Need more Voom Internet

[RJAYL]

Why is Royal Caribbean taking so long to roll out Voom Internet to all of it's ships? This should be a simple upgrade that could be done at sea, and does not need to be lumped in with ships dry dock schedule !

[reallyitsmema]

Why is Royal Caribbean taking so long to roll out Voom Internet to all of it's ships? This should be a simple upgrade that could be done at sea, and does not need to be lumped in with ships dry dock schedule !

 

How is it a simple upgrade? They have to wire the whole ship.

[RJAYL]

How is it a simple upgrade? They have to wire the whole ship.

 

All of the ships are wired for wifi, it's the satellite receiver & router that would need replacing.

[reallyitsmema]

All of the ships are wired for wifi, it's the satellite receiver & router that would need replacing.

 

They have finished wiring all the ships? I know they were working on the Jewel this past fall. The newer ships were built with pervasive WIFI, all the older ships were being wired as they only had hotspots on the ships.

[RJAYL]

They have finished wiring all the ships? I know they were working on the Jewel this past fall. The newer ships were built with pervasive WIFI, all the older ships were being wired as they only had hotspots on the ships.

 

Okay for your point at least the Voyager Class & newer! :rolleyes:

[reallyitsmema]

Okay for your point at least the Voyager Class & newer! :rolleyes:

 

Okay for your point, Jewel, a Radiance class ship, first sailed in 2004. Mariner, a Voyager class ship, first sailed in 2003.:rolleyes:

[RJAYL]

Okay for your point, Jewel, a Radiance class ship, first sailed in 2004. Mariner, a Voyager class ship, first sailed in 2003.:rolleyes:

 

Okay back to my original point I think RCCI could do this much faster and no need to wait for drydock! :rolleyes:

[setsail]

Okay back to my original point I think RCCI could do this much faster and no need to wait for drydock! :rolleyes:

 

So what was rci's answer when you called them about this?

[Wilson]

I was hoping Liberty would've been done while in dry dock. Didn't happen and saying it will be June or later. :(

[Ourusualbeach]

Okay back to my original point I think RCCI could do this much faster and no need to wait for drydock! :rolleyes:

 

They are not waiting for drydock. Work is currently in progress on the Freedom. Pictures were posted on another thread of the part of the installation.

[RJAYL]

We were just off of Adventure & they were in drydock April 2014 & there internet is awful! We have 2 Royal cruises booked for next year 1 is on Navigator which was just in drydock & was not upgraded to Voom! :mad:

[IceManCan]

A few short years ago this whole post would be pointless. Your on vacation. Put your devices away and embrace being unplugged for a week. The cruise community can read your review after the cruise not during. Your Facebook friends, buisiness associates and even yor kids will be fine for a week without you!

[RJAYL]

A few short years ago this whole post would be pointless. Your on vacation. Put your devices away and embrace being unplugged for a week. The cruise community can read your review after the cruise not during. Your Facebook friends, buisiness associates and even yor kids will be fine for a week without you!

 

 

I posted a question on Internet upgrades not what is good or bad for me! I would never tell you what you need or do not need!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[cello56]

A few short years ago this whole post would be pointless. Your on vacation. Put your devices away and embrace being unplugged for a week. The cruise community can read your review after the cruise not during. Your Facebook friends, buisiness associates and even yor kids will be fine for a week without you!

 

Please don't speak for me! I LIKE BEING CONNECTED WHILE ON A CRUISE!!! :) We have three elderly pets with health issues. DH has an 83 year old mother. We have a kid and grandbaby that might need us. Plus I just plain like being able to go online. So while putting away your devices the moment you board the ship might work for you, and your family, it does not work for mine. That is why internet is something that people who want access to it pay for. My using it has no impact on someone who does not want to be connected. Just like some people like to use specialty restaurants, and others buy a drink package, and some like the casino. Different strokes for different folks.

