Guest Test of Magic Bands (Official Notice)

There's probably no "official info" because Disney hasn't made all the final official decisions yet! That's what testing is for. See how it works, tweak it, try again, tweak it, finally get what works and release to public. As great as these boards are (and they are great!), the problem is there does tend to be a lot of speculation (some educated, some not), some of which leads to hair pulling and worrying (about things that may never come to pass!). To be honest, the one thing that I have learned from these boards is Disney corporate is damned if they do, and damned if they dont. Best answer, is to wait to see how the final product ACTUALLY works before worrying. For me, I would enjoy the parks even if there was NO FP system of any kind, and no FP system would ever impact my ability to enjoy. So if FP+ makes things better, great! If not, I am still looking forward to November and my next trip to the land of the mouse!

Ditto all this! :thumbsup2:thumbsup2:thumbsup2
 
I have a ????????? that hopefully won't get lost.....

I know Disney said all guest will have "an opportunity" to have a Magic Band (one way or another).

But,

did they say, officially thus far, that ALL ticket holders will be privy to FastPass+?
 
I have a ????????? that hopefully won't get lost.....

I know Disney said all guest will have "an opportunity" to have a Magic Band (one way or another).

But,

did they say, officially thus far, that ALL ticket holders will be privy to FastPass+?

I believe you have it slightly backwards.

They have basically said that all ticket holders will have access to FP+. MYW and AP holders with tickets registered will be able to book 60 days in advance. They haven't specified specifically what the lead time is for other ticket classes yet.

As far as MagicBands, resort guests and AP holders will get them by default. Others will have the opportunity to purchase.

At least, that's the last known info.
 

Any word on whether regular FP will still be around in some capacity? I expect not but I thought that I might ask anyway. ;)
 
Any word on whether regular FP will still be around in some capacity? I expect not but I thought that I might ask anyway. ;)

It is understood that it was originally planned for regular FP to go away at some point, and only FP+ be available.

No idea if this has changed...current testing still includes using regular FP.
 
It is understood that it was originally planned for regular FP to go away at some point, and only FP+ be available.

No idea if this has changed...current testing still includes using regular FP.
I hope that that is a good sign.

You might think that they would want to limit those going through testing to only FP+ to see how it works out. However they might be just checking out the mechanics of the system right now and the limited testing could come later.

I guess that we'll see soon enough.
 
/
I'm just going to say I hope they continue testing for a while.

If they intend to phase out KTTW/original FP altogether, I would think they'd include some tests where the *only* access to FP is through MagicBands/FP+/MDE so they can get some feedback before they roll it out that way to everyone.

Having access to both systems when that is not the intended final outcome won't really give a good indication of how people feel about the new system on its own. I would LOVE being able to reserve 3 FPs in advance and still be able to pull regular FPs under the current existing time constraints, but if that's not how it's going to work later I don't see how repeatedly testing it that way is going to gain a lot of new information beyond the fact that the MagicBand computer system is working. :confused3

I'm nervous about our upcoming trip, anxiously waiting on new information. I'm just glad we are staying 10 days this time so we should be able to get most things we want done, even if FP wasn't available at all.

I'm just kind of jumping in here, and I know that we all want to know exactly how it is all going to look/feel/act when it is completely operational, but...isn't this exactly the purpose of the tests? To make sure that the system is working as it is supposed to? Yes, we all want unlimited FP+ and the ability to schedule them beginning 910 days out all the way up to 10 minutes before. AND we want the MB to open the rooms, AND let us pay for meals AND trinkets, AND get us into the parks, AND link to our PhotoPass accounts AND TiW accounts AND AP status AND DVC account AND park our cars AND do the dishes that are at home in the kitchen sink!! :)

So, while I distinctly have preferences for how I would like the FP+ to work, (and while I am a nerd, I'm ignorant of the intricacies of system management that this all will entail) I am relatively certain that the ability to "tweak" the number of FP+ allotments will always remain open. Lets just knock on wood that everything IS functioning as it is supposed to so the IT guys can move on to the important stuff....Like setting my account to priority for the FP+'s!!:lmao:
 
I'm just kind of jumping in here, and I know that we all want to know exactly how it is all going to look/feel/act when it is completely operational, but...isn't this exactly the purpose of the tests? To make sure that the system is working as it is supposed to? Yes, we all want unlimited FP+ and the ability to schedule them beginning 910 days out all the way up to 10 minutes before. AND we want the MB to open the rooms, AND let us pay for meals AND trinkets, AND get us into the parks, AND link to our PhotoPass accounts AND TiW accounts AND AP status AND DVC account AND park our cars AND do the dishes that are at home in the kitchen sink!! :)

So, while I distinctly have preferences for how I would like the FP+ to work, (and while I am a nerd, I'm ignorant of the intricacies of system management that this all will entail) I am relatively certain that the ability to "tweak" the number of FP+ allotments will always remain open. Lets just knock on wood that everything IS functioning as it is supposed to so the IT guys can move on to the important stuff....Like setting my account to priority for the FP+'s!!:lmao:

