Nexus 6
Nexus 6 Screenshot from YouTube Video

The Google Nexus 6 release date is more likely to happen in the second half of 2014, as hinted by Android chief Sundar Pichai, and the latest clue - U.S. telco Verizon is reportedly set to issue the LG-built Nexus 5 rather belatedly.

This according to Android-centric site Droid Life, which hinted in an online poll that last year's Nexus smartphone is finally coming to Verizon, specifically the red variant.

It appears that the same report took its cue from Verizon's recent decision to offer the LTE Nexus 7 2013 model last February. The move seems suggestive of the service provider's willingness to bring the Nexus mobile phone experience to its American subscribers.

If the lead pans out into something more concrete, then Verizon will make many Android fans using its communication infra very happy. Strangely, the company decided to skip the Nexus 4 too so having the Nexus 5 around, even at a very late stage, should be a welcome development for Verizon customers.

Already a steal for gadget deal hunters out there, the Nexus 5 on Verizon is likely to further pull down its suggested retail price with a mandatory contract agreement.

However, the more exciting aspect of the news is the likelihood that the Nexus 5 successor, the Nexus 6, is heading to the market very soon. As analysts would always reason, when a soon-to-exit device is becoming more visible and getting interesting significant price cuts, then the replacement should be just around the corner.

The Nexus 6, according to Pichai, is a shoo-in for rollout in the second half of 2014. The Google VP ruled out the possibility of an earlier unwrapping for the next Nexus mobile phone while speaking at the recently concluded 2014 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.

Speculations abound on when the exact date that the handset is coming out. Many believe a preview is shaping up in time for Google's annual I/O Developers Conference that the tech giant will stage from June 24 to 25 in San Francisco, California.

Though there are whispers that Google will instead preview Android 4.5 via the event and allow a glimpse of first device to showcase the vanilla mobile OS. The more popular guess is Nexus 8, which replaces the Nexus 7.

If true, then the Google flagship phone could silently hit the Google Play Store, going live in the weeks that will follow the I/O gathering.

Prior to that, Google must first choose who among LG, Lenovo and Motorola will make the device that is touted as rival for the Samsung Galaxy S5 and iPhone 6.

The target release date for the Nexus 6 is between August and September 2014, bearing a 64-bit quad-core Snapdragon chip, a 5.2-inch screen with Q-HD display panel and a 16MP rear cam shooter.