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Is Nexus 5 worth buying for using till Q2 2018?

Hey Guys , so after selling my Xiaomi Redmi 2 a week back I was looking for a new phone with great community support. I am getting the used Nexus 5 (32GB) for around 80$ in my country India. So my question is the device still worth it ?
How is the battery life , camera (both front and back) and gaming performance with nougat roms ? Can I get the camera samples ?
Thanks in advanced.

I believe the new Pixel camera wont function on the N5 due to some technical difficulties and hardware limitations, and the Nougat ROMs are all ports since there was no official release for the N5, which has a limitation regarding CDMA, I.E. - Sprint and Sprint MVNOs will NOT work on any of the Android 7 ROMs. As for battery life, the N5 was never known to be very good in this department, although many custom kernels address this issue, amd as far as the N5 rear camera, lets just say it was always said that it could have been better, and now, 4 years after the release of the N5, it is definitely obsolete. But the N5 was a phone aimed to give flagship performance at a bargain price, so corners HAD to be cut in places... No SD card is one more such area. My thoughts are this.... It has a Snapdragon 800, 2Gb RAM, and either 16 or 32Gb memory... These 3 facts are the biggies, and the N5 STILL outperforms almost ALL bargain phones today. Just the processor alone makes it worth the money, as well as the cordless charging, unlocked BL, and MultiROM custom recovery. One last thing though, the N5 was made back when the OS was less than 1Gb, much less, so you could install lots of system apps, the current Android 7 OS is barely under 1Gb WITHOUT any of the bigger GAPPS zips. The N5 is capped at 1Gb for your OS files, sooooo, you wont be able to flash an OS/GAPPS that is over 1Gb in size, you might want to take that into consideration before you buy a phone which still outperforms most new non-flagship devices, but is nontheless still obsolete. Good luck, hope this helped.

rocketrazr1999 said:
I believe the new Pixel camera wont function on the N5 due to some technical difficulties and hardware limitations, and the Nougat ROMs are all ports since there was no official release for the N5, which has a limitation regarding CDMA, I.E. - Sprint and Sprint MVNOs will NOT work on any of the Android 7 ROMs. As for battery life, the N5 was never known to be very good in this department, although many custom kernels address this issue, amd as far as the N5 rear camera, lets just say it was always said that it could have been better, and now, 4 years after the release of the N5, it is definitely obsolete. But the N5 was a phone aimed to give flagship performance at a bargain price, so corners HAD to be cut in places... No SD card is one more such area. My thoughts are this.... It has a Snapdragon 800, 2Gb RAM, and either 16 or 32Gb memory... These 3 facts are the biggies, and the N5 STILL outperforms almost ALL bargain phones today. Just the processor alone makes it worth the money, as well as the cordless charging, unlocked BL, and MultiROM custom recovery. One last thing though, the N5 was made back when the OS was less than 1Gb, much less, so you could install lots of system apps, the current Android 7 OS is barely under 1Gb WITHOUT any of the bigger GAPPS zips. The N5 is capped at 1Gb for your OS files, sooooo, you wont be able to flash an OS/GAPPS that is over 1Gb in size, you might want to take that into consideration before you buy a phone which still outperforms most new non-flagship devices, but is nontheless still obsolete. Good luck, hope this helped.
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Thanx for your reply mate.

i will say go for it.. The only thing i had against the phone was its battery.. in the stock os, battery life is terrible.. But since flashing the unofficial hammerhead caf lineage os by phoval, i hav started loving the phone again coz the battery life has become manageable.. i plan to keep it atleast till 2019.. @Battlecreed5

neojith said:
i will say go for it.. The only thing i had against the phone was its battery.. in the stock os, battery life is terrible.. But since flashing the unofficial hammerhead caf lineage os by phoval, i hav started loving the phone again coz the battery life has become manageable.. i plan to keep it atleast till 2019.. @Battlecreed5
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I'm a long time user but getting really annoyed with the worsening battery life. Where can I find out more about unofficial hammerhead caf roms and how to install them. Does it allow using Xposed?

