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I owned the original Nexus 5 phone and Nexus 7 tablet. I love both of these devices for their design but both had serious issues. The Nexus 7's storage degrade

by least 3y ago

I owned the original Nexus 5 phone and Nexus 7 tablet. I love both of these devices for their design but both had serious issues. The Nexus 7's storage degraded, which rendered the device unusably slow. I thought it was the upgrade to the next version of Android that did it, but downgrading it did not fix the issue. There's been some workarounds that made it slightly more usable but ultimately it was a serious hardware defect that made it unbearably slow to use even with these workarounds. The Nexus 5 had a bootlooping issue — I had the issue occur on my first Nexus 5, 2 weeks out of warranty. Fortunately Google was kind enough to send me a refurbished one... that shortly after had the same bootloop issue. My opinion of Google has gradually deteriorated over time to the point now where I actively avoid using anything made by Google because 1) they can't do hardware right and 2) they sunset way too many products for me to feel comfortable using them. So the promise of 7 years of OS updates on a hardware device by Google just seems empty and maybe pointless because I don't trust the device itself will continue functioning, even if the updates keep coming... which I have doubts they will. While I was still using Android, my Samsung Galaxy S6 was probably the most headache-free experience I had, even with the complete lack of feature/OS updates but as it stands, my iPhones have all been rock solid devices, so that is probably what I will continue using unless something drastic changes.

