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	<title>Tom Gidden &#187; O2</title>
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		<title>Leaving O2 for... um... Not sure yet. (Updated)</title>
		<link>http://gidden.net/tom/2010/07/01/leaving-o2-for-um-not-sure-yet/</link>
		<comments>http://gidden.net/tom/2010/07/01/leaving-o2-for-um-not-sure-yet/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Jul 2010 18:40:08 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Tom Gidden</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[General]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[giffgaff]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iphone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iphone4]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mobile]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mobile-phones]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[O2]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[orange]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tariff]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gidden.net/tom/?p=95</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It's been almost two years since I wrote the last installment of this epic journey.  I've practically ceased blogging in favour of tweeting, but I do think it's worth an update now. After two years with the iPhone 3G on O2, I'm almost certainly going to switch... but I'm not sure who to go to yet, though.

Overall, I was impressed by O2's service. Their customer service was always very good, and their web interface quite functional. On both counts, I would rate them higher than both Three and Orange.  I'm less impressed with their actual network service quality, both for talk and data... which is a bit of a problem, considering that's the whole point.  Oddly, it's not their coverage I have a problem with, but the infrastructure:  data speed on the iPhone is woefully slow and variable, and I've had more than a few dropped calls.  In fact, one weekend in May, the net was down completely for a few hours.
So, then comes the iPhone 4.
As an iPhone developer (plug: Dingbats for iPhone) it's actually better to have the slowest and crappest, otherwise I wouldn't know if my software runs like a dog -- if at all -- for some of my customers.  As a user, however, I was desperate to get off my two-year-old iPhone 3G and onto something a bit better. It also gives me a chance to bring Dingbats up-to-date and get a combined iPad/iPhone 4 update written (watch this space...)
Anyway, as I never upgraded to the 3GS, I've long since completed my 18-month sentence on O2's tariff, and switched down to Simplicity for iPhone (the lower-rate SIM-only package) back in January, so there's no real reason to stay with O2.  However, the question is, who to go for?  As my previous blog posts show, I've tried Orange and Three (although not with data service, and not recently), but not T-mobile, Vodafone or any of the virtual providers.
By now, we're talking mid-June. O2 have announced some of their tariffs, but notably NOT the handset prices.  Meanwhile, the other networks are still fixed in a "Coming Soon" funk.  So, for the time being I extrapolate the US pricing to gauge whether Apple are going to charge a premium on the iPhone 4 (unlikely at this point), and then assume the UK nets will keep roughly the same pricing, but maybe with a bit of an increase just for the hell of it.
On the morning of June 15th, my long-suffering client successfully puts in a pre-order for me for a SIM-less Apple iPhone 4.  This seems like the best bet, and even if I were to go back to a subsidised contract, we could still sell the unopened SIM-less phone for a profit.
Plugging the numbers, it appeared that the networks add, on average, between £15 and £20 a month onto the tariff to subsidise the phone.  This is borne out when O2 announce that existing customers still under contract can buy out for £20/month of remaining contract.  There's nothing magical about this number: it's just O2 wanting to break even on the phone subsidy.  When the calculations are done, buying the phone outright and getting a SIM-only plan appeared to be the same cost as a contract, but with some added advantages, especially when it comes to upgrading to "iPhone 5" in twelve months' time.  In particular, the O2 12 month Simplicity for iPhone offer seems economically the best deal.  Of course, this is still assuming the pricing stays the same.
This is also about the time the networks start talking about data capping.  A quick calculation based on data from O2's site shows that I use, on average, only 30MB a month, with an all-time high of 60MB one month.  Even more notably, I'm barely touching the inclusive minutes, as I tend to receive calls rather than make them.
However, the data calculation has to be taken with a fairly massive pinch of salt:  I believe I would use the data service more if it wasn't so damn slow.  In addition, the multitasking features of iOS4 give the phone the ability to draw a steady stream of data all the time.  Even so, if I multiply up my predicted data usage by a factor of ten, I'm almost always within the proposed limits.
I also notice a neat little loophole:  existing contracts would remain uncapped, although an upgrade triggers a new contract under the new terms.  However, if the phone is purchased outright via Apple, for example, the existing old contract can be continued.  So, if I were prepared to stump up £600 and remain with O2, I could remain uncapped.  However, O2 still have a less-explicit cap on their data service anyway:  it's so damn slow, I just don't have the patience to use more than 500MB a month anyway!
Finally, the tariffs start trickling out.  O2 are first with their full pricing, followed by Orange and the others.  Three are notably coy about their offering... as it turns out, right up until the morning of the release.
Anyway, it turns out the iPhone 4 hardware is marginally more expensive than the 3GS, and the tariffs are a little more expensive.  This is not wholly unexpected.  However, what is less obvious is that they've altered the balance slightly, and there is now a small benefit to getting the phone under contract rather than SIM-only, but it's still not a huge amount of money.  SIM-only also gives the freedom to change networks when you decide they really do suck too much.
By now, I've also decided that Pay-As-You-Go is by far the most economic deal for me.  This is fairly scary, as I've been on contract with one network or another continuously (and overlapping) with the same number since 1996.  Well, almost the same number:  they inserted a '7' into the area code a while back.  PAYG has always been the less desirable option for me.  However, looking at the tariffs now, I'm looking at a potential decrease of my bills from the £30/month of yesteryear and the £20/month of Simplicity for iPhone, down to something in the region of £5-£10/month on PAYG, no matter which network I go for.
Bugger the contract, then!
Still no idea of which network to go for, though.
Tesco have an interesting deal, but I note they're a virtual net served by O2, so presumably would have the same network quality issues.
T-Mobile and Orange are merging, and by all accounts, their merged 3G network will be epic. However, Orange's tariffs still aren't fully released when it comes to PAYG, and are a cryptic menagerie of combinations. It does look like "Racoon" might be the best choice for me, but I have a lingering feeling that the guy who came up with the "Rabbit" branding for what was to evolve into Orange is still stuck in a basement in Orange HQ somewhere, and has set up these tariff names as a futile call for help.
GiffGaff looks just about perfect for me, but again, they're on the O2 network.  If Orange, T-mobile or Three launched a GiffGaff clone, I'd be extremely interested.