Switched on My N5 after a long time. It still runs smoother & faster than some of my 2016 mid-range devices. I'm loving the performance:victory:. For me the only con is it's camera(Lol I didn't bought N5 for camera) & battery backup (managing somehow):silly: The device is good but you can get better devices than this at this time!!:highfive:

neojith said:
i will say go for it.. The only thing i had against the phone was its battery.. in the stock os, battery life is terrible.. But since flashing the unofficial hammerhead caf lineage os by phoval, i hav started loving the phone again coz the battery life has become manageable.. i plan to keep it atleast till 2019.. @Battlecreed5
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Agreed, changing to a battery conservative ROM will help, as will a custom kernel. Unfortunately I made too many performance enhancements with Ex Kernel, like over clocking the CPU from 2.2 to 2.3, which negated any battery saving settings. Now I just Fast Charge it and let Ex Kernel do its thing in Battery Saver mode when it gets low.

I just did the same thing - last month I bought a N5 for dirt cheap and it runs great. I just yesterday put PureNexus ROM on it so that I can have 7.1.1. I am amazed at how smoothly it runs. While it will not replace my N6 as my daily driver, it is a more than capable phone still.

Fvolfrine said:
I just did the same thing - last month I bought a N5 for dirt cheap and it runs great. I just yesterday put PureNexus ROM on it so that I can have 7.1.1. I am amazed at how smoothly it runs. While it will not replace my N6 as my daily driver, it is a more than capable phone still.
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Please help me out. I have a rooted nexus 5 running stock 5.1.1 but I have no experience with other roms. Where do I find them? PureNexus ROM and others.

maybeme2 said:
Please help me out. I have a rooted nexus 5 running stock 5.1.1 but I have no experience with other roms. Where do I find them? PureNexus ROM and others.
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Deep inhale....
Ok, here we go. The Nexus 5 Android Development section of the forums is the best source of information for that. Here you will find popular original ROMs like PureNexus, Resurrection Remix, Nitrogen OS, and more. As to which one to use, that is kind of a personal preference. Each ROM offers a unique experience.
Additionally, more ROMs can be found in the Nexus 5 Original Android Development section of the forums. Here you will find ROMs based on other ROMs, primarily stock-like ROMs like LineageOS (previously Cyanogenmod), as well as custom recoveries and kernels.
You can also stick with stock, 6.0.1 is available directly from Google - it is a nice upgrade over your 5.1.1 stock setup.
If you are unfamiliar with flashing ROMs, might I suggest starting with this guide on how to unlock your bootloader (which you probably have already done since you have root), how to install a custom recovery like TWRP. Once this is done, you are open to the world of customization.
Please let me know if I can be of any more help.
Deep exhale....

Thank you. That's what I needed. Where I should go to find out more.
I'm already rooted. Just have not tried other roms.

maybeme2 said:
Thank you. That's what I needed. Where I should go to find out more.
I'm already rooted. Just have not tried other roms.
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Visit each ROMs thread. Watch YouTube reviews. Or just flash some for yourself and try different ones out. I loved cyanogenmod nut haven't tried out LineageOS yet. I'm on PureNexus on this N5 I am currently using because a lot of people on XDA recommended it.
What kind of thing now are you looking for in a ROM?

Something that would give me more battery life and yet be stable. I also use xposed which may be a hindrance as it only works with pure stock Android.

maybeme2 said:
Something that would give me more battery life and yet be stable. I also use xposed which may be a hindrance as it only works with pure stock Android.
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As xposed is not currently available to Nougat, you'll probably be best sticking with a Marshmallow based ROM, maybe even stock.
I can tell you that a ROM like Pure Nexus has a lot of features built into the ROM similar to what many modules from xposed offer - for me, it is a no brainer to have the text in place of a battery icon in the status bar. Also, Nougat has a restart built-in to the ROM, so that solves the other problem I had with stock Android. Just give it a whirl!