matwood 3y ago
Same. I had both those devices and at the time of purchase they were a great value contrast to the iPhone/iPad. But, after the issues you describe I went back to iPhones and never looked back. Google had a great opportunity that they squandered.
doublepg23 3y ago
Yeah I feel like Samsung has a very good value proposition in 2023. I guess my biggest thing is it requires you to remove all the bloat and adware as a prerequisite.
IntelMiner 3y ago
I have to admit, I'm on the opposite end of the spectrum there, having had both devices I loved my 2012 Nexus 7, and was a Day 1 upgrader to the 2013 model (my Mom enjoyed the 2012 for many years for eBooks and Facebook) My Nexus 5 I was also a day 1 purchase, upgrading from a slowly deteriorating Galaxy S2. Unfortunately I had to replace it much earlier after I slipped and fell on uneven concrete and shattered the screen If Google could just take the SoC of the Pixel 6/7/8/whatever and stuff it in the housing of the Nexus 7 2013, give it a modern battery and a nice OLED screen it would truly be the best tablet on the market. But instead they want "bigger" and are chasing after the iPad with the new pixel tablet
- tredre3 3y ago
  > But instead they want "bigger" and are chasing after the iPad with the new pixel tablet I bought a 11" tablet BECAUSE it is much bigger than a phone, so I can comfortably watch videos and read technical documents. I might have considered as small as 8", but 10" was really the minimum in my mind. Given that most android phones are 6-6.5" already, why would anyone buy a 7" tablet in addition to their phone? Maybe as a throwaway gift to a child? Would the market be large enough to be worth it?
  - least 3y ago
    I have an iPad mini that I really like. A nexus 7 with a slightly smaller bezel and updated internals would be a really nice device. It's a nice size for casual games, video watching, and a great size for reading manga or books. The only option for a small tablet on Android really is the Fire tablets from Amazon, but they're really lacking in performance, which limits what you can do with it. But in general I find Android tablets to be pretty lacking in the software support department, even though hypothetically it should be a great platform.
  - IntelMiner 3y ago
    If they could just make the Nexus 7 with better bezel-to-screen (maybe something similar to the Pixel's?) it would be perfect I want something I can comfortably hold in one hand to read books on, a 10 inch iPad or Samsung is just too big (and heavy) to do that, and a phone just feels too squashed at the same time I'm probably in a hell of a niche but it truly was just the perfect 'sweet spot' size for me
    - fomine3 3y ago
      Such tablets are now sold as "foldable phone". I love it for reading everything and fits in my pocket, but it's expensive for who just want a Nexus 7 2023.
  - doubled112 3y ago
    I like small phones. I have an iPhone 13 Mini, and have never had the desire for anything larger. They drive me nuts. I'm usually carrying two, and the bulk adds up. I also have a 7" tablet. Small enough to fit into any backpack, pocket, my wife's purse, etc. Still large enough it's usable with a kickstand and Bluetooth keyboard. If I want to do real work, I'll just use a PC. The small tablet is a great middle ground away from home.
enlyth 3y ago
I really tried to ride that train, had a Nexus 6, which got stuck in an unrecoverable boot loop after a year, after that a Nexus 6P which bricked itself similarly, and then a flagship Samsung Note something, which couldn't be charged because of "moisture in the port" after a year, despite it being completely dry, after which the battery inflated so much it blew open the whole case. Then I bought an iPhone 11 Pro and it "just works" to this day, with no replacement needed in sight. After years of being that guy who explains the "dangers" of walled garden ecosystems to my boomer iPhone parents, I joined their gang and have been living carefree since.
beebmam 3y ago
After the rug pull of the Pixel Pass, I'm done with Google. That was one of the scammiest things they've ever done. I'm still fucking pissed about it and it's been a month.
- roneythomas6 3y ago
  I am not sure why people think it was scammy? Pixel Pass was a glorified device financing option. Unlike Apple iPhone Upgrade Program where you trade in your phone. The upgrade isn’t free you still need to pay monthly for next two years when you upgrade. You can still upgrade for much cheaper with 0% financing. Also when you subscribe to Spotify or Netflix is there an expectation that you get the same price you signed up for when they increase price? That is the same happening here. For two years people got the Pixel Pass were paying for the device financing + perks. They only paid for device they got and not for any future device. Take a look at Pixel financing cost it is much cheaper than Pixel Pass and when you finance you have the option to trade in old phone and get reduced finance rate.
  - simondotau 3y ago
    The tone of the parent post might not have been ideal, but it is correct on the facts. By ending the program, the opportunity lost to subscribers was to begin financing of a new device with a new 24 month contract period. There was no sweetheart discount involved in getting a new device. To be clear, I’m a mild Apple apologist and strong Google critic, but even I can see this wasn’t scummy. It was only disappointing. (And even then, it shouldn’t have been disappointing. Google is famous for three things: search, ads, and cancelling stuff.)
    - roneythomas6 3y ago
      I don't understand what opportunity was lost? They are still offering 0% financing which is still cheaper than Pixel Pass. On top when you add trade in, it's even cheaper. With Pixel Pass you cannot trade in.
- billforsternz 3y ago
seabrookmx 3y ago
> My opinion of Google has gradually deteriorated over time to the point now where I actively avoid using anything made by Google It's worth pointing out the Nexus 5 released 10 years ago and things have definitely changed (improved, IMO) in that time.
- pizza234 3y ago
  Owned a Pixel 1 in the past, and it started to suffer from the same issue, so this may be an inherent problem in flash storage (at least as it's implemented in mobile phones).
  - selcuka 3y ago
    That might be a coincidence as Nexus 5 was made by LG while Pixel 1 was by HTC.
  - izacus 3y ago
    For years now, phones use UFS storage which is significantly more resilient to degradation. Which is why longer support cycles are necessary.
- amf12 3y ago
  I don't think Nexus phones were built by Google. They always had a different manufacturer, unlike the Pixels.
