MagicMobile v. MagicBands at Disney World - Disney Tourist Blog

MagicBand+ is the blistery caller happening astatine Walt Disney World, but it’s not the lone enactment for entering the parks and different features. MagicMobile is simply a work that uses your telephone oregon different astute devices, and tin beryllium a convenient alternate to Magic Bands. This station compares and contrasts the options, provides basal background, and offers commentary astir which we prefer.

Let’s commencement with a elemental rundown of the options: Key to the World Card, MagicBand, MagicBand Plus, and MagicMobile service. All of these are portion of the integrated MyMagic+ system. You whitethorn not beryllium acquainted with that term, which wouldn’t beryllium astonishing since Walt Disney World has fundamentally abandoned it successful the past fewer years. Even the official MyMagic+ page nary longer mentions it (except successful the good print).

Anyway, MyMagic+ is simply a suite of technologies that integrate assorted aspects of their Walt Disney World acquisition into 1 system. Half of that occurs successful the My Disney Experience app, wherever you marque Advance Dining Reservations and Genie+ reservations, portion the different fractional occurs successful the carnal world, mostly by interacting with touchpoints.

There were a batch of different large ambitions for MyMagic+ that ne'er came to fruition, but the underlying strategy remains. (See “The Messy Business of Reinventing Happiness” and “Behind the Scenes astatine Disney As it Purged a Favorite Son” if you’re funny successful much connected the trials and tribulations of MyMagic+ and NextGen.)

With that retired of the way, let’s tally done the assorted ‘real world’ options for interfacing with the My Disney Experience app and Walt Disney World’s infrastructure:

Key to the World Card – This is Walt Disney World’s word for your edifice country key. This predates MagicBands and MagicMobile, but is inactive going strong. While the institution has tried to afloat regenerate and destruct Key to the World cards successful the past respective years, they are still disposable if you spell to the beforehand table of your edifice and petition one.

Key to the World Cards tin bash the following:

• Unlock your Disney Resort edifice country door
• Enter taxable parks (with linked valid taxable parkland admittance and parkland reservation)
• Connect Disney PhotoPass images to your account
• Gain entree to virtual queues (currently successful usage for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind)
• Redeem Lightning Lane thrust reservations booked via Genie+ oregon the a la carte acquisition option
• Charge to your Disney Resort edifice folio during your stay

MagicBand – Walt Disney World’s archetypal wearable device, present successful its 2nd generation. MagicBands are waterproof and adjustable wristbands that let guests to nexus their My Disney Experience accounts to a bracelet, allowing them to beryllium hands-free successful the parks and resorts. MagicBand has each of the aforesaid features arsenic the Key to the World Card.

Additionally, MagicBands run with long-range RFID for automatic linking of on-ride photos. A artillery is indispensable for that, and those thin to dice aft astir 2 years. All different MagicBand features usage short-range RFID, which does not necessitate a battery. This means you tin usage the aforesaid MagicBand for scanning into the parks, opening edifice doors, oregon immoderate different pat point…pretty overmuch forever! Only the on-ride photograph diagnostic volition halt moving aft a mates years.

MagicBand+ – We find it champion to deliberation astir MagicBand+ arsenic 2 devices successful one. One of these is the MagicBand, which functions successful precisely the aforesaid ways arsenic a bequest MagicBand. It has each of the aforesaid features, functionality, strengths and weaknesses arsenic those identified above. Think of this arsenic the “dumb” facet of the device, which (again) works without artillery powerfulness and does basal things similar entering the parkland oregon Lightning Lanes.

Then there’s the different half–the “Plus Part.” This is constituent not offered by the OG MagicBand, and encompasses each of the interactivity, lighting, vibrations, minigames, and experiential elements. This is the (sorta) astute instrumentality that’s powered by a artillery and requires recharging. When the artillery is dead, the minigames and peculiar effects won’t work, but each of the regular MagicBand features will. (For much connected this popular-but-polarizing caller device, spot our MagicBand+ Review: The Good, Bad & Ugly. Sadly, there’s a spot excessively overmuch of the second 2 categories for our liking with the MagicBand Plus.)

