NEW DCL Navigator App - Texting Feature!

[rhinodadz]

We'll be on the Dream 10/23 and will check it out and post a report.

 

[Castillo Mom]

Hah we missed it by two weeks! Those wave phones were annoying. Oh well, think I need to book another cruise to try out the new feature.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[Zandy595]

Someone reported that it's very unreliable. A text she sent her husband wasn't received until 2 days later. I'll be checking it out myself next week.

 

[Marshay]

Someone reported that it's very unreliable. A text she sent her husband wasn't received until 2 days later. I'll be checking it out myself next week.

Bummer. We'll try it week after next, too. Hoping it works better than 2 days later!!

 

[m3gg3m]

Curious to hear how the chat functionality pans out over the next few months before our Feb 2015 cruise. We're meeting up with another family who is traveling concierge on Fantasy (we're 8D), so the chat feature could be helpful keeping us coordinated.

 

[closetmickey]

of course it would roll out on october 25.. we are on the october 18-25 sailing...

Don't lose hope! I wouldn't be surprised if they "test" it early before the official roll out.

 

[joy327]

Don't lose hope! I wouldn't be surprised if they "test" it early before the official roll out.

I was on the Dream ship 10/16, the first one for testing the app function. Got the note about it when we first board. Try to log in to use the function but it ask birthday to activate it. I tried all the birthday of all our family who're on board, but non worked. The birth year to choose only fron now to 1995 or some years there, not for our age. I tried couples time and then gave up. We're too busy to stop by guest services to ask. Anyway, fail to use it but since we have wave phones then didn't really need that functions. I was going to let my 9 years old son use my old smartphone for that function. Somehow the version is too old to download the apps anyway.

 

[bumbershoot]

I was on Dream for the 10/23 sailing. We used it.

With kids still aged to go to club/lab we will have to carry the wave phone, too.

DS has a Samsung Galaxy S2 without sim card. It can get wifi, though. As we were sailing away we were madly downloading the app on his device and on DH's whatever-he-has. I already had it on my iphone4. So I just had to relaunch with the ship's wifi.

DS took it to the kid's club. When he was ready to go, he used the app to let me know. That. Was. Awesome.

When using the wave phones it can take AGES to get the message. At least for us. By the time we would get there sometimes he had gotten unbored if that's a word. The app made it much easier for him to let me know he was done. (and he really didn't enjoy the Lab this time, having just had a total blast on Vision of the Seas right before Dream, so he was contacting us pretty quickly!)

We carried the wave phone once, can't remember why. Didn't use it.

So if the kids have any devices that can use wifi, and if they are old and mature enough to carry them with them, it's very useful.

Does this mean texting may/will occur across/between Android and Apple products aboard, using said App?
Including Ipods?

Our family shares platforms. Kids are Apple, parents are Android.

I have apple while DS and DH have android. It worked seamlessly between us.

Also, it ONLY vibrates. No noises from it.

The ONE time that the system was difficult is when my guys were at the movie. They wanted me to know what they were doing and because a phone's screen is a million times brighter than the wave phone, they were chastised for it. (why DH couldn't just step out I'm not sure, and why the CMs cared since he was at the back not near people I don't know, but that was a downfall of it)

It's hard, once you're used to a certain level of communication, to go to a lower level of communication, so that was a bit of a growing pain so to speak.

I got the email the other day and it mentioned a PIN that an under-13 child would have to put in order to use. I can't find any information on where that PIN comes from... anyone know?
We're cruising in a little over three weeks and plan to use the app to communicate with DD (11).

When you're setting up the accounts, it sends a pin to the adult's phone to use on a minor's account. I assume it wouldn't do that if you don't have a minor in your room. We did, so it did. VERY easy.

This actually does not please me. I love being disconnected onboard. Having a cell phone is too much temptation to just sit and use it all the time instead of enjoying other people.

The app wasn't THAT tempting.

But having the entire cruise's navigators at my fingertips? THAT was useful and took up some of my time. You could even mark things as favorites, and it would pop up those things when it was time for them. Very very helpful.

Other than that, nothing else called me; I didn't have an internet package so those were the only things nudging me.

Bummer. We'll try it week after next, too. Hoping it works better than 2 days later!!

