O2 Joggler family organiser

So, to recap...

£150 for:

A video / audio player with shitty sound.

Sky News headlines

No radio

No internet access

Weather reports (stop the giggling)

The ability to show photos one after the other

No ability to administrate using a PC

1 Gb internal storage

An automated thing to send reminder texts to a phone (most of which have reminders built in)

O2's famous build quality (I said stop the laughing)

If you're going to let O2 pay you to put a ghost-written 'review' up on the Reg at least refrain from using the same marketing patter as they do (Your new fridge door). Might I suggest a name change from 'Joggler' to 'Jobbie' because, from where I'm sitting, it looks like a pile of shit.

I can think of far more entertaining things which qualify as 'bedside companions' and this sure as hell isn't one of them. I wouldn't use it for a door wedge.

(OK, own up, who got to keep the free Jobbie?)

Re: FF/RW

Shouldn't they do surveys when designing these things. Are they a) Paranoid someone will tip off the competition. b) Aliens who don't know how humans behave. c) bloody-minded (insert preferred term).

You forgot to mention...

Does it come with a great big magnet on the back? 'Cos if it did it might be quite useful for holding notes on the fridge...

Seems rather steep

When you can buy any net-to-box for the same price these days!

Is it needed?

"After all, if a family is so disorganised that it needs the Joggler's calendar to keep it marching in step, then it's probably too chaotic to use it in the first place."

Sounds awfully familiar and exactly what I was thinking when I first saw the advert. We've manged to get as far as a calendar on the wall and everyone is able to write on it.

Not that everyone does.

It's a lot of messing about and needs all concerned to be updating their own calendars - that or the most anal of the parents to happily keep everyones lives properly mapped out.

Seems to be too much missng for it to be useful as a media player, too little in the way of interconnections for easy use. Not entirely sure what it would be good for.

Media Box

I think I'd rather pay a little more and set up my TV's with a slingbox or something similiar, I can see how it would fit the family market, but you'd need a family that is basic in it's digital needs and that won't last for long.

All in all a good device for an introduction to centralised media and info but I think it's got alimited life span especially if O2 are locking it down iPhone style.

Just ordered me one

@first comment - looks like a way into the "improved o2" firmware has been found:

http://www.hackthejoggler.com/

this has inspired me to order one as it's the sort of portable device i've been hankering after for a while.

I was on a rolling 1 month contract at £20pm, and "the very best" deal they could do me was move me to £35pm on an 18 month contract if sending it out for nowt... told them to get bent, if they're tying me in, i want some sort of saving, and eventually... after lots of repeating my argument that i'm not being greedy, but if you want me to sign for another 18 months, I want something from you, and not to have to pay you almost twice as much, I got a deal.

One day though a company will realise that the fact I had to argue to not be ripped off has left me with a sour taste even though i've got a deal.

And let's not forget O2's infamous Customer (Dis)Service

I wouldn't buy any O2 product on the simple fact that their CS staff are lying *******s who never do what they say they are going to do; assuming you can get through to one who can speak English in the first place.

The ****'s still owe me £60 from a few years ago. I was so p!ssed off at the awful service that I cancelled my private and all my staffs O2 contracts and went to a mix of Orange and Vodaphone instead.

O2 Terms and Conditions

Its worth having a read of the Joggler T & C's.

3.1 You authorise us to use and disclose, in the UK and abroad, information about you, your use of the Service (including, but not limited to, phone numbers/email addresses of calls, texts and other communications "Communications" made and received by you and the date, duration, time and cost of such Communications), how you conduct your O2 Calendar and/or O2 Joggler and your location for the purposes of operating your O2 Calendar and/or O2 Joggler and providing you with the Service or as required under law to our associated companies or agents, any telecommunications company, debt collection agency or credit reference agency. You agree that the information may be used by other parties in assessing applications for credit from you and members of your household and for debt tracing, credit management and may be used by us or other parties for crime and fraud detection and prevention.

You also need to opt out of some marketing stuff listed in para 3.2

Read them all here: http://www.o2.co.uk/termsandconditions/o2family

Jesus Christ

You agree that the information may be used by other parties in assessing applications for credit from you and members of your household and for debt tracing, credit management and may be used by us or other parties for crime and fraud detection and prevention.

So if you had "Go to the bank" in your calender. The police/goverment/02 would be able to class it as fraud and investigate you.

"good stereo separation"

No shit - you were testing it on headphones- Stereo doesn't get much more separate than that!

It is not for everyone

I am single parent in full time employment with 2 kids (12 and 6). I frequently forgets when the aprent meeting at shcool is, their holidays, school trips and our own holidays. All thos ewritten on notes and calendars. Frequently their mom want sot see them or keep at her place for the night. She wokrs irregular hours. Add ot this GP appointments, dentists etc.. Furthermore you cann add their grand parents who also want to see them at certain times of the yea ( they are onyl in UK for a couple of months depending on their work).

We all share O2 calendar and we update it online. with the joggler I can do all that from the joggler (for the kids and teir mom when visiting to see and check). goen are the notes and paper calendars. everything now in one neat place. Plus, My daughter can play music whendoign the washing up, and I too when cooking. My wife update it as well when visiting. It plays family photos as well.

I used to forget a lot of kids' appointment and I dont now (annoying sometimes :-) ). Myself and y ex are well organized now and clear. I now book my holidays on time. Children know when to do their chores ont ime -)

it di help a lot and it is not for everyone and it is not a general purpose tool and it is not perfect but for family like mine it is extermemly useful

Sure Ihave a smartphone with calendar etc.... but it is not the same... and hard to share.

This is very convenient device but it is not for everyone.

O2 Joggler - BIG FAIL

You gave this 85% !! Can't upset the sponsors I guess? Several flaws you didn't mention:

- Can't set an end time on an appointment

- Can't sync with any other calendar

- Alerts do not pop up on the device itself rather it has to send SMS - don't most phones already sync with PC calendars and have auto event reminders ?? YES !!

Why would you rate a device that loses Wifi connection after a hour, or has such an obvious tie in to the manufacturer, so highly ? I have to regard future reviews with the scepticism they deserve.

Had ours a week

On a free, instead of a replacement phone.

And I rather like it. Not a replacement for a corporate outlook, but certainly for the papery thing that no-one keeps up to date. It is slightly odd that it doesn't produce an alert on the display, but we've already had one update since plugging it in, that may come. Which will be a must when the radio function arrives (then the kitchen radio will go)

Speakers are a little tinny, I have a pair I'll plug in some time. Connectivity is no problem whatsoever for us. Nice photo frame screen-saver. The kids - 8 and 6 - can use it without thinking about it. The touch-screen is excellent. It stores the weather location without any problem, btw, I've seen that down as a bug before.

There's a hacking project for it - http://hackthejoggler.blogspot.com/

It has a place in a busy family.

It may be some use if....

When you entered a diary item it would send it to your phones calander rather than as a text message. Yup you'd have to tell it what phone you use but that would have done it for me..