Help, Verizon Wireless is killing me!!

[LuvinDisCruiser]

At what point do you start getting int'l charges on your phone ?

 

If I took pictures of us on the ship while still docked, to send to our children, will I get charged for this ?

 

We have Verizon, and won't be using it during the cruise so I will definately turn my phone off. It's just a regular phone.

 

But, I wanted to send some pics to family before we set sail . Don't want to get charged for that, of course !

[viaggi_per_mare]

At what point do you start getting int'l charges on your phone ?

 

If I took pictures of us on the ship while still docked, to send to our children, will I get charged for this ?

 

We have Verizon, and won't be using it during the cruise so I will definately turn my phone off. It's just a regular phone.

 

But, I wanted to send some pics to family before we set sail . Don't want to get charged for that, of course !

 

The ship has to turn off it's towers while docked so you will be picking up the tower where you are docked Miami, Tampa (not sure where you are sailing out of) You can even pick up the land based tower after you left for a bit. If you have a nationwide plan, turn off roaming and then you will be sure, you will lose the signal completely when you are not picking up land based towers. We send pictures all the time form the ship docked by phone and it is all covered.

[LuvinDisCruiser]

The ship has to turn off it's towers while docked so you will be picking up the tower where you are docked Miami, Tampa (not sure where you are sailing out of) You can even pick up the land based tower after you left for a bit. If you have a nationwide plan, turn off roaming and then you will be sure, you will lose the signal completely when you are not picking up land based towers. We send pictures all the time form the ship docked by phone and it is all covered.

 

Great ! We are leaving out of Long Beach.

Just want to send some pics to family and friends before we sail.

You know, just to brag a bit ! :p

[Spudhunter]

Android based phones do a number of checks whenever they are on, or at the time they are turned on, each of which use data. As mentioned by a previous poster, the phones will check for system updates, download application updates, synchronize mail and other widgets, etc.

 

The best way to avoid data charges by these behind the scenes checks requires a little bit of technical savvy.

 

First you absolutely need to disable Data Roaming, which is in the Settings/Wireless and Network/Mobile Networks section of your phone.

 

Second, you need to rename the Access Point Name in the same section to some nonsense characters (make sure you write down the original name first!). The combination of these two items will prevent your phone from reaching any over-the-air 3G or Edge network.

 

If you also want to limit Wi-Fi, you can do that as well. These settings stick, even when the phone is booting up.

 

There are some Apps out there (Quick Settings, for example) that give you one-touch access to these kinds of settings on many Android based phones.

 

Just my opinion, your mileage may vary, and don't blame me if you mess up your phone following my advice:rolleyes:

[tamirpr]

Just got off the phone with Verizon. While they do have global data plans, she said I could disable the data roaming and then could turn my phone on just to be a phone and not incur data charges.

 

She did agree that even if the phone was turned off, but the data roaming was not disabled, it will indeed incur roaming charges. As another poster stated, even though the phone is turned off, it still signals data for security purposes and some apps. If you turn off the data roaming this won't happen.

 

Here's the instructions...

Go to main menu

Go to Apps tab

Go to Settings

Go to Wireless Controls

Go to Mobile Networks

Go to Data Roaming...where you would turn it OFF.

 

That way if you do turn on your phone to use it, you won't get push email or any other apps that do automatic searching.

 

To the poster that asked why someone brings a phone, this question is asked ad nauseum and, quite frankly, no answer any of us give is going to suffice those who thinks it's ridiculous. Goody for you that you don't bring a phone. Everyone has different situations. Some have work, some have small kids, some have elderly parents. While it's not important to YOU, my three small children left behind that need a hello from mommy is what matters to me. It's an expense we are willing to incur for their piece of mind. We call for a short call every other day and it's maybe an extra 50 bucks.

 

And as far as what happened before cell phones, we wouldn't have been able to cruise. Plain and simple. And that would leave for a very stressed-out mommy. So now daddy and mommy go on a much needed R&R away from kiddies with the occasional check-in. All's good.

[debbiepete]

I have the Droid X guess I will be leaving her at home next week when we leave :(

[taylor6400]

Actually I think that is a HARD reset....

 

And just for interest sake, you can't do that with the iPhone. The battery can't be removed.

 

I thought a "Hard" reset was a factory reset...? Which completely wipes your phone. Not to hijack and get into a debate...

[TVAN]

You can't get your Angry Birds fix with the phone in the safe Dan. ;)

Love Angry Birds! :)

[The_Geek]

Great, if you can do it. But reality is that some do need to stay in touch with home - for a variety of reasons.

DS takes the sim card out of his iPhone and transfers it to an older "stupid" phone that has no data. That way if he does have to use the phone - call charges is all that will be charged to his account.