  - selcuka 3y ago
    > unlike the Pixels. Only after Pixel 3 (where they started working with Foxconn): - Pixel 1: HTC - Pixel 2: HTC - Pixel 2 XL: LG Electronics
p1mrx 3y ago
> The Nexus 5 had a bootlooping issue Are you sure that wasn't a Nexus 5X? I'm still using a Nexus 5 (running some LineageOS fork) as a media controller. I had a Nexus 5X that bootlooped, so I traded in its replacement for a Pixel 2, but its microphone died, and its replacement had a perma-locked bootloader... but the Nexus 5 is still doing fine.
- least 3y ago
  Yes, it was a Nexus 5. There's been several phones that have had this issue from Google... which is all the more reason I wouldn't buy another Google hardware device.
- MerelyMortal 3y ago
  I had a Nexus 5X that bootlooped, but if IIRC from my research at the time, Nexus 5 also had the same problem, albeit seemingly to a lesser extent.
- hysan 3y ago
  It was both, but they bootlooped for different reasons. Nexus 5 had a faulty power button that could fail in a couple of ways. Nexus 5X was something about how the components on the PCB were constructed being of iffy quality. You could get lucky and never have the 5 fail whereas the 5X was/is guaranteed to fail. I bought a 5X purely for device testing. It was basically unused 99% of its lifetime (6+ years) and eventually started bootlooping last year.
  - GeekyBear 3y ago
    The Nexus 6P was also famous for having a bootloop issue as well as suddenly going dead despite showing that it still had a good charge.
    - gvurrdon 3y ago
      Both my wife and I had these and, despite initial promise, they behaved horribly. One particular issue was overheating and shutting down. IIRC the boot loop issue, when it eventually struck, was worked around by a hack to disable two CPU cores. Due to this and the poor performance of Wear OS (or was it still Android Wear at that time?) we switched to iPhones. I note that the reason I first got a 6P was because my 6 completely died one day and a 6P was the only available insurance replacement. Despite all this, I'm likely to by the Pixel 8 and Pixel Watch 2 to replace my iPhone 8 plus.
LegitShady 3y ago
I still have a functional Nexus 7 that I used as an ebook reader for a long while until replacing it with a kobo e-ink device. The N7 still boots. I wonder if there's anything useful I could do with it. It paid for itself many times over in the first 3 years and everything at this point is just bonus.
- least 3y ago
  Is yours the 2012 or 2013? I think they resolved the storage issue in the 2013 model. Unfortunately, I had the 2012.
  - LegitShady 3y ago
    2013. At 10 years old I'd bet its time to replace or get rid of the battery in there.
ftlio 3y ago
My thought when I read it as well. I've owned Nexus 4, 5, 6, Pixel 1, 2, 3, 4 and finally gave up. Half of these phones were purchased because the previous model crapped out. I am not a heavy phone user either. I think I stuck with them because there was always some integration with Google and iPhone that didn't make me happy, but whatever it is must have been solved by the time I got an iPhone because I'm on three years with mine. Probably won't replace it for another three years.
tanduv 3y ago
Nexus products weren't _technically_ made by Google. 5 was LG's design and 7 was Asus'. During this era Google specifically stuck to working on the software while passing on the technical designs to other partners.
jklinger410 3y ago
Pixel 6 Pro and Watch are great and I've had no hardware or software issues of any kind.
Shekelphile 3y ago
> The Nexus 7's storage degraded, which rendered the device unusably slow. I thought it was the upgrade to the next version of Android that did it, but downgrading it did not fix the issue. There's been some workarounds that made it slightly more usable but ultimately it was a serious hardware defect that made it unbearably slow to use even with these workarounds. It's worse these days than in the nexus days. Google slaps extremely cheap NAND into their phones and it ends up failing after 2-3 years of daily use. Everyone I know that uses pixel phones either cycles through a new phone yearly or gets bitten by a sudden hardware failure and swears off the brand entirely.
fidotron 3y ago
Frankly, Google are too cheap and they expect their users to not care. I will never forget them trying to push the idea the Nexus 10 felt like a premium device . . . to whom exactly? Shame as well, as in some important respects it was way ahead of the curve, even if fatally flawed. Samsung hardware (and Huawei if you can still get and use it) is superb by comparison, but they just can't help themselves when it comes to the creepiness of the user experiences.
- selcuka 3y ago
  > I will never forget them trying to push the idea the Nexus 10 felt like a premium device To be fair Nexus 10 was a premium device (with its 2GB RAM and 2560x1600 screen in 2012). I still have mine and runs without any issues (except the degraded battery). > Samsung hardware (and Huawei if you can still get and use it) is superb by comparison Nexus 10 was built by Samsung.
  - fidotron 3y ago
    That's exactly the mentality I'm on about - specs do not mean premium. The fit and finish of that device was dreadful, as well as the overall feel in the hands. It may have been made by Samsung but the design was very Google driven. Google simply don't understand what matters.
brewdad 3y ago
My Nexus 7 had the same issue. It's a shame really because for the first 18 months I owned it I loved it. In it's prime, I think it's still my all-time favorite device. Once it slowed to the point of being unusable, I gave it to my son to tinker with. He loaded an alternative OS on it and that worked for a while but eventually it also slowed. Last I knew it was serving as a print server for his 3D printer although now I think it lives in a bin with other outdated hardware and about 100 cables that we haven't thrown out yet.
wkat4242 3y ago
The nexus 7 storage was an issue with one particular flash module that was used in some of the units. It can even be replaced though it's a lot of work requiring specialised tools unfortunately.
xtat 3y ago
IMO it's all downhill since nexus one, and Apple has just always been terrible.
londons_explore 3y ago
I don't think Google do thermal cycling on their phones as part of the development cycle. If they did, the phones would be much more reliable. If the phone can survive cycling between -25C and 85C 2000 times, then it will most likely survive many years in your pocket. They should also test weeks of salt spray and hours in a tumbler with sand dust and lint.

