Click to Skip Ad
Closing in...

Report suggests Nexus 5 will start at just $299 despite monster specs

Published Oct 8th, 2013 10:15AM EDT

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

If the latest report about Google’s upcoming Nexus 5 hero phone ends up being accurate, there is really only one smartphone Android enthusiasts will be eying this holiday season. We already know just about everything there is to know about the Nexus 5 thanks to a recent service manual leak, but the phone’s price and release date remain mysteries. Where the price is concerned, however, a new rumor suggests that Google may achieve the unthinkable and match the entry-level pricing of last year’s Nexus smartphone.

According to a single unnamed source speaking with PhoneArena, Google’s upcoming Nexus 5 will start at just $299 without any subsidies. That’s right — though shaky at best, if this report pans  out the new Nexus phone and its cutting-edge specs will cost the same amount off contract as some phones cost on contract.

The report says $299 will get you a 16GB Nexus 5 that’s powered by a 2,300 mAh battery. Curiously, the blog suggests that the $399 version of the next pure Google phone won’t just double the storage to 32GB, but will also increase the battery size to 3,000 mAh.

Recent leaks revealed that additional Nexus 5 specs include a 5-inch full HD 1080p display, a 2.3GHz Snapdragon 800 chipset, 2GB of RAM, an 8-megapixel rear camera with optical image stabilization, a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera, support for inductive charging, NFC and Android 4.4 KitKat. Photos of the phone have leaked several times now, including once by Google, and a pair of Nexus 5 videos recently leaked as well.

The phone will reportedly be announced during a press conference later this month and it is expected to be released soon after.

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.