MagicMobile – This work is present disposable for Walt Disney World guests successful the My Disney Experience app, and tin beryllium added to your Android, iPhone, oregon Apple Watch integer wallet. Once enabled, the MagicMobile work works by holding your astute instrumentality adjacent entree points astir Walt Disney World.

Disney MagicMobile passes tin bash the following:

• Enter taxable parks (with linked valid taxable parkland admittance and parkland reservation)
• Connect Disney PhotoPass images to your account
• Gain entree to virtual queues
• Redeem Lightning Lane thrust reservations booked via Genie+ oregon the a la carte acquisition option
• Charge to your Disney Resort edifice folio during your stay

In comparing these lists, you mightiness announcement the 1 happening missing from MagicMobile is opening edifice country doors. At present, this is not supported (yet?). In lawsuit each of that is confusing, here’s a examination illustration that breaks down the differences:

Before we get started with the commentary, 1 beardown proposal we person erstwhile it comes to MagicMobile is enabling Express Mode. (See How to Set-Up MagicMobile.) With this, MagicMobile works automatically without FaceID oregon your passcode. Just clasp your iPhone oregon Apple Watch adjacent a reader. Your walk whitethorn besides beryllium disposable erstwhile your iPhone needs to beryllium recharged.

This means that using MagicMobile does not necessitate immoderate surface time. I’ve bolded this due to the fact that there’s the misconception among immoderate Walt Disney World fans that MagicMobile requires much clip with your look successful your phone, which is false.

That is a valid disapproval with the full of the Walt Disney World impermanent acquisition successful the epoch of Mobile Order, Genie+ and Lightning Lanes, and everything other that’s reliant upon My Disney Experience–but it’s inapplicable with respect to MagicMobile, specifically. After the archetypal setup (which tin beryllium done whenever), you bash not request to “interact” with your telephone oregon ticker to usage MagicMobile. The instrumentality tin beryllium successful slumber mode oregon inactive and MagicMobile inactive works!

When MagicMobile archetypal debuted, I had issues with it. While setup went smoothly, the touchpoints astatine Walt Disney World didn’t ever admit my iPhone. In essence, thing happened erstwhile I enactment the instrumentality adjacent the reader–nothing came up connected the telephone and the touchpoint didn’t illuminate.

In fairness, it’s besides imaginable that this was an contented with my Apple Wallet. I’ve virtually ne'er had immoderate problems with it anyplace else, truthful that would beryllium a first. By contrast, I’ve been having issues with Walt Disney World exertion for implicit a decade; astir the lone consistency with Disney IT is problems. While I’ll ne'er cognize conclusively the origin of my issues with MagicMobile, I’m going to use Occam’s razor.

As a result, I stopped utilizing MagicMobile for a portion and reverted to MagicBands. I didn’t springiness MagicMobile a 2nd thought until 1 time I near my MagicBand successful the car and didn’t recognize this portion wrong feet of the parkland entrance. Rather than walking each the mode backmost to the parking lot, I figured I’d springiness MagicMobile different shot.

It worked flawlessly, adjacent successful Express Mode.

Suffice to say, I began utilizing MagicMobile much and much and was won implicit by the service. I haven’t had a azygous contented with it successful the past respective months, and to my recollection, I haven’t had immoderate issues with it successful this full calendar year. My troubles were astatine launch, which isn’t to accidental it’s error-free, but if you tried MagicMobile erstwhile it archetypal debuted and had problems, it mightiness beryllium worthy revisiting.

There’s thing peculiarly caller oregon noteworthy astir MagicMobile. It works precisely similar different Apple Wallet products and outgo options, oregon adjacent similar the Key to the World paper oregon MagicBands. For me, the vantage truly comes down to the information that I’m ever carrying my phone, anyway, truthful wherefore not conscionable usage that?

I utilized to not caput oregon adjacent bask wearing a MagicBand, but that hasn’t been the lawsuit for a while. To each their own, but I already deterioration an Apple Watch connected 1 hand. I don’t request oregon privation thing connected the other–seems a spot Bohemian to person a bracelet connected each wrist.

Speaking of which, MagicMobile tin beryllium enabled connected the Apple Watch alternatively of the phone. This truly simplifies things, and makes the modulation from MagicBand to MagicMobile particularly easy. (Former Disney CEO Bob Iger speculated that Disney and Apple would’ve merged had Steve Jobs not died. I wonderment whether the MagicBand would adjacent beryllium if Disney and Apple collaborated a small much closely–or if Disney had conscionable waited for wearable exertion to beforehand a spot earlier processing the MagicBand.)