by least 3y ago

matwood 3y ago

Same. I had both those devices and at the time of purchase they were a great value contrast to the iPhone/iPad. But, after the issues you describe I went back to iPhones and never looked back. Google had a great opportunity that they squandered.

doublepg23 3y ago

Yeah I feel like Samsung has a very good value proposition in 2023. I guess my biggest thing is it requires you to remove all the bloat and adware as a prerequisite.

IntelMiner 3y ago

I have to admit, I'm on the opposite end of the spectrum there, having had both devices I loved my 2012 Nexus 7, and was a Day 1 upgrader to the 2013 model (my Mom enjoyed the 2012 for many years for eBooks and Facebook) My Nexus 5 I was also a day 1 purchase, upgrading from a slowly deteriorating Galaxy S2. Unfortunately I had to replace it much earlier after I slipped and fell on uneven concrete and shattered the screen If Google could just take the SoC of the Pixel 6/7/8/whatever and stuff it in the housing of the Nexus 7 2013, give it a modern battery and a nice OLED screen it would truly be the best tablet on the market. But instead they want "bigger" and are chasing after the iPad with the new pixel tablet

tredre3 3y ago
> But instead they want "bigger" and are chasing after the iPad with the new pixel tablet I bought a 11" tablet BECAUSE it is much bigger than a phone, so I can comfortably watch videos and read technical documents. I might have considered as small as 8", but 10" was really the minimum in my mind. Given that most android phones are 6-6.5" already, why would anyone buy a 7" tablet in addition to their phone? Maybe as a throwaway gift to a child? Would the market be large enough to be worth it?
- least 3y ago
  I have an iPad mini that I really like. A nexus 7 with a slightly smaller bezel and updated internals would be a really nice device. It's a nice size for casual games, video watching, and a great size for reading manga or books. The only option for a small tablet on Android really is the Fire tablets from Amazon, but they're really lacking in performance, which limits what you can do with it. But in general I find Android tablets to be pretty lacking in the software support department, even though hypothetically it should be a great platform.
- IntelMiner 3y ago
  If they could just make the Nexus 7 with better bezel-to-screen (maybe something similar to the Pixel's?) it would be perfect I want something I can comfortably hold in one hand to read books on, a 10 inch iPad or Samsung is just too big (and heavy) to do that, and a phone just feels too squashed at the same time I'm probably in a hell of a niche but it truly was just the perfect 'sweet spot' size for me
  - fomine3 3y ago
    Such tablets are now sold as "foldable phone". I love it for reading everything and fits in my pocket, but it's expensive for who just want a Nexus 7 2023.
- doubled112 3y ago
  I like small phones. I have an iPhone 13 Mini, and have never had the desire for anything larger. They drive me nuts. I'm usually carrying two, and the bulk adds up. I also have a 7" tablet. Small enough to fit into any backpack, pocket, my wife's purse, etc. Still large enough it's usable with a kickstand and Bluetooth keyboard. If I want to do real work, I'll just use a PC. The small tablet is a great middle ground away from home.

enlyth 3y ago

I really tried to ride that train, had a Nexus 6, which got stuck in an unrecoverable boot loop after a year, after that a Nexus 6P which bricked itself similarly, and then a flagship Samsung Note something, which couldn't be charged because of "moisture in the port" after a year, despite it being completely dry, after which the battery inflated so much it blew open the whole case. Then I bought an iPhone 11 Pro and it "just works" to this day, with no replacement needed in sight. After years of being that guy who explains the "dangers" of walled garden ecosystems to my boomer iPhone parents, I joined their gang and have been living carefree since.

