Using your Smartphone for calling from Riviera

[worldspan]

Just wondering if anyone can shed light on the following:

 

Let's say I have purchased unlimited internet while on board Riviera. I realize you are entitled to use only 1 device at a time.

 

If I connect my smartphone to the ship's WIFI, T Mobile tells me there is no charge, just my usual monthly package of minutes. IS OCEANIA FOR SOME REASON GOING TO HIT ME WITH A PER MINUTE FEE FOR THESE CALLS ? WILL THEY EVEN KNOW I AM MAKING THESE CALLS ?

 

Finally, has anyone ever used their smartphone for a call and HOT SPOTTED it off the laptop connected wireless internet purchased from Oceania ? In effect, using two devices at the same time without having to purchase TWO packages ?

 

Any guidance that could be provided to this less than tech savy future Oceania traveler would be most appreciated.

 

Worldspan

131 cruises strong

 

#132 Riviera March 28th

#133 Royal Princess Oct 29th

[corpkid]

Can't speak for Oceania as I've yet to cruise with them, but in South America on the Azamara Quest, I was able to use Skype (voice only) on my iPhone fairly well with the ship's Wi-Fi. Definitely spotty and many dropped calls, but for the most part I was able to call my family and wish them all merry Christmas.

 

If you have mission-critical calling to do (e.g. work, etc) I wouldn't count on it though. As for hot spotting, if your laptop supports it, sure you could do that. But again, perhaps you should just use skype ON your laptop? Not video - just voice - video will in no uncertain terms NOT WORK. The satellite bandwidth harks back to 1999 and is SLOW plus the ships implement what is called QOS (quality of service) which kind of throttles users from flooding the whole (limited) pipe. Can you tell I design IT networks yet? :)

 

Keep in mind that cell phone minutes and wifi DATA are two separate things. If you use skype on the ship's wifi, there will be no charge (besides the very minimal skype credits and the wifi package price). Oceania won't ding you - it's considered wifi data and that's exactly what you purchased. You can call any phone number in the world with skype. Trust me when I say 99% of the staff on the ship do just this... You'll see them all hunkered down in port at a coffee shop, etc where there is free wifi calling home... ask any bartender where there's good free wifi in the port you are in and they'll know. :)

 

You should really look into getting a skype account and tossing 10 - 20 bucks in it... Also, download the skype app to your phone. It's available for most smartphones.

 

Also I noticed that the available bandwidth was much better late at night after most people went to sleep (or early in the morning before people woke up). You are all fighting for a very limited "pipe" of data and voice over IP (skype) takes a bit of bandwidth to pull off. Keep that in mind. Good luck and happy cruising (and chatting!)

[Wendy The Wanderer]

I'm confused. Don't know anything about T Mobile particularly, and I guess you have to believe them if they tell you this. But, wifi and data plans are completely different from talk or text time, same with wifi hotspots. The two are not related at all. Perhaps T Mobile has a different way of doing this, but it sure is new to me. What am I missing?

[corpkid]

I'm confused. Don't know anything about T Mobile particularly, and I guess you have to believe them if they tell you this. But, wifi and data plans are completely different from talk or text time, same with wifi hotspots. The two are not related at all. Perhaps T Mobile has a different way of doing this, but it sure is new to me. What am I missing?

 

TRUST ME - T-Mobile does not care nor charge for wifi anything. It's transparent for them. They only thing they bill/care for are voice minutes and data using the CELLULAR grid (3g/4g). Wifi is something you buy or get on your own, and as such is not a chargeable aspect.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

TRUST ME - T-Mobile does not care nor charge for wifi anything. It's transparent for them. They only thing they bill/care for are voice minutes and data using the CELLULAR grid (3g/4g). Wifi is something you buy or get on your own, and as such is not a chargeable aspect.

 

Exactly, that's what I meant. Having wifi access does nothing to mitigate your regular cellphone charges.

