Old magic band and auto-linked ride photos

[TangerineZoe]

Hi, on this recent trip, we stayed at the Dolphin, my first time at a non-Disney resort, so also my first time not getting a complimentary magic band. But I had a bunch saved from old trips circa 2014, so i grabbed one of those to see if it would work. Worked beautifully for getting into the parks and fast passes, as well as manually scanning in a ride photo, but none of the ride photos that are supposed to be automatically linked showed up. Do the old magic bands not work for this feature? My mine train video linked properly 4 years ago, when my magic band was new, but not this time.

 

[erionm]

Do the old magic bands not work for this feature?

Once the battery dies, the photo auto link will no longer work.

 

[Alesia]

The battery only lasts for 2 to 3 years. Once the battery dies, the long range chip ceases to function. The short range chip will last pretty much forever.

 

[Fangorn]

Magic Bands have 2 RFID chips in them. One uses passive power which comes from touching the band to a Mickey head, and the other has a long range transceiver that is powered by an internal, non-replacable battery. The long range chip is what is used for the automatic ride photos. Battery life has been reported as 2-3 years but YMMV. If the band you were using is 4 years old, the battery is almost surely dead, rendering the long range chip useless. So no automatic ride photos.

As you found, anything where you touch your band to a Mickey head, works just fine. And theoretically, should forever.

Steve

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

Touch points will always work.
Non touch points require the battery to still work.
Clearly your old magic band battery was dead.

 

[scrappinginontario]

In the case where I want to wear an older band due to colour, if I were to carry a newer band in my backpack or pocket, would it work to pick up the on-ride photos if I hadn't used it to get into the park?

 

[TangerineZoe]

Ohhh makes sense...good to know! Thanks everyone!!

 

[Alesia]

In the case where I want to wear an older band due to colour, if I were to carry a newer band in my backpack or pocket, would it work to pick up the on-ride photos if I hadn't used it to get into the park?

Yep.