This could just be a "mechanical" test. Not necessarily how it will work in the final incarnation, but to check out the functionality of the bits and pieces from the point of view of the guest. CMs have been testing it for a bit, but you can't rely on testing from those people who know how it should work - if this is going to be used by the masses, then you need to have it tested by people who "don't have a clue" as well - people who will have questions, try to use it in ways unintended, etc. that might be something they haven't thought of, and either need to protect against it or make it work. Heck, we've probably come up with permutations and stuff over the months/years that they didn't think of...but I also think in general DISers would make pretty poor testers of this, because we do all the research and know how it should work, and what the limits are ... we are probably less likely to test "edge conditions" as we call them.

I write lots of programs (although it's not my primary job). _I_ know how it is _supposed_ to work. But until I have someone else use it, I don't know if it really _does_ work. :)

As it stands right now, I don't think this is the final version of how it will work. I still have a feeling that regular FP is doomed, and I'm not so sure it will have a direct replacement.
 
I believe you have it slightly backwards.

They have basically said that all ticket holders will have access to FP+. MYW and AP holders with tickets registered will be able to book 60 days in advance. They haven't specified specifically what the lead time is for other ticket classes yet.

As far as MagicBands, resort guests and AP holders will get them by default. Others will have the opportunity to purchase.

At least, that's the last known info.

Thanks. I couldn't quite remember.
 
This could just be a "mechanical" test. Not necessarily how it will work in the final incarnation, but to check out the functionality of the bits and pieces from the point of view of the guest. CMs have been testing it for a bit, but you can't rely on testing from those people who know how it should work - if this is going to be used by the masses, then you need to have it tested by people who "don't have a clue" as well - people who will have questions, try to use it in ways unintended, etc. that might be something they haven't thought of, and either need to protect against it or make it work. Heck, we've probably come up with permutations and stuff over the months/years that they didn't think of...but I also think in general DISers would make pretty poor testers of this, because we do all the research and know how it should work, and what the limits are ... we are probably less likely to test "edge conditions" as we call them.

I write lots of programs (although it's not my primary job). _I_ know how it is _supposed_ to work. But until I have someone else use it, I don't know if it really _does_ work. :)

As it stands right now, I don't think this is the final version of how it will work. I still have a feeling that regular FP is doomed, and I'm not so sure it will have a direct replacement.

This.
 
This could just be a "mechanical" test. Not necessarily how it will work in the final incarnation, but to check out the functionality of the bits and pieces from the point of view of the guest. CMs have been testing it for a bit, but you can't rely on testing from those people who know how it should work - if this is going to be used by the masses, then you need to have it tested by people who "don't have a clue" as well - people who will have questions, try to use it in ways unintended, etc. that might be something they haven't thought of, and either need to protect against it or make it work. Heck, we've probably come up with permutations and stuff over the months/years that they didn't think of...but I also think in general DISers would make pretty poor testers of this, because we do all the research and know how it should work, and what the limits are ... we are probably less likely to test "edge conditions" as we call them.

I write lots of programs (although it's not my primary job). _I_ know how it is _supposed_ to work. But until I have someone else use it, I don't know if it really _does_ work. :)

As it stands right now, I don't think this is the final version of how it will work. I still have a feeling that regular FP is doomed, and I'm not so sure it will have a direct replacement.

I think you have nailed it.

I'm strongly of the opinion that this isn't the final "version", but I do think it is getting close to what the final version is supposed to do. (IMHO) And I agree that this test may be designed to see what the "average user" will subject the system to. [Kind of like the quote of "anytime you make something idiot proof, the world finds a better idiot."] ;)

Based on what I've seen from the "official" information, don't we know that the regular FP is doomed at some point anyway?

I'm not quite sure what you mean by
I'm not so sure it will have a direct replacement.
?

Wouldn't any same-day access to the FP+ system be a direct replacement for the current system? Unless you believe that the FP+ system is only usable as a schedule in the future option? :confused3

(Not trying to be confrontational, just not sure if I'm missing something?)
 
I'm not quite sure what you mean by ?

Wouldn't any same-day access to the FP+ system be a direct replacement for the current system? Unless you believe that the FP+ system is only usable as a schedule in the future option? :confused3

(Not trying to be confrontational, just not sure if I'm missing something?)
I'm not sure what doconeill means but to me it wouldn't be the same. You'd have to keep your eyes glued to the phone from what I've heard and that is so not what we like to do while on vacation. Plus it sounds like the FP+ offers would just be luck of the draw so planning around those would be pointless.
 
I'm not sure what doconeill means but to me it wouldn't be the same. You'd have to keep your eyes glued to the phone from what I've heard and that is so not what we like to do while on vacation. Plus it sounds like the FP+ offers would just be luck of the draw so planning around those would be pointless.

