Google Nexus 5X deals and reviews

Alphr | Alan Martin, Jonathan Bray

In short, unless you're the shallow type with more money to throw around than I have, I'd advise you consider the Nexus 5X as a serious option for your next smartphone. It's no beauty, but the reasonable cost and all-round competence is a massive plus.

Expert Reviews | Jonathan Bray

The Nexus 5X was an excellent Android handset for a reasonable price; it's a shame it's gone the way of the Dodo

The Guardian | Samuel Gibbs

The Nexus 5X is a brilliant phone, the camera is excellent, the fingerprint scanner fantastic, it's snappy, has a great screen and is both light and relatively small in a smartphone.

IT PRO | Alan Lu

A high quality smartphone at a reasonable price – Google really has thrown down the gauntlet to Apple and Samsung

Android Headlines | Nick Sutrich

Simply put this is one of the finest phones of 2015 without a doubt ... While there are some areas that could be improved, like the screen quality and using both front-facing speakers in a stereo configuration, the phone is overall a perfect successor to the original Nexus 5 and will delight users who are waiting for that upgrade.

Mobile Syrup | Patrick O' Rourke

Google's latest device is ahead of the competition, even when compared to the superb Moto X Play in terms of build quality, justifying the Nexus 5's price tag. The 5X's upgraded camera, improved build quality and impressive looking screen combine to create a smartphone package worth buying.

Ars Technica | Ron Amadeo

This year's crop of Nexus phones are devices that stand alone atop the Android ecosystem, with a combination of features you won't find anywhere else. If you're in the market for an Android phone, you've run out of excuses not to get a Nexus.

NotebookCheck | Andreas Kilian

The smartphone's primary camera shoots razor-sharp photos in bright surroundings and quickly finds the right focal point thanks to laser support. The bright dual-LED often cannot prevent the image quality from decreasing in dim light. However, image noise increases strongly without it or when the object is further away. The option of recording UHD videos is also great, but the tight storage capacity might quickly become a problem. Nexus 5X users will not have more than 32 GB; the base configuration even only offers a 16 GB flash memory.

pocketnow | Joe Levi

The Nexus 5X is very much like its 2013 predecessor in that it delivers a lot of capability for a very competitive price point, and it manages to do so while still looking fairly sharp. But the 5X is no show horse. It's the phone you toss around without worrying about scratching it up; the one you buy because it's a good deal, not because it's delivering a premium experience.

Engadget | Nicole Lee

[T]he 5X offers a lovely display, a speedy new fingerprint sensor and a surprisingly decent camera. It does falter a little with sub-optimal battery life and specs that aren't as good as its rivals, but the 5X is still a solid phone -- especially for its price.

Android Authority | Lanh Nguyen

There is no doubt that the Nexus 5X is a worthy successor to the Nexus 5, but this device faces far harder competition that anything seen by the Nexus 5. While aspects like the really good fingerprint scanner, a far improved camera, and smooth performance are fantastic to see, it isn't that difficult to find a worthy alternative either, depending on your needs.

MobileTechTalk | Chris Wallace

...the build quality is great if you don't mind polycarbonate, the screen is gorgeous if you don't need QHD, the fingerprint scanner and the camera are top notch, the battery life will get you through the day without any problem.

phoneArena | John V.

Beyond the pure Android experience, the Nexus 5X is also a reasonably spec'd smartphone in its price range. Not only that, but it manages to perform on a high level to ensure that the entire experience is seamless – never stuttering, always moving smoothly. And it's wonderful to know that it's been blessed with some high-quality gear as well, evident by its very accurate screen colors and versatile camera.

Mashable | Raymond Wong

Google's Nexus 5X offers a rock-solid Android experience, excellent cameras, and a fast fingerprint sensor, all within a reasonably-sized body for a very reasonable price. Whatever you do, don't buy the 16GB model.

The Verge | Dan Seifert

Barring few exceptions, such as the lack of wireless charging, there's very little that a Nexus 5 lover will find to complain about with the 5X. It's compact, cheap, and performs well, even if it's not the best-looking or best-feeling phone you can get.

TechSpot | Tim Schiesser

So while the Nexus 5X isn't a clear winner in the Android market, and there are some noticeable issues that keep it from true greatness, the handset is a fantastic successor to the Nexus 5 and still a worthy purchase at its asking price, even more so when discounted.

TechRadar | Matt Swider

You can operate Google's compact Nexus 5X with one hand – and it has a smaller price, too, compared with the metal Nexus 6P. Its fingerprint sensor and USB-C port take some getting used to, but it's ultimately a future-proofed phone everywhere but its memory.

Know Your Mobile | Damien McFerran

The Nexus 5X is another case of the software leading the hardware - this is a decent phone for the price but it doesn't make the striking impression the original did two years ago.

What Hi-Fi?

A good budget smartphone that does it all – and performs better (in overall terms) than its flagship alternative... For those who don't want to pay a premium price but want a smartphone that has all the cutting-edge features, the Nexus 5X is definitely worth considering.

Tom's Guide | Mike Prospero

If you're looking for a quality midrange, unlocked smartphone, the Nexus 5X should be on your short list.

