I am about to buy a new phone and I am totally confused on what to base my decision whether to get SG5 or N5. I have SG3, had it for over 2 years (Since day of sale), and never had any troubles at all with it, been making my own apps and everything works pretty good. I went to check prices earlier today on phones, and noticed that SG5 is simLocked to the operators that are selling it while Nexus isn't. In general that shouldn't be a big issue but I am currently visiting my parents in a country that I don't live in and it has to be unlocked before I could use it(I find it idiotic to simLock phones). So they said it could be unlocked if I paid for it( Like wtf?). Anyway, I checked a couple of reviews and SG5 has better CPU, better camera and so on over Nexus and the price is a bit higher for that. But is it worth it?

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Last I heard the cellphone technology is plateau-ing. There is little difference between the last generation and the latest generation of smart-phone and differences between makers are mostly related to the locked-in/built-in software abilities than hardware differences.

PS simLocking is just another way for operators to 'subsidize' phone prices by having their profit come from the monthly plans rather than the device sale (hence paying to unlock it ensures they still make a profit even if you choose a different operator).

Do you think its worth it waiting for Nexus 6 instead?

I would say it is probably worth waiting until there is some reason to get rid of your current phone (starting to glitch, or parts wearing out), or until the next big thing happens like wearable devices (eg. Smart watches) become mainstream.

I got a Nexus 5 a few months ago. I love it, it works great and it's fast and crisp and all that.. no complaints. Also, the wireless charger is really nice to have.

I guess the SG S5 has higher specs but like Agilemind said, that's pretty much plateau'd at this point. And I don't know how it is where you live, but here, you can buy two Nexus 5's for the price of one unlocked SG S5. I just can't see how the slightly higher specs can justify that.

PS simLocking is just another way for operators to 'subsidize' phone prices by having their profit come from the monthly plans

Also, don't forget those "deals" where if you enter a new contract you can get the phone almost free.. but of course, later on, when you want a new phone you can't get out of the contract and you now have to pay full price (or more) for the new phone.

I hate sim-locking. My first phone was sim-locked. Then I realized what that meant. I never bought a sim-locked phone again, and I support Google's move to undermine that whole scheme by putting out reasonably priced unlocked phones.

Part of the reason phones are so expensive to buy unlocked is because they want to steer people into these locked-in contracts instead, so they can squeeze more out of you. Basically, companies would look bad if they simply said that they don't sell unlocked phones, it would even be illegal in some places to refuse this, so, instead, they just inflate the price so that people have to go for a contract-bound or carrier-bound option.

I personally had a bad experience with the latest nexus phone. It shattered within the same week i purchased after it fell off my bed. i kid you not, the whole screen was basically done... i later got the iphone and after a week, the phone wouldn't turn on... as a last result, i ended up with the latest galaxy. that phone out performs any phone i ever owned, even the nexus.

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