Cell Phones at Sea

[reallyitsmema]

I'm a little closer to understanding. Instead of using my separate Viber app I could use wi-fi calling with my iphone via verizon. Are these steps correct?

1. Go to Settings>Phone>WiFi Calling.......tap wi-fi calling On

2. Enable wi-fi calling and enter an emergency address

 

Do I then.......put the phone in airplane mode and connect to the ship's wi-fi? Is that it?????

 

That is correct, I would suggest you go through the process now, at home, so that you don't have to do it once you board. Then just turn off wifi calling and turn it back on once you get on the ship. My phone was picky with the emergency address. It didn't recognize my home address but suggested my home address typed in all caps.

[FloatMe]

That is correct, I would suggest you go through the process now, at home, so that you don't have to do it once you board. Then just turn off wifi calling and turn it back on once you get on the ship. My phone was picky with the emergency address. It didn't recognize my home address but suggested my home address typed in all caps.

I leave my WiFi calling turned on all the time. It reverts to the mobile network if I am away from home, work, or other known WiFi locations. I see no reason to disable it?

 

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[reallyitsmema]

I leave my WiFi calling turned on all the time. It reverts to the mobile network if I am away from home, work, or other known WiFi locations. I see no reason to disable it?

 

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Personal preference I guess.

[martyap]

Thanks......big help.....appreciate your advice

[Charles4515]

I leave my WiFi calling turned on all the time. It reverts to the mobile network if I am away from home, work, or other known WiFi locations. I see no reason to disable it?

 

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I leave it on all the time too. There is not any reason to turn it off.

[reallyitsmema]

I leave my WiFi calling turned on all the time. It reverts to the mobile network if I am away from home, work, or other known WiFi locations. I see no reason to disable it?

 

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I leave it on all the time too. There is not any reason to turn it off.

 

The other reason I do not leave it on all the time is E911. In an emergency, help will be sent to the address you input which might not be the address you are actually at if you are always using wifi calling.

 

I will continue to turn it off when not on a ship, unless I can not get a cell signal and have access to wifi.

[Charles4515]

The other reason I do not leave it on all the time is E911. In an emergency, help will be sent to the address you input which might not be the address you are actually at if you are always using wifi calling.

 

 

 

I will continue to turn it off when not on a ship, unless I can not get a cell signal and have access to wifi.

 

 

They only go to that address you input if they can't determine your location. WiFi calling still has to get connected to a cell tower somewhere on the network so they get location data but it is not as accurate as straight cell calls. Thus the emergency address. If they can determine your location from GPS or data they don't use that address. They try the data first. I see your point but turning it off though means you are not using WiFi calling when you need it. When you have weak cell coverage.

 

 

 

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Edited November 27, 2016 by Charles4515

[nevin-deb]

Be careful with the theory on wifi calling to avoid cellular charges.... From my in depth understanding, wifi calling with Verizon won't kick in unless there is no available cellular service, so you may need to be sure data and voice roaming are both turned off, but then that will disable the VoLTE which is a part component of wifi calling.

 

Wifi calling and making a call with an app over wifi are totally different.

 

 

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[Charles4515]

Be careful with the theory on wifi calling to avoid cellular charges.... From my in depth understanding, wifi calling with Verizon won't kick in unless there is no available cellular service, so you may need to be sure data and voice roaming are both turned off, but then that will disable the VoLTE which is a part component of wifi calling.

 

Wifi calling and making a call with an app over wifi are totally different.

 

 

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Your phone will show WiiFi calling in the top left. But what you do on a ship is put your phone in Airplane mode and then turn WiFI on. That turns the cellular radio off so you won't have to have any concern about cellular charges.

 

 

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Edited November 27, 2016 by Charles4515

[FloatMe]

Your phone will show WiiFi calling in the top left. But what you do on a ship is put your phone in Airplane mode and then turn WiFI on. That turns the cellular radio off so you won't have to have any concern about cellular charges.

 

 

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What Charles said :)

 

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[TeeRick]

I have an iPhone 7 with Verizon. On Anthem right now. I have the Surf + Stream internet package which is very fast. I have my phone enabled for wifi calling and on on airplane mode with wireless turned on. The top left says VZW Wi-Fi. It works for calls and texts without any issues. I am impressed!

