Disney WiFi hack for streaming video (admin, please close)

[Disney_lost_it]

I mean, I usually try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, but are you really here just to complain and be rude to everyone that doesn't agree with you? Because we really don't need that.

So that I understand, if I chime in with an opinion about how Disney now charges for what was free, and I disagree with that change I'm a bad guy. I disagree with you, don't follow the Lemmings over the cliff I'm a bad guy.

Myopic agreement is why Disney takes advantage when and where they can.

Someone can rudely say "if you don't like it don't buy it", and you're fine with that. Funny how perspective works

 

[HeadNerd]

So, I really did appreciate the new Internet plan when on the Wish. Granted, my family and I were probably on our devices too much when on vacation for sure. But worked out a lot cheaper and less hassle than constantly having to watch MBs evaporate even when everything was set for low data mode, etc. And the Internet service was a lot more reliable.

With that said, I recognize that many other people may want to be almost entirely unplugged except for emergencies and basic text check-ins. I think offering a free 50MB plan in addition would make a ton of sense for those use cases.

 

[Intr3pid]

Didn't Disney throttle speed on lower tiers? YouTube and social media video feeds will automatically adjust video quality if they detect a slower speed. You might not notice it on a phone screen. Was the speed or quality different between tiers while on the VPN?

 

[Disney_lost_it]

So, I really did appreciate the new Internet plan when on the Wish. Granted, my family and I were probably on our devices too much when on vacation for sure. But worked out a lot cheaper and less hassle than constantly having to watch MBs evaporate even when everything was set for low data mode, etc. And the Internet service was a lot more reliable.

With that said, I recognize that many other people may want to be almost entirely unplugged except for emergencies and basic text check-ins. I think offering a free 50MB plan in addition would make a ton of sense for those use cases.

Thank you and well said.

My wife is the President of her Radiology Group. She made it an absolute point to not want to read the first email while on vacation. She wanted no distractions via small non-issue problems. For that matter, on the way home she wanted to drive first so as to not be tempted to enter her email. Neither of us waste time with social media.

People like us do exist. Disney just wanted a way to extract more money from each customer, hence why Bob "Cheap"ek was bragging on the earnings call about how much more revenue Disney is getting per customer. I guess he's looking for anyway to explain the 40% drop in their stock price.

 

[Kwami]

So that I understand, if I chime in with an opinion about how Disney now charges for what was free, and I disagree with that change I'm a bad guy. I disagree with you, don't follow the Lemmings over the cliff I'm a bad guy.

Myopic agreement is why Disney takes advantage when and where they can.

Someone can rudely say "if you don't like it don't buy it", and you're fine with that. Funny how perspective works

No, you're free to disagree with me or anyone else. Just please don't be so rude when we don't agree with you. Not everyone has the same use case. For me, unlimited bandwidth at faster speeds far, far outweighs 50 MB of very slow, but free, data.

 

[brentm77]

I couldn't disagree more. They should have left the 50mb free plan. If people are spending so much time on their phone while on vacation that 50 mb +/-is enough then they are not really on vacation.

On vacation all I ( and others from comments here and on board) need to know is that there isn't a problem back at home. Dog didn't die in the kennel. House didn't have a storm drop a tree on it. Oddly, over the years both are real cases. Dog nearly died while we were in Grand Cayman, hurricane dropped a tree on the house once. Thanks to email we got the dog message and immediate booked a flight home that day. With a beach rental property I want to make sure the rental co is not sending me an email about an issue. Basic stuff that happens.

As for speed. The one day I did purchase the plan it took me nearly 30 minutes and trips to a variety of locations on the boat to simply open my email. We had nearly $3k in cruise credits from our precovid booking and we refused to buy their plan as we saw it as a "vote" in favor of their fleecing.

To the comment about more expensive hotels charging, just spent a week at the beach in July. The condo rate, $6k for the week. And guess what, FREE INTERNET! Unless things have changed since 2019, Grand Floridian, FREE INTERNET.