It then occurs to me that it doesn't actually matter!  I've got a SIM-free phone coming, and I'm not under contract!  Apart from the fact that I'll have to make a decision eventually just to choose where to transfer my number, I can get the PAYG SIMs from all the networks and give them a go for a while.
I do make a pact with myself though:  whichever network gets me a micro-SIM sooner gets extra points.
Anyway, on the lead-up to June 24th, things still aren't clear:  the only network that's articulating stuff clearly is O2, and even they're being quite cagey.  Orange have changed their recorded message on the sales line to basically say "If you're calling about iPhone 4, sod off:  we don't know anything more than you do."  In fact, that might have been the exact wording, come to think of it.  Three's blog is still packed with "Coming Soon... honest!" style blogs.  I'm ignoring Vodafone though, as for some reason, I just can't quite cope with the idea of being a Vodafone customer.
What's absolutely shocking is that Apple managed to pre-sell 600,000 SIM-free iPhones in one day to the kind of people willing to lay down £600 on a product they haven't even seen yet, and yet the networks don't seem to be scrambling over each other to get a micro-SIM into these customers' hands!  I mean, if I were running this thing, I'd be lobbying Apple to include a free micro-SIM in every single iPhone box, just on the off-chance that some of these affluent customers would consider switching to my network!
Instead, there's no information; queries are met with silence, or unhelpful robotic responses; and there's no sign of micro-SIMs anywhere.  There's misinformation too:  some customers are allegedly told by Three, for example, that the iPhone 4 doesn't even use micro-SIMs.
Anyway, O2 being the only network to have their shit together to some extent, I figure I should at least get a micro-SIM before launch so my new iPhone 4 isn't an expensive (but shiny) paperweight.  I'm not happy with cutting my existing SIM down to size, as firstly, micro-SIMs aren't actually 100% the same as normal SIMs, as the newer micro-SIMs have some extra features; and secondly, because I want this done properly, damnit.
I contact O2 on the Friday before.  Micro-SIMs are apparently available to SIM-free iPhone orderers from the O2 shops on Monday, as long as they bring ID, confirmation, blah blah blah... still strange that they're not handed out like lollipops, considering we're talking about a £0.20 piece of plastic that represents at least a few hundred pounds of potential revenue.  Anyway, since the nearest O2 store is ten miles away, I ask O2 if one can be sent out.  Apparently not.  Oh well, one more nail in O2's coffin for me.
However, a few days later, on the Sunday before launch, I happen to be going to the Apple Store getting my MacBook Pro fixed, and I walk past the O2 store.  The sales guy says micro-SIMs won't be available until launch, at which point I show him the O2 website.  He pops into the back room to check and comes back with a micro-SIM.  Turns out, he was wrong and they're available from tomorrow, as the website said, but he'd save me a journey back there.  Nice!
So, I've now got a micro-SIM, albeit for the network I don't want to continue with.  Oh well, at least the paperweight scenario isn't going to happen.
Thursday.  Launch day.  My client starts queuing with his son at Bluewater at the crack of dawn.  As he wants an upgrade, he couldn't pre-order.  His son, however, did manage to reserve one at the Apple Store, but Dad missed the boat.  Anyway, his story is quite epic and includes what I believe is the first case of using a FourSquare Mayorship to bully a store manager.  That's another story though.
My phone arrives via UPS around lunchtime, and I instantly start acting like a kid.  O2 micro-SIM goes in, and all is well with the world.
However, I'm still on O2.  So next up is the task of getting the micro-SIMs.
Three update their website the next day, giving the ability to order free micro-SIMs (finally!), so an order goes in with my name on it.  Orange still have no clue.
The following week, the SIM arrives from Three.  It's a full-size SIM, even though the delivery note says "micro".  Oh well, after fighting Three's phone menu tree for about half-an-hour, I have a good bitch about it on their blog, and request a call back.  I wait... time passes.
I get the callback, and get passed to another department.  The guy claims that they're not offering micro-SIMs for PAYG, yet.  I tell him to check the website.  Hold.  Yes, apparently you CAN order them after all.  Order arranged; it'll be in the post.  Next day, I get a response from Three's blog moderators:  they want to help me get my micro-SIM.  I explain it's already happening, but I do point out that others have reported the same problem.  They investigate and find that a few full-size SIMs got sent out.  They'll rectify it tonight and send out new micro-SIMs to those affected.
At this point, I must comment on this turn of events.  The traditional customer service route was quite typical:  a nightmare finding the right person to talk to, followed by an awkward discussion trying to explain what I want, followed by a few minutes on hold, and finally a resolution that's adequate, but leaves me thinking others in the same boat have just decided not to bother.  The experience leaves me with a slightly lower opinion of Three.
In contrast, the social media approach worked a lot better:  although Three don't (yet) have a Twitter feed or a private contact page, their blog operators interceded and had a proper conversation with me.  I pointed out a wider issue, and they investigated it properly.  I'm content in knowing that not only was my problem solved (as far as I can tell at the moment), but the overall systemic problem has been fixed and other customers aided at the same time.  What was a problem has now been turned into an opportunity for Three to show that they can deal with problems competently.  The experience leaves me with a higher opinion of Three.
This goes to show that social media works.  The company gets better intelligence about their customers experiences, problems, and so forth; and the customers feel they're actually being listened to.  It's a win-win.
Anyway, still no possibility of a micro-SIM from Orange.  I called them:  they've not got any idea.
Hey, Orange:  every day you leave this is another day that I'm getting used to the idea of moving to Three permanently.  Right now, Three are winning.  Okay, my piddling little monthly spend is low at the moment, but back when I was in London, you were raking in ~£80/month from me. The return of that scenario is not out of the realm of possibility. I also get asked "which network?" by friends often enough to make sending me a micro-SIM worth at least 20p.  Meanwhile, Three have apparently improved their network significantly since I left them, and if it performs better than O2, then it's going to be Good Enough, and it's also likely to be cheaper.  Their tariffs also make more sense.  I want to buy mobile phone service, not adopt an animal.
So, it's been a week with iPhone 4... the phone is lovely, except for the well-documented antenna issues.  I'm still on O2, but I'm eager to make the call for my PAC code.  I'm expecting a micro-SIM from Three in the next day or so, at which point my O2 SIM will go back in my old Nokia 6680 for a few days to use as my normal phone while I try out the Three data service in the iPhone 4, and if by any slim chance Orange get their act together and give me a micro-SIM, I might even try their service too.
