Why Princess needs to invest more in tech...

[OzKiwiJJ]

OMG! I actually agree with you on something, KarateMan. :D

[KarateMan]

I absolutely agree, but it seems the younger generation has little concept of privacy or downtime. The newbuilds will be catering to their demands for 24/7 connectivity. I just hope the cruise lines don't force it on the rest of us!

 

I am in my 30's and would love a cruise with no mobile technology access and no internet access. To be 100% honest it would be a great idea if mobile phone reception was switched off.

 

I do agree that too much of the younger generation particularly the people born after the 90's are way too dependent on technology. There are a lot of reports coming out about the negative psychological aspect technology is having on people and how dependant people are on their mobile and gadgets.

 

I had a great childhood growing up in the 80's and not having a care in the world about technology. These days kids depend on it. The generation is so different.

[OzKiwiJJ]

I am in my 30's and would love a cruise with no mobile technology access and no internet access. To be 100% honest it would be a great idea if mobile phone reception was switched off.

 

 

Phones and computers have off buttons. :D Also you can "forget" to charge them. :D

 

You only get tied to technology if you let yourself.

 

Must admit I do like playing games (offline) on my phone when I'm on holiday. It's a nice change from reading, keeps my brain active. ;)

 

I'm in my early 60's but worked in the IT industry for 35+ years. Mind you, I can't keep up with all the changes these days. :(

[OzKiwiJJ]

I had a great childhood growing up in the 80's and not having a care in the world about technology. These days kids depend on it. The generation is so different.

 

My childhood was in the 50s and NZ didn't get TV until I was about 9. I had a very low-tech childhood indeed. I learnt to love books instead. Of course, these days I read on a Kindle which I much prefer to paper books as I can adjust the font size to suit my aging eyes. ;)

[Iamcruzin]

Agree that robot bartenders is an awful idea!! Half of the fun at a bar is the interaction with the one making your cocktails.

 

I noticed the automated wine "vending machine" on the Summit and thought it was horrible.

I never saw it being used probably due to the fact that it wasn't part of the drink package and personally I think it was far too advanced technology for the Summit crowd. At least for the crowd on my sailing.

[KarateMan]

Phones and computers have off buttons. :D Also you can "forget" to charge them. :D

 

You only get tied to technology if you let yourself.

 

Must admit I do like playing games (offline) on my phone when I'm on holiday. It's a nice change from reading, keeps my brain active. ;)

 

I'm in my early 60's but worked in the IT industry for 35+ years. Mind you, I can't keep up with all the changes these days. :(

 

I like technology but I do keep my phone switched off when I am away. I am fairly up to date with technology these days but steer away form smart phone apps as a waste of time.

 

On a serious note about an issue does concern me is the availability of mobile phone technology and Wi-Fi throughout the ship. What concerns me is the risk of being "fried" by the transmissions and the risk of tumours and cancer. I know the risk is low but still the thought of it is still there.

[Host Jazzbeau]

I have been reading reports all around the internet about this high tech ship and to be perfectly honest I think the technology is far too extreme and I literally roll my eyes at the insane thought of it.

 

One example. Mobile phone app tracking of suitcases where the cruise line tags the suitcase on check-in and you can watch its progress on the screen of your smart phone.

 

Now to me if you are on a cruise ship (the best place in the world to be) and the only thing you can think of is sitting down and watching a phone screen to find out where you bags are, then afraid you have serious problems!!!

 

If anything it is going to give the stand up comedians a lot of laughable material.

 

This would be great at the end of the cruise. There have been a few threads about lost luggage, with the cruise line claiming they have no responsibility. If you were able to track your luggage in real time you could tell them exactly who is responsible!

[hawkeyetlse]

On a serious note about an issue does concern me is the availability of mobile phone technology and Wi-Fi throughout the ship.

Most people have cell coverage and WiFi signals in their homes and offices on land… If you're worried about being "fried", I'm afraid that ship has sailed. So we may as well sail on it. :p

 

The dose of radiation that you are exposed to by taking an airplane, or by voluntarily laying out in the sun on the Lido deck, is more harmful than any waves being beamed around by the ship's communication networks.

[richsea]

I love the sound of this ship. The new tech features announced today are awesome. RCL is leaving the rest in the dust when it comes to technology.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Yet they cannot get Celebrity's website to function. Go figure.

[EddieCruzer]

That's great - I can get on the ship faster so I can spend more time waiting for my cabin to be ready for occupancy...

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

 

Not on Princess. Boarding does not begin until all cabins are ready for occupancy. :D

[Cruise Junky]

Yet they cannot get Celebrity's website to function. Go figure.

 

 

Yeah I know, crazy ! And from what I read , RCL's isn't much better. Let's hope the web team have nothing to do with the ship. ;)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[fly2cruises]

"The main area I'd like to see is improvements in intraship communication. It can be tough to find someone aboard. I could see having some sort of app that you download to your smartphone ahead of time and use it to send messages over the ship's intranet between handsets."

 

Take a look at the Ripple Cruise Communicator app. Designed to address this concern...app is $0.99...no extra cruise ship charges.

[Putterdude]

OK, I confess to being an almost 70 year old cruiser...but the technology that I would find most appealing in no particular order:

 

- high speed internet

- interactive TV in cabin to check on account, order room service and make appointments

-the ability to order services and make appointments....say anytime after making final payment. With that Princess should have the right to charge peoples OBC for "no shows".