That sounds great, but not everyone is in a line of work that let's them do what you do on vacation. I'm in a high-stress line of work, driven by deadlines. I would love nothing more than to completely disconnect, but it simply isn't a possibility on every trip, and sometimes I am required to download files that use the 50 mb in one swoop. The new plans make cruising more often a much easier possibility for me. We live in a world where unlimited data is the norm, so I'm glad it's now the norm on DCL when I need it. I hated not knowing what it would cost me every time I need to connect on DCL.

In a perfect world, they would give you 50 mb free still. But the new package is so much better for many of us.

 

[TestingH2O]

Neither of us waste time with social media.

Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. [wikipedia]

You’re literally using an account on a social media site to tell people they are doing vacation wrong if they want access to the internet.

 

[Disney_lost_it]

Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. [wikipedia]

You’re literally using an account on a social media site to tell people they are doing vacation wrong if they want access to the internet.

This is not a social media site in the context of posting "look at me". Even Disney does not consider this a "Social media" site as it would not be available via their social media internet pricing.

Never did I say people are doing their vacation "wrong" by wanting access to the internet. Actually, I've been the one that has been called out for being wrong for only wanting the old limited free internet. I was being called out as wrong for not wanting to spend countless hours on the internet and not spending those valuable hours with the family members that are physically right in front of me.

Yeah, wikipedia is a bastion of facts and truth.

 

[Kennywood]

I'm probably way off base here, and I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong. But isn't comparing the internet provided by a hotel vs the internet provided by DCL a comparison of "apples and oranges"?

Hotels are land based. Their internet, whether provided via hard line or satellite, is a fixed point. Cruise ships, on the other hand, are continually moving. Surely that would affect internet speeds.

 

[TestingH2O]

This is not a social media site in the context of posting "look at me". Even Disney does not consider this a "Social media" site as it would not be available via their social media internet pricing.

Never did I say people are doing their vacation "wrong" by wanting access to the internet. Actually, I've been the one that has been called out for being wrong for only wanting the old limited free internet. I was being called out as wrong for not wanting to spend countless hours on the internet and not spending those valuable hours with the family members that are physically right in front of me.

Yeah, wikipedia is a bastion of facts and truth.

This is the working definition of social media. Please feel free to look it up at another source if you prefer, but any online site that allows networking and posting is defined as social media. I’m sure the DCL plan doesn’t include LinkedIn either, but that is also social media.

If people are spending so much time on their phone while on vacation that 50 mb +/-is enough then they are not really on vacation.

Enjoy your vacations wherever you choose to take them. I hope plenty of free Wi-Fi is provided so you don’t have to use it.

 

[Kwami]

I'm probably way off base here, and I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong. But isn't comparing the internet provided by a hotel vs the internet provided by DCL a comparison of "apples and oranges"?

Hotels are land based. Their internet, whether provided via hard line or satellite, is a fixed point. Cruise ships, on the other hand, are continually moving. Surely that would affect internet speeds.

Correct. Unless your hotel is somewhere very remote, it'll have a hard-wired connection to an ISP, just like you do at home. That connection is then shared with guests, usually via WiFi.

On a cruise ship, everything goes over the satellite connection, which is then shared via WiFi. Satellites are far away, which means that you'll experience higher latency than you would with a normal, wired connection. Satellites are also very expensive and they have limited bandwidth, which means that users have to pay a pretty hefty fee to get access. That means slower speeds and higher costs than any hotel would pay.

The new system actually connects to MEO satellites when possible, which are closer to Earth and generally newer. That's where you'll see lower latencies and faster speeds. When the ship can't use MEO because it's too far north or south, you'll revert back to the GEO satellites, which are much further away and generally older and slower.

So, yes, apples and oranges. Though, some cruise companies do include at least a basic, slow WiFi plan for "free" as part of their promotional rates. Disney doesn't, so I guess that's a point against them.

 

[pjacobi]

Once the total ship bandwidth to the satellite is used up, the IT team will investigate. When they find bandwidth hogs are using a VPNs, they will simply block the VPNs. Use the VPN hack while you can, the cat will eventually find the mouse!


-Paul

 

[CamColt]

I am closing this thread at the OP's request.