However, Three are currently winning in my little competition.  Let's see how they do.
On the matter of the antenna issue:  I'm right-handed, but apparently left-eared;  I seem to comprehend a conversation better when I'm using the phone in my left hand.  Also, with the phone in my left hand, I can use my dominant right hand to operate it.  Anyway, when I hold the iPhone naturally in my left hand, I get the dreaded signal degradation.  I personally believe that:

It might have something to do with the skin chemistry of the user, with capacitance, resistance, etc. being a function of the user's skin's pH, texture, suppleness, etc.
It sounds like a software fix (for the phone's baseband) might alleviate the issue by changing the criteria by which the phone switches frequency.  I can't wait to see.
The fact that Apple aren't giving out their bumpers for free to fix this fundamental design flaw is shocking.  With this issue, the iPhone is basically Not Fit For Purpose for some users, and for the cost of ~£0.50 of silicone rubber (notwithstanding the ~5000% of retail markup!) for what is basically an oversized LIVESTRONG bracelet, Apple are seriously pissing me off.
This is a good example of the unfortunate hubris of Apple.  I'm usually a huge fan of Apple and Jonathan Ive's designs, but I do believe that form should follow function, and the fact that the bumpers fix the problem show that if Apple had encased the antennas like normal, this would not have been an issue. Apple's a newcomer to mobile comms, and I think that the fact that we've never seen a bare-metal external antenna before is testament to the fact that it's a fairly crap idea.  Looks nice, but that's not good enough.
"Hold it differently"?  I'll hold it the way I've always held a phone, thankyouverymuch.  I wonder what reception would be like with my phone lodged firmly 'up' Steve Jobs.  It's a £600 uninsured gadget made of slippery, fragile glass that's not readily replaceable, so I'll be damned if I'm going to hold it daintily.
Don't talk to me about FaceTime. The keynote acted as if it was the first time we've ever had video calling on a mobile, but I first (and last!) used it in 2003.  Okay, FaceTime's much better quality, but it was (again) hubris to act like it was a new thing.  And it doesn't count unless it works over 3G.  Sorry.

Anyway, if you've read this far, thank you!  I should have edited this blog post down a bit, but once you get going, you know...
Oh, by the way, I typed all that on my iPad.  Fantastic device.  I never thought I'd actually like typing on a software keyboard this much.  I just wish they'd get around to releasing iOS 4 for it.
Actually, on that point:  why haven't any of the networks produced combined iPad/iPhone tariffs? One bill; two SIMs? For a start, both Orange and O2 have proper broadband operations and do try to crossbreed them with discounts given to customers who buy both mobile and home broadband from the same supplier. Why not the iPad too? Why not offer a £5/month Bolt-On package to add an iPad SIM to your existing iPhone tariff, using a shared (but increased) data usage allowance of, say, 1GB?
UPDATED (Friday 2 July 2010): As promised, I got a micro-SIM from Three this morning.  I actually got two: one replacement as a result of the callback I had with Three CS; and a second with a new number as a result of the corrections made yesterday with an enclosed letter apologising for the mess-up.  As I've already loaded up the original SIM with £10 of credit, I've used the replacement instead of the new one.
I've transferred my old O2 SIM to the Nokia (thankfully, I kept the original SIM-to-micro-SIM punchout surround) and have redirected calls to the new Three number temporarily.  There was an annoying "Call Forwarding Active" popup that appeared when I tried to make calls, but by syncing with iTunes and getting the updated carrier settings, that's now gone.
Sitting at my desk, I've got five pips of reception on both Three and O2.  Speed tests via the SpeedTest.Net iPhone app show download/upload/ping for O2 as ~1.5Mbps/~0.2Mbps/~400-9000ms; and for Three as ~2.2Mbps/~1.8Mbps/~200ms, so at first glance, it looks like Three's doing better.  That's just the result of one test, though.  Web browsing definitely feels a lot more responsive with Three than with O2.
The tariff is a little on the weak side, though:  calls are ~25p a minute, which means my £10 of credit which gives me 40 minutes of calls, and data is 150MB per top-up, expiring after 90 days.  So, I might be better off with their £15/month SIM-only 1 month rolling contract, rather than PAYG after all:  it gives 300 minutes and 1GB of internet a month.
Three have also just launched "The One Plan", a tariff that gives 2,000 minutes of calls and 1GB of internet for £25 a month SIM-free on a 12 month contract.  I don't want to be tied into any contract at the moment (as I'm clearly being fickle about networks right now), but I'd seriously consider it just for the 1GB alone.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
	
		<series:name><![CDATA[Leaving mobile phone company "X" for "Y"]]></series:name>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>Leaving Three after a year-and-a-half for iPhone 3G</title>
		<link>http://gidden.net/tom/2008/07/10/leaving-three-after-a-year-and-a-half-for-iphone-3g/</link>
		<comments>http://gidden.net/tom/2008/07/10/leaving-three-after-a-year-and-a-half-for-iphone-3g/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jul 2008 13:01:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Tom Gidden</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[General]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[apple]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[iphone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mobile]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mobile-phones]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[O2]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[orange]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pac]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[phones]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gidden.net/tom/?p=54</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Back in December 2006, I wrote a post about cancelling my decade-old Orange UK phone contract, in favour of Three.  Now I'm off again.  I finally gave into the lure of iPhone.  As a Mac (power?) user for eight years, and owner (and destroyer) of many of their products, the absence of iPhone in my life is fairly conspicuous.  I always swore that I wouldn't buy the iPhone 2G, though.

On the other hand, I swore I wouldn't buy any iPhone while it was still tied to O2.  I don't like the fact that Apple don't offer an unlocked iPhone, but it looks like it's going to stay that way for the foreseeable future.  I guess my ideal vision would be an Apple MVNO, although I bet tariffs would be sky-high for that, but the paper the bills were printed on would be very crisp (and probably laser-etched aluminium sheets)
The iPhone 3G launch has coincided with the end of the half-price tariff offer I had at Three:  it was basically £15/month for 18 months for 300 minutes of calls.  A month or two ago, it upped to £30, and I had to decide whether to renew or to take the opportunity to switch to iPhone.
My reason for leaving Orange was mainly the fact that I wasn't feeling the love anymore, and I felt my tariff was far too high.  I'm a fairly light mobile user, and sometimes I think I might be better of with a PAYG.
