Ever since its official debut in October, the Nexus 5 has received quite a bit of praise as being one of the better smartphones in wireless thanks to its 5-inch 1080p display, quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor and $349 starting price. The N5 isn't perfect, though, and one of the most common criticisms of the device has been its camera performance. The good news for those that've already shelled out for a Nexus 5 is that Google has heard your complaints.
According to a new report from The Verge, Google has prepared an update to Android 4.4.1 that will begin rolling out to the Nexus 5 soon, bringing with it much-improved camera performance. Dave Burke, Director of Engineering for Android at Google, says that the update speeds up the Nexus 5's autofocus and allows the unit to read its surroundings more quickly, resulting in a speedier capture. The update is also expected to bring improvements to contrast, exposure, white balance and the launch speed of the camera app itself.
Burke says that the update also brings with it the first of several upcoming camera interface changes. Included with Android 4.4.1 will be a progress bar for HDR+ mode, which is meant to give the user a better idea of how the process of capturing a high dynamic range photo is going. This is the first of many camera UI changes that Google has planned, Burke revealed, which will also include making the various camera settings easier to access.
The Android 4.4.1 update will reportedly begin hitting the Nexus 5 "over the next few days." While it may only be a x.x.1 update, the camera improvements that are included make this sound like a much more significant bump that I'm sure most every Nexus 5 owner will be checking for until it hits their unit. As usual, you can bet that I'll give you a shout once the rollout gets underway.
Via The Verge
