Magic Bands...

[Meghan4]

Since there is not a dining plan and no fast passes, what would be the need for a magic band? We still have ours from our last trip, I'm just wondering if we need them or not.

 

[Bobb_o]

Magic Bands can act as your ticket and you can also charge things to your room with it if staying at a Disney hotel.

 

[gatorlisa]

For ride photos where there is no touch point (Pirates, Frozen, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Slinky). Everything else can be done with a plastic ticket if you prefer.

 

[The Foolish Mortal]

Opening your hotel room door (if staying on property).

That said, bands are not necesarry. Everything they can do, can be done by other means. But they still have use

 

[DisneyFive]

We will be using MagicMobile instead. Knowing how it was before Magicbands, I never liked having to wear a Disney "handcuff" all day. I particularly like the fact with MagicMobile that you don't even need to wake your phone up for it to work as your ticket and stuff. Just grab it from your pocket and scan. Like the OP mentioned, there aren't many times that MB's are needed anymore so we'll switch to MagicMobile.

Dan

 

[BrotherCraig]

Hotel room, photo pass, etc.

We don't want to rely on the mobile pass because I am worried that our smartphones will die and we will SOL. We always bring charging battery packs but they can't be relied on either.

 

[DisneyFive]

Hotel room, photo pass, etc.

We don't want to rely on the mobile pass because I am worried that our smartphones will die and we will SOL. We always bring charging battery packs but they can't be relied on either.

Yeah, I understand. I will be asking our kids what they prefer. They might like to have a magic band. Either way, we will be getting a physical card as a back up.

Dan

 

[Chris Ehlers]

We will be using MagicMobile instead. Knowing how it was before Magicbands, I never liked having to wear a Disney "handcuff" all day. I particularly like the fact with MagicMobile that you don't even need to wake your phone up for it to work as your ticket and stuff. Just grab it from your pocket and scan. Like the OP mentioned, there aren't many times that MB's are needed anymore so we'll switch to MagicMobile.

Dan

Only problem is now with MagicMobile is if you manage all you in your group. then you have to actually go into your wallet and tap each individual "PASS" holding up the line behind you and you tap thru unlike a MB they can just tap themselves

 

[Meghan4]

Thanks for all of the feedback!

 

[Heather07438]

I like wearing my MB

 

[DisneyFive]

Only problem is now with MagicMobile is if you manage all you in your group. then you have to actually go into your wallet and tap each individual "PASS" holding up the line behind you and you tap thru unlike a MB they can just tap themselves

That's a major downside to MagicMobile, and I think it will impact a lot of families with little ones. I wouldn't use MagicMobile if I had to swipe around in my phone either. Not fun.

Our kids are all old enough to have their own iPhones so they will all be o.k. if they want to use MagicMobile. Our youngest, my son get's his next week. (They get a phone when they transition to high school.)

Dan

 

[Rudist]

I am debating on whether to buy a MagicBand for myself for our trip coming up in August. I have a Samsung phone and like to use mobile payment in general, but would I have to open the app to unlock my Disney hotel room? That might sway me toward buying a band vs just relying on MagicMobile. My wife and daughter would like to wear MagicBands, but I don't really if I can properly replace the functionality.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I am debating on whether to buy a MagicBand for myself for our trip coming up in August. I have a Samsung phone and like to use mobile payment in general, but would I have to open the app to unlock my Disney hotel room? That might sway me toward buying a band vs just relying on MagicMobile. My wife and daughter would like to wear MagicBands, but I don't really if I can properly replace the functionality.

MagicMobile is absolutely lousy in terms of performance, IMO. It is not nearly as fast as tap, click, open with the MagicBand. I think of it more as a backup plan in case you lose or forget your band rather than a viable option that I'd be wanting to use for an entire trip.

 

[talleyhopper]

We are in Disney right now, and I was super excited about MagicMobile. A few days in - and I’m not a fan! Magic Bands are just easier and more easily accessible.

 

[shelbel95]

Only problem is now with MagicMobile is if you manage all you in your group. then you have to actually go into your wallet and tap each individual "PASS" holding up the line behind you and you tap thru unlike a MB they can just tap themselves

This is why we ultimately decided to go ahead and order magic bands for our June trip. My husband and I have no problem using our phones, but with an 8 and 10 year old, we didn't want the hassle of having to manage their tickets on our phones or by a card. Besides - it's always fun picking a new color for our Disney "handcuff" ETA: I like wearing them!

 

[Kerr84]

Open hotel rooms, charge to your room at a sit down or snack counter, rider swap, park ticket...

 

[ENJDisneyFan]

I definitely prefer the magic band over the key card or magic mobile. To me nothing beats the convenience of having it on my wrist and always easily accessible. I have no desire to pull out a key card or phone to pay or enter the park. If you have a magic band from a prior trip I would definitely use it.

 

[Magnoliafan]

I’m also on Team Magic Band. I get weird performance anxiety whenever anyone is watching me and waiting for me to do something. As an example: buckling my seat belt when a CM is standing there and waiting for me to tug on the yellow strap becomes a major task and it’s like I’ve never even seen a seat belt before, let alone buckled one. I’m here now and skipping the fingerprint scanner is fantastic because that’s where I’d always screw up. Simply touching “Mickey to Mickey” is easy and stress free. If I had to pull out my phone, then I’d probably drop it.