Phablet-Size Google Nexus 5 is Based on LG G2 with Snapdragon 800 Chip & minus Back-Button – Report
Google and LG will likely deny it but new reports from Asia have again pointed to the South Korean firm as the obvious manufacturer of the vanilla Android-powered Nexus 5.
Vietnamese tech blog site Tinhte.vn claimed in a report that Google will be using the recently unveiled G2 as the based model for the Nexus 4 replacement but with slight variations. One notable alteration is the body-build, which according to the same report will take after on last year's model.
That means the glass back-cover seen in Nexus 4 will be brought back with the new make, a move that will also eliminate the rear control buttons introduced by LG via the G2. The 5.2-inch screen size, however, will be retained, further cementing the Nexus 5's new profile as a very slim phablet that will collide head-on with the Galaxy Note 3.
The report also contradicted earlier suggestions that the Snapdragon 800 CPU installed on the LG G2 will be downgraded to a quad-core Snapdragon 600 variant. The chips configuration that hums away at 2.3GHz will stay as originally designed by G2 engineers, the Tinhte.vn claim was reported by Android Headlines as saying.
But what makes the report believable in light of LG's declarations that the Nexus 5 is not yet listed on its 2013 product catalogue? The Vietnamese site, according to CNET, has a solid track record when it comes to providing leak reports about Android gadgets.
It appears that Tinhte's credibility rests on the fact that Vietnam hosts both smartphone manufacturing facilities from both LG and Samsung, with the latter owning a sprawling complex in the country that is one of the biggest in the world.
In other words Tinhte bloggers are tapping into rich and dependable sources for their gadget scoops.
To date, Nexus 5 is shrouded in mystery as Google keeps its silence on the subject but Android watchers are inclined to believe the native Android device is coming and it has been previewed via the LG G2 that will begin rolling out next week.
The suspicion that the G2 is the Nexus 5 is further strengthened when LG has indicated that it will not issue a Google Edition of its flagship, shying away from the HTC One and Galaxy S4 versions that came out in late July.
The Nexus 5 is pegged for an early October 2013 release date, likely emerging out of the box with Key Lime Pie or Android 5.0 to become the first device to flash the upcoming build of the Google mobile OS.