Navigator Chat Notifications Fixed? iOS

[rmbean]

Does anyone have recent experience as to how the chat functionality is working via the navigator iPhone app? I've read that the phone has to be unlocked and app open in order to receive texts. To me, that seems to defeat the purpose of communicating with someone if the are not explicitly waiting for your texts. Ideally, I'd like to rely on any messages getting through to my family as long as they are connected to WiFi and have the app installed - regardless of if it is actively being used. Any first-hand experience would be appreciated.

Mike

 

[ArielRae]

I wish they could add the phone vibration when you got a message. I don't like having to frequently look at my phone to see if DS has requested me to pick him up from the kids club. A selection of low ringer sounds would be better but I can settle for a vibration at least.

 

[Dug720]

I wish they could add the phone vibration when you got a message. I don't like having to frequently look at my phone to see if DS has requested me to pick him up from the kids club. A selection of low ringer sounds would be better but I can settle for a vibration at least.

Vibration might be possible, but I don't see them adding sounds because people would not turn them off in the theater during the shows and at other times and places they should be silenced. That's why the Wave Phones are lock-set to vibrate.

 

[squirk]

Does anyone have recent experience as to how the chat functionality is working via the navigator iPhone app? I've read that the phone has to be unlocked and app open in order to receive texts. To me, that seems to defeat the purpose of communicating with someone if the are not explicitly waiting for your texts. Ideally, I'd like to rely on any messages getting through to my family as long as they are connected to WiFi and have the app installed - regardless of if it is actively being used. Any first-hand experience would be appreciated.

Mike

I posted this very same question a while back because this lack of functionality bugs the crap out of me, as well. As you said, having to constantly unlock and manually check your phone to see if you have a text waiting really does defeat much of the purpose of that app.

Somebody smarter than me replied and explained how API works and how notifications are pushed on iOS and Android devices. It all made sense, but honestly, for what we’re paying, seems like DCL could throw some money at that problem and come up with a better solution.

 

[Numtini]

I didn't do testing, but it seemed to work on Android.

 

[mcd2745]

I posted this very same question a while back because this lack of functionality bugs the crap out of me, as well. As you said, having to constantly unlock and manually check your phone to see if you have a text waiting really does defeat much of the purpose of that app.

Somebody smarter than me replied and explained how API works and how notifications are pushed on iOS and Android devices. It all made sense, but honestly, for what we’re paying, seems like DCL could throw some money at that problem and come up with a better solution.

Agreed. The problem with the lack of a push notification with a vibration and/or tone (and yeah, I understand a tone would be problematic at the shows) for an incoming message seems to bother pretty much EVERYONE. It's probably one of the only things for which you could get close to universal agreement. They should have been able to upgrade the app to address this by now.

 

[Donathius]

I can't say for sure if this is still the case, but when Apple first started allowing apps to have push notification functionality the way it worked was that the developer had to first send the notification to an Apple run server, which then actually forwarded the notification to the phone. Unfortunately, this requires access to land-based servers. I can imagine that Disney probably wouldn't be terribly interested in allowing all that data to flow for free over the ship Internet - plus there's no way to limit those notifications to just the DCL app.

So people would still be getting IMs, mail, WhatsApp, etc. but wouldn't be able to actually read/respond to them without paying for data. As an IT guy I can predict just how much of a support nightmare that would be with people who don't understand this asking why they can see they have new emails or whatever but can't download them. Much easier (on DCL's end) to block everything rather than allow the one thing that would make this work.

Android, I believe allows anyone to send push notifications, but I'm not 100% sure on that. This would allow for the server on the ship to send those direct to cruisers phones without needing to be sent shore-side to work.

 

[jstewartgt]

I can't say for sure if this is still the case, but when Apple first started allowing apps to have push notification functionality the way it worked was that the developer had to first send the notification to an Apple run server, which then actually forwarded the notification to the phone. Unfortunately, this requires access to land-based servers. I can imagine that Disney probably wouldn't be terribly interested in allowing all that data to flow for free over the ship Internet - plus there's no way to limit those notifications to just the DCL app.