For immoderate it’s worth, Sarah prefers to usage MagicMobile via her Apple Watch. However, she besides favors utilizing MagicBands and continues to bash so. From her perspective, the MagicBand is associated with abrogation and is simply a amusive accessory. (I besides don’t deliberation the aforementioned Bohemian bracelet ‘rules’ use to women.)

Sarah besides finds the MagicMobile work to beryllium inferior to the MagicBand, arsenic determination are inactive immoderate things it can’t do. She’s right.

While usable by anyone, I’ve realized precocious that MagicMobile is decidedly much of a diagnostic for locals, whereas MagicBands mightiness marque much consciousness for tourists.

Generally speaking, locals bash not deterioration MagicBands to enactment oregon successful their day-to-day lives. Those residing successful Central Florida mightiness store a MagicBand successful their cupholder, but it’s casual to forget. By contrast, it seems that everyone these days feels “naked” without their phone. It’s a batch little apt to beryllium near astatine location oregon successful the car erstwhile making that after-work travel to EPCOT.

For a tourist, determination is decidedly thing to beryllium said for putting connected your MagicBand erstwhile landing successful Florida, entering ‘vacation mode,’ and pulling retired your telephone oregon different screen-based devices arsenic small arsenic possible.

Another applicable information for tourists is 1 conspicuous omission from MagicMobile: unlocking your edifice country door. For that, you request to unfastened the Resort Hotel tile successful My Disney Experience, and usage the “unlock door” feature. While that sounds simple enough, it’s often easier said than done. I’d accidental my occurrence complaint for this is astir 75-85%.

That whitethorn not dependable bad…until 1 of those failures occurs erstwhile you’re staying successful Ranchos 7A astatine Coronado Springs and get backmost to your country aft midnight. Sadly, that is not a hypothetical. It besides wasn’t the archetypal clip I’ve been burned by the unlock doorway diagnostic successful My Disney Experience, which ever seems to neglect astatine the astir inopportune times.

Ever since that fateful evening, I halt astatine the beforehand table to get a country cardinal sometime early-on during our stays erstwhile it’s convenient. Much faster to bash that than to locomotion to the room, onslaught retired with technology, locomotion to the beforehand desk, and past backmost to the room.

Ultimately, there’s nary one-size fits each reply to whether a Key to the World Card, MagicMobile, MagicBand, oregon MagicBand+ is best. All 4 are very similar to each other, with the diagnostic acceptable having sizeable overlap. What it truly comes down to is your abrogation budget, presumption towards accessories oregon wearable collectibles, and idiosyncratic preferences.

While we’ll readily admit that MagicBand+ disappointed us, we inactive deliberation buying a MagicBand makes consciousness for astir tourists staying on-site astatine Walt Disney World. However, that comes with the sizeable caveats discussed above, and is hardly “necessary.” It’s decidedly the easiest and astir streamlined option, but it’s imaginable the ‘value add’ implicit MagicMobile oregon Key to the World Cards doesn’t outweigh the cost. If you’re connected a choky budget, instrumentality with the escaped alternatives. As acold arsenic Walt Disney World splurges go, MagicBands aren’t precocious connected the database for us. As always, your mileage whitethorn vary.

Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn astir hotels connected our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For wherever to eat, work our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To prevention wealth connected tickets oregon find which benignant to buy, work our Tips for Saving Money connected Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips station takes a unsocial look astatine clever items to take. For what to bash and erstwhile to bash it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides volition help. For broad advice, the champion spot to commencement is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you request to know!

YOUR THOUGHTS

Have you utilized MagicMobile connected your telephone oregon watch? What astir MagicBand+ oregon MagicBand? Or, are you inactive sticking with the Key to the World Card, circa 2008 style?! If you’ve utilized each (or multiple) of the above, which ones bash you similar oregon dislike? Do you hold oregon disagree with our assessment? Any questions we tin assistance you answer? Hearing your feedback–even erstwhile you disagree with us–is some absorbing to america and adjuvant to different readers, truthful delight stock your thoughts beneath successful the comments!