 

Why does he take his sim card out and put it in a different phone? The Iphone has very easy steps to turn off all data. The phone still works but no data at all.

 

 

I thought a "Hard" reset was a factory reset...? Which completely wipes your phone. Not to hijack and get into a debate...

 

Nope,

Hard Reset, is a system reboot, so the device being completely powered down.

Soft reset is just a software reboot, basically removes data stored in "Ram".

[StevieG]

This is true. Text received then are like .05 and text sent are .50. Phone calls are per min at 2.49. Data would be at no additional cost other than the prorated $64.99/month. Turn it on before you leave and turn it off when you return by calling Verizon. I have done this a few times now for employees at work and my phone. The new part is the data on the cruise ship - nice! I used to wait until ports to turn on my phone then I would have data and phone. I am being really clear to family and friends not to call me while away unless emergency. I will call them from ports where it is 0.99/minute. Otherwise we will talk via email or facebook. (for my kids) Now if I get a work call, so be it as they pay the bill anyway.

 

Here are the details: http://b2b.vzw.com/international/Cruise_Ships/index.html

 

and if you get the USB modem your laptop will work too.

[CapeCodCruiser]

Anyone used their phone as a mobile wifi hotspot through the ships internet? Couldn't you buy one internet package and connect phone to the internet and the up to 5 laptops to phones wifi?

 

Just kind of curious

[StevieG]

I've read this thread, and I just don't understand certain things.

 

First, many people said they turn on their phones just for an emergency. What kind of emergency warrants using the phone? I'd love to know. How many people have done that? (Used it for an emergency.)

 

Second, most of us are on vacation. Why do you want to talk and text while on vacation? Isn't a vacation for r & r? Getting away from the day to day routine? With a phone, there goes the R & R. Worrying about the bill, checking email, surfing the net, etc., these are things we do at home or at work. Why do them on vacation?

 

If there is a true emergency, and if you don't have a phone, your family can call the ship who will notify you, or if you have an emergency (illness), the ship can contact your family.

 

Please tell me what I'm missing here.

 

Just as a little background, I do not have a fancy phone, have the texting turned off of my phone (I don't want to be bothered), and when I go on vacation, the phone is left either in the car (if we drive to the port) or in the safe if we fly. Then we take it out for the trip home. And, we've had a wonderful vacation. Again, no flaming, please, I'm just curious obout the 'emergencies'. Can someone fill me in? Maybe I should be carrying my phone for these emergencies??

 

You're looking at this backwards, the phone is not for emergencies at home but for emergencies with you, most likely when on shore. For example if you rent a car while on shore and it breaks down wouldn't you like to call for help before you miss the ship regardless of the cost?

[stewpapa]

We are also a family of iPhone users (3GS) - received the same instructions and have never had "extra" charges.

 

 

 

Thanks....that's good to know. We leave in 2 days and will be finding out for ourselves.

[big_duck]

Anyone used their phone as a mobile wifi hotspot through the ships internet? Couldn't you buy one internet package and connect phone to the internet and the up to 5 laptops to phones wifi?

 

Just kind of curious

 

There would be no point, it is still .75 a minute (or burning package minutes) even if none of the 5 laptops were talking to it.

[bythehex]

That is a moot point. How did people manage to transport water from a river or a well? How did people manage to live without microwaves and stoves?

 

We have the technology and people are now used to it. Just like they are used to toilets, stoves, refrigerators, and cars. :)

 

I don't think it's a moot point. There's a big difference between NEEDING a cell phone and WANTING to use it. There ARE phones in the cabins and, in the case of a dire emergency, someone from home can call and leave a message. Been in that situation myself. It's not like people are totally unreachable.

 

I've heard many people on cell phones on cruise ships discussing important issues like whether they had the eggs or the french toast for breakfast. Not exactly what I would call a necessary or emergency situation. Based on the conversations I've overhead, the cell phone is just a toy they want to play with.

[CapeCodCruiser]

There would be no point, it is still .75 a minute (or burning package minutes) even if none of the 5 laptops were talking to it.

 

You wouldn't keep the phone connected 24/7...just when you wanted to go online. It is possible to log the phones on and off an internet connection.

 

The actual question is - Once the phone is connected you should be able to connect up to 5 laptops with one ship account.

 

5 laptops on using the mobile hot spot is only using 5 minutes of internet time vs 5 laptops on 5 separate connections is 25 minutes of internet time.

[grrl2grrl]

You're looking at this backwards, the phone is not for emergencies at home but for emergencies with you, most likely when on shore. For example if you rent a car while on shore and it breaks down wouldn't you like to call for help before you miss the ship regardless of the cost?

 

The key of that sentence is regardless of cost. The point of this post is his concern is not regardless of cost. There are many threads on cruise critic about using your cell on your vacation. Unfortunately there are as many answers on these boards as there are calling a rep at your company.