This is exactly correct. This is why on airplanes if you just have messaging you still get all push notifications because they have to open them all.

 

[cmarsh31]

As of last week, Android was spotty. Definitely still had to check regularly. We don't have iPhones. It was annoying...but better than zero options on celebrity.

 

[Skylarr29]

Just got off the Wonder Sunday. Not fixed. However, any activity that I favorited, sent me a notification, which made it even more frustrating to not receive them when getting texts.

 

[lds0191]

We just always leave the app open when we are out and about and there is a possibility of receiving a text. Not a problem for me, but I leave my phone in airplane mode the entire time I am on the ship.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

Makes this thing useless for me as a parent. When you pick up the phone, all the texts come through at one time, without an indication of when they were actually sent. Took the whole cruise to get my family to start each text by typing what time it is. Why oh why can't they fix this?

 

[eeyoreandtink]

Just got off the Wonder Sunday. Not fixed. However, any activity that I favorited, sent me a notification, which made it even more frustrating to not receive them when getting texts.

These are essentially an alarm, based on what time it is so they don't have to go through a server.

 

[Davistigers]

Makes this thing useless for me as a parent. When you pick up the phone, all the texts come through at one time, without an indication of when they were actually sent. Took the whole cruise to get my family to start each text by typing what time it is. Why oh why can't they fix this?

Thanks for the great tip, DisneyCowgirl!

 

[mcd2745]

I can't say for sure if this is still the case, but when Apple first started allowing apps to have push notification functionality the way it worked was that the developer had to first send the notification to an Apple run server, which then actually forwarded the notification to the phone. Unfortunately, this requires access to land-based servers. I can imagine that Disney probably wouldn't be terribly interested in allowing all that data to flow for free over the ship Internet - plus there's no way to limit those notifications to just the DCL app.

So people would still be getting IMs, mail, WhatsApp, etc. but wouldn't be able to actually read/respond to them without paying for data. As an IT guy I can predict just how much of a support nightmare that would be with people who don't understand this asking why they can see they have new emails or whatever but can't download them. Much easier (on DCL's end) to block everything rather than allow the one thing that would make this work.

Android, I believe allows anyone to send push notifications, but I'm not 100% sure on that. This would allow for the server on the ship to send those direct to cruisers phones without needing to be sent shore-side to work.

I wonder if it would be possible for them to upgrade/replace the Wave Phones with a "smart phone" version. I admittedly don't know anything about the technology and/or network that they use. Could that get around the issue stated above with the push notifications since it seems to be on its own "internal" network?

 

[anjuan]

From my last DCL cruise I agree that they need to work on this. However, I went on a RCL cruise in the fall where they had nothing, so I'm just glad at this point that there is something, even if it does need work.

 

[rmbean]

I can't say for sure if this is still the case, but when Apple first started allowing apps to have push notification functionality the way it worked was that the developer had to first send the notification to an Apple run server, which then actually forwarded the notification to the phone. Unfortunately, this requires access to land-based servers. I can imagine that Disney probably wouldn't be terribly interested in allowing all that data to flow for free over the ship Internet - plus there's no way to limit those notifications to just the DCL app.

So people would still be getting IMs, mail, WhatsApp, etc. but wouldn't be able to actually read/respond to them without paying for data. As an IT guy I can predict just how much of a support nightmare that would be with people who don't understand this asking why they can see they have new emails or whatever but can't download them. Much easier (on DCL's end) to block everything rather than allow the one thing that would make this work.

Android, I believe allows anyone to send push notifications, but I'm not 100% sure on that. This would allow for the server on the ship to send those direct to cruisers phones without needing to be sent shore-side to work.

This is the best answer I've ever read on this topic! Thank you. I am also an IT guy, and it never occurred to me that an app push notification would have to originate from the apple servers (and therefore require data service). Apparently I'm not a very good IT guy All the data classification and support issues you mention make perfect sense. Still would be nice if they could work something out, but I see why it would be difficult to impossible given the server limitation.