My experience with Three has been fairly good.  Coverage hasn't been quite as good as Orange, but good enough for my purposes.  I've had a couple of dropped calls, and the battery life has been terrible.  I'm fairly sure this is due to the fact that Three is 3G only, and the Nokia 6280 I had really wasn't too good at 3G power consumption.  At least with Orange, I kept it switched to 2G most of the time.
I've never liked the look of O2, and the mess they've made of this launch doesn't fill me with confidence.  The starting tariff for iPhone is double the price that I could otherwise get on Three for a lot more minutes, and I'm not really a fan of smartphones anyway.  I think I might be able to have some fun coding that thing, though.  I've got a history of writing games for web and Palm, and some experience with writing for OS X, I'd be dumb not to have a go with the iPhone.
So, I think my new tariff is going to be the iPhone £30/month one.  It's a reduction to 75 minutes a month, although looking at my past few Three bills, I've only been hitting about 50 minutes a month maximum, so there shouldn't be a problem.  I'm not sure how much I'll use data, but when it comes down to it, £15 extra for 18 months is actually only £300, which I should be able to make back with iPhone-related work.
Decision made.  Unfortunately, getting an iPhone 3G seems not as easy as everyone hoped.  In particular, I have a client who's spitting nails that he's unlikely to get an upgrade to his launch-day iPhone 2G tomorrow morning.  O2 and Apple have monged this launch up pretty badly.  I mean, anyone with any sense will see that the second-most-anticipated mobile phone launch ever (after the iPhone 2G, that is) would be popular.  Secondly, a simultaneous launch in 24 countries?  Free upgrades for existing users?  How could this not end up a fiasco?
I can understand if they can't actually make the damn things quick enough.  However, why no proper pre-order system?  My MacBook Pro took almost a month to arrive after I ordered it, and while I watched the package tracking widget like a hawk for that whole month, at least I knew it was on its way.  O2, on the other hand, say "whilst we are confident that all customers who want iPhone 3G will get one by the end of this summer, initial supply is limited and will be for some weeks.", and then expect you to just check back every so often to see if they've got their shit together yet.
My client spent a lot of this morning on the phone to O2 and Apple Retail.  They're giving conflicting answers on upgrades, with Apple Regent Street almost denying anything's happening tomorrow, while Apple Bluewater are quite happy to talk.  O2 don't seem to have a clue when anyone's going to get a phone.  Meanwhile, I'm not going to trek 10 miles into Bristol at 8.02am just to be told that they don't have any.
So, off to the Carphone Warehouse's website, hoping that they actually might have their act sorted better than O2 and Apple.  Looks like they have them in stock for delivery tomorrow morning.  Fine.
Back to Three for the PAC code, then.  Dial 333 for customer services.  I talked for 20 minutes to a nice chap in India, who called me Mister Jidden, and tried to convince me that the Nokia N95 8-gee-bee is a better phone than the iPhone.  It has a five-gee-pixel camera compared to the iPhone's two-gee-pixel camera, and it comes with a FREE two-five-six-emm-bee memory card!  (I think he's reading from a script here)
Anyway, apparently, the lack of a replaceable battery is the main reason I shouldn't buy an iPhone, according to them.
I explained that I specifically need an iPhone to write software for, and Symbian on the N95 just doesn't cut it.  Would I like to keep the Three contract as a "spare"?   No.   They could offer me a new tariff for £15/month, and it's special!  300 minutes a month, and free voicemail!  ...but that's the same as my current tariff was up until they doubled the price a month ago.
Thanks, but no thanks.  I need an iPhone.
"Well, Mister Jidden, no problem.  You're one of our most special "elite customers", and I can give you an extra offer:  I can reduce that tariff to £12!"
It's not an iPhone though.
How about if someone else in my family wants to take the same offer?  My parents spend about £1.50 on their phones each month, thanks to the Orange Value Promise price-matching Virgin Mobile years ago, so No.
I couldn't really stop the guy... he was on a roll with his script, and I didn't mind letting him go through it.  I needed the PAC number, and the guy was nicer and making more of an effort than Orange did back in 2006.
Got the code by SMS a couple of minutes afterwards, and plugged it into the Carphone Warehouse website.  A short credit check later, and I get a text saying it'll be delivered on my delivery date... tomorrow, presumably.
Oh well.  In conclusion, Three's okay.  I'd actually go as far as to recommend them to others. They're certainly cheaper than Orange and from what I can tell, the other networks too.  I'd be happy to stay with them, especially since my piddlingly small tariff seems to qualify me as "elite", but they don't do iPhones, unfortunately.
I just figured out why I might be "elite", other than spending most of my pre-teen years playing 3D space games on the BBC Micro... I did a couple of "Refer a Friend"s to Three, earning £30 (two months' tariff!) each time.  Either that, or everyone's elite if they're buying an iPhone.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
	
		<series:name><![CDATA[Leaving mobile phone company "X" for "Y"]]></series:name>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>O2 Cocoon: Review, Part 3: Wrapping Up</title>
		<link>http://gidden.net/tom/2007/09/01/o2-cocoon-review-3/</link>
		<comments>http://gidden.net/tom/2007/09/01/o2-cocoon-review-3/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 01 Sep 2007 11:50:03 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Tom Gidden</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Reviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[3g]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[camera-phone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cameraphone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cellphone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cellular]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cocoon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gsm]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[isync]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mac]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[O2 Cocoon: in-depth Review]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gidden.net/tom/2007/09/01/o2-cocoon-review-3/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I've been using the O2 Cocoon as my main phone for a few weeks now, and I'm fairly happy with it.  After covering the design of the phone and the music features previously, I'll wrap up by covering the rest of the features.

As I said before, it's a good phone.  In particular, the One Big Distinguishing Feature -- the external display -- does work quite well.  I do, however, with they'd put a "clock" button on the outside.  I haven't worn a watch in about ten years, since I got a mobile with a built-in clock (yes, those used to exist).  As a result, I use my mobile like a pocket watch.  In fact, I probably use my phone more as a watch than as a phone.
