Getting a new phone...

[dragonblood9999]

i was thinking of getting ether the Nexus 5 or the HTC One, but i am not 2 sure on what to get.
what do you guy thing i should get and y

 

[zRussian]

Personally I like the Nexus 5 over the HTC One because the interface is nice and simple.

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

It's really up to what your preferences are. However, here's a link to a comparison of the two phones, perhaps it'll help your decision.

http://www.phonearena.com/phones/compare/Google-Nexus-5,HTC-One/phones/8148,7678

 

[Foxi4]

It's an Android - sooner or later you'll customize the hell out of it, so the built-in interface has little relevance. Go by the specs sheet and benchmarks, if anything.

HTC One:

• Quad-Core 1.7GHz Krait 300 CPU
• Adreno 320 GPU
• 2GB RAM
• 32 GB Internal Storage «

Nexus 5:

• Quad-Core 2.26GHz Krait 400 CPU «
• Adreno 330 GPU «
• 2GB RAM
• 16GB Internal Storage

CPU Comparison
Ladies and gentlemen, Nexus 5 is the clear winner.

 

[Flame]

get a Nexus 5, because in the long term its the better choice by which google will update its software for 2 years or so, HTC one is like 18 months. its will get better support from the hacking community(by it being a nexus phone.). it has the better specs.

 

[BORTZ]

No consideration for the iPhone? What, you're not made of money, and you dont want a locked down piece of hardware?

 

[PityOnU]

i was thinking of getting ether the Nexus 5 or the HTC One, but i am not 2 sure on what to get.
what do you guy thing i should get and y

I was big on the Nexus devices as they are just stock Android so you can compile and flash updates from AOSP yourself.

However, I recently got a Moto X, and as far as I can tell, that's not really as important as I thought it was.

No matter what Android phone you get, they are all Android compatible, which means the underlying OS hasn't been changed. Sure, a lot of them like HTC, Samsung, and even Motorola (to an extent) have "custom builds" of Android, but really all that means is they've changed the interface a little and thrown in some extra .apk's here and there, so you can remove it all yourself and be back to stock anyway with just a bit of effort.

Personally, I'd go with the HTC One, if only for the reason it has those front-facing speakers. I can tell you how much it pisses me off trying to watch DS9 on my Moto X with its single speaker on the back. I have to max out the volume to anywhere close to hear what's going on.

 

[Chocolina]

Here are some Pros and Cons from someone who doesn't give a fuck about the camera.

HTC One:
+Build Quality
+Sound Quality (Boom sound making it the best speakers on a phone)
-Hardware power
+Size and weight (I like a phone with weight)
-Temperature
-Cost

Nexus 5
+Superior hardware
+Never gets warmer than luke warm
+Nexus experience and update support
+Cost of performance to the dollar
-An ok speaker
-Light and plastic (Feels better in my hand with a case)

Basically with the HTC One you get a premium experience, and pay premium price, but with the Nexus 5 you get a premium experience without having to pay the premium price. Nexus 5 isn't the best phone of 2013 as much as it is the best deal of 2013.

Before you make your decision, the HTC M8, HTC One's codenamed successors is expected to release between now and mid-March. This is essentially a modern upgrade to the HTC One, think of it as an HTC One with Nexus 5 or better specs. I WOULD DEFINITELY WAIT A MONTH. #1 I would DEFINITELY pick Nexus 5 over HTC One currently, but I would also DEFINITELY pick 2014's HTC One+ (Rumored name) over Nexus 5. Because if you pick the HTC One now, in one month you'll probably see the new HTC one and hate yourself for not waiting. #2 When the new HTC One does hit the market, the old 2013 model of the HTC One will likely drop $100 easy, if not, $150-$200.

One last thing, the HTC One has Snap600, the Nexus 5 and upcoming HTC One+ have Snap800, but it's likely that the Samsung Galaxy S5 will have the new-just-announced-Snap805 which has 30-40% boost in GPU power, and the clock raises from 2.2 to 2.5Ghz. This is the next dream-specs for the emulator enthusiast who want better PSP emulation, and to see how far the new chipset will take Gamecube emulation. I myself will be selling my Nexus 5 for the 1st device to have the Snap805 processor, even though I long for HTC One's Boom Sound.

If you don't crave power, but looks and sound, get HTC One
If you crave power get Nexus 5 (What I currently own)
If you crave power and want good speakers, wait for HTC One+ (What I want)
If you want to save money, get Nexus 5.
If you want to save money and have a metal phone, wait for HTC One price drop.
If you want the next generation of processor, wait for phone with Snap805. (What I'm actually going to get)

If only the HTC One+ had Snap805, this eould be a no-brainer.