Trusted Reviews | Alastair Stevenson

The Nexus 5X is a great smartphone that showcases the best of what Android Marshmallow has to offer.

S21

It's a nicely-sized, lightweight phone with a good screen. The problem is that even the 32GB version might prove to be too small. We are not happy about the battery life either. So, although the Nexus 5X is a good phone with some nice features, it's not one that we'd recommend.

Neowin | Vlad Dudau

Like I said at the very beginning, price is in the end the deciding factor. And for this price, you can't really go wrong with the Nexus 5X. However, if the phone comes with a premium, as it does in many parts of the world outside of the US, or if you're looking for an actual flagship, then its flaws start to weigh much more heavily and you might be better off looking somewhere else.

news.com.au | Harry Tucker

If you're the person who absolutely needs the best of the best, then this isn't the phone for you, it's a tiny bit slower, has a lower resolution screen and slightly worse camera than the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Note 5. But if you want a phone that runs a clean version of Android that does everything you want it to do really well at a great price, the Nexus 5X might just be the best value phone you can buy.

T3 | Matt Swider

Google's Nexus 5X is the best one-handed Android phone on a budget, given its adequate specs. It nearly matches the LG G4 on the inside with a processor that's fast enough for most people and a camera that's just as good in low light conditions.

Stuff | Andrew Williams

The Nexus 5X feels every bit the successor to the original Nexus 5. It's so overdue that the original now feels like a phone from another lifetime. It has all the phone's good bits, like great performance and smart pricing. But it also keeps a few bad bits too, like a pretty naff battery life, unambitious speaker and slightly pedestrian-feeling build.

PC Advisor | Jim Martin

The 5X is a fantastic phone overall, with excellent cameras, a good turn of speed and an excellent screen. But it's noticeably bigger than its predecessor despite the small increase in screen size, it has limited storage compared to the Nexus 6P and it lacks a couple of camera features due to the slower processor.

TechnoBuffalo | Mark Burstiner

The Nexus 5X is an excellent device for the price, a competent older brother to the 6P and a worthy successor to the classic Nexus 5. For me, with so many devices in a similar price range, what it comes down to is the features.

SlashGear | Chris Davies

Lovers of the Nexus 5 will find much of their favored device's DNA in the Nexus 5X, but there have been compromises along the path of evolution. The Nexus 5X smacks of being made to price and cynically heading off criticisms of how expensive the true Marshmallow flagship is.

The Gadget Show

While the Nexus 5X isn't the headline-grabber that Google and LG perhaps hoped for, it's still an impressive achievement and a recommended purchase for Android purists.

Pocket-lint | Elyse Betters

Overall the Nexus 5X is great in some areas, lacklustre in others. But it's a Nexus - and boy oh boy, do we love Nexus. However, the larger Nexus 6P offers much more, albeit on a much larger scale.

NDTV Gadgets | Jamshed Avari

The Nexus 5X is a great phone, but it might seem a bit too expensive.

Mobile Choice | Sunetra Chakravarti

It is a great phone but the world of mobile phones has leapt forward since the Nexus 5 was unleashed and when you see other manufacturers paring back their hitherto heavy Android skins and driving down prices, you realise that it is a tough world out there even for Google.

CNET UK | Sean Hollister

The LG-built Google Nexus 5X is a fantastic pick for people who want a relatively small, lightweight smartphone with excellent value for money.

The Journal | Quinton O'Reily

A good mid-range successor to the Nexus 5 but it's not the jump many were expecting... Yet the Nexus 5 is cheaper and a more manageable size so if you're intent on getting a Nexus device, you have to consider which is more important: convenience of use, or an improvement in specs.

AnandTech | Brandon Chester

The Nexus 5X certainly isn't a perfect device. It's not meant to be a flagship phone and it's not priced like one;...it's not the most expensive phone out there, but it's not exactly the cheapest one either. Still, I find myself really liking it despite its flaws. I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for the original Nexus 5, and I was quite disappointed when it didn't receive a true successor last year.

Gadgets Now | Ravi Sharma

If you are a Nexus 5 owner and want to change your phone, then Nexus 5X is a good choice. But, we warn you that the price tag is not justified considering the hardware and the RAM may prove to be too less for long-term usage.

Australian PC World | Tony Ibrahim

LG and Google have failed to recapture the magic of the Nexus 5 with its successor.

Eurogamer | Damien McFerran

For all of our grumbling, the 5X is still recommended, mainly because it's running the purest version of Android - a benefit which really cannot be overstated despite the fact that it's a long way from being the perfect smartphone in terms of tech.

Android Central | Russell Holly

When it works, using the Nexus 5X is a lot of fun. If Google can reduce these failure points we've found in using the phone for the last week, the overall quality of this phone will be improved dramatically... It's a mediocre experience with some amazing high points.

AndroidPit | Eric Herrmann

The pool of good alternatives - at fairer prices – has grown considerably since the original Nexus 5, and now the only people likely to buy the Nexus 5X are die-hard Google fans. To everyone else, this phone might pass by unnoticed.

Digital Trends | Jeffrey Van Camp

There's a lot to love about the Nexus 5X, but poor battery life bars the affordable phone from our recommended list.