Opinion on ZOOM

[nasa1974]

Is ZOOM worth the price? Can you do Facetime or Google Duo?  Would like to keep in touch with the grandkids.

[pfdaxe358]

Basic Zoom is free to use. It should work on the ship...I guess.

 

https://zoom.us/pricing

 

Edited September 16, 2022 by pfdaxe358

[BirdTravels]

1 hour ago, nasa1974 said:

Is ZOOM worth the price? Can you do Facetime or Google Duo?  Would like to keep in touch with the grandkids.

We use VOOM to facetime. Kinda of expensive just to call and say "Hi". The grandkids can live without you for a week. And you can have a cheaper international day pass on your phone and call with a lot better service while you are in port. 

[cgags47]

3 hours ago, nasa1974 said:

Is ZOOM worth the price? Can you do Facetime or Google Duo?  Would like to keep in touch with the grandkids.

I believe you need the Surf + Stream package to be able to stream video.

[twangster]

Depends what the price is.  Like everything else it's value is relative.

[Biker19]

7 hours ago, nasa1974 said:

Is VOOM worth the price?  Would like to keep in touch with the grandkids.

Is $150 for a week of Voom worth it to keep in touch?

[robmtx]

8 hours ago, nasa1974 said:

Is ZOOM worth the price? Can you do Facetime or Google Duo?  Would like to keep in touch with the grandkids.

I'm going to assume you're talking about Voom, the fastest internet at sea, and not Zoom, the video conferencing application.

 

Voom quality and speeds will vary by ship, weather, and location...but mostly by ship. There are two (now three) implementations currently in the fleet. The answer largely depends on what SHIP and WHAT SAIL DATE.

 

But in general, you have to decide how often you want to keep in touch with grandkids, how long you're going to be gone, and then do a little math. If you want to call them once per day for 15 minutes, you're paying $21 per 15 minute Facetime.

 

Your best best is to get surf+stream. I think more than half of the people who use Facetime seem to do fine with it.

 

Some ships have already upgraded to Starlink, and that's a game changer for questions like this.

 

I buy the package for other reasons. If my only justification was to Facetime someone back home every day, I'd say NO thanks to the internet on board. I can wait a week and then bore them with a slide show when I come home!

[nasa1974]

Thanks everyone. Yes, I meant VOOM not ZOOM.

[ATSEAMYLIFE]

Buy it by the day and FT with them every other day.  Yes, it works fine for FT.  We were on a cruise when out 6th granddaughter decided to be born early and that's how we first saw her.  We were on deck at the pool when we got the FT call.  Priceless, except DW was upset she missed the birth.  The only grandchild we weren't there.  

[Sunshine3601]

19 hours ago, nasa1974 said:

Is ZOOM worth the price? Can you do Facetime or Google Duo?  Would like to keep in touch with the grandkids.

Pretty sure you mean Voom - that is what Royal calls their internet.      

 

Personally, I hate paying the currently high prices for internet and grab a deal whenever I can.   Thankful for the free days from crown n anchor and the 30% off from the casino prime members.   

 

 If you want to stream shows or work remotely with a VPN, then you want surf n stream.   If you want just basic stuff, wifi calling, checking emails, etc. then surf is just fine.    The signal strength varies based on the ship, the location of the ship, weather conditions and your physical location on the ship.     I have been in some cabins where internet is worthless but works great in other areas of the ship.    Other times internet worked great in my cabin.     There are many factors to getting good internet on a cruise ship.