[caviargal]

You should really look into getting a skype account and tossing 10 - 20 bucks in it... Also, download the skype app to your phone. It's available for most smartphones.

 

 

I have used SKYPE Mobile to call internationally on my iphone via Wifi for years. It is a bargain and it works well. I travel a lot and have had to add SKYPE credit only a couple of times over the years. You can set your phone to Airplane mode or turn off 3G roaming and you will not incur charges.

 

I also use FaceTime on my ipad/laptop extensively when traveling in Europe.

[Emperor Norton]

Can't speak for Oceania as I've yet to cruise with them, but in South America on the Azamara Quest, I was able to use Skype (voice only) on my iPhone fairly well with the ship's Wi-Fi. Definitely spotty and many dropped calls, but for the most part I was able to call my family and wish them all merry Christmas.

 

If you have mission-critical calling to do (e.g. work, etc) I wouldn't count on it though. As for hot spotting, if your laptop supports it, sure you could do that. But again, perhaps you should just use skype ON your laptop? Not video - just voice - video will in no uncertain terms NOT WORK. The satellite bandwidth harks back to 1999 and is SLOW plus the ships implement what is called QOS (quality of service) which kind of throttles users from flooding the whole (limited) pipe. Can you tell I design IT networks yet? :)

 

Keep in mind that cell phone minutes and wifi DATA are two separate things. If you use skype on the ship's wifi, there will be no charge (besides the very minimal skype credits and the wifi package price). Oceania won't ding you - it's considered wifi data and that's exactly what you purchased. You can call any phone number in the world with skype. Trust me when I say 99% of the staff on the ship do just this... You'll see them all hunkered down in port at a coffee shop, etc where there is free wifi calling home... ask any bartender where there's good free wifi in the port you are in and they'll know. :)

 

You should really look into getting a skype account and tossing 10 - 20 bucks in it... Also, download the skype app to your phone. It's available for most smartphones.

 

Also I noticed that the available bandwidth was much better late at night after most people went to sleep (or early in the morning before people woke up). You are all fighting for a very limited "pipe" of data and voice over IP (skype) takes a bit of bandwidth to pull off. Keep that in mind. Good luck and happy cruising (and chatting!)

 

This is probably one of the best responses I've seen to this type of question. Sadly it's also one of the few that acknowledges that for anything mission critical relying on the ships inet connection isn't a good bet.

[Condocat]

Hi everyone:

 

Thanks for such valuable information!!

 

Bare with with me as I just want to be sure I'm changing the correct settings.

 

Do I leave the cellular data on my 4S iPhone with data roaming off, to avoid excessive charges? Is this the correct way of doing this?

 

Appreciate the help and guidance!

[corpkid]

Hi everyone:

 

Thanks for such valuable information!!

 

Bare with with me as I just want to be sure I'm changing the correct settings.

 

Do I leave the cellular data on my 4S iPhone with data roaming off, to avoid excessive charges? Is this the correct way of doing this?

 

Appreciate the help and guidance!

 

Here's how I handle it. 1) Turn on Airplane mode (which shuts off ALL connections, including bluetooth and wifi). 2) Go into settings and turn the wifi on manually and connect to the ship's wifi. I just leave it like this for the whole time I'm out of the country - you are essentially shutting all cellular data down (a good thing!) and only allowing WiFi data. When you get back, just turn airplane mode off and you are good.

[gui888]

Ok. However, I believe that MTM the Internet provider for Oceania blocks Skype due to the amount of resources it takes up. Did not work for me on Riviera and that ship has the most broadband in the fleet. Any thoughts?

[corpkid]

Ok. However, I believe that MTM the Internet provider for Oceania blocks Skype due to the amount of resources it takes up. Did not work for me on Riviera and that ship has the most broadband in the fleet. Any thoughts?