Question thinking of buying

Yes I read reviews.
I owned a Oneplus One years ago and I gave up waiting for an upgrade and bought something else.
I here that OnePlus is better at upgrading today than they were four years ago. Is this true ?
Like I said I read and I know OnePlus 6 has available an Oxygen Beta (Android Pie) but it has not been officially released ? Is true if I buy a device I may need to wait several months until they Officially release Android Pie.
Now I know you will say just run the Beta it is stable but here is the make of break question I need Android Pay and Wear OS. My experience tells me if I flash a Beta required apps like Android Pay and Wear OS may stop working.
If I buy today I think the safe thing will be to wait for Oxygen OS (Android Pie) to be released. Customer ROMs or Beta OS will break for sure Android Pay.
Other than hating to wait for official releases this device looks fine.
No wireless charging sucks but I can live without it.
The Pixel camera maybe better but I read the OnePlus 6 camera is not bad
The OnePlus 6T will be out in November but ..... THERE IS ALWAYS A NEW DEVICE around the corner. Wait for the OnePlus 6T..... oh but it a few months this will be released.
This device gives better value for the dollar.

Android pay is not working in Beta, you should read the OP forum in the beta thread to see all the things being said.
The 6T rumor is that it will come with Pie installed but since it isn't out yet nobody knows if it will really be installed out from the gate.
Personally, I think Oxygen OS is a mess and from what I see on the threads for Pie, they're just patching it yet again and putting a new UI on it over starting from scratch. All they keep doing is carrying over bugs from previous versions and then trying to re-patch them again for either the new device model and/or new Android system. Considering treble is now installed on both the 5 and 6, IMO they should have started fresh and should have been working on coding an entirely new OS 2 years ago.
If I were you, I would wait until Pie is released in the fall and see how it goes and what the complaints are before buying anything.

Official Pie has been released, you can already download the firmware and flash it.
As for updates and kernel source upload speed, the OP6 gets both the fastest among all devices I had.
As for taking pics, use the gcam port for great picture quality and the oos cam for [email protected] recording.

The Official build for Android pie has been released today which is nice as it took only about 1.5 months after Google released it themselves.

Thanks I jumped on a sale, and ordered one.
I am not even sure at this point I care about the Pixel, it may have a better camera but I am sure ordering the One Plus 6 I saved hundreds of dollars.

The OP 6T is set to be released in the next couple months. Unless you're in need of a headphone jack, I'd wait to get the latest version.

floridaman said:
Android pay is not working in Beta, you should read the OP forum in the beta thread to see all the things being said.
The 6T rumor is that it will come with Pie installed but since it isn't out yet nobody knows if it will really be installed out from the gate.
Personally, I think Oxygen OS is a mess and from what I see on the threads for Pie, they're just patching it yet again and putting a new UI on it over starting from scratch. All they keep doing is carrying over bugs from previous versions and then trying to re-patch them again for either the new device model and/or new Android system. Considering treble is now installed on both the 5 and 6, IMO they should have started fresh and should have been working on coding an entirely new OS 2 years ago.
If I were you, I would wait until Pie is released in the fall and see how it goes and what the complaints are before buying anything.
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... That's not how android works .. even less since treble... You don't simply "patch" your Android version up to date, especially when it's a major revision that is changed. Most oftenly they start from scratch with some cherry picks. And rebuild blobs whenever necessary... files come from AOSP in it's normal form, then every time android releases a new version, this has to be merged with the current existing release yes, but that means that every difference from x that y has changes into x (x being the updated file, any of em, Y Being the old, already installed one)... Bringing something on /system over from one of the earlier oos, to a newer oos, would break alot. I mean.. we can't even run ob3 custom kernels on GM pie... Because changes... Having something stick around doesn't mean it hasn't been touched, porting is another thing, and there is also maybe a chance that it's the same group of devs handling this as it was back then. It's still oneplus. Also. Oos isnt nearly as bad as you make it sound.. Oos is by far the best fork of Android I've seen launched as an OEM specific android experience, and I've seen alot of phones. Simply due to its close resemblance of the pure experience, with it's small addins for simplicity, performance, and ease of use. The UI is Google's own new material guideline. Not oneplus'. And there was 3 pie betas wherein other Companies reach up to 18-20 betas... Are we owning the same device?

