Wow Phones - Are they worth it?

[JCity156]

Sailing on the Oasis Apr 24. Was considering renting Wow phones. If you have rented them, please share your experience with the process and the phone. We have walkie talkies we used in the past and are wondering if we should just bring them. Please let me know your thoughts asap. Thanks!

[neyzle]

Ok, so first let me say, I haven't been on the Oasis...YET. But, I've read enough reviews to give a recap for you.

Seems most ppl who purchased the phones have the SAME 2 complaints:

1) the line to get the phone is OUTRAGEOUS.....some ppl waited for hours to get it (and they got on the boat EARLY---around 11am)

Also, they phones are in limited supply only about 500 phones for the entire ship!

2) after waiting ALL THAT TIME in line, the phones only worked half the time...map downloads were slow...somtimes texting/calling didn't work at all.

 

These were from cruisers on the Oasis earlier sailing tho (Dec/Jan). Maybe RCI has all the kinks worked out by now, but idk.

 

Eitherway, my hubby and I were all excited to get them...but after reading the reviews, we decided against it. I am NOT about to waste my 1st day onboard waiting in line ALL DAY...just to get a device that works "sometimes".....we're getting walkie-talkies! Heard that the work just fine on board. :D

 

Hope this helps....I believ there is a thread on here somewhere ("Royal Connect Phones") that lists user reviews;)

[MickeyB426]

Sailing on the Oasis Apr 24. Was considering renting Wow phones. If you have rented them, please share your experience with the process and the phone. We have walkie talkies we used in the past and are wondering if we should just bring them. Please let me know your thoughts asap. Thanks!

 

Well, I can tell you from experience, since I DID rent them (:rolleyes: at that other response) that they are well worth it.

 

Others may tell you no. All I can say (and I said this on the "survey" that went out) that, aside from the unusual wait to get the phone (and it was NOT "hours"...geeez the drama), and the occasional loss of signal (not often at all), they worked just fine and were a marked improvement over the walkie-talkies.

 

For $20pp for a week, WELL worth the money. You will NOT regret it.

 

Heck, it worked when I filmed my demonstration video on YouTube just fine! :)

[neyzle]

Well, I can tell you from experience, since I DID rent them (:rolleyes: at that other response) that they are well worth it.

 

Others may tell you no. All I can say (and I said this on the "survey" that went out) that, aside from the unusual wait to get the phone (and it was NOT "hours"...geeez the drama), and the occasional loss of signal (not often at all), they worked just fine and were a marked improvement over the walkie-talkies.

 

For $20pp for a week, WELL worth the money. You will NOT regret it.

 

Heck, it worked when I filmed my demonstration video on YouTube just fine! :)

 

Shesh Mike! ...rolling eyes at me....really? lol. no worries. ;)

Was just passing along what I read. When did u sail? maybe the bugs have been worked out...there were quite a few posts, all complaining about the same thing.

 

and how long was ur wait? Just curious...may reconsider gettin one after all

[nydoll1]

We were on last week and have to say, we got on line at 11:15 and didnt get off the first line until after 12, including the near riot. People got really really upset with the guy doing it who was a bit odd, he seemed to be moving in really slow motion, wouldnt answer questions, etc. A few people actually yelled at him which was definitely not a pleasant way to start the cruise. We got four phones and had a lot of trouble with them; they went off line A LOT. When they worked they were awesome, mainly used them for the locator function which was the best part. They were awful as phones, didnt work half the time. Also, they would need to be charged at least once a day, sometimes twice which was a drag. We had bought walkies with us and confess by day 3 when we were comfortable not tracking our kids anymore we dumped the iphones and went to the walkies which worked much better.

 

If they actually get the kinks worked out these will be great. According to some one we spoke to with the ship these are first generation/beta test phones. RC plans on buying more when they can figure out how to get them to be more reliable. Until then, when they work the locator is great. Very cool to see exactly where your kids are. If you actually want to be able to talk to people, get a walkie. It will have a clip, you can adjust the volume, they dont need to be recharged very often and you dont have to panic about paying 1,000 if you loose one.

[jtorbs]

Just got off the 3/27 Oasis and have to say there are too many bugs with the phone at this point. Concept is great, function is a different story. Ther eare only 150 on board at the time of our cruise.

[JSR]

3 when we were comfortable not tracking our kids anymore we dumped the iphones and went to the walkies which worked much better..

 

What brand and model number are your walkie talkies. I liked the phone idea but I am not much one for lines or flaky technology. Rather go the old fashion walkie talkie route.

 

Thanks

jean

[Breck1969]

This might be a silly question, but I have read most of the "WOW" phone threads and I read that these phones are valued at $1,000. My question is can you buy insurance on these when you rent them? Thanks....jim

[lovescoach]

We were on last week and have to say, we got on line at 11:15 and didnt get off the first line until after 12, including the near riot. People got really really upset with the guy doing it who was a bit odd, he seemed to be moving in really slow motion, wouldnt answer questions, etc. A few people actually yelled at him which was definitely not a pleasant way to start the cruise. We got four phones and had a lot of trouble with them; they went off line A LOT. When they worked they were awesome, mainly used them for the locator function which was the best part. They were awful as phones, didnt work half the time. Also, they would need to be charged at least once a day, sometimes twice which was a drag. We had bought walkies with us and confess by day 3 when we were comfortable not tracking our kids anymore we dumped the iphones and went to the walkies which worked much better.