 

Beyond that I am quite happy with the way things are presently on Princess ships.

[Thrak]

My childhood was in the 50s and NZ didn't get TV until I was about 9. I had a very low-tech childhood indeed. I learnt to love books instead. Of course, these days I read on a Kindle which I much prefer to paper books as I can adjust the font size to suit my aging eyes. ;)

 

My childhood was also in the 50s. We had TV but it was always broken. We went to the library. We read books. We played outside.

 

(I actually fixed the TV myself when Star Trek came out. I was probably 13 or 14 years old. I pulled the tubes and got my mom to take me to the grocery store where there was a tube tester and replaced the bad tubes myself. I had to have Star Trek! :D)

[RNRcruisers]

I agree that one of the things I like about cruising is being out of contact with the "real world". When I went on a cruise with my sister who is constantly on her phone or ipad, I loved it that she had no reception as we sailed out to sea. And she seemed to handle it just fine! The sad thing was, the minute we stepped on the sidewalk outside the port she had her phone back out :rolleyes: I'm not anti-tech but most of these things are just unnecessary. I love to cruise and having these gimmicks available won't change that either way.

[PescadoAmarillo]

With apologies to those in their 30s, when I said younger generation I meant those in their teens and 20s...you know, the iGeneration.;) With few exceptions, these kids aren't going to suddenly unplug to go on vacation when they reach 30. They'll expect the same connectivity.

 

As for gimmicks...every cruise line has them. Skywalkers was a gimmick when it was first introduced (why did a nightclub have to be hung off the back of a ship?). Certainly the fountains and the SkyWalk on the Royal and Regal are gimmicks. RC has turned gimmicks into an art form...but it seems to work for them. I don't think RC is concerned that some older Princess cruisers aren't attracted; they aren't their target market. They much prefer the first time cruiser to Princess' population of Captains Circle members. When we were on the Allure, we were surprised by the huge percentage of passengers that were first time cruisers and from outside the US. Who do you think spends more per day on a cruise: those passengers or the seniors from Florida who bus down to Fort Lauderdale for a Flash Fare cruise?

 

Princess celebrates their most traveled passengers but they're designing ships for their newest ones, and that's not an accident. However, changing the perception of a cruise line's demographic is a hard things to do (just ask HAL), which is why RC went to such extremes to do it. I'm not certain the SkyWalk and fountains will achieve the same success.

 

So.... you're getting closer to being on the outside?? :)

Closer? I'm there, baby, and so far removed that the inside is becoming a far-distant memory. :D

[Meggysmum]

Since RC have the worlds worst website that just goes in to error mode if you try to pre-book anything that requires two cabins to do anything together I do worry about their tech!

 

These advances are great if they work but I have my doubts!

[billco]

My childhood was in the 40s. I grew up around technology. My dad owned a neon sign business and I would help wire the signs as I was small enough to crawl around inside. My friends and I spent a lot of time rebuilding old radios. My dad loved the latest gadgets. I remember when he brought home a Polaroid camera and that we were first in the neighborhood to get a TV. First show I watched was Captain Video. My military time and my entire civilian career was in technology. Even though I have been retired for 20 years, I still get the latest gadgets. We have three iPads. Bought two of them in Honolulu on two different cruises, because we were there on the day they went on sale. Always go on a cruise with iPhone, iPad, Kindles and the means to hook them up to the TV so we can watch the movies we brought with us. Other than my family and fitness, my two biggest loves are gadgets and cruises. So, for any new tech they introduce on cruise ships, I say "Bring it on."

[SoCal Cruiser78]

Given that I am in my early 30s, I (hope) I am still considered part of the "younger" generation :)

 

You must be an "old soul" ;).

[SoCal Cruiser78]

...I had a great childhood growing up in the 80's and not having a care in the world about technology. These days kids depend on it. The generation is so different.

 

I saw a great bumper sticker the other day. It said "I'm glad I had a childhood before electronics". Me, too!

[hawkeyetlse]

I saw a great bumper sticker the other day. It said "I'm glad I had a childhood before electronics".

Was it on the bumper of a Conestoga wagon?

Take a look at the Ripple Cruise Communicator app. Designed to address this concern...app is $0.99...no extra cruise ship charges.

Great find! Thanks for the tip. I did not know that closed WiFi networks allowed this kind of piggybacking. I hope the cruise lines don't shut it down to protect their own in-house applications… Edited August 26, 2014 by hawkeyetlse

[tjwa]

I saw a great bumper sticker the other day. It said "I'm glad I had a childhood before electronics". Me, too!

 

So true.

[billco]

 

 

 

Take a look at the Ripple Cruise Communicator app. Designed to address this concern...app is $0.99...no extra cruise ship charges.

 

Can't wait to try it on our cruise this October. Thanks for sharing.

[gertz]

For the most part I could care less about any of this.

 

What I want is: A very nice ship that is not over crowded, really good food, great entertainment each night that is over 30 min long, great groups in lounges, great table mates, very good paid well employees. Know I'm getting a little older but these are the same things I wanted in 1991 when I started on the Crown Princess which IMO had all these items.

 

Then I'll take care of everything else myself. And if I can't take care of it, it doesn't need taken care of!

[gertz]

Oh yes and a good book with ice cream.:D