 

They very well might block Skype's ports (called port-blocking). Skype runs on port 1024 by default. If that is not available (blocked) it will try ports 80 and 443, which are HTTP (aka webpages - 80 is for non-encrypted HTTP (e.g. cnn.com and 443 is for HTTPS web pages e.g. your bank page). 80 and 443 will certainly be open otherwise the internet wouldn't work at all over wifi! However, they may do what is called "IP Blocking" in which they actually have a blacklist of server IP address, of which several could be the skype servers. They just outright shut the tap on those if this is the case. There are ways to get around this, such as using a land based proxy server or port mapping, but that's some advanced stuff, especially on an iPhone. I have yet to sail on Marina (first O cruise) until August, but you can be sure I'll be trying out skype and seeing what happens. I'll use a proxy if they block the skype IP addresses. There are a bunch of them wide open around the globe, though I'm sure it will also reduce call quality a bunch since you have to go through that many more "hops".... It's really too bad phone calls on ships are so outrageously expensive. Hopefully that will change one day soon. Really sad if they block the skype servers - this can be effectively managed with QOS policies.

[corpkid]

I want to add - do not forget about land-based Wi-Fi. It's everywhere these days and you can bang out your calls to friends and family (and upload blogs/photos/etc). I'm serious when I say "ask any employee on the ship" - they really do this and know the "sweet (hot) spots" in every port.

[ohmark]

If using an unlocked GSM IPhone, what about using an international SIM card to access a cell network for voice or data? I think this would also allow tethering a laptop or tablet. Of course one would have to be in range of the cellular network (which would be likely in port).

[fmrnyer]

Here's how I handle it. 1) Turn on Airplane mode (which shuts off ALL connections, including bluetooth and wifi). 2) Go into settings and turn the wifi on manually and connect to the ship's wifi. I just leave it like this for the whole time I'm out of the country - you are essentially shutting all cellular data down (a good thing!) and only allowing WiFi data. When you get back, just turn airplane mode off and you are good.

 

If I've purchased a data plan from Verizon Wireless to use my smartphone data while sailing and ashore, do these instructions apply? At $25 per 100 MB from Verizon, I'm thinking it may be less expensive than Oceania's unlimited plan at $21.99 per day. Instructions, advice, and opinions please!

[HeadSurferGrande]

On my last cruise we used 2.1gb of data for 14 days between 2 users, we don't downloaded heavy attachments or movies. I had the unlimited package from Oceania and it's expensive but last year my internet bill on Riviera was around $800, now the unlimited package look like a "bargain" :-) .

 

If you are a regular user of Internet ( email, surfing, news reading, quotes, CC...) the best way to go is to buy the unlimited package, there is some discount available.

[Paulchili]

On my last cruise we used 2.1gb of data for 14 days between 2 users, we don't downloaded heavy attachments or movies. I had the unlimited package from Oceania and it's expensive but last year my internet bill on Riviera was around $800, now the unlimited package look like a "bargain" :-) .

 

If you are a regular user of Internet ( email, surfing, news reading, quotes, CC...) the best way to go is to buy the unlimited package, there is some discount available.

 

It certainly can be a "bargain" if one needs to/wants to use the internet frequently. We get 20% off which helps a bit as well. Each of the last 2 times I used over 5,000 minutes - that makes the rate just a few cents/min :)

As we don't drink and mostly do our own excursions, I use my OBC to pay for the internet package. To each their own - some drink it away others surf it away :)

[Eliza10]

I had no problem using Skype on Riviera May/June 2012.

[ebobh]

If you have an iPhone 4S, here is the process to avoid charges and use wi-fi solely:

 

Tap the "settings" tile (grey tile with gears pictured), which will take you to settings. Tap "General" and then tap "Cellular" on the next screen, which will take you to several on-off options. You want to turn Cellular Data to Off, and also turn Data Roaming to Off (it is on right now, just tap over the blue "on" and it will slide to "Off").

 

Reverse the process when you get home (or to your home airport) and you'll avoid roaming and data charges, but still be able to use wi-fi, take photos, etc.