 

 

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[reedl]

They only go to that address you input if they can't determine your location. WiFi calling still has to get connected to a cell tower somewhere on the network so they get location data but it is not as accurate as straight cell calls. Thus the emergency address. If they can determine your location from GPS or data they don't use that address. They try the data first. I see your point but turning it off though means you are not using WiFi calling when you need it. When you have weak cell coverage.

 

 

 

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WiFi calling does not use a cell tower at all. It uses the data connection from your phone to the internet to the carrier's servers to make the call. There is never a need for a cell tower.

 

As to turning it off, the only time WiFi calling is used is when the cell service signal level is too low to reliably make the call. Normally it uses the cell service, so I just leave the setting on.

 

Originally Posted by reallyitsmema View Post

The other reason I do not leave it on all the time is E911. In an emergency, help will be sent to the address you input which might not be the address you are actually at if you are always using wifi calling.

Imagine if you are in a true emergency and you need to get help now. If you leave WiFi calling turned on and have no cell service but still have a WiFi connection, you merely dial 911 and the call goes through. If you have cell service, the call will go through the cell tower and your location will be known. Also GPS is used to locate your phone in both cases.

 

Now imagine if you leave the setting off and only have WiFi. You cannot make the call until you go into the settings section, find the setting, enable it, then dial 911. That seem to me to be defeating the purpose of easily calling 911.

 

Also if you go to a location that has terrible cell service and have the WiFi calling turned off, you will not receive a call that you would have been able to receive if you had left the WiFi calling turned on.

 

There is no valid reason to turn off WiFi calling.

[reallyitsmema]

 

There is no valid reason to turn off WiFi calling.

 

I must have missed the list of valid reasons somewhere along the line.:rolleyes: I will keep the settings on my iphone set the way I prefer whether you feel I have a valid reason or not. Once you start paying my bill, then I might find you have a valid reason to have an opinion on my choice of settings.

[Charles4515]

 

 

Also if you go to a location that has terrible cell service and have the WiFi calling turned off, you will not receive a call that you would have been able to receive if you had left the WiFi calling turned on.

 

There is no valid reason to turn off WiFi calling.

 

You are correct. Mine is turned on and staying turned on. Also if you turn it off and have no cell coverage you won't be able to call 911 at all, while with WiFi calling you can call 911 with no cell signal if you have WiFi. Turning it off because off the 911 Emergency Address is a misunderstanding of the the purpose of the WiFi calling feature and how it works.

[reallyitsmema]

You are correct. Mine is turned on and staying turned on. Also if you turn it off and have no cell coverage you won't be able to call 911 at all, while with WiFi calling you can call 911 with no cell signal if you have WiFi. Turning it off because off the 911 Emergency Address is a misunderstanding of the the purpose of the WiFi calling feature and how it works.

 

There is no misunderstanding of anything, I choose to turn off wifi calling, period. If you want to leave it on, go right ahead, I choose not to.

[reedl]

I must have missed the list of valid reasons somewhere along the line.:rolleyes: I will keep the settings on my iphone set the way I prefer whether you feel I have a valid reason or not. Once you start paying my bill, then I might find you have a valid reason to have an opinion on my choice of settings.

 

OK. What is your valid reason for turning it off? The reason about emergency services not knowing your address is not valid, therefore it is not a valid reason.

 

Now of course the answer "Because I want to" is perfectly valid, but it is not a valid technical reason.

[Charles4515]

I must have missed the list of valid reasons somewhere along the line.:rolleyes: I will keep the settings on my iphone set the way I prefer whether you feel I have a valid reason or not. Once you start paying my bill, then I might find you have a valid reason to have an opinion on my choice of settings.

 

Of course many people make decisions for illogical reasons. I have friends like that. I wouldn't stop them. They are free to do as they please.

[reallyitsmema]

OK. What is your valid reason for turning it off? The reason about emergency services not knowing your address is not valid, therefore it is not a valid reason.

 

Now of course the answer "Because I want to" is perfectly valid, but it is not a valid technical reason.

 

Of course many people make decisions for illogical reasons. I have friends like that. I wouldn't stop them. They are free to do as they please.

 

You two can continue on playing but it will not change what I do. Whether you feel what I do is illogical or invalid is irrelevant. I will choose the settings on my iphone.

 

Carry on. I am sure you both will need to get the last word in.

[reedl]

You two can continue on playing but it will not change what I do. Whether you feel what I do is illogical or invalid is irrelevant. I will choose the settings on my iphone.

 

Carry on. I am sure you both will need to get the last word in.