 

[Chocolina]

Personally, I'd go with the HTC One, if only for the reason it has those front-facing speakers. I can tell you how much it pisses me off trying to watch DS9 on my Moto X with its single speaker on the back. I have to max out the volume to anywhere close to hear what's going on.

This is why I so desperately want HTC One, because the front facing amplified speakers just seemed like common sense to me that I wish everyone would copy. I'm tired of having to cup my hands, on max audio, to make out the words in video clips or music.

The only thing keeping me from going HTC One is the Snap600 processor. If the HTC Max had a Snap 800, it would be my dream phone. The HTCOne+ answered my prayers until the confirmed specs came after Snap805 announcement and was said not to be in the new HTC.

 

[PityOnU]

This is why I so desperately want HTC One, because the front facing amplified speakers just seemed like common sense to me that I wish everyone would copy. I'm tired of having to cup my hands, on max audio, to make out the words in video clips or music.

The only thing keeping me from going HTC One is the Snap600 processor. If the HTC Max had a Snap 800, it would be my dream phone. The HTCOne+ answered my prayers until the confirmed specs came after Snap805 announcement and was said not to be in the new HTC.

Coming from my Moto X, which is apparently a weaker device with a dual-core 1.8GHz processor (don't know the make or anything, you can probably look it up if interested), I have yet to find any applications that it can't max-out graphics wise (was just playing Minecraft PE with everything maxxed). Media playback has also been super smooth. I was watching a Blu-Ray rip of a movie after first getting it (was it "Elysium"? Can't remember) and it had no difficulty at all.

I think the processing power in modern mobile devices has outpaced the actual applications. I wouldn't worry to much about the apparently "weaker" CPU. Just remove all the BS bloatware it comes with and you should be golden.

 

[Chocolina]

Coming from my Moto X, which is apparently a weaker device with a dual-core 1.8GHz processor (don't know the make or anything, you can probably look it up if interested), I have yet to find any applications that it can't max-out graphics wise (was just playing Minecraft PE with everything maxxed). Media playback has also been super smooth. I was watching a Blu-Ray rip of a movie after first getting it (was it "Elysium"? Can't remember) and it had no difficulty at all.

I think the processing power in modern mobile devices has outpaced the actual applications. I wouldn't worry to much about the apparently "weaker" CPU. Just remove all the BS bloatware it comes with and you should be golden.

Everything you said is mostly true. Mobile ARM processes advance faster than the software devs are able to keep up.
For the last 18 months give or take, ARM processors have been in a comfortable state for most people's applications and use it.
Frankly speaking you didn't need that SnapS4 to check your Gmail or play Asphalt 8 in the 1st place, but we still got it anyways, as well as the multiple advanced models and brands to follow it.

However, it being GBATemp, I'm sure Emulation is on the minds of many, and this is where the GPU, not the CPU really matters. Its not about having the fastest processor as much as it is that the best GPUs happen to be on the fastest processors. Obviously you don't need much power for GBA, SNES, N64, or PSX, but there are still games and features in NDS and PSP emulation that can benefit from better/faster RAM+GPU. And emulation in my eyes, isn't about having your game in a playable state, but having your game never dip below 100% speed in the first place. With more power, the less things you have to sacrifice like sounds, colors, and frames, and the more you get to gain like Turbo, filters, buffers, and recording. But outside of emulating, you don't need the extra power of those premium chipsets. I can't speak for MotoX, but there are clear differences in PSP performance between different processors. Mind you software can increase emulation effeciency, but having more powerful hardware doesn't hurt.

And another thing to keep in mind of is not only a processor's battery efficiency, but the temperature as well. Another good reason to go overpowered is future-proofing. My current star of my collection is the coolest operating device I've owned, second only to Nintendo handhelds. So if you dont need the best gpu or largest screen, Moto X would be more than sufficient for 97% of the things you can throw at it.

 

[Presto99]

My vote goes to Nexus 5! I got a 16GB like new from a local dood for $300. I was planning on paying $350/375 but it sweetened the deal. I use Google Music and unlimited T-Mobile data so I'm fine with 16GB, as I had 16 on my Nexus 4 before this. (:

In my opinion, N5 hardware and software looks much nicer than the HTC One, and the only benefit to the One is louder speakers but I'm happy with N5's as they're capable and I usually use headphones. N5 is also better future proof.