The Nexus 4 was my favourite phone to date, so it wasn't an easy decision to upgrade to the Nexus 5, but the 1080p screen and addition of 4G was enough to make it worth the relatively small upgrade cost.
Whereas the N4 was a massive design improvement over the Galaxy Nexus, after a week the N5 has left me feeling less impressed. The decision to ditch the overly flashy chrome trim and sparkly back are understandable and help make the phone look and feel more premium, but in other ways I feel that Google went too far. The curved edges of the N4 felt great in-hand, but the N5 replaces these with more mundane square edges which catch when you swipe the screen, not unlike most other smartphones, but still a design characteristic I'll miss. The new buttons are also much sharper on the edges, all in all the design isn't worse than it's predecessor, it's just less friendly - even less Googley.
All these concerns are nearly forgotten when the screen is powered on, because the new 1080p displays looks incredible, as good as the best out there. It may only be a small increase from the N4, but the transparent toolbars and more colorful OS help make it look bigger and brighter than specs alone.
KitKit is generally a much nicer looking OS, with most of the dreary blacks replaces with semi-translucent whites. The new launcher adds more customizability options without making it more complicated, and most of the stock apps have simpler, cleaner UIs. There's a few inconsistencies, the integration of SMS into hangouts is flaky and the Gallery app seems to have been only semi-upgraded to a new Photo app, but it's a step in the right direction and, for now, feels fresh for the first time in a while.
I've been a big advocate of Nexus devices for a long time, their simpler, more consistent UX is worlds away from most other Android phones without sacrificing customization options, but they've always felt like they lack 'something' that more expensive skinned phones do. With KitKit, that something has been mostly fulfilled on the software side and the hardware is closer than ever - maybe next year Google can bring it all together into a perfect package.
