In this day and age most people won’t even step out their front door without a cell/smart phone. Pictures, apps, games and wireless internet are becoming everyday necessities. I myself have a Droid phone and whenever I am not moving I am on my Droid checking out a website, uploading pictures or news articles, and even playing games. Jonathan one of the writers here & I came up with a fun way of blogging while we are at the Disney Parks or Disney function. Live Blogging 🙂
You would think taking a Disney vacation would be less busy. I mean you are there to enjoy all the rides, characters, food, and all the fun things Disney has to offer. But more and more people, myself included are using Technology while on vacation. If you don’t believe me as a fun game count the number of people taking pictures, recording video, or even texting from the parks.
You can’t even browse a Disney website without a new Disney App being released. Cell Phone companies like Verizon have their own home grown apps that are available for their customers. Mobile Magic brings FASTPASS return times, attraction wait times for the park you are in, extensive information on character locations and more for Walt Disney World and Disneyland theme parks to your Verizon Wireless phone. And, even if you are not a Verizon Wireless subscriber, you can still use your mobile phone to access select park information and on the Disney Parks Mobile web sites. That is just one of the many countless applications you can use, and believe me there are alot! Another good one and one I use on my Droid Phone is Lines. I am sure you can find a review somewhere on this site..wink wink
Another way Technology is being used at Disney Parks is via video feeds/streams. U Stream will work with either a laptop of smart phone and allow you to stream live video directly from your device to the web, where people can watch and follow along with you. This was another application that I was able to test out. It worked ok, the video quality is lacking and did make it hard for people to follow along due to no stabilization . I am sure it wont be long before camcorders have a wireless feature built in or cell phone cameras jump up in picture quality.
I will say this while at Disneyworld I did not see a single wireless hotspot. Could you imagine if Disney got together with Cisco and started offering free wifi while at Disneyworld or Disneyland. (If anyone at Disney is reading this I do have prior experience setting up outdoor wireless mesh hotspots) Free wifi would open up alot of new avenues for businesses, bloggers, and videographers. I know for certain if wireless was available when I was streaming video from the park the quality would have been 100 times better.
While I am writing this article I have been trying to come up with a list of all the ways technology has found its way into the Parks, its a long list. From making the room and dining reservations, gathering park information, checking in, finding out wait times, sharing photos, videos and messages. I could go on and on. There is no mistake technology is present and here to stay.
Overall I am glad we have all the modern day advancements, it does make planning and visiting much easier. I wonder in what way technology will shape the Disney Parks in the future. To quote a line from one of the classic Disney rides.
It’s a great big beautiful tomorrow.
What are some of the ways you use technology while planning or visiting the Disney Parks? Let us know in the comment section below.
Photo from Meet the Robinsons/Disney
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I am checking them out now..
I do miss Pal Mickey that started out as a great idea and had some potential..Wish they would have kept it around.
I tried looking for one on ebay but they are going for more than I want to spend 🙂
Technology and its use in the parks is a topic I enjoy and have been writing about for a while on my blog. Examples include, transportation, fastpass, Pal Mickey, although he's no longer sold, The Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure and more. And, with the “Next Gen” project, we're sure to even more.