Nexus 5

The Google Nexus 5 is almost upon us. After numerous rumored launch dates came and went, the fifth generation smartphone from the search giant looks to be just hours away from becoming reality.

It's hardly a closely guarded secret though and it seems like we know pretty much everything the Nexus 5 will have to offer thanks to the tsunami of leaks which have made their way onto the web. We've seen everything from early sketches to actual handsets and boxes

We've even spotted one in a Google promotional video forAndroid 4.4. KitKat.

The follow up to last year's Nexus 4, the Nexus 5 looks nailed on to be made by LG once again as the Korean firm enjoys a bit of a revival in fortunes in the mobile market.

The Nexus 5 seems set to ape the design of the new Nexus 7, while being the first handset to ship with Google's newest operating system - the aforementioned Android KitKat. Expect it to be powerful, feature filled and reasonably priced.

Nexus 5 release date

Word was that the Google-powered LG smartphone would see an October announcement with a launch a few weeks later. The leaks were so plentiful in fact, that we were pretty convinced that we'd see the new Nexus 5 by the end of October.

Early reports pointed towards the middle of October, but that date was pushed again and again, all the way to October 31, Halloween day.

The Nexus 5 launch date now appears to be nailed on for October 31 with numerous sources - including our own - citing the date as D-Day for the next Nexus handset.

Google doesn't appear to have an event planned for the Nexus 5 though, apparently opting to announce the handset on its blog instead.

We've seen November 5 offered up as a potential date in various leaks too, and while it's unlikely the announcement will be kept back until then, this could very well be the Nexus 5 release date.

Nexus 5 price

Good chance Nexus 5 will inherit original Nexus 4 pricing

The chance of the Nexus 5 inheriting the original pricing structure of its predecessor has been given a certain amount of credence after reports appeared online suggesting just that, and coupled with a price drop for the Nexus 4 it leaves the price bracket wide open..

An unnamed source leaked the information to PhoneArena in dollars and while some have made a direct conversion of the touted $299 price to around £185/AU$315, they're forgetting the taxes and other costs which are applied.

• We ask: How much will the Nexus 5 cost?

There have been seperate reports suggesting the Nexus 5 16GB and 32GB option will be priced at $299 and $399, respectively.

Higher Nexus 5 prices have been touted once again, with new rumours pointing towards a $399 (about £250, AU$420) price tag for the 16GB model, while the 32GB version may sell for $449 (about £280, AU$470). The higher price could be due to the fact LG could be working on a 4G variant of the Nexus 4, which may inherit the original's pricing structure.

Strangely, there's word that the 16GB model will have a 2,300mAh battery, whereas the 32GB version will have a 3,000mAh battery. Rumor is that they're both the same size and dimension, too. Hmm.

If Google is unable to keep its Play Store from revealing too much, we can bet that the 16GB variant of the Nexus 5 is going to cost $349. Here's to hoping a 32GB model will be available at just $449.

Nexus 5 processor and power

Rumor is that the Nexus 5 will have a 2.3GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 with 2GB RAM. That's a lot of power and memory under the hood of a smartphone and would put it head to head with the best of them.

More power: 2.3GHz quad-core chip

Apparently the Nexus 5 has destroyed the Galaxy S4 in benchmark tests, which if the specs above turn out to be true is believable.

Google may even squeeze 3GB of RAM into the Nexus 5 if one report is to be believed, but we're less inclined to believe this.

It's been said the Nexus 5 will take cues from the LG G2, which itself is a seriously impressive smartphone. One thing we can be sure of is that the new Google phone will give other Android flagships a good run for their money.

Nexus 5 operating system

Early reports suggested the Nexus 5 would turn up with Android 5.0 Key Lime Pie on board, but those rumors have since been dashed with the arrival of Android 4.4 KitKat.

KitKat is now the front runner in the race to get inside the new Nexus 5, and the latest version of Google's software is expected to launch alongside the handset.

We think the Nexus 5 even appeared in Google's own promotional video to usher in the announcement of KitKat - so it's all looking rather chocolaty at the moment.

• Find out more: Android 4.4 KitKat release date, news and rumors

Nexus 5 display

The Nexus 4 sports a 4.7-inch, 1280 x 768 display and it's thought the Nexus 5 will build on this with a slightly larger screen at a higher resolution.

4.95-inch, full HD display on the cards

This may result in the Nexus 5 sporting a full HD display, although details on the screen are a little thin on the ground at the moment.

One report claims Google will increase screen size to 4.95 inches on the Nexus 5, complete with a 1080p resolution putting it up against the Galaxy S4, HTC One and Xperia Z1.

A Canadian network has also spilled the beans on the Nexus 5, stating a4.95-inch display with an eye popping 445ppi will adorn the front of the handset.

Another reckons the Nexus 5 could even see a screen up to 5.2 inches in size, boasting OLED technology as well as a full HD resolution.

Nexus 5 design

Not surprisingly we're seeing a lot of the phone getting leaked in the wild and the Nexus 5 is no different - it's even had its own "spotted in a bar" incident.

Moreover, a phone that looks very much like the coming Google phone wasspotted at the FCC. The camera hold was as large as the module we've seen in leaked photos, so we suspect that the LG smartphone, labeled as model D820, is actually the Nexus 5.

In short it appears Google has asked LG to ape the design of the Asus-made new Nexus 7 for the Nexus 5, which would give it's 2013 product line up a lovely feeling of unity.

Nexus 5 camera

With the advancements in smartphone camera technology, the Nexus 5 really has to pick up its game as far as Nexus devices go. With that said, we're hearing that the upcoming Google phone will be the first smartphone ever to feature Lytro-like technology.

What does that mean? Here's what we said earlier: "MEMS stands for microelectromechanical technology, and it provides a number of benefits, including focusing that's seven times faster than competitive cameras.

The Nexus 5's MEMS camera also reportedly uses less power and produces less heat, plus it's smaller.

Most importantly, it may allow Nexus 5 users to magically re-focus photographs after they take them - hence the comparison to Lytro cameras."

Perhaps it just might be a neat trick in the end, but it'll be one trick the Nexus 5 has that other smartphones may not adopt for a long time. We'll see soon enough!

Other reports point towards an 8MP rear camera and 1.3MP snapper for the Nexus 5, but there's the hope it will sport something more powerful on its rear to rival the high-end handsets of today.

Images have shown up on Google+ apparently posted by Google employees and carrying EXIF data which name checks the Nexus 5 as well as an 8MP camera and HDR mode.

Wireless charging, NFC and more

Perhaps it's a novelty for some of you, but wireless charging is very convenient. And it looks like the Nexus 5 will have this feature thanks to a little digging in Android 4.4 KitKat.

It's also more than safe to assume that if a device like the Nexus 5 were to have wireless charging, it will also have NFC.

What isn't clear is whether the charging device or dock is going to be sold as part of the package with the Nexus 5, or if it's going to be a separate accessory. Right now we'll hedge our bets and go with the latter.

In terms of storage we've seen passing mentions to 16GB and 32GB in various leaks, but we're really hoping Google pulls out all the stops and offers up a 64GB variant of the Nexus 5 too - as you can be pretty sure there won't be any expandable storage option.