The Nexus 5 is a good device. I really don't have any complaints about it. The battery life was sufficient in my opinion. The OS is smooth and fast. The screen has a higher resolution and bigger size. I got the 32 GB model, but the cloud services Google offers is abundant. For the price, there isn't another device better in my opinion. But...the iPhone 5S is probably the best smartphone I have owned and I have had a lot of them. The screen is smaller, but I have not found it to be problem ever. The phone is fast and smooth despite the hardware specifications being less than the competition. The feature set is efficient. A lot of the gimmicks that I see other platforms or manufacturers use to perform certain tasks I have found that the iPhone can achieve those tasks as well in a more practical and efficient manner. Then we get to the design. Last week I saw the the M8 and thought it was the best looking device hat I had ever seen. But I had to later recant that. I think it was the brushed metal backing that really struck me and the placement of the dual cameras that was so attractive. But when I look at my gold iPhone, there is just no other device that rivals it's perfection. And then there are the little practical things that just makes more sense. The digital lightning port that can be plugged in on either side (the Nexus 5 charging port isn't the best and the Note 3 charging port is awkward). Mute switch. Home button with fingerprint scanner. And then when you consider how universal the iPhone is; the accessories can be found everywhere, they are compatible with all kinds of other electronics/automobiles, and just about every company that has an app has one in the Apple store. The multimedia ecosystem is just that good.
Sent from my Gold iPhone 5S. The "S" is for sexy.
Actually, I think you are ignoring one of the great features of the Nexus, you never have to plug it in. Instead you simply place it on the Qi charger. Absolute great way to charge a phone. I bought a Nexus 5 and have used it now for a week. I really like having the Notifications LED on the Nexus, I can tell what notifications I have before I pick up the phone. The biggest issue for me is screen size, with my eyesight (as I've aged), the 5s screen only being 65% as large as the Nexus makes a real difference.
Also, it seems like many of the complaints here have been fixed. The problems with the camera have been fixed (though admittedly it isn't as good as the iPhone camera). I've haven't had issues with WiFi and, from what I can tell, it was only an issue when it was first released and was fixed with an update. The low volume issue Google responded to with both a software fix, as well as a slight hardware change. I'll also disagree that the Nexus antennas don't work as well (not sure if that was something fixed or someone just had a bad Nexus); I've seen little difference between the two in my usage.
I'll agree that battery life is similar between the Nexus and the 5s, and both could use larger batteries if you use your device heavily. When I don't use my phone much, I end the day with 2/3 to 3/4 of my battery left. I've not had a seriously heavy day with the Nexus, yet, and heavy days with the iPhone I killed the battery in less than 4 hours. From my experience so far, the Nexus would have about the same life. As far as speed, I'd say that the Nexus and the 5s perform similarly.
I'll agree with dkhmwilliams that the Nexus is absolutely the best phone there is for the money. Which phone you prefer will likely come down to personal preference, and frequently if you prefer iOS or Android. Personally, I like both, and using the Nexus 5 and my iPad works well for me. While there would be advantages to using a phone and tablet with the same OS, using one of each allows me to have the advantages of each.