Warning FYI

[Sgàile]

We paid for the middle package because a consensus from here indicated the higher speed package was a joke and just as slow as the middle grade one. It was suitable for my purposes albeit slow.

[firefly333]

It may be a blessing in disguise to have a chance to go through a day without being tethered to a phone, and connected to others.

 

To me, the sea invites solitude not often available in every day life. Why not take advantage of that while you can?

 

I gotta admit thats what i miss the most on a cruise, having internet whenever I want. I stick to ports and cheap rates, my parents are elderly and if they needed me i would fly home.

[Doggielover68]

Not understanding why someone could not go 7 days without FB or internet for that matter.

 

 

 

Before we retired that was a huge perk of cruising, away from cell phones and computers for 7 glorious days. We still enjoy that when cruising.

 

 

 

Think about it.

 

 

 

Because we have a pet sitter who comes to our house every day. We like to stay in touch in case she needs anything

 

 

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[CarolR]

And I don’t understand why someone with no interest in using internet on a ship would bother reading and posting in a thread about using the internet on a ship.

 

I don’t have to think about it. I want internet on a ship and it’s no ones business why I want it or how I’m going to use it.

 

Everyone has different wants and needs. Think about THAT instead of assuming everyone should be like you. SMH!

 

 

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Agreed!! We always use the internet for various reasons that have nothing to do with work. My husband and son keep up with their fantasy sports teams for example. I like to post photos for people at home during the cruise. We just got off the Vista with 16 family members and used the Hub app daily. With that said, it did not work well at all and the message deliverance was sketchy at best. Some family members said the Disney app works great.

[LongHill44]

The problem here is, Carnival offers a services, charges money for a service, yet can't provide those services they have promoted and charged for.

 

John said Vista was fitted with the new wifi/internet service and it should be as good as home back in late Feb. John said the other ships will be update within the coming weeks and months.

 

Has anyone seen any improvements?

[Keys2Heaven]

Sometimes I will get an alert from the hub app that something that I had marked as a favorite is getting ready to start, but I have left the ship days before.

 

This is known as the "after glow" cruise experience! :*

[Quilcruisers]

I got hub reminders for days after my last cruise. Upset me so bad that I wanted to vent to somebody to get me back on the ship and quit tempting me. Well we have had mixed reviews on the internet package but it worked well enough for us. I was able to reach my son daily by using “what’s app”and it was pretty reliable. Also when onboard we always use the hub and usually good luck with it. Sometimes we miss a connection but not a big deal. We buy the internet to play games, do a little social media in between going here and there on the ship. The only time I would be upset is if I could not reach my son when he is back home, otherwise, it’s simply a nice to have , not a requirement.

 

 

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[Saint Greg]

I got hub reminders for days after my last cruise. Upset me so bad that I wanted to vent to somebody to get me back on the ship and quit tempting me. Well we have had mixed reviews on the internet package but it worked well enough for us. I was able to reach my son daily by using “what’s app”and it was pretty reliable. Also when onboard we always use the hub and usually good luck with it. Sometimes we miss a connection but not a big deal. We buy the internet to play games, do a little social media in between going here and there on the ship. The only time I would be upset is if I could not reach my son when he is back home, otherwise, it’s simply a nice to have , not a requirement.

 

 

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A couple weeks ago I randomly started getting hub app alerts of events from the last sea day of my cruise a month earlier. Uninstalling and reinstalling the app cleared it up if anyone has the same issue in the future.

[MNCruizer27]

The chat option on the HUB worked great for us on the Freedom last March. Messaged my husband son and people from our cruise group. Was worth the money and we are getting it again next cruise,

[cruziJenn]

On every ship you have to consider when the peak and slow times are going to be. Sea days we don't even bother except to maybe check email a couple of times.

 

Checking in with family, friends, a house sitter.....pulling up this forum and maybe others....and whatever else we may want to do online in the 1 or 2 hours a day that we collapse and relax and room TV is crap (ALWAYS) because it's our vacation and our time and our money to use however we want to.

[coevan]

"Sea days we don't even bother except to maybe check email a couple of times."

You are not talking about the HUB, but the internet service, correct?

[Lottacruises]

Just making sure this thread was on the right path.

[mom2oneXY]

Not understanding why someone could not go 7 days without FB or internet for that matter.

 

Before we retired that was a huge perk of cruising, away from cell phones and computers for 7 glorious days. We still enjoy that when cruising.

 

Think about it.

 

We love unplugging while on a cruise. It is one of my favorite parts, actually. This time we are getting the social media plan because it is the cheapest was to check in with my parents who will be keeping our son since this is an anniversary cruise. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't get it. I don't want to spend time in port looking for free wi-fi. I just want to drop a message every other day or so and be able to get a message if DS wants to send one!

[cruziJenn]

"Sea days we don't even bother except to maybe check email a couple of times."

You are not talking about the HUB, but the internet service, correct?

 

Correct, as some others were doing. I know that the OP started out talking about chat but then it went a little wild.

[LewLewBelle]

I love to post pics on social media for memories :) The second reason I use it is for staying in touch with my mom back home. Since Facebook has a call and video feature I can talk for free well for however much the social package costs :)

[evandbob]

It was not a bash at all.

 

Just a point that our society in general has become dependent on the internet.

 

There was a time when you could walk anywhere and no see humans glued to a screen and enjoying their surroundings.

 

Just look around you. People have forgotten how to talk to each other.

 

 

Indeed. And before there were Harleys for the hog riders, there were horses. Shall we go back to chariots then? Besides, if people stopped looking at their screens, I wouldn't be able to laugh at them when they walk into or trip over something.

 

I recently went 4 months without a cell phone and found I had a few more hours in my day.

 

Seriously, Carnival recommends that to get decent use out of the HUB, one should close down other apps on their phones.

[jeff92k7]

I am not a computer expert but it appears on older ships not wired for wifi it will be bad. I also wonder if a magnet will stick to a door and all the walls in a cabin it might hurt wifi. Being in a metal room is not a good thing for reception.

 

I am a computer network engineer and there are two problems... 1. the WiFi signal itself getting through bulkheads, decks, walls, doors, people, etc., and then 2. The satellite connection between the ship and the rest of the internet.

 

Now 1 is likely less of an issue. Even on older ships, it's rare to find a place on board that doesn't have some WiFi signal. You don't need a super strong WiFi signal for short text messages (like the Hub chat feature).

 

2. is the big issue. Regardless of how good the WiFi signal strength is, all the data gets funneled into one (or possibly two) satellite connection. If the satellite connection is bad, then there is no internet access for anyone. This can happen for any number of reasons such as heavy cloud cover, precipitation, solar radiation, bird droppings on the ships satellite transceiver, etc. Further, from what I've heard, even the on board chat feature of the hub app is transmitted across the satellite link to Carnival's servers and then back to the same ship. This explains why it doesn't work all the time. If it was all self contained within each ship, then the chat feature should work fine regardless of the internet connection quality. Unfortunately, this does not appear to be the case.

 

As technology improves, the issues with 2 should diminish, but will never go away entirely. Such is the case with any wireless connection. It sounds like they may be using a more advanced satellite connection on the Horizon. Initial reports are good and they have said they will roll it out to the rest of the fleet (though no dates given). Since this is likely just a matter of swapping some centralized satellite tech on each ship and will not require completely gutting the separate WiFi infrastructure, then it is possible they could do this while each ship is in service instead of having to wait until each ship is in dry dock. Just fly the workers to the port, book them on the next sailing, make sure the equipment is at the dock waiting, and they can work while the boat is still making money.

 

Eventually, these issues will become less and less, but by then, technology may have advanced to the next communication method.