Image Quality

All of the sample images in this review were taken using the 8 megapixel JPEG setting, which gives an average image size of around 2Mb.

The Google Nexus 5 produced images of very good quality during the review period. Although you can't manually set the ISO speed, the Nexus 5 controls noise very well from 100-800, although it does tend to set the ISO to 100 whenever it can and rely on the optical image stabilisation system to try and maintain sharpness.

Chromatic aberrations were well controlled, with limited purple fringing effects appearing in high contrast situations. The 8 megapixel images were a little soft straight out of the camera at the default sharpen setting and require some further sharpening in an application like Adobe Photoshop, as you can't change the in-camera sharpening level. Macro performance is fine, allowing you to focus as close as 15cms away from the subject.

The built-in flash worked well indoors, with no red-eye and good overall exposure, but the maximum shutter speed doesn't allow the camera to capture enough light for most after-dark situations. The HDR+ modes works well to extract more detail from the shadows and highlights, while the Panaorama and innovative Photoshere shooting modes help to literally capture the scene around you.

Noise

The Google Nexus 5's ISO range is 100-3200, but the speed cannot be set manually. Here are some 100% crops which show the noise levels for some of the ISO settings.

ISO 100 (100% Crop)	ISO 200 (100% Crop)
ISO 300 (100% Crop)	ISO 774 (100% Crop)
ISO 965 (100% Crop)	ISO 1329 (100% Crop)
ISO 2461 (100% Crop)

Focal Range

The Google Nexus 5's fixed lens provides a focal length of 30.4mm in 35mm terms, as demonstrated below.

30.4mm

Sharpening

Here are two 100% crops which have been Saved as Web - Quality 50 in Photoshop. The right-hand image has had some sharpening applied in Photoshop. The out-of-the camera images are just a little soft at the default sharpening setting and benefit from some further sharpening in a program like Adobe Photoshop. You can't change the in-camera sharpening level.

Original (100% Crop)	Sharpened (100% Crop)

Chromatic Aberrations

The Google Nexus 5 handled chromatic aberrations very well during the review, with limited purple fringing mainly present around the edges of objects in high-contrast situations, as shown in the example below.

Chromatic Aberrations (100% Crop)

Macro

The Google Nexus 5 allows you to focus on a subject that is 15cms away from the camera. The first image shows how close you can get to the subject (in this case a compact flash card). The second image is a 100% crop.

Macro	Macro (100% Crop)

Flash

The flash settings on the Google Nexus 5 are Off, On and Auto. These shots of a white coloured wall were taken at a distance of 1.5m.

Flash Off (30.4mm)	Flash On (30.4mm)

And here are a couple of portrait shots.

Flash Off	Flash On

Night

The Google Nexus 5 doesn't have a very long maximum shutter speed and you can't set it manually anyway, which is not great news if you're seriously interested in night photography.

Night	Night (100% Crop)

HDR+

The High Dynamic Range+ setting captures more contrast than a single exposure can handle by combining multiple exposures into one image.

Off	On

Panorama

The Google Nexus 5 allows you to take panoramic images very easily, by 'sweeping' with the camera. The camera automatically does all the processing and stitching.

Photosphere

In Photo Sphere mode, you can photograph the world around you, creating fully immersive 360-degree panoramas, wide-angle scenic shots, and even what's above and below you.

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Google Nexus 5 camera, which were all taken using the 8 megapixel JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample Movie & Video

Product Images

Front of the Google Nexus 5

Front of the Google Nexus 5 / Turned On

Front of the Google Nexus 5 / Home Screen

Front of the Google Nexus 5 / Apps Screen

Front of the Google Nexus 5 / Camera

Front of the Google Nexus 5 / Camera

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / Shooting Modes

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / Settings

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / More Settings

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / Scene Mode

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / Video Settings

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / Video Settings Menu

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / Panorama Mode

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / Photosphere Mode

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / Front-facing Camera

Rear of the Google Nexus 5 / Gallery App

Conclusion

The Google Nexus 5 may be one of the cheapest flagship Android smartphones on the market, but it's also a very capable one given the price. With the recent 4.4.2 update installed, it efficiently takes good photos too, thanks largely to good noise performance at higher ISO speeds, an effective optical image stabilisation system, and the very useful HDR+ option. The main drawback for keen photographers is the lack of manual controls - this really is very much a point and shoot device - but the Google Nexus 5 usually delivers good enough results for daily shooting.

Prior to the 4.4.2 update, the Nexus 5's camera took at least a couple of seconds to focus on the subject and take the picture, and it annoyingly refocused every time you tapped the screen. With the update, that's thankfully no longer an issue, now taking less than a second to focus and snap, and the HDR+ mode and general speed of the camera app are a lot quicker too, making shooting with the Nexus 5 an altogether more pleasurable experience and importantly on a par with its main rivals. We hope to see further improvements made to the rather cumbersome camera app user interface in due course.

The Google Nexus 5 still doesn't offer the most photographer-friendly smartphone camera, but the recent update is at least a step in the right direction, and with rumours that Google is working on adding advanced features like RAW support to Android, who knows what the future might hold? As it stands today, though, the Nexus 5 with the most recent Android update delivers a solid point-and-shoot camera experience that produces very good results most of the time, which is probably what the majority of its target audience wants from a smartphone.

Ratings (out of 5)
Design	4
Features	4
Ease-of-use	3.5
Image quality	4.5
Value for money	5

Main Rivals

Listed below are some of the rivals of the Google Nexus 5.

Review Roundup

Reviews of the Google Nexus 5 from around the web.

Specifications

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