FWIW, the Wave phones were really unreliable for us. The app worked a lot better, though I also made sure to go TO the app every so often to make sure I hadn't missed a buzz from it (it vibrates and I don't always hear that).

 

[taswira]

Thanks for the texting report! I'm glad to hear that texting within the Navigator app does actually work.

 

[bumbershoot]

The app itself also has the menus, so it's possible to be totally prepared before you're seated for dinner.


If anyone has read my irritated posts about Disney IT in the past few years, you'll know that this is NOT easy for me to say, but honestly this navigator app with the messaging is, IMO, the BEST bit of technology Disney IT has put out in, well, forever. And I'm not saying that it's bad but better than other Disney tech stuff. No, it's actually good. I was impressed multiple times with it.

 

[Bear3412]

Just off the 10/25 Fantasy. The first sailing text app offered. We couldn't get it to work. They said there were glitches and to delete and re download. Tried that and we were still struggling and gave up and used wave phones.

ETA; Wife said others we more successful. We were trying to us a Samsung S4 Active and an Apple Iphone 5c.

 

[bumbershoot]

I'm so sad that it didn't work for you as well as it worked for us.

 

[tnkrbell]

any word as to when Wonder will get this texting feature??

 

[sweetlovin']

Just off the 10/25 Fantasy. The first sailing text app offered. We couldn't get it to work. They said there were glitches and to delete and re download. Tried that and we were still struggling and gave up and used wave phones.

ETA; Wife said others we more successful. We were trying to us a Samsung S4 Active and an Apple Iphone 5c.

I have a Galaxy S4 and it didn't work for me either. My 14yo has droid razr, older phone, but it worked for him.

 

[taswira]

How is one's phone identified by other Guests? Does each Guest, even adults, have a PIN? Since most cabins have multiple Guests and phones/tablets, I assume it isn't by cabin number. Is it by name? In other words, how to you send or receive texts within the app?

 

[Bear3412]

How is one's phone identified by other Guests? Does each Guest, even adults, have a PIN? Since most cabins have multiple Guests and phones/tablets, I assume it isn't by cabin number. Is it by name? In other words, how to you send or receive texts within the app?

You get to assign each device a name of your choice during set up. HTH

 

[Savikins]

Well, both my phone and my bf's phone (as well as my parents' phones) are too old to download the app in the first place, so hopefully they don't phase out the wave phones completely for this stuff.

Not everyone really cares about smartphones enough to have one... I've had the same (crappy) smartphone for nearly 3 years now, it's all cracked and sad looking but I can still call people and send texts and google things when I absolutely have to. I hate being on the phone and I hate texting anyway.

 

[tvguy]

I cruise to get away. My smartphone will be in the safe the entire cruise, and I'll be with my family the entire time with the paper Navigator in my back pocket. No need to text.

 

[wilkeliza]

I cruise to get away. My smartphone will be in the safe the entire cruise, and I'll be with my family the entire time with the paper Navigator in my back pocket. No need to text.

We separate even when traveling with family. It is nice to have something where we hopefully eon't have to rent more wave phones so if one person wants to have coffee in the room while others actually go to breakfast we can do that. Or if some want to see a movie and others ride the aquaduck we can also do that.

 

[bumbershoot]

I cruise to get away. My smartphone will be in the safe the entire cruise, and I'll be with my family the entire time with the paper Navigator in my back pocket. No need to text.

Since you've never had the need for the wave phone, this obviously doesn't apply to you.

My son has liked the kid clubs, they feel that seeing movies on board isn't a waste of time like I do, and they like letting me know what they are doing. The wave phone was like losing 10 years of technology for me and I hated it. Glad they've created this!

The navigators are given out daily on paper. No way to know "if I skip this today will it be offered again?" But the app had the whole cruise at my fingertips. Awesome. Could really figure out our priorities.



After reading a subsequent reply, I wanted to add...I homeschool, too. Pretty much 24/7 spent with the kidlet. Vacations, especially cruises, are my time to get AWAY from my darling son. And since DH travels about half the year for work, when I go off alone it gives them Man Time, which they absolutely adore.

I get the wish to spend huge amounts of time together when parents both work outside the home (or even if the kids are school-schooled), so having others understand other situations is always appreciated.