Oh, I completely agree that it won't be the same, I just don't think it can be said that there will be "no replacement" as long as there is some sort of same-day access.
 
I didn't read the first 15 pages so please forgive if this was addressed earlier. I've read people's worry that they will not be able to access favorite attractions with the new system. With the current system, there are many books and websites explaining how guests may ride headliners multiple times in a day, using 2 or more FP's and they encourage this. So if the new system limits each guest to 1 FP+ per ride per day, shouldn't that free up a LOT more FP+ opportunities overall, reducing the number of complaints from people regarding "sold out" FP's??? Am I missing something? :confused3
 
Yes, it will free up a lot more FPs... for the masses. But the "common thinking" is that there will be 3 FP+ per day, and possibly not all for use on the headliners. So the FPs won't "sell out" as easily, but when you are used to pulling half a dozen headliner FPs, it's a significant downgrade.

Essentially, what many of use are worried about is that it is taking the "wealth" of the advantage of what those of us who research, know and understand the system and spreading it to all park guests. Nice idea in theory, but frustrating when it means that system implementation will likely mean you can do less than you are used to doing. They are "freeing up" those extra FPs for other park guests by giving them the APs that, under the current system, *I* would normally use!

For us, we are only able to do 75-80% of the attractions we could do pre-FP time enforcement, and we walk a LOT more. We end up going back and forth between lands willy-nilly to make sure we hit our time slots. Our days are less convenient and less carefree. I expect being limited to fewer FPs and a pre-set schedule will dial that down even further. I don't know if it will dial it down to the "this isn't worth it" point, but it is harder to justify giving my dollars to the mouse this AP cycle than it was last AP cycle. I am probably not the visitor the mouse wants, though - AP holder, value resort, purchase few souvenirs... though we do a good bit of dining - so they might be fine with that. Dunno.

It is what it is and if I want to play in the Mouse's House I have to play by his rules. So I'm not complaining about it, although it is definitely frustrating for me. But, my choices are simple - roll with the punches or exit the playing field. Thus far I'm choosing to roll.
 
Hi guys! Just standing in line waiting for Magic Kingdom Rope Drop. Had a little snafu with the MagicBand getting in today. My husbands worked fine but mine didn't. The CM that the transaction was still processing so maybe there was just a glitch in the system when I scanned my band. I just used my KTTW card to get in instead.

Two interesting bits of info from a CM last night. She said...

1) as of now they do plan on doing away with the regular FP system. She said be sure to meet with the folks at our resort who are available to meet with guests to talk about their experience. Be honest with them about how you feel about the limit of 3 FP+ because NOTHING is final right now.

2) 5,000 qualified groups were invited to take part based on check in day and resort. Only 3,000 opted in.

That's it for not folks! Besides the little snafu getting in our MagicBands have been working great!

** On my iPhone...sorry for any typos or misspellings.
 
Hi guys! Just standing in line waiting for Magic Kingdom Rope Drop. Had a little snafu with the MagicBand getting in today. My husbands worked fine but mine didn't. The CM that the transaction was still processing so maybe there was just a glitch in the system when I scanned my band. I just used my KTTW card to get in instead.

Two interesting bits of info from a CM last night. She said...

1) as of now they do plan on doing away with the regular FP system. She said be sure to meet with the folks at our resort who are available to meet with guests to talk about their experience. Be honest with them about how you feel about the limit of 3 FP+ because NOTHING is final right now.

2) 5,000 qualified groups were invited to take part based on check in day and resort. Only 3,000 opted in.

That's it for not folks! Besides the little snafu getting in our MagicBands have been working great!

** On my iPhone...sorry for any typos or misspellings.

Thanks for the update!! As anyone should expect, nothing is final at this point... thus the testing, right? :) Glad they're encouraging people to give their honest feedback -- I hope everyone does!

I'll keep checking back for more of this real testing info -- so great to have it (!!) -- thanks again for posting!!! :surfweb:
 
I didn't read the first 15 pages so please forgive if this was addressed earlier. I've read people's worry that they will not be able to access favorite attractions with the new system. With the current system, there are many books and websites explaining how guests may ride headliners multiple times in a day, using 2 or more FP's and they encourage this. So if the new system limits each guest to 1 FP+ per ride per day, shouldn't that free up a LOT more FP+ opportunities overall, reducing the number of complaints from people regarding "sold out" FP's??? Am I missing something? :confused3

Yes, it would free up a lot of FP slots.

But I'm as disappointed in the probable reduction of FP to one per attraction per day as I am in the possible 3 per day limit. I would probably be willing to give up TSMM and ToT at DHS and do RnR 3 times, but it appears this will likely not be an option. No matter how many others would gladly give up RnR to do TSMM an extra time.

To be honest, they should add some flexibility to this, maybe with the exception of TSMM and Soarin. Make those max 1 per person per day. Then let the others be.

But this single change will affect us nearly as much as the other proposed changes.
 

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