efinityy said:
... That's not how android works .. even less since treble... You don't simply "patch" your Android version up to date, especially when it's a major revision that is changed. Most oftenly they start from scratch with some cherry picks. And rebuild blobs whenever necessary... files come from AOSP in it's normal form, then every time android releases a new version, this has to be merged with the current existing release yes, but that means that every difference from x that y has changes into x (x being the updated file, any of em, Y Being the old, already installed one)... Bringing something on /system over from one of the earlier oos, to a newer oos, would break alot. I mean.. we can't even run ob3 custom kernels on GM pie... Because changes... Having something stick around doesn't mean it hasn't been touched, porting is another thing, and there is also maybe a chance that it's the same group of devs handling this as it was back then. It's still oneplus. Also. Oos isnt nearly as bad as you make it sound.. Oos is by far the best fork of Android I've seen launched as an OEM specific android experience, and I've seen alot of phones. Simply due to its close resemblance of the pure experience, with it's small addins for simplicity, performance, and ease of use. The UI is Google's own new material guideline. Not oneplus'. And there was 3 pie betas wherein other Companies reach up to 18-20 betas... Are we owning the same device?
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I didn't say they were patching Android, I said they were patching their OS. Yes, I know they are 2 different things and I know things are working differently since treble. They can fully keep taking their Oxygen OS and throwing it over the latest version of Android and patch it to make it work with the new code, which is exactly what they've been doing. Yes, they get a guideline, that doesn't mean they are stuck doing only that and making no improvements/changes. There are literally hundreds of options they can code for, but don't.
I'm sorry, but it's not only simple, it's downright beyond basic even to what Google turns on and codes for features. Spare me the dribble of "pure android" please, it's a ridiculous mantra. I've not put the beta's on my phone but have been reading the forum and I have not yet received the stable update that has been just pushed out. But I already see some of the complaints coming in and no I'm not talking about the nonsensical postings.
If you think that OP is doing a great job on their OS, then you and I clearly have different standards. I'm glad you love it so much, to each his own in that regard.

floridaman said:
I didn't say they were patching Android, I said they were patching their OS. Yes, I know they are 2 different things and I know things are working differently since treble. They can fully keep taking their Oxygen OS and throwing it over the latest version of Android and patch it to make it work with the new code, which is exactly what they've been doing. Yes, they get a guideline, that doesn't mean they are stuck doing only that and making no improvements/changes. There are literally hundreds of options they can code for, but don't.
I'm sorry, but it's not only simple, it's downright beyond basic even to what Google turns on and codes for features. Spare me the dribble of "pure android" please, it's a ridiculous mantra. I've not put the beta's on my phone but have been reading the forum and I have not yet received the stable update that has been just pushed out. But I already see some of the complaints coming in and no I'm not talking about the nonsensical postings.
If you think that OP is doing a great job on their OS, then you and I clearly have different standards. I'm glad you love it so much, to each his own in that regard.
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To each their own indeed. And it's not a ridiculous mantra.just as countless many others, I do prefer to be able to switch over countless amounts of phone but still have the same familiar, debloated and resource friendly UI. Having to learning all the different "UX"s gets pretty dull, as soon as ie Samsung gets settled with one, they change design language. And that, for me, is a deal breaker, I don't feel like having to relearn the same basics over and over, and where I usually have to install another AOSP based ROM on ie my Xperia, HTC or Samsung. Whilst the OnePlus just has the familiarity and non-rubbish feel to it that AOSP has. But don't get me wrong, as you said, to each their own, and if it wasn't for people like you that don't want the stock feel, we wouldn't have custom kernels and/or ROMs. And I've ran all the betas except ob3 and currently run the stable... And I've yet to run into any app not loading, crashing, or features not working as intended. But I would recommend not jumping on the bandwagon as I regret doing so, until there are some more data and user reviews of the stable branch. And I'm not trusting anyone doing a forum post not being previously recognized or a proper reviewer. The stable build is solid, but it's still early to tell.

Which devices will get the longest and most stable LineageOS support?