On the plus side, the nice big external display works well... except in sunlight as mentioned in Part 1.  However, it's not always on:  it only stays lit for a few seconds, unless it's externally powered.  So, to check the time you have to open the phone, which defeats the purpose of the external display.  The alternative is to fiddle with the music controls, which almost works:  the clock appears after scrolling messages like, "HELLO, I LOVE YOU - THE DOORS - PAUSED".  A simple "check time" button would be more useful.
The firmware is fairly nondescript.  The user interface is basic but clean.  It's not quite as well laid out as the Nokia or Sony Ericsson firmware, but I didn't find any major blunders.
I was discussing the LG Shine with my sister the other day.  One thing she mentioned was the number of button presses to send a text message.  With her old Sony Ericsson, it was just a few presses (plus the message itself), whereas the LG Shine had a minimum of eight or so.  This was a sign of poor UI design, I guess.  I remember that one of the reasons Boo.com failed in the old days was the ridiculously long and confusing path to a successful purchase.  Same with the Shine.
I'm not sure what procedural criteria she used for testing this, but the Cocoon seems to be slightly better than the Shine in this regard.  There were a few bloopers, such as the slightly silly configuration of the shortcut bar.  Like many other new phones, the Cocoon allows you to set up a few shortcuts on the main screen to commonly used functions.  In my opinion, a well laid-out UI shouldn't need this capability, but hey.  Well, in their wisdom, O2 have chosen an odd choice of shortcuts to start with, such as another link to the music player, as if the four buttons down the side weren't enough.
There's also no easy link to the camera.  Some phones, such as my old Nokia 6680, have an external lens cover, which activates the camera function when opened.  Others, such as the Shine and the Nokia 6280 I was using before the Cocoon, have an external shutter button which activates when held down.
The Cocoon has no such button.  Instead, it's five or six clicks through the main menu.
Suffice to say, one of the first things I did was to change the shortcuts.
On the subject of the camera, I must say I think the Cocoon's 2MP camera is not too shabby at all.  It's still just a tiny little chip like other normal phone cameras, but it doesn't seem to suffer from the "stripey graininess" that seemed to affect most mobile phone cameras I've used.  There's some chromatic aberration, the camera controls are a bit clunky, the shutter is a bit slow, and it's all a little bit soft and blurry, but other than that it does the job.
That sums up the Cocoon quite well.  It does the job.  It could do the job better, but it doesn't make me want to violently turn it into little white and black pieces, and believe me, some phones will do that to you.
So, what's the big thing I really don't like about it?
Mac compatibility
The Getting Started guide that comes with the Cocoon is quite upbeat:  "O2 Cocoon is also Mac friendly", it says.  Bollocks.
What they mean is that you can mount the phone as a USB drive, and then use the Finder to drag music files to/from it.  Later on in the book, they reveal that you need third-party software to use iTunes to manage it, and "Unfortunately it is not possible to synchronise calendar or contacts."
This is a big problem for me.   I damned the LG Shine for lack of Mac support, and I must do the same for Cocoon.  Both of these phones are oriented towards posers, especially the white and curvy Cocoon.  So why alienate the biggest gadget posers of all, us Mac users?
You see, one very nice feature of Mac OS X is that it comes with iSync:  a framework for data syncronisation between the Mac and devices such as mobile phones.  Out of the box it supports a fairly wide range of phones, and although Apple can be quite slow at updating that list, when it works, it really does work.
With a few clicks, I can have my address book and iCal calendar synched with my phone, and vice versa.  No software installation is necessary, and all it requires is pairing the phone over Bluetooth.
This capability alone has brought sales to Apple, as more than one person has seen me sync my phone and iPod and wanted that ease-of-use enough to go down to Apple Regent Street and buy an iBook.
For PC users, an third-party utility is necessary.  In my experience, the quality of this software ranges from terrible to bearable, but never quite as good as iSync.  I've had the embarrassing misfortune of wrecking a client's Windows installation trying to get such software running on their PC.
The Cocoon allegedly comes with its own software suite which includes this functionality.  I'm not really in a position to test or evaluate Windows software, so I can't tell you how good it is.
What I can tell you is that a manufacturer can add support for their phone to iSync merely by creating a configuration file or two.  They just need to specify the particular oddities and specifics of their firmware to iSync, and then it takes care of the rest.
This means that when a new Nokia, Motorola or Sony Ericsson phone is released, there's a good chance that an enterprising hacker can whip together a usable config file in a few minutes, just by finding a similar supported phone and tweaking the file.
Since iSync doesn't support any LG or Pantech phones, this quick hack route isn't possible for the phones I've reviewed.  However, with enough technical information on the Cocoon, I reckon a fully functional driver could be put together in a week or so.  Certainly far less time than was spent on the PC Suite.
I contacted O2 about this issue, and got the following response:

Although O2 are committed to Mac support we are unable to support iSync at this moment in time. However it is possible for Mac users to still update and change their music by dragging and dropping files to and from the phone.
We are actively investigating iSync support for both Cocoon and all future O2 branded devices.

This is admittedly better than the lack of reply to a similar query I sent to LG, but until I see working iSync support, I'm not completely convinced.
In the meantime, I'm stuck with transferring my contacts via the USIM from my old phone, so they're all truncated, divided and generally munged.
I've made purchase decisions based solely on iSync compatibility (or lack thereof) before.  I didn't buy my Nokia 6680 until there was iSync support for it.  Looking at the web stats for my LG Shine review I can tell you that I'm not alone in thinking this is important.  There are enough hits coming from Google searches such as "LG Shine isync", "LG Shine Mac" and "shine phone isync doesn't work" for me to assume that someone would be fairly popular if they hacked such a file together for the Shine, and I reckon the same would be true for the Cocoon.
So, hurry up, O2.  Demand iSync compatibility from your OEM, or at least demand the technical information necessary for third-parties to add it.  Talk to Apple and see how they can help.
Anyway, on that note, I'll wrap up.
I'm going to carry on using the Cocoon.  All things considered, it's an above average phone with some very useful features.  I still don't think it's as good as they think it is, but it's a darn sight better than some of the other phones I've used in recent years.  When I get around to it, I'll try shoehorning my contacts into it, using one-by-one Bluetooth if necessary.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>8</slash:comments>
	
		<series:name><![CDATA[O2 Cocoon: in-depth Review]]></series:name>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>O2 Cocoon: Review, Part 2: Music</title>
		<link>http://gidden.net/tom/2007/08/23/o2-cocoon-review-2/</link>
		<comments>http://gidden.net/tom/2007/08/23/o2-cocoon-review-2/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 23 Aug 2007 19:34:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Tom Gidden</dc:creator>
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		<category><![CDATA[O2 Cocoon: in-depth Review]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gidden.net/tom/2007/08/23/o2-cocoon-review-2/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The first part of my review of the O2 Cocoon was mainly about the hardware: the look and feel of the thing you hold.  This time, I'm going to look more at the phone's music features.

