Securing Your Laptop at the World?

[milmore104]

I always just left ours on the table in our room. I've never had any problems. I have even (accidently) left $400 on top of our TV stand and it was still there when we got back. Mind you I would NEVER do that again but I do leave our electronics out. The only thing I have ever ran back to the room for because it got left was my wedding rings. Honestly I'm more worried about my stroller getting stolen n the parks than stuff getting stolen from our hotel room. It could be because my stroller means more to me than the laptop... I do lock my stroller at the parks!

 

[FireDancer]

I just leave it out or at most put mine in my suitcase. It is TrueCrypted so if someone decides to take it they can have it. They aren't getting anything off of it anyway. So far I've not had anything taken from a hotel anywhere and definitely not Disney.

I solve the no WiFi problem by tethering my MyTouch4G to it.

 

[neodymm]

We always take laptops/iPad, yes plural, and various other electronic devices. At one point, we probably tried to "hide" everything in drawers or the safe. But, now, it just all sits whereever we leave it. I've accidentally left jewelry and cash out (we usually do lock that in the safe), not to mention all the things we've purchased that get piled up in a corner. We've never had a problem. I'd leave these things in my room before I'd leave them in the car...just too darn hot and it seems like the risk of car theft would be higher than room theft. But overall, I feel very safe in WDW, though I am an extremely cautious person in the real world.

 

[maxiesmom]

We don't lock ours. First time we brought it, we put it in the suitcase. Last time, we just left it out. I'm a worrier and had a hard time handling DHs decision on that one, but it was okay. It is an older laptop.

DHs thought is we know its there and they can see who in Mousekeeping entered your room. A laptop isn't like a pair of earrings or something small you could have just "misplaced".

Even so, Disney will not be responsible for it. You have no way to prove to them that you had the item to begin with. And there are people who are nasty enough to pretend they had an item, in order to collect from Disney, if they were held accountable. The only thing you could do would be to call the police, but you would have the same problem, lack of proof you actually had the computer with you.

 

[larry80]

Does an Ipad fit in the room safe?
I want to bring mine, hoping it will ,,
Thanks

I know in the poly it sure would, I put a 2 in ours plus a gps and a bunch of other stuff..

 

[ElizabethB]

I just leave my laptop on the desk.

 

[krb2g]

I travel a lot with my laptop (Disney and other places) and I usually don't lock it or worry that much about it. I put it in the suitcase or another bag out of plain sight. Now the laptop I use is almost five years old, so I think it's probably less tempting. I also always travel with a lot of camera equipment, but that comes with me at all times!

 

[wintercast]

Your car insurance does not cover items stolen from it.. This is covered under your home owner's policy. Check your policies to be sure. Your home owner's policy might have a slightly larger deductible than $100.

That being said, I have no issue with hiding the laptop in the back of the car. Some cars have a spare tire hidden under a panel in the truck. This can also be a good hiding spot. My laptop fits in the safe, or I leave the laptop in my laptop bag, inside my empty suitcase. I have never had anything stolen from a Disney room. That is why i stay at Disney.

I know this sounds crazy, but it is what I do as a last alternative... I always have my car with me, and my deductible is only $100.. sometimes I will store my laptop in the back area of my suv, in it's case with towels or a blanket from my home thrown over it while I am at the parks. If it were to get taken from my car, at least I will be covered through my auto-insurance! If it gets stolen from the room.. good luck trying to recover anything from Disney... You just don't place it back there, then leave it... you have to place it back there, and go to where you were going.. so no one has actually seen what you have placed back there, you never know who cases the parking lots. Sure Disney has "security" at the resorts, but what does it take to get into their parking lot? Show your DL that is it.. or even take the bus from Down Town Disney... Many seem to forget it really is easy to access these resorts....

Disney really needs to update their safe's.. and become more tech friendly!

 

[dvcHammer]

an ipad or smaller laptops and netbooks fit with no problem in the safe.

I've always brought my laptop and just left it in the room without a worry. I either have put it back in the laptop bag and put it with the luggage or have even just left it on the table. Since all of my data, photo's and music are stored online anyway, there is nothing to loose but the device itself.

When travelling I just use an old but reliable XP laptop, not much to loose there.

 

[vickalamode]

I used to be a mousekeeper at Disney...you'd be surprised that most guests just leave it on the desk.

 

[disnut8]

I have been to Disney World about twenty times in the past ten years with my laptop and my husband's work laptop. We have never hidden them and even left one of them out on the table with just a newspaper out over it. It's still plugged in and everything. Never had a problem.

I'm from the thinking that if you go to great lengths to protect something, a thief will find it more valuable.

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

I always leave mine in the room, either in my wheeled carry on or in a drawer. It's password protected. I do lock up in the room safe my DSLR and other goodies.

 

[kirrrby]

I would hide it under the bed, I don't think housekeeping ever looks under there. Or if you don't care about getting housekeeping to make you bed just leave the "do not disturb sign" on your door the whole trip and call them when you want to switch out towels.

If I remember correctly, there is no area underneath the beds in the All Star Resort rooms. It's just a frame from the bed to the ground.

I personally took my laptop once, hid it in the second drawer of the dresser OR I often did this.. Hid it in the dirty clothes bag. (No one in their right mind wants to go through that). Same goes for my expensive/dangerous medical supplies. I had those locked up in a portable safe.

Also in most of the value resorts the safes require a key. But it is very easy to pick those.

 

[sammyjo1871]

I've been thinking about the same thing. I will take my work laptop as well, in case I would need to VPN for some reason and to check emails in the evening after my son is asleep. Even though my hard drive is encrypted, I'm planning on taking a lock to secure it to something hopefully. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

 

[DaisyD]

I just leave mine plugged in on the desk. Been doing it for years and have no issues at all.

 

[michsig]

this may sound irresponsible, but i left mine completely out in the open.

 

[MickeyNicki]

We have brought our computer on just about every single trip we have been on for the last 7 years or so and I just leave it on the desk, leave it powered on but it is password locked.

Never had one issue in all these times.

 

[lacrosse_lady72]

I just leave it on the desk. And it is a $2500 laptop. I must be crazy. I travel a lot and I always leave anything out, I'm a rebel.

 

[Brian Noble]

How and where do you secure your laptop in your room when you leave for the day?

I use gravity; it keeps the laptop right where I leave it!

More seriously, I don't leave it in plain sight from a window if there is an outside corridor, but otherwise I don't worry about it that much. All of my data is backed up hourly at home/in the office, and so that just leaves early replacement costs for the hardware. I travel a good chunk for business and have never had a problem. To date, the only laptop theft I've experienced was from a locked office overnight.

 

[Krissalee]

I bring my old laptop and leave it right out on the table in my villa. No worries here!