I recently saw that the OnePlus One is one of the first devices to get a LineageOS 18.1 build. Which I found kind of surprising because it is such an old device.
I guess it could be because the stock ROM of the OnePlus One (outside of Asia) was CyanogenOS which is a proprietary fork of CyanogenMOD which is the predecessor of LineageOS. (Correct me if I'm wrong.)
But it still seems weird that newer OnePlus phones like the OnePlus 7 don't have official LineageOS 18.1 builds as of now...
I'm curious what drives the developers to support certain devices over others and if there is a way for me to be able to predict which device is going to be supported for a long time and maybe even more importantly which device is going to be the most stable.
As an example, I very much regret my purchase of the Nvidia Shield Tablet, as they stopped supporting it with 15.1 and even that version always had massive problems (UI lags 90% of the time).
As a positive example, my Oneplus 5T has always been very stable (for the most part; Bluetooth is pretty buggy) and is one of the first devices to have gotten a LineageOS 18.1 build.
(I personally don't care about unofficial builds btw because I need regular OTA security patches from a reliable and very trusted source.)
Some time ago I read an article about some sort of feature regarding the HAL (Hardware Abstraction Layer) that might make it much easier for ROMs like LineageOS to add support for them. I think it was called "treble". Maybe I should look for devices supporting that? I really don't know...
At the moment I'm looking for a new Tablet to buy. Maybe this time I can get my hands on a device that will last me longer and won't have any severe issues.

No one?

ferivon said:
No one?
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GSI roms are a thing, make sure your device has an unlockable bootloader and atleast android 9.

Well, having an unlockable bootloader is kind of obvious, isn't it? I mean if it wasn't unlockable, it wouldn't be listed on https://download.lineageos.org/
Not sure what GSI is, but I'm not looking for an alternative ROM to LineageOS.

Any outlook on future (android 12+) ROMS for the Oneplus One?

So far there was plenty of choice between roms with each android version as the years went by. Android 8 got a lot, 9 a bit less but still plenty, 10 a lot again but 11 seems to be largely skipped (at least by the major big roms). As far as i know, there is only Lineage, Graphene, Tugapower, Kali Nethunter and that's it. (there is Havoc-OS too but it's not official and has barely any features)
Of course it's still better than nothing at all to keep the opo working so i'm very thankful to the devs for that. Even android 10 will be useful for a few more years (i'm currently on RR android 8 and no issues so far even now). TWRP had an update in may 2022 which was a nice surprise, so that's pretty cool at least.
Is there any indication at all that someone is working on android 12 for the opo?
Many rom builders nowadays have their own site now. Below i found a site some time ago that has a lot of them in one place to easily keep track if any progress happens:
OnePlus One ROMs Archives
|
theunlockr.com
So far no major names like Resurrection Remix, Syberia, MSM-X, Havoc, Posp, among many others..
Correct me if i'm wrong. Maybe i missed something completely. Perhaps you guys have some interesting opinions aswell.
edit: not sure why mod moved it to here(i posted in general on purpose). it's not a technical problem but whatever, i guess knowing context is hard
edit2: even the galaxy s2 and s3 got android 12 now. If those devices can boot it, the opo (which is comparable so an s5) surely has to be capable enough. i hope someone out there is developing someting..

Oneplus 8t LineageOS

I posted this already on Reddit, but i think its already useful when posted here:
Yo guys,
just felt the need to tell people how much i love LineageOS. I have a Oneplus 8t and OxygenOS was really pissing me off. Since carl pei left, everything was going to be like oppos phones. the software was so bad and laggy, doesnt feel smooth at all and security updates and generell updates was always just bad. I was about to spend 700€ to buy the Pixel 7, but then i thougth about getting a custom rom since i love my 8t referred to the hardware.
First i installed crDroid, but i didn't get any updates at all and there were a few bugs.
So i decided to install LineageOS. And what could i say?
I absolutely love it. My 8t feels so smooth and snappy, so clean stock Android. I didn't like my phone for the last year, but now i absolutely love it. The 8ts hardware is strong, nice CPU, nice 120hz screen and LineageOS just gets the best out of it. It is just a joy to use! And i get always an update on friday and always have the latest security patch.
Its simple, its fast and its reliable. If my phone is supported in the future i can see me using this phone another long time. Thanks for that opportunity Lineage!