beebmam 3y ago

After the rug pull of the Pixel Pass, I'm done with Google. That was one of the scammiest things they've ever done. I'm still fucking pissed about it and it's been a month.

roneythomas6 3y ago
I am not sure why people think it was scammy? Pixel Pass was a glorified device financing option. Unlike Apple iPhone Upgrade Program where you trade in your phone. The upgrade isn’t free you still need to pay monthly for next two years when you upgrade. You can still upgrade for much cheaper with 0% financing. Also when you subscribe to Spotify or Netflix is there an expectation that you get the same price you signed up for when they increase price? That is the same happening here. For two years people got the Pixel Pass were paying for the device financing + perks. They only paid for device they got and not for any future device. Take a look at Pixel financing cost it is much cheaper than Pixel Pass and when you finance you have the option to trade in old phone and get reduced finance rate.
- simondotau 3y ago
  The tone of the parent post might not have been ideal, but it is correct on the facts. By ending the program, the opportunity lost to subscribers was to begin financing of a new device with a new 24 month contract period. There was no sweetheart discount involved in getting a new device. To be clear, I’m a mild Apple apologist and strong Google critic, but even I can see this wasn’t scummy. It was only disappointing. (And even then, it shouldn’t have been disappointing. Google is famous for three things: search, ads, and cancelling stuff.)
  - roneythomas6 3y ago
    I don't understand what opportunity was lost? They are still offering 0% financing which is still cheaper than Pixel Pass. On top when you add trade in, it's even cheaper. With Pixel Pass you cannot trade in.
billforsternz 3y ago

seabrookmx 3y ago

> My opinion of Google has gradually deteriorated over time to the point now where I actively avoid using anything made by Google It's worth pointing out the Nexus 5 released 10 years ago and things have definitely changed (improved, IMO) in that time.

pizza234 3y ago
Owned a Pixel 1 in the past, and it started to suffer from the same issue, so this may be an inherent problem in flash storage (at least as it's implemented in mobile phones).
- selcuka 3y ago
  That might be a coincidence as Nexus 5 was made by LG while Pixel 1 was by HTC.
- izacus 3y ago
  For years now, phones use UFS storage which is significantly more resilient to degradation. Which is why longer support cycles are necessary.
amf12 3y ago
I don't think Nexus phones were built by Google. They always had a different manufacturer, unlike the Pixels.
- selcuka 3y ago
  > unlike the Pixels. Only after Pixel 3 (where they started working with Foxconn): - Pixel 1: HTC - Pixel 2: HTC - Pixel 2 XL: LG Electronics

p1mrx 3y ago

> The Nexus 5 had a bootlooping issue Are you sure that wasn't a Nexus 5X? I'm still using a Nexus 5 (running some LineageOS fork) as a media controller. I had a Nexus 5X that bootlooped, so I traded in its replacement for a Pixel 2, but its microphone died, and its replacement had a perma-locked bootloader... but the Nexus 5 is still doing fine.

least 3y ago
Yes, it was a Nexus 5. There's been several phones that have had this issue from Google... which is all the more reason I wouldn't buy another Google hardware device.
MerelyMortal 3y ago
I had a Nexus 5X that bootlooped, but if IIRC from my research at the time, Nexus 5 also had the same problem, albeit seemingly to a lesser extent.
hysan 3y ago
It was both, but they bootlooped for different reasons. Nexus 5 had a faulty power button that could fail in a couple of ways. Nexus 5X was something about how the components on the PCB were constructed being of iffy quality. You could get lucky and never have the 5 fail whereas the 5X was/is guaranteed to fail. I bought a 5X purely for device testing. It was basically unused 99% of its lifetime (6+ years) and eventually started bootlooping last year.
- GeekyBear 3y ago
  The Nexus 6P was also famous for having a bootloop issue as well as suddenly going dead despite showing that it still had a good charge.
  - gvurrdon 3y ago
    Both my wife and I had these and, despite initial promise, they behaved horribly. One particular issue was overheating and shutting down. IIRC the boot loop issue, when it eventually struck, was worked around by a hack to disable two CPU cores. Due to this and the poor performance of Wear OS (or was it still Android Wear at that time?) we switched to iPhones. I note that the reason I first got a 6P was because my 6 completely died one day and a 6P was the only available insurance replacement. Despite all this, I'm likely to by the Pixel 8 and Pixel Watch 2 to replace my iPhone 8 plus.