When it comes down to it, the Cocoon is really just a normal mobile phone.  It's not a smartphone, but it will do the normal things a modern phone does.  It's got Java, calculator, calendar, notepad, voice recorder, and so on.  It's got a browser, which seems to be fairly functional.  It's got a camera... two, in fact, as is common with 3G phones.
It also has music player functionality.  O2 seem to be positioning the Cocoon as a music-oriented device, with external player buttons, stereo speakers, halfway-decent earphones, and so forth.
This is nothing new, though.  We've had music-oriented mobile phones for years now, and none of them have really worked too well.  As far as I'm concerned, I always end up thinking, "Hmmm... nice try, but I think I'll stick with my iPod."
Considering my personality type, I was fairly late to the game when it came to iPods.  I've been a Mac user since 1999, and I've had a reasonably large MP3 collection since 1997.  Even so, I didn't own an iPod until 2004, partly because I was working either at home, or living very close to work.  With the lack of a long commuter journey, I never really needed anything to keep me entertained.
Nowadays, I swear by my iPod, and sometimes at my iPod.  I'm onto my seventh now, thanks to AppleCare warranty and my negative aura towards hardware, plus the proximity of Apple Store Regent Street and a fully-functioning credit card.
I'm also now consigned to a lifetime of going to the gym regularly so my bad back doesn't seize up.  I'm one of those people who would never exercise voluntarily, so I have to have something to listen to to keep me from getting bored.  I went through a stage of listening to music at the gym, and then stand-up comedy... I have pretty much everything Audible.com has when it comes to Robin Williams, for example.  Then the Ricky Gervais podcasts.  Now it's "Real Time with Bill Maher", and the weekly SModcast from Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier.
So, the real test of the Cocoon was to see if it could manage to replace my iPod at the gym.
I usually have my iPod in one of those silicone cases clipped to my waist, and an Apple iPod remote snaked up under my tee-shirt with my Shure E2Cs plugged in.  The Cocoon doesn't come with a proper case, and there isn't a mad rush on eBay to start churning them out.  Never mind:  that's what pockets are for.  For the music player to work, the hands-free kit needs to be plugged in.  This is a fairly basic one-button + microphone affair, all modelled in curvy rubberised plastic, with a standard stereo jack socket on the end.  As mentioned last time, it comes with a matching jack splitter, which is a neat addition.  However, I'd rather they'd spent the money on better earphones.  They're of the in-canal kind, with three differently-sized pairs of ultra-soft sleeves.  The cable is short so the headset blob including microphone sits at roughly mouth height.  The problem is that the sound quality is grotty for the short time they stay in my ears before falling out.  This might not be their fault, however... the insides of my ears seem to be made of teflon.
Unlike the Apple iPod remote, the headset is basically controls-free... one button for play/pause (and answering incoming calls).  This means I have to reach in and get the Cocoon out to change tracks.  The external controls are basic:  forward, reverse, play/pause and Radio on/off.  They're quite slow to react, and the external LED display is a little limiting when it comes to navigation to say the least.  Instead, I flip open the phone so I can see what I'm doing.
The 'Now Playing' interface is not laid out particularly well.  Many of the functions use the normal phone menus, but the actual playing interface uses the main navigation keys.  Left and right on the main pad give previous/next track.  Up and down control volume, which is an odd choice, since the main volume knob is less than an inch above.  Centre is play/pause.
What's odd is that the tracks are listed in the display vertically, but selected using the left/right keys.  I've accidentally increased/decreased the volume a few times when I meant to change track.  On the other hand, the side buttons are arranged vertically and are equally accessible at this point.  In other words, I'm slightly annoyed by the pointless duplication, especially since it's unintuitively implemented.  This redundancy means we don't have control over track rating, shuffle, repeat, and so forth from the main interface, and have to faff around with menus instead.
The menus do contain a few bits and pieces, though.  Along with the more mundane sleep timer and 7-band equaliser, there's the choice of "Solid Sound", "Super Bass", "Super Surround", "Extreme Surround" and "X-Treme Ultra Surround To The Max". Okay, I made up that last one.  There's also "Stage Sound", offering "Studio", "Concert Hall" and "Stadium" modes, which translate to various levels of echo and distortion if you think your music is just a little bit too high-quality for your tastes.
For podcast listeners, such as myself, there are a few major problems:  Firstly, it's very easy to quit Music Player while paused -- for example, by closing the phone -- and thus "Pause" becomes "Stop".  Secondly, if you do "Stop" the track, the Cocoon won't remember where you were.  The iPod treats podcasts and audiobooks differently from music tracks, and stores your last position in the track before stopping.  So, if you need to stop for a while and return later, you can pick up where you left off.  Thirdly, the fast forward is sloooooow.  So, if you do stop a podcast half-an-hour in, it'll take two or three minutes of holding down the button to get back to where you were.  To compare, the iPod uses the click-wheel to scrub through a track, and the scrubbing speed accelerates with use.  I can scrub through half an hour of SModcast in less than five seconds.  With the Cocoon, I'd managed to walk home from the gym in the time it took to pick up where I was.
This is because, unlike the Cocoon, the iPod is a dedicated media player.  It's also because phone firmware tends to be designed by people who aren't really thinking about how the device is actually used in real life by real people.
What we want a proper convergence device:  something that manages to be a camera, a music player, a PDA and a phone, without actually compromising any of those.  If you want good pictures, buy a camera instead.  If you want a good GPS unit, buy a Garmin instead.  If you want a good music experience, buy an iPod, a Zen, a Zune, or an Archos instead.
Every single attempt to converge these things ends up being a disappointment.  The only thing that's come close seems to be the iPhone, and even that seems to be a whole slew of compromises at the moment.
The Cocoon is stuck in the same kind of mud.  The music player works, but it's just not really quite right.  All the boxes are ticked, but it's just not an iPod replacement.