 

The correct answer is: turn your phone on at all for any reason, prepared or not, expect charges. Don't call or go to your provider and become as annoying as possible to get a courtesy credit. You did the action, accept the consequences. (I'm a fan of the "it never hurts to ask" club, but also "know when to stop" club.)

To the OP: I'm sorry you are in this situation and faced with a high bill, better luck on your next cruise.

[papilliontraveler]

 

I've heard many people on cell phones on cruise ships discussing important issues like whether they had the eggs or the french toast for breakfast. Not exactly what I would call a necessary or emergency situation. Based on the conversations I've overhead, the cell phone is just a toy they want to play with.

 

Oh, and don't forget the all important Facebook updates........"just waking up"........"going to eat lunch"..............."saw the ocean"............

[salty dingo]

Expensive lesson, there!

 

Moral of the story... keep your phone turned off from the moment the ship leaves home port until the moment it docks back there.

 

Then you will have no surprises!

 

Did you REALLY need to keep in touch with a phone? You could have done the same thing by using an internet cafe in port and checking/sending emails. Would have cost 2 or 3 bucks.

[albether7]

Expensive lesson, there!

 

Moral of the story... keep your phone turned off from the moment the ship leaves home port until the moment it docks back there.

 

Then you will have no surprises!

 

Did you REALLY need to keep in touch with a phone? You could have done the same thing by using an internet cafe in port and checking/sending emails. Would have cost 2 or 3 bucks.

 

Al here,

 

We like to use them as portable "night lights", no problems in the past... Just have basic phone ...no frills.

 

Is there any adjustments to the phone to ensure that if simply left on continuously that we would avoid sneeky fees?

[taylor6400]

She did agree that even if the phone was turned off, but the data roaming was not disabled, it will indeed incur roaming charges. As another poster stated, even though the phone is turned off, it still signals data for security purposes and some apps. If you turn off the data roaming this won't happen.

 

I just simply believe this part...I have a droid and normally run push email constantly, have tons of apps that require updates...social networking feeds, everything. I DIDN'T manually shut down mobile network OR disable roaming data. I just shut my phone off when we left port and locked it in the safe. I had NO data transfer that week. I just looked at my usage during the time of the cruise. First data transfer was Sat AM at 6:15 when i took my phone and powered it up...

[cruzin4our10th]

and if you get the USB modem your laptop will work too.

 

So data under the global email plan does work on the ship? The verizon website says **voice & text only no email or data ** under information about cruise ships. Also if I pay to tether my phone, which I do currently, will I be able to tether while on the boat for internet. I have 6 adults leaving their kids for 10 days and a little email of facebook updates will go along way!

[CapeCodCruiser]

So data under the global email plan does work on the ship? The verizon website says **voice & text only no email or data ** under information about cruise ships. Also if I pay to tether my phone, which I do currently, will I be able to tether while on the boat for internet. I have 6 adults leaving their kids for 10 days and a little email of facebook updates will go along way!

 

Last year on the Freedom there was voice only - no data. If you get the global access package and stop in ports that are CDMA and IF they have 3G coverage you can tether there. Same with global email & mobile web - it seems I had service in Mexico but not in Costa Rica nor Panama - check VZ coverage maps for your ports.

 

http://b2b.vzw.com/international/Global_Email/plans_coverage.html

 

I keep trying to figure out if the newer phones that are a mobile hotspot will work to connect several laptops using one ship internet account - I think it will.

[viaggi_per_mare]

Oh, and don't forget the all important Facebook updates........"just waking up"........"going to eat lunch"..............."saw the ocean"............

 

Facebook is the worst user of updates and constant data transfer on your phone. I have the facebook app on my Blackberry and unlimited data in the States so it is no problem, but every time we leave the country to go to Europe, I uninstall it when we leave and put it back when we are back on US soil. There is no way to "turn it off" and it will be a terrible data hog (worst than the GPS)

You can still visit the facebook and post if you like using your browser to visit facebook. This way when you close you browser you are no longer on facebook. With the mobile app, you are streamed every little thing and you will occur alot of charges. It is actually the only application we find we have to completely delete before leaving the US.

[dsykes2]

Just wanted to share a update, I called today, got a lady on the phone, explained the situation, she said "hold on" and placed me back into the que. I have worked for many years with Time Warner Cable, in a call center environment, so of course that REALLY ticked me off. I get a VERY nice guy on the phone explain what just happened, and he actually suggested to me to speak to a supervisor.

 

Spoke with the supervisor, he advised me he did she the notes and all, he offered to take off 1/2 of the charges, which I was grateful for and agreed to. Advised me next time to call and have them either block data from the call center or have the international plan added.

 

Once again, thanks for all of your feedback here on the message boards! :)