My experience is very different. The speakerphone works absolutely fine for me, is more than adequate, and doesn't seem quiet at all to me. It is louder than the one on my iPhone 4S. While I appreciate that the 5S might be twice as loud, I never had an issue with the Nexus 4 or iPhone 4S, and I don't have an issue with this one. While it might "suck" in your opinion, and I certainly understand you might need/want louder volumes, I don't think most will have an issue with it.
Just as a guess here, but Apple might, just maybe, be able to build devices for less because they produce just a couple more of them. The economics of scale favor them heavily, and what they can build for $199 isn't what most can build for $199. Also, component costs are only a part of the cost per phone. There's labor, packaging, warranty items, shipping, and so on. Google's goal is to provide an affordable high-end phone, and they've done so. That $350 you save (32GB is $749, I think) could probably buy a decent bluetooth speakerphone.
Of course, though, if it doesn't suit your needs, it's not the right phone for you.LG is a huge company, but the N5 is not a huge production for them. Also, don't forget all the other costs. It's not just parts.
That's what they do.
Look, I understand that the Nexus 5 could be better. But most of it is exceptional, and the few things that aren't are not bad. The speaker could be better/louder, granted, and the camera could be better - but I think that's a software issue more than anything. Still, in the end, it comes down to what you get for your money, and I don't think you can get anything as good as the N5 for anything even remotely near its price.
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I've listened to a coworker's, but that was months ago, so I can't really recall other than it sounded pretty decent (I was using my work headphones, which are Sennheiser HD555's).
I don't think the N5 will come across as sounding noticeably worse than the Note 2, but it might not sound as good. I just don't remember. It's not as good as an iPhone 5 (presumably, the 5S is as good or better), but it's close enough, and unless you use higher-end cans, you're not likely to notice a big difference.
Again, it's not audiophile-grade, but it's a huge leap forward from the N4, which sucked.
The only reason I'm encasing mine is the fear of dropping it. I will hate to do so, though, because this thing feels amazing int he hand - better than any other phone I've held. So nice.Come to think of it, the difficulty of putting a case on the damn thing might be the worst down side to this phone