 

Regards, Bob H

[corpkid]

If you have an iPhone 4S, here is the process to avoid charges and use wi-fi solely:

 

Tap the "settings" tile (grey tile with gears pictured), which will take you to settings. Tap "General" and then tap "Cellular" on the next screen, which will take you to several on-off options. You want to turn Cellular Data to Off, and also turn Data Roaming to Off (it is on right now, just tap over the blue "on" and it will slide to "Off").

 

Reverse the process when you get home (or to your home airport) and you'll avoid roaming and data charges, but still be able to use wi-fi, take photos, etc.

 

Regards, Bob H

 

Airplane mode on + wifi enabled is more simple, but six of one, half a dozen. Same effect. :)

[corpkid]

I had no problem using Skype on Riviera May/June 2012.

 

Great news! So now I know how we will handle this upcoming cruise. Set phone, buy the package, and go. Easy peasy! :) Of course when we find wifi on shore we start uploading like crazy since our friends and family pretty much demand immediate updates. :rolleyes:

[Dinotoll]

I am just now on the Riviera and can report that on my iphone 4 skype ( no video :D ) is working. I am using the skype Ap. Also in the most ports you have free or inexpensive wifi available so you can take connection from there. Just paid in cozumel 2 $ for 30 min. with max.speed so also video was possible.

[Emperor Norton]

I am just now on the Riviera and can report that on my iphone 4 skype ( no video :D ) is working. I am using the skype Ap. Also in the most ports you have free or inexpensive wifi available so you can take connection from there. Just paid in cozumel 2 $ for 30 min. with max.speed so also video was possible.

 

Is your connection cellular or via the ships WiFi?

[Fam_Cruise]

For any AT&T wireless customers like myself, I find it best to use their Global Data add-on packages which are much more economical than purchasing the ship's Wifi (unless you have booked a cruise that includes free unlimited Wifi) detailed below:

 

AT&T Monthly Packages – REQUIRES minimum of 1 month purchase

120 MB for $30

300 MB for $60

800 MB for $120

 

Depending on your needs, I find that uploading pics to FB, checking email, using the iPhone Google mapping feature and City Tours results in a little over 20 MB/day on iPhone 4S. So if you are on a 14 day cruise then you would need about 300 MB total. Allot a bit more for the iPhone 5 as the picture resolutions and file sizes are larger or if you intend on doing lots of pic uploads.

[kimanjo]

For any AT&T wireless customers like myself, I find it best to use their Global Data add-on packages which are much more economical than purchasing the ship's Wifi (unless you have booked a cruise that includes free unlimited Wifi) detailed below:

 

AT&T Monthly Packages – REQUIRES minimum of 1 month purchase

120 MB for $30

300 MB for $60

800 MB for $120

 

Depending on your needs, I find that uploading pics to FB, checking email, using the iPhone Google mapping feature and City Tours results in a little over 20 MB/day on iPhone 4S. So if you are on a 14 day cruise then you would need about 300 MB total. Allot a bit more for the iPhone 5 as the picture resolutions and file sizes are larger or if you intend on doing lots of pic uploads.

 

 

But, here is the BIG question. Where can you use your AT&T minutes? At sea, with no towers anywhere? When docked in port?

 

These are important distinctions. When we leave port, in the evening, and DH has to do some work, will his AT&T connect. I don't believe so. I think he would have to by the ships minutes in order to do that.

 

I would love to be corrected.

[Fam_Cruise]

Good question and good point. For a TATL or TPAC cruise then this may not be the best option.

 

You connect to land based Wireless towers. I found this was readily available on Mediterranean cruises and also Australia/New Zealand cruises but obviously not available the 2-3 days transiting the Tasman Sea. If you are within sight of land you will usually have a mobile signal. So in the case of Oceania's Mediterranean cruises from about 7 AM until 9 or 10 PM. I found I was using my phone's data mainly on shore for uploading pics, email, navigating and using City Tour apps.

 

That worked very well for me. However, it may not for everyone including your husband. Just another option for those who find it of benefit.