One thing it does have over the iPod, though, is external speakers.  They're pretty tinny, but they're good enough for listening to spoken voice in a quiet place.  Unfortunately, not good enough for Radio 4, though:  the FM radio only works when the headset's plugged in, or the Cocoon's in the Nest, for some reason.  As I've mentioned before, when "nested", the phone can act as a clock radio.  Unfortunately, it's fairly quiet compared to the average &#163;10 Alba standalone unit from Argos.  It would wake me up, but I can't speak for heavier sleepers than myself.
It also has removable storage:  the internal 2GB of storage is supplemented by a microSD slot capable of taking another 2GB.  Dumping music on the Cocoon from my iBook was okay: when you plug the Cocoon in via USB, it asks whether to connect to "Sync", "Music Player" or "Transfer Files".  Both "Music Player" and "Transfer Files" work, but the upshot is that a new drive appeared called "Cocoon", on which I could dump my music files.  Not as easy as the dedicated iTunes/iPod sync, but understandable, I guess.  I can't say how well it works on a PC with Windows Music Player, because as you know by now, my hands start burning whenever I touch a PC.
Did it pass the gym test?  Not really.  It certainly didn't make me stand up and shout "Why have I been putting up with carrying two gadgets around with me all the time?!?  I must leave now to dispose of my iPod in a suitable manner!"
The bottom line is that if you don't have an iPod, or you really don't want to carry around two devices, then the Cocoon will suffice as a music player / phone combo.  I'm not going to say any more than that, because I don't think the features are significantly better than the other music-capable phones I've had.  The Cocoon accessories are less plasticky, except for the earphones, and the external controls are sometimes useful... but it's just not quite there yet.
Since the Cocoon's firmware is nothing too special (as I'll cover later), I assume it's just a standard firmware Pantech use on their other phones, with a few tweaks mandated by O2.  In my opinion, O2's tame scandinavian designers should pay just as much attention to the interface of the phone as they spent on the outside.  It's this kind of HCI attention-to-detail that makes the iPhone such a big deal, and something the other phone manufacturers will have to figure out if they don't want to get thoroughly shown up by Apple.  Apple doesn't need multi-touch to trounce phones like the Cocoon... they just needed common-sense.
My review might sound quite damning, but it's really just a comment on pretty much all current phones.  They all suck in different ways, but when it comes to music playing, they all seem to suck in similar ways.  As I mentioned last time, the Cocoon is quite a nice phone... but the software is nothing special.
Incidentally, after using it for over a week, on the whole I still prefer the Cocoon to any of the phones I've used in the past few years, including the LG Shine.  I'm just not totally nuts about it.  It's certainly better than the hated Nokia 6280 I bought on contract, but I must say, the 6280 still has one feature that the Cocoon (and the Shine) don't, and I'm still missing it.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
	
		<series:name><![CDATA[O2 Cocoon: in-depth Review]]></series:name>
	</item>
		<item>
		<title>O2 Cocoon: Review, Part 1</title>
		<link>http://gidden.net/tom/2007/08/21/o2-cocoon-review-1/</link>
		<comments>http://gidden.net/tom/2007/08/21/o2-cocoon-review-1/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 21 Aug 2007 22:02:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Tom Gidden</dc:creator>
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		<category><![CDATA[O2 Cocoon: in-depth Review]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gidden.net/tom/2007/08/21/o2-cocoon-review-1/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[As you might have gathered from some of my previous posts, I do enjoy playing with new mobile phones, and I really enjoy ranting about them at length on the internet.  So, I was stoked to receive an email on behalf of O2 offering to let me try out their new "Cocoon" music phone.

I've been playing with it for a few days now, and I must say I like it.  I don't love it, though, as it does have some flaws.  It's got one massive flaw -- which you might be able to predict from my other posts -- but one feature which might just swing it for me.  More on that later, though.
O2 have commissioned this phone themselves, rather than just branding an existing OEM model.  They've handed it to a goatee-growing, polo-neck-wearing Swedish design agency, who have obviously put together a bunch of unfeasible design sketches and then passed it on to manufacture by Pantech, a huge Korean phone maker who we've barely heard of here in the UK.
I'm not sure where the name "Cocoon" came from, though.  It reminds me of an old Dilbert cartoon where it turns out the only two codenames left for new projects are "PHLEGM" and "PLACENTA". 
The phone is a curvy white semi-minimalist design, reminiscent of Marvin in the film version of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, or the shagging robots in that Björk video by Chris Cunningham.  You might think it matches the Apple iPod/iBook white aesthetic, but it doesn't really.  Apple go more for rectangular rounded glossy white plastic, while the Cocoon goes for smooth curves with crisp edges and a more "satin" finish.
The whole thing's really built around a single distinguishing feature: the five-character 16-segment blue LED display on the front.  Invisible when off, but bordered by a few inset symbols, it glows behind the white surface rather pleasantly with a relatively deep blue.  I'm in two minds about the blue:  would it look simpler and better if white LEDs had been used instead?
So, to start with, we get a minimalist white cardboard box, with the word HELLO embossed in the same sixteen-segment font across the front.  The lid flap is neatly held down by a rare-earth magnet hidden somewhere in the box, and then reinforced for good luck by a nasty VOID sticker.  Opening the flap reveals a panoramic picture of something-blossoms which I totally ignore in favour of the phone itself sitting nestled there.  A small plastic tab on the side marked "PULL" reveals the side tray, full of accessories.
The phone itself is a clamshell phone, with a comfortable spring to it, and a thick hinge.  It closes with a solid "thunk", rather than a "snap" thanks to the rubber buffers inside.  The outside is white plastic, and fairly featureless, until you notice a few fiddly details, like the camera, flash/"lantern", black volume wheel, battery panel, lanyard post, and inset indicator symbols.
The sides and the inside of the phone are black and covered in buttons and widgets, such as the stereo speakers either side, the do-everything "port", a slider to release the battery/SIM panel, a microSD slot, and control buttons for the music features.
Inside, we see the standard arrangement of screen, earpiece and video-call camera on the upper half, and keys and microphone on the lower half.  In between, there's a little-used volume wheel built into the hinge which works well from either side.
The main phone and navigation keys are flat but with slight ridges and dimples in places for touch.  The keys are very slightly backlit in a pale sickly green.   The main navigation device is a flat four-way clicker with centre button, along with two multi-function keys and the two hook buttons:  in all, a very standard layout.