LegitShady 3y ago

I still have a functional Nexus 7 that I used as an ebook reader for a long while until replacing it with a kobo e-ink device. The N7 still boots. I wonder if there's anything useful I could do with it. It paid for itself many times over in the first 3 years and everything at this point is just bonus.

least 3y ago
Is yours the 2012 or 2013? I think they resolved the storage issue in the 2013 model. Unfortunately, I had the 2012.
- LegitShady 3y ago
  2013. At 10 years old I'd bet its time to replace or get rid of the battery in there.

ftlio 3y ago

My thought when I read it as well. I've owned Nexus 4, 5, 6, Pixel 1, 2, 3, 4 and finally gave up. Half of these phones were purchased because the previous model crapped out. I am not a heavy phone user either. I think I stuck with them because there was always some integration with Google and iPhone that didn't make me happy, but whatever it is must have been solved by the time I got an iPhone because I'm on three years with mine. Probably won't replace it for another three years.

tanduv 3y ago

Nexus products weren't _technically_ made by Google. 5 was LG's design and 7 was Asus'. During this era Google specifically stuck to working on the software while passing on the technical designs to other partners.

jklinger410 3y ago

Pixel 6 Pro and Watch are great and I've had no hardware or software issues of any kind.

Shekelphile 3y ago

> The Nexus 7's storage degraded, which rendered the device unusably slow. I thought it was the upgrade to the next version of Android that did it, but downgrading it did not fix the issue. There's been some workarounds that made it slightly more usable but ultimately it was a serious hardware defect that made it unbearably slow to use even with these workarounds. It's worse these days than in the nexus days. Google slaps extremely cheap NAND into their phones and it ends up failing after 2-3 years of daily use. Everyone I know that uses pixel phones either cycles through a new phone yearly or gets bitten by a sudden hardware failure and swears off the brand entirely.

fidotron 3y ago

Frankly, Google are too cheap and they expect their users to not care. I will never forget them trying to push the idea the Nexus 10 felt like a premium device . . . to whom exactly? Shame as well, as in some important respects it was way ahead of the curve, even if fatally flawed. Samsung hardware (and Huawei if you can still get and use it) is superb by comparison, but they just can't help themselves when it comes to the creepiness of the user experiences.

selcuka 3y ago
> I will never forget them trying to push the idea the Nexus 10 felt like a premium device To be fair Nexus 10 was a premium device (with its 2GB RAM and 2560x1600 screen in 2012). I still have mine and runs without any issues (except the degraded battery). > Samsung hardware (and Huawei if you can still get and use it) is superb by comparison Nexus 10 was built by Samsung.
- fidotron 3y ago
  That's exactly the mentality I'm on about - specs do not mean premium. The fit and finish of that device was dreadful, as well as the overall feel in the hands. It may have been made by Samsung but the design was very Google driven. Google simply don't understand what matters.

brewdad 3y ago

My Nexus 7 had the same issue. It's a shame really because for the first 18 months I owned it I loved it. In it's prime, I think it's still my all-time favorite device. Once it slowed to the point of being unusable, I gave it to my son to tinker with. He loaded an alternative OS on it and that worked for a while but eventually it also slowed. Last I knew it was serving as a print server for his 3D printer although now I think it lives in a bin with other outdated hardware and about 100 cables that we haven't thrown out yet.

wkat4242 3y ago

The nexus 7 storage was an issue with one particular flash module that was used in some of the units. It can even be replaced though it's a lot of work requiring specialised tools unfortunately.

xtat 3y ago

IMO it's all downhill since nexus one, and Apple has just always been terrible.

londons_explore 3y ago

I don't think Google do thermal cycling on their phones as part of the development cycle. If they did, the phones would be much more reliable. If the phone can survive cycling between -25C and 85C 2000 times, then it will most likely survive many years in your pocket. They should also test weeks of salt spray and hours in a tumbler with sand dust and lint.