Google's Nexus 5 smartphone has just been announced to have updated to the latest Android 5.0.1 Lollipop update, making it the last of the Nexus devices to receive the patch.
As it stands, this update is available as a sideloaded installation that you can do manually if you're more of an advanced user, or you can wait a few days for the OTA (over-the-air) notification to pop up. Both Sprint and T-Mobile say that the OTA roll-out should happen by the end of the week for their customers.
The update's build number is the same as the others' (LRX22C), which has some wondering what took so long for the Nexus 5. But while the Nexus 5 is the last numerical model to get the small update, users of the 2012 and 2013 editions of the Nexus 4 are still waiting for that Lollipop update. But this is pretty typical for a traditional staggered Android release.
The Nexus 5, codenamed Hammerhead, is a Google smartphone manufacturer by LG. It features 2.26 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor with 2 GB of RAM and either 16 or 32 GB of storage. During the Nexus 5's launch, it was the first device to come standard with Android 4.4 Kitkat, but is now fully upgradeable to the latest version of Android 5.0.1.
The phone also features a 8 megapixel rear camera, 1.3 megapixel front camera, Qi wireless charging, a 4.95-inch 1080p screen, dual microphones, and much more.
The reception to the Nexus 5 was generally positive, with CNet giving the smartphone 4 out of 5 stars and the site voting it the best tech product of December 2013. Engadget also gave high praises to the Nexus 5, focusing on its value most of all.
"When you're shopping for a smartphone, what do you expect to get for less than $400 without a contract? Certainly not a top-of-the-line device, right? Until recently, that kind of price has been reserved for devices that were mid-range at best, or entry-level at worst," Engadget's Brad Molen writes in his review from last year. "Ever since the gorgeous and powerful Nexus 4 came out last year for $300 on the Play Store, however, it's been clear Google is trying to give the high-end, $600-plus Android flagships a run for their money. Now the company's back with the Nexus 5, a power user's dream that sells for $350 and features some of the same specs you'd expect to see in a top-shelf device."
But while the phone's reception was positive, some can't help but go on a bit of a rant over the incremental updates to the Android mobile platform itself.
"I honestly didn't mind sitting on a nice, stable 4.4.4, waiting for the 5.0 upgrade, but it was absolutely unforgivable to make that upgrade so horribly dysfunctional and then make us wait days to weeks (depending on when you got your OTA upgrade) so long on the fixes that came with 5.0.1," Nexus community member Dan Ramos wrote on Google+, as reported by Computer World. "It's still buggy but at least it's tolerable now--but I don't feel particularly thankful because it STILL feels like they took what had been a wonderful, reliable and solid 4.4.4 Kit Kat and replaced it with an awkward and still terribly buggy Lollipop.
"I'm thankful for at least fixing my battery problems and resource/multitasking issues... so far. I'm still keeping a nervous eye on that. Thanks, I guess."
But on the plus side, Gotta Be Mobile's Adam Mills had a few nice things to say about 5.0.1. "Developers have done an outstanding job releasing timely bug fix updates and Android 5.0 compatibility updates and that's made the transition from Android 4.4 to Android 5.0 pretty smooth. I can say the same for Android 5.0 to Android 5.0.1, at least for the moment. I've gone through all of my applications, I have about 50, and I haven't run into any major problems."