When the phone is open, it forms a graceful curve which the Swedes obviously spent long nights sketching with markers.  Unfortunately, this leaves the phone a little uncomfortable to make calls with:  the flat edge and face of the earpiece doesn't contact the ear at a good angle, leaving the call either tinny, or the phone pressed close against the cheek.  Score one for design -v- practicality.  However, this isn't really a big deal.  I've had a three-hour conversation using the Cocoon and it only bothered me to start with.
So, now onto the elephant in the room... the LED display.
To me, this just looked like a gimmick.  We've seen phones with external displays before, and they're just nothing to write home about.  Okay, this one's got a neat docking station (the "Nest", as they refer to it), but I had a desk charging station for my Nokia in 1996.  Whoop-de-doo.
The Cocoon fits sideways into the Nest in what seems to me to be a thoroughly mixed metaphor.  The designers have taken a leaf out of the iPod's book when it comes to connectivity.  There's a single port on the side of the phone, akin to the iPod's "Dock Connector", which acts as a connector for the headset, charging, docking, and even FM radio antenna.  The USB cable plugs either into this port, or into the identical connector on the back of the Nest, with the Nest plugging into the phone with the same type of plug.  The other end of the cable is a standard USB plug that either goes into the computer or into a mains-plug charger.
They've even taken the idea of removable plug pins from the iPod charger, including an oddly-hinged UK three-pin adaptor, and a similarly-bendable European two-pin adaptor.  I don't blame them for copying the iPod, because the iPod did it right, and anyway Apple probably weren't the first to do it either.  Anyway, the arrangement is pretty much identical in topology to the iPod setup.
This brings up the issue of overcharging the battery:  the Cocoon's manual points out that full charge/discharge cycles are far more conducive to battery lifetime than quick top-ups, and yet the Nest encourages this bad behaviour.  While the Nest is plugged into the mains, it will charge the phone, regardless of the point in the discharge cycle.  And, if you're using this thing as an alarm clock, you want it to remain charged.  Unsurprisingly, the manual doesn't cover the issue to this depth, so I'm a little at a loss on what to recommend.
Along with a headphone jack socket, the Nest has two of the multi-function ports on the back: one for the power/USB cable, and one for the FM radio antenna.
Annoyingly, the Nest is lightweight and a bit too small.  If you lift the phone, the Nest invariably comes with it.  You have to hold down the Nest to remove the Cocoon, and since it's so slim, you end up pushing sideways on the cable plug.  I think including a hefty lump of depleted uranium in the base might've made it easier.  Failing that, they should've made it bigger to give something to push against, and made the Nest's docking plug fit looser.  Instead, I'll probably end up Blu-Tacking the whole thing down.  (Incidentally, as I discovered while taking an abortive set of pictures of the Nest, Silly Putty sticks like glue to the rubberised base of the Nest... I ended up having to break out a range of solvents to get rid of it all.)
So, while the Cocoon is nestled in its... Nest... it sits there blinking the clock, just like a blue-hued alarm clock.  While the Nest is powered, the Cocoon will keep the clock showing, so it functions perfectly as a bedside or desk clock.  In fact, it's better than my existing alarm clock, a PURE Sonus-1XT DAB Radio which, while designed with accessibility for the visually-impaired in mind, manages to have an illegibly low-contrast screen. The Cocoon also hasn't crashed yet, unlike the Sonus.
[NOTE: I'm not visually impaired; I just got it for the sexy female voice-synthesis.  I also seem to have a disturbing tendency to buy alarm clocks that end up crashing.]
The big deal -- and I really do mean Big Deal -- about the LED display, is that it's also used for other things.  Okay, this is no great surprise, but until you use it, it's not clear how staggeringly cool this is.
When I get an incoming call or text, I hear the ringtone, look over, and see the name of the caller scroll across the screen.  I can happily ignore the call without having to go across the room, pick up the phone, open it and start pressing buttons.  Incoming messages are partially read out across the screen, which I suppose could be a little embarrassing in a public place...
I can walk into the room and notice the little blue LED above the clock backlighting the debossed "missed call" light.  A meeting reminder will display the subject of the meeting.  The possibilities abound.
For years I've been wondering why combined cable television and phone companies (ie. all of them?) don't integrate Caller-ID into the TV STB.  If I'm watching a show, it would be handy for the name and/or number of the caller to come up on screen with the "Busy" option on the cable remote, rather than having to get up and check the phone, or, heaven forbid, answer it.  This Cocoon/Nest layout isn't quite that, but it's a start.  I don't have to get quite so distracted by my mobile phone as usual.
Of course, this functionality also happens while the Cocoon is away from the Nest, but then it's just like every other mobile's external display, and not quite as big a deal.  Fatally, the LED display is totally invisible outdoors in daylight, even when overcast.  The white plastic is just far brighter than the subtle blue LEDs could ever be.  I wonder if the same form factor and concept could be better utilised with a reflective display technology like electronic ink...
O2 have been fairly generous with the accessories.  We get a headset cable as usual, with a plug for that multi-function port, and a standard stereo jack socket with tiny microphone hole and a single button.  Since this is meant to be a music-oriented phone, and therefore a potential iPod replacement, I would have preferred a stereo jack socket built-in to the phone itself, rather than having to drag more cables around.
Considerately, they've also thrown in a stereo jack doubler to allow two people to share the phone.  Nice touch.  I also notice that when these accessories are all finished in the same black faux-rubber and also curved in the same way so they form a willowy shape when used together.  Again: nice touch.
Along with all of this comes the earphones.  Rather than the grotty fall-out-of-ear types that came with the LG Shine, they've included in-ear-canal ones with three sizes of ultra-soft sleeve.  The cable is very short to keep the headset microphone high, and the separate earpiece cables are asymmetric so the weight of the headset only tugs on one of your ears.
I'm going to cover the other aspects of this phone in a day or two, but so far, I'm fairly happy with the hardware.  Most of it is nothing special, and it does seem a little over-designed at times.  However, I can't stress enough how neat the Cocoon is while "nested".  Such a simple idea, and not a particularly new one at that.  However, they gone done it right.]]></description>
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		<series:name><![CDATA[O2 Cocoon: in-depth Review]]></series:name>
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