The Nexus 5 has only been out a couple of months and already we’re seeing some minor changes to the design, just like we did with the Nexus 4 (in case you forgot, the Nexus 4 received some little nubs on the back of the device to minimize cracked back panels). The changes are very minor and will probably go unnoticed by most, but one reader over on XDA posted some pictures to highlight the differences.
First of all, the speaker holes are larger on the newly designed Nexus 5. This is supposed to help out with the overall volume and quality of sound coming from the external speakers. The other minor change is said to be in the ceramic buttons (see below). The new buttons are said to be much thicker than the originals as to minimize any rattling that may occur. Honestly, I can’t really see the difference in the pictures but they’re no the best angel either so I’ll take them at their word.
Now if you were one of the early adopters and are hoping to be able to swap your device, you may be out of luck. I’ve been reading comments in several different threads about the issue and it doesn’t seem like anyone has had any luck in getting Google to exchange their “old” device for one of the newly designed ones. But that is always one of the risks of being an early adopter for anything, you get to be a bit of a guinea pig.
[XDA]