Magic Band Battery Life?

[shfrey]

Does anyone have any idea as to how long the battery lasts in magic bands? We are staying onsite in Feb and offsite in November and just wanted to know if they would still work or if we'd need to buy new ones.
Thanks!!

 

[kmb584]

Does anyone have any idea as to how long the battery lasts in magic bands? We are staying onsite in Feb and offsite in November and just wanted to know if they would still work or if we'd need to buy new ones.
Thanks!!

They'll work just fine in November.

 

[disnut8]

Is there a battery in the MagicBands? I thought it was just an RFID chip?

 

[AMVdisney]

There's no actual battery in the Magic Band, just an RFID chip, so you'll be good to go on your next trip! I got my first set of magic bands about six months ago, and will be taking them with me to use again this January.

Hope you have a fun trip!

 

[flatlandcycle]

There's no actual battery in the Magic Band, just an RFID chip, so you'll be good to go on your next trip! I got my first set of magic bands about six months ago, and will be taking them with me to use again this January.

Hope you have a fun trip!

There is a battery, for the longer range interaction. Just Memory Maker triggering at this point, so they say. There are long range readers in the stores in Downtown Disney. Who knows what they are for. I would guess that some Memory Makers photos in attractions would not be associated with your account if the battery were dead. At some point these batteries will lose their charge; the individual discharge rate will vary.

The battery is the round disk shaped item:
http://atdisneyagain.com/2014/01/27/making-the-band-magicband-teardown-and-more/#jp-carousel-7683

 

[SmithSmith]

I thought I remember reading a 2 year battery life, fwiw.

 

[Laketravis]

Long-range reading requires a button battery in the band, which they do contain and the battery life is estimated at two years.

Near-field proximity reading does not require a battery and lasts indefinitely.

Dissecting a Disney Magic Band

EDIT: Just noticed flatlandcycle already posted this same information.

 

[chartle]

I think they expect the battery to last 3 years but its rated for something like 7. And from some one who follows the wearable electronics community that's an amazing life.

Oh and by "long range" they mean around 10 to maybe 20 feet.

 

[figment forever]

2yrs.
I'm pretty sure it says that on the magic bands page on MDE.

 

[tinkstoes]

Everything I've read says two years. BUT be warned you could get one that ends up being kind of a dud for lack of better words. I got one in September when I went for a weekend. I decorated it all pretty to use again in November when I went back for one last weekend. When I tried to get it linked to open my resort door we couldn't get it to work. Essentially what the manager explained to me was on occasion there are "dud" MagicBands that will still work to a small extent but don't have enough juice left to do the "important" stuff. Luckily I still had the grey one for that trip so it didn't hinder me!

 

[Polydweller]

Everything I've read says two years. BUT be warned you could get one that ends up being kind of a dud for lack of better words. I got one in September when I went for a weekend. I decorated it all pretty to use again in November when I went back for one last weekend. When I tried to get it linked to open my resort door we couldn't get it to work. Essentially what the manager explained to me was on occasion there are "dud" MagicBands that will still work to a small extent but don't have enough juice left to do the "important" stuff. Luckily I still had the grey one for that trip so it didn't hinder me!

The important stuff like opening your room, getting through the entrances (tickets), fast passes, and paying for things are all passive rfid (near field) and that chip doesn't use the battery. Like all technology some may not work or may not have been programmed correctly, thus a 'dud'.

The battery is for the separate circuit that uses active, relatively long range communication. That is being used for things like the on ride photos but not purchases or rooms etc. The battery life is rated at 2 years but that is probably a conservative estimate so that they bands aren't used or are replaced before the battery dies. They are hitting the point that they are going to have to be concerned with battery life in the oldest active bands.

 

[doconeill]

The _predicted_ life of the battery is 2-3 years based on power output of the active transmitter. I believe Disney is expecting a practical 1 year lifetime.

For those that didn't realize there is an active transmitter - it has both active and passive, for different purposes. The passive side will continue to work indefinitely, but some features may not function.

Here are some details on how it works.

http://wdwuntangled.com/magicbands/

 

[chartle]

Has anyone found a good tear down of a Magic band I mean someone with an electronics engineering background like Adafruit that is really big into the wearables scene.

I may send them a note but I don't have a magic band but I'm not sure if they would do it. They are also in the open source community and Magic Bands are nowhere near that group.

 

[doconeill]

Has anyone found a good tear down of a Magic band I mean someone with an electronics engineering background like Adafruit that is really big into the wearables scene.

I may send them a note but I don't have a magic band but I'm not sure if they would do it. They are also in the open source community and Magic Bands are nowhere near that group.

You mean aside from the links posted above where they dissect a MagicBand?

 

[chartle]

You mean aside from the links posted above where they dissect a MagicBand?

I've seen a few but looking for one where they analyze how the electronics work. I've mostly just seen where they attack it with a dremel and make bits of confetti that looks like this.

Looking for something more like this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcCB94volbA&list=PL2B8A7560BC19F361

It may not be able to be done because of the way they are made.

 

[chartle]

Update thought I found one.

http://www.adafruit.com/blog/2014/02/12/disney-magicband-teardown-wearablewednesday/

but it just links back the one I reference above.

 

[doconeill]

I've seen a few but looking for one where they analyze how the electronics work. I've mostly just seen where they attack it with a dremel and make bits of confetti.

Looking for something like this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcCB94volbA&list=PL2B8A7560BC19F361

It may not be able to be done because of the way they are made.

MagicBands are far simpler devices using RFID/NFC, which is a well-understood technology. I've disassembled both passive and active RFID cards (including Disney ticket media, but not my own MBs), and there isn't anything super spectacular about them - a very tiny chip with a very long wire acting as an antenna (and induction loop in the passive style), that transmit a preset code when powered up. Some have rewritable storage and can contain encryption.

 

[TGM]

Disney says 2 years, but its probably more. They just want you to buy another band every 2 years.

 

[siskaren]

Disney says 2 years, but its probably more. They just want you to buy another band every 2 years.

This is a zombie thread but just as an FYI, the battery is only necessary for long range things like ride photos; it's not necessary for things like opening hotel doors, entering the parks and using FP+. Also, if you're staying onsite magic bands are free and if you're staying offsite, you don't need them - your ticket works just fine.

 

[doconeill]

The rated power of the transmitter vs. the battery results in an estimate 2-3 years. I think Disney has actually been saying 1 year. They have not at this point forced any expiration on them. And like siskaren says, they will work even after the battery dies for _most_ things. Anything you KNOW you use them for by touching them to the touchpoint readers will still work. It's the "magical" things that can detect them at a distance - the newest of which is the automatic messages at the end of small world.

And as far as making you buy them every two years - at least 90% of them are given away for "free" with a resort stay or an Annual Pass. Heck, they still let me order my Annual Pass bands - even after my Annual Pass had expired over a year ago. I never ordered them because I already got two sets from a split stay.