I am indeed getting a 5X, not a "5S". Sigh.

Google Music family plan:

Yeah, I'm still on the $8/mo intro plan for Google Music. I have my wife's phone logged into my account, which works, but also means she's logged into Google as me. That's okay for her, but not okay for my daughter. The family plan seems like it solves this problem. Clearly, the next step is to get a car that does the Android Auto thing. (*Sigh*)

The protection plan:

I had to pony up $150 to get the screen of my Nexus 5 replaced after it cracked. That sucked, but it needed to be done. So that's one broken screen since I first got a smartphone in, what, 2008? The protection plan costs $69 for two years of coverage. So... if my expectation is one cracked screen every 4-5 years, then the price is about right. I decided to spend the money.

Chromecast Audio / whole home audio:

My Home Theater Upgrade of Doom project involves moving the current big TV into our master bedroom and getting a 4K set to replace it. That TV (a circa 2008 Sony XBR) has "real" speakers, unlike the useless speakers they put in modern 1cm-thick televisions. So, at least in theory, stick a video Chromecast stick in it and I've now got the TV, in my bedroom, participating in whole-home audio. That seems pretty sweet.

(And, of course, I can always use outboard speakers, an amp, etc.)

Camera:

When the Nexus 5 was brand new, the camera had some awful latency issues. They fixed that. I'd say the Nexus 5 quality is "good enough" but I look forward to having something better. From a long-term perspective, remembering back to my very first digital camera (Canon G1, with a massive 1GB IBM Microdrive), I can only marvel at people who complain about the quality of smartphone cameras.


USB-C:

I spent more time digging around Amazon. I found one USB-C charger, but it only does 5V/2A (versus 5V/3A which the phone can consume). I found other USB-C cables, but they're only "USB 2.0 speed". Ahh, the market confusion is going to be immense until this all settles out.