n6? I keep hearing it's going to out and tested but I haven't seen it yet.

 

[sze5003]

I have advanced calling on Verizon in 5.1 but I dunno about WiFi calling. I use hangouts for that. The 5.1 update helped fix the low call quality issue in 5.01.

 

[corkyg]

If one likes big phones, why not just add a phone app to a tablet?