O2 supplies the Cocoon with Windows Media Player 11 software for PCs to manage and synchronise tunes, via an in-box USB cable. Mac users can drag and drop tracks onto the phone or memory card, but syncing with iTunes requires additional third-party software such as SyncTunes.
Twin speakers sit on either side of the hinge, which produces some volume, but little real stereo effect. Regulation speakerphone tinniness is not as harsh as it is on some cheaper models, but you can tweak up the bass levels to maximum without getting any extra real thump.
A hands-free stereo headset is included. O2 has smartly allowed regular headphones to be plugged in by supplying a two-part headset to plug into the phones USB socket with a 3.5mm jack adaptor on one end. Nicely, a small splitter is packaged too so that two sets of headphones can be attached simultaneously. O2 has also thought about listening when the phone is cradled - the Nest has headphone sockets so you can tune in when charging.
Cunningly concealed LED lighting
Sound quality through the supplied in-ear 'phones is impressive. They’re better than many supplied sets - iPod earphones, certainly - and produce a welcome level of bass and tone clarity. There's neglible spillage at listening volume, too. Cocoon has stereo Bluetooth, and O2 has usefully added a fastkey on and off option.
The two-megapixel camera on the back of the Cocoon doesn’t enjoy the one-button access that some other handsets provide. It has autofocus and a flash, and up to 10x zoom at lower resolutions. Some picture tweaking controls - white balance, brightness and quality options - are provided, plus there are a few "funny" frames and effects, if that makes you chuckle.
Images taken by the Cocoon are reasonable, but the camera is far from the best 2Mp mobile we’ve seen. Some shots are slightly soft - although mid- to close-in shots benefit from the autofocus. Colour balance is generally acceptable.
O2's Cocoon: nested
Video at the top resolution - 320 x 240 pixels - is no great shakes, as with most mobiles, and the Cocoon won’t be kicking your camcorder into touch any time soon.
The O2 Cocoon has a browser on board, configured for quick access to the O2 Active portal. Regular websites can also be accessed too, along with POP and IMAP email.
COMMENTS
Re: O2 have balls
"If you're asking £295 for this as a PAYG shows O2 have either big balls or they've totally lost touch with reality"
If my recent dealings with them are any indication[*], it's definitely the latter and one of the main reasons I've booted them into touch and gone over to T-Mobile instead (I've also 'downgraded' from an XDA Mini to a Nokia 6300 - never been happier)
Having seen a Cocoon in the York O2 shop, the first thing I thought was 'Eeeewwww!' - looks like the bastard offspring of an iPod and a bedside alarm clock and, given the quality of O2s reception round here, is probably more useful as one of these than as an actual phone.
[*] - eg. ringing their customer support to request my PAC code and having to sit through an advert for the bloody iPhone.
Own worst enemy
Is it me, or is O2 going to bite its own arse?, they have already bought a deal for the iphone, why have this aswell
O2 have balls
If you're asking £295 for this as a PAYG shows O2 have either big balls or they've totally lost touch with reality if they think this phone is worth nearly £300. At that money they're saying it's got more to offer than nearly anything coming from Sony-Ericsson, Nokia, LG or Motorola. They're clearly a bit mad.
The phone lacks one thing and the review lacks another..
Why don't manufacturers put a standard 3.5m jack in music phones? My SPV is the same as this, uses some crappy proprietary plug and they charge you a fortune for a new set of headphones. It was cheaper to buy a new MP3 player than it was to replace the orange (nothing special except the price) headphones.
- I know they also need to add a mic. and other control lines too.. but there are ways of dealing with that.
- And yes, it comes with a 'adapter', but I'll bet the adapter has crummy strain relief, breaks after reasonable use, and costs a fortune to replace (if you can even buy it separately).
As for the review, yet again we are not told about how the phone synchronises.. Just mac and windows info and no discussion aboutr wether it mounts as a USB drive (and is therefore compatible with pretty much everything.)
- Simon; this is, unfortunately, in the finest tradition of el-reg reviews.. Please, please give a overview of the sync method (USB filesystem, vs. proprietary/activesync/telepathy) and then note any handy apps they supply for specific OS's. Ta.
Bonus..?
Oh wow, there's a bonus.. A corporate entity changing my wallpaper for advertising purposes? It's like they read my mind!
A pint of Bishop's Ringfinger to the first person who hacks that to send out goatse.. :)