 

As I said, you have every right to do with your phone whatever you want to do. I am just wondering why you would turn off the WiFi calling setting when you are not on a cruise ship. My reasons for knowing are not to try and change your mind, merely to understand if I am missing something which is a good reason to do so.

 

If you merely say that you do not do it because you do not want to and have no technical/billing/administrative reason to do so, then so be it.

[Cruisin'4Us]

My thanks to everyone for this thread! WiFi Calling is new to me too.

 

Per Verizon FAQ:

 

"Does Wi-Fi Calling consume data? Yes, so charges may apply if the Wi-Fi network you're connecting to charges an access fee. The charges will depend on your Wi-Fi access point's access fee.

 

How much data will a Wi-Fi call use?

Voice calling uses about 1 MB/minute of data. A 1-minute video call typically uses about 6-8 MB of data. The actual data usage of your voice or video call may vary."

 

 

Does "data", as listed in the FAQ, mean data used over WiFi and not a person's Data Plan? Put another way, will WiFi calling work with Data turned off on your phone?

 

Does the ship's Voom work on Coco Cay and Labadee?

[Charles4515]

My thanks to everyone for this thread! WiFi Calling is new to me too.

 

Per Verizon FAQ:

 

"Does Wi-Fi Calling consume data? Yes' date=' so charges may apply if the Wi-Fi network you're connecting to charges an access fee. The charges will depend on your Wi-Fi access point's access fee.

 

How much data will a Wi-Fi call use?

Voice calling uses about 1 MB/minute of data. A 1-minute video call typically uses about 6-8 MB of data. The actual data usage of your voice or video call may vary."

 

 

Does "data", as listed in the FAQ, mean data used over WiFi and not a person's Data Plan? Put another way, will WiFi calling work with Data turned off on your phone?

 

Does the ship's Voom work on Coco Cay and Labadee?[/quote']

 

 

 

As has been mentioned put your phone on Airplane mode on the ship. That turns off the cell voice and data radio. Turn on WiFi. Then you don't have to worry about using Verizon cellular data. WiFi calling works with data turned off. The ship WiFi has a cost for whatever WiFi plan you purchase. So you don't have to worry about how much data you use on the plans. You either get unlimited or buy a certain amount of time. Your voice calls and text on WiFi calling will be whatever they are on your Verizon plan. If you have unlimited calls and text you won't get any additional charges.

 

I don't know about Coco Cay but I didn't get a Voom signal while on Labadee away from the ship at the beach I went too. The WiFi servers are on the ship.

 

 

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Edited November 29, 2016 by Charles4515

[secrui]

As has been mentioned put your phone on Airplane mode on the ship. That turns off the cell voice and data radio. Turn on WiFi. Then you don't have to worry about using Verizon cellular data. WiFi calling works with data turned off. The ship WiFi has a cost for whatever WiFi plan you purchase. So you don't have to worry about how much data you use on the plans. You either get unlimited or buy a certain amount of time. Your voice calls and text on WiFi calling will be whatever they are on your Verizon plan. If you have unlimited calls and text you won't get any additional charges.

 

I don't know about Coco Cay but I didn't get a Voom signal while on Labadee away from the ship at the beach I went too. The WiFi servers are on the ship.

 

 

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Excellent summary!

 

One question: When you do make a voice call on WiFi calling, do you need something like SKYPE or is it just plain dialing?

[Clarea]

Excellent summary!

 

One question: When you do make a voice call on WiFi calling, do you need something like SKYPE or is it just plain dialing?

Just plain dialing. No extra apps needed for voice calls and texts.

[blackshirt]

 

Does "data"' date=' as listed in the FAQ, mean data used over WiFi and not a person's Data Plan? Put another way, will WiFi calling work with Data turned off on your phone?

[/quote']

 

It is talking about data over wifi, not your Verizon data plan. So yes, wifi calling will work with cellular data turned off. In fact, as others have noted, it will work with all cellular radios turned off (i.e. airplane mode). You don't have to put the phone in airplane mode to use wifi calling but if the cellular radios are left on, your phone might switch to cellular at any time.

[bgpgatthebeach]

Hey guys, late to the party... but in order to do this do I need to sign up and pay for ship's internet plan ? Do I stay signed in all the time ?

I have Verizon, iPhone 6, wifi calling enabled, going on Med Cruise, NCL SPIRIT.

 

 

 

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