 

If they actually get the kinks worked out these will be great. According to some one we spoke to with the ship these are first generation/beta test phones. RC plans on buying more when they can figure out how to get them to be more reliable. Until then, when they work the locator is great. Very cool to see exactly where your kids are. If you actually want to be able to talk to people, get a walkie. It will have a clip, you can adjust the volume, they dont need to be recharged very often and you dont have to panic about paying 1,000 if you loose one.

Well we were on the ship at 11 a.m. and had our phones by 11 15......definitely a challenge to speak to someone but the locators were the bomb...always worked ! Try them you can always take them back and take along walkie talkies as a backup..........

[JSR]

Well we were on the ship at 11 a.m. and had our phones by 11 15......definitely a challenge to speak to someone but the locators were the bomb...always worked ! Try them you can always take them back and take along walkie talkies as a backup..........

 

Where did you get them. What was the procedure? Any tips since your experience seems so much faster then that of others?

[the plumbers wife]

Did the walkie talkies work OK? Did you have a really good ones?

We tried this years back and had a hard time with signals? We are a group of ten, manily need it to keep track of the kids? Also, rethinking the WOW phones???

[khoff413]

I also would like to know what brand and model of walkie-talkies worked well.

[the plumbers wife]

?? Anybody have a brand of walkie talkie that worked?

[JCity156]

Sailing on the Oasis Apr 24. Was considering renting Wow phones. If you have rented them, please share your experience with the process and the phone. We have walkie talkies we used in the past and are wondering if we should just bring them. Please let me know your thoughts asap. Thanks!

 

We rented the "Wow Phone" (Royal Connect). The first thing I did when I got aboard was to go to Deck 4 and sign up for the phone. There was no line, and I was sent immediately to Deck 3 to pick up the phone. There were 5 of us using Wow phone. We were told if we were in outside areas, signal would not work. Sometimes sending a text would work if you could not get a call through. Getting a signal was hit or miss, but overall I felt it was worth it because with a ship that large it was essential to be able to connect with everyone. We had too much luggage to deal with bringing the 4 walkie talkies we have (we used those when we sailed on the Voyager years ago). I think RCI should add your personal calendar with your shows, specialty restaurant reservations, etc. on the phone if you rent it. Having the Cruise Compass on the phone is great as well. Overall, I would rent the phone again.

[Atimes5inAZ]

Glad to hear you still feel the phones are worth it. With basically 6 teenagers in our group, I am sure they will be well used.

 

I know with our cell phones, when service can be "spotty", text messaging usually works best. I guess the same can be said for on the ship.

 

How did the GPS work? Are the phones smart enough to know which deck someone is on? Just wondering if it can tell the difference between, lets say deck 8 or deck 9?

 

That would be a great feature to have your reservations programmed in as well, with maybe reminders?

 

23 more days and counting!!!!

[dpomes]

We rented the "Wow Phone" (Royal Connect). The first thing I did when I got aboard was to go to Deck 4 and sign up for the phone. There was no line, and I was sent immediately to Deck 3 to pick up the phone. There were 5 of us using Wow phone. We were told if we were in outside areas, signal would not work. Sometimes sending a text would work if you could not get a call through. Getting a signal was hit or miss, but overall I felt it was worth it because with a ship that large it was essential to be able to connect with everyone. We had too much luggage to deal with bringing the 4 walkie talkies we have (we used those when we sailed on the Voyager years ago). I think RCI should add your personal calendar with your shows, specialty restaurant reservations, etc. on the phone if you rent it. Having the Cruise Compass on the phone is great as well. Overall, I would rent the phone again.

 

 

Thanks for the update! :) Good to know you had no line. What time did you board?

[BBeach]

Hey there JCity156! I am so glad you found the phone useful. I am also glad you enjoyed your cruise immensely :-) I just wish the phone was more reliable; I found

that trying to make calls from the poolside was a bit frustrating. We kept getting

cut off. However, the ability to send texts did help. Love that OASIS!!!!!!!!!

[MickeyB426]

For those "newbies" who haven't seen it yet, here's the demo I filmed in February:

 

 

And, yes, the locator does distinguish between decks.

 

Many times the reason for the unit not working is due to people inadvertently shutting it down or bringing it back to the main menu. It needs to be kept in a certain mode at all times. The crew stresses this when you take the phone.

[stateparent]

[quote name=

 

Many times the reason for the unit not working is due to people inadvertently shutting it down or bringing it back to the main menu. It needs to be kept in a certain mode at all times. The crew stresses this when you take the phone.[/quote]

 

 

We were thinking this might come in handy to keep track of my 91yo dad who is travelling with us....but if it's somewhat easy to inadvertently shut down, perhaps it would be frustrating for him?

[JCity156]

Thanks for the update! :) Good to know you had no line. What time did you board?

We boarded at 11am

[JCity156]

Sometimes there was a slight lag in GPS update, but most of time it was pretty accurate.

[sandyd29]

I just got off the ship on Saturday and I can tell you they are worth it. First, got on the ship around 11 went right down to deck 3 and within 10 min had two I phones, one for my daughter and friend (both 14) and one for my husband and I. They spend most of the time on deck 15, in the teenage lounge so the texting feature is what i used the most, worked great, always new where they were,the child find feature is only accurate 70% of the time (that's what they tell you) probably true, they would die usually late in the evening, around 10 or 11 just charge while sleeping. Best $35 I spent on the ship.