Google Planning Two Nexus Smartphones For 2015: Rumor Pegs LG For New Nexus 6

Google Inc. may be planning on releasing two Nexus smartphones later this year. A Weibo account claims LG will produce a new Nexus 6 for 2015 while Huawei could manufacture an updated version of the affordable Nexus 5.

Motorola’s Nexus 6 was released last fall to generally good reviews, praising Google’s first phablet-sized Nexus, but noting the smartphone’s significantly higher launch price than the Nexus 5 and Nexus 4 made by LG in previous years. LG is rumored to be stepping up to manufacture a high-end Nexus phone for 2015, to follow Motorola’s Nexus 6, with an unnamed Chinese manufacturer working with Google to produce a low-cost variation.

The Android-maker’s Nexus program offers a stock version of the mobile operating system, free from any manufacturer bloatware. The move would be the first time an up-and-coming Chinese manufacturer was selected to produce a Nexus device and would highlight the tight competition among Android-makers as known brands like Motorola and Samsung struggle to top newcomers like Huawei, Xiaomi and OnePlus.

The rumor, as any, should be taken with several grains of salt. The Weibo user claims to have knowledge of the matter, and says the Chinese company is attempting to determine whether it will include its own processor in the Nexus 5 (2015) or use one manufactured by Qualcomm.

Huawei is the only major Chinese smartphone-maker with its own line of Hisilicon Kirin processors, meaning the Weibo user is likely referring to the Shenzhen manufacturer. The rumor will not be confirmed or denied until Google makes an official announcement later this year, as the Android-maker routinely refuses to comment on speculation about its coming products.