[The Fun Researcher]

A few short years ago this whole post would be pointless. Your on vacation. Put your devices away and embrace being unplugged for a week. The cruise community can read your review after the cruise not during. Your Facebook friends, buisiness associates and even yor kids will be fine for a week without you!

 

 

Amen. It's a love/hate thing for me. I enjoyed being forced to slow down and disconnect and pay attention fully to what's around me. On the other hand it's very difficult when cruising not having access to easy communication with your kids (if they are not with you.) The option of spending 2 to 3 dollars per minute to call isn't attractive either.

 

Dan

[M_BA]

The calling option is pricey, it is $7.99/minute. It takes 7-8 minutes to talk to three small children. That's $56-64 per call, plus taxes. Internet for $20/30/40 per day (less for C&A) is more palatable if the speeds allow communication back home.

[reallyitsmema]

The calling option is pricey, it is $7.99/minute. It takes 7-8 minutes to talk to three small children. That's $56-64 per call, plus taxes. Internet for $20/30/40 per day (less for C&A) is more palatable if the speeds allow communication back home.

 

Much cheaper to use your cellphone to call. Many providers now have cruise plans that include calls, texts and a small amount of data. Verizon now only charges $1.79/min for calls from the ship if you do a pay as you go option.

[M_BA]

Much cheaper to use your cellphone to call. Many providers now have cruise plans that include calls, texts and a small amount of data. Verizon now only charges $1.79/min for calls from the ship if you do a pay as you go option.

 

I use Google fi for my cellular phone, they don't have a roaming agreement with Maritime Communications Partner. Though, I can use my phone in each port & data is the same $10/GB as it is in the US.

[Aduntu]

There is not an insignificant amount of work required to upgrade to the O3b (Voom) service.

 

They don't simply replace the old antennas with the new. Three large antenna platforms must be installed in places that they weren't before, which requires demolition, which must be limited since people don't want to vacation in a construction zone.

 

The antenna platforms must be placed by crane.

 

The inside hardware (modems, routers, etc) does come preconfigured, but significant testing will also take place before they flip the proverbial switch.

[gatour]

It is about the availability of resources and the cost effectiveness of utilizing these resources in different manners. Sure RCCL could have done all ships during a few week time frame but consider these issues.

 

1. Different ships require different upgrades.

a. Ships that just require a Sat type upgrade, just need those technicians

b. Ships that just have hot spots in public area's, will need the above technicians, along with people to run miles of cable and installing the additional wifi hotspots.

 

2. Based on number one,these people need to be housed somewhere. Since crew cabins are mostly full, these people will need to be housed somewhere. If the ship is underway on a revenue cruise, then that means taking revenue generating cabins out of service.

 

3. Speaking as an IT person it is always a good idea to do a phased roll out. That way you can do a lessons learned post mortem before moving to the next ship.

[dmb0619]

Voom is fast enough to let you use Voice over IP (Wifi). So once you pay for voom you can talk unlimited using Skype, Google Voice and even your plain old cell number (if your carrier/phone has wifi calling). Anyone paying per minute of $7.99 to make calls would do better with Voom.

[M_BA]

Voom is fast enough to let you use Voice over IP (Wifi). So once you pay for voom you can talk unlimited using Skype, Google Voice and even your plain old cell number (if your carrier/phone has wifi calling). Anyone paying per minute of $7.99 to make calls would do better with Voom.

 

I would gladly pay for VOOM speeds, along with all that it can carry capacity wise. Unfortunately, Liberty of the Seas is still stuck with the older technology for now.

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

We were just off of Adventure & they were in drydock April 2014 & there internet is awful! We have 2 Royal cruises booked for next year 1 is on Navigator which was just in drydock & was not upgraded to Voom! :mad:

 

FYI, I dont even think Voom was existent when Navigator and Adventure had their dry docks.

[serialcruiser48]

We want our Voom now!

[ExilePA]

I'm guessing part of the issue may be the Voom infrastructure as well. I can't imagine they're ready to add another 10, 000 or so users overnight.