Will we need to carry phones everywhere ?

[bikerunner]

It’s going to be the way now.  I just got back from an AI in the Dominican and no paper of any type was available.  Everything’s was thru the app to see menus and schedule.  I do see how this can and will be a hinderance for a few but most people have begrudgingly learned that the phone and or tablet is a part of life    I wish I didn’t need the phone but will accept it with the less paper and handling of things all around.  The casino will be interesting overall on all the chips etc.  will wait to see what happens there 

[jg51]

11 hours ago, Denny01 said:

I think even ‘my’’ generation by in large use the phones and iPads a great deal and rely on them.  ...
den
 

 

 

.

You may be right, den, to say that "[our] generation, by and large, use the phones and iPads," but, if so, we are a major exception.  Even though we are not yet 70, we have never had -- and prefer never to have -- any kind of portable phone.  We prefer our good old-fashioned land line.

 

If a cruise line wants us to use a "smart phone," they will have to lend us one -- and teach  us how to use it.  We have never even touched one, so we don't have any idea how such a phone is used (to perform any function [to make calls, to take photos, to read QR codes, to access the Internet, etc.]).  We know nothing about text-messaging either. 

 

It makes no sense for us to spend money to purchase such phones (and then to pay a high monthly fee to a service provider, even though we would rarely if ever use them).  In addition, we have no children or grandchildren from whom to learn, even if we had some good uses for such phones.

 

In our simple lives, we can get along just fine without any of these things.  Of course, we don't object to them, so we would be willing to borrow and learn, as mentioned above.  Like "39august," however, we may be unable to use such phones, due to problems with our vision.

.

[Denny01]

16 minutes ago, jg51 said:

.

You may be right, den, to say that "[our] generation, by and large, use the phones and iPads," but, if so, we are a major exception.  Even though we are not yet 70, we have never had -- and prefer never to have -- any kind of portable phone.  We prefer our good old-fashioned land line.

 

If a cruise line wants us to use a "smart phone," they will have to lend us one -- and teach  us how to use it.  We have never even touched one, so we don't have any idea how such a phone is used (to perform any function [to make calls, to take photos, to read QR codes, to access the Internet, etc.]).  We know nothing about text-messaging either. 

 

It makes no sense for us to spend money to purchase such phones (and then to pay a high monthly fee to a service provider, even though we would rarely if ever use them).  In addition, we have no children or grandchildren from whom to learn, even if we had some good uses for such phones.

 

In our simple lives, we can get along just fine without any of these things.  Of course, we don't object to them, so we would be willing to borrow and learn, as mentioned above.  Like "39august," however, we may be unable to use such phones, due to problems with our vision.

.

Shouldn’t be a problem at all. there will be lots of alternatives such as the TV and our steward can drop off any printed Daily and so on, and your card is your pass as it’s been forever. 

 

Den

[LGW59]

1 minute ago, Denny01 said:

Shouldn’t be a problem at all. there will be lots of alternatives such as the TV and our steward can drop off any printed Daily and so on, and your card is your pass as it’s been forever. 

 

Den

There are also many short term use a you go plans.  Not married to them with contracts, just short term.

[Oville]

3 hours ago, Denny01 said:

Shouldn’t be a problem at all. there will be lots of alternatives such as the TV and our steward can drop off any printed Daily and so on, and your card is your pass as it’s been forever. 

 

Den

We recently spent 3 nights in 3 different hotels, all pushed digital keys.  Not sure what was happening 15 months ago will still apply to the June 26 Edge, only time will tell.

[jelayne]

31 minutes ago, Oville said:

We recently spent 3 nights in 3 different hotels, all pushed digital keys.  Not sure what was happening 15 months ago will still apply to the June 26 Edge, only time will tell.

You have a good point.  While our travel has been limited in the past 18 months, check-in/out on-line, digital keys, Scan the  QR code for menus is what travel is becoming.  
We went to a adults  only AI last month, we are not young, check-in was via a phone or IPad.  Without asking we were offered a “loaned”  IPad and someone to help us with check in❗️ I don’t ever want to be that far behind the rest of society.  DH pulled out his phone and said Thanks, we got this.  
My hero was our 98 year old neighbor who passed a year ago this week.  He had a smart phone, read the papers on-line, emailed, shopped on Amazon.  He also played golf breaking 100 frequently,  maintained his house (including cleaning leaves off his roof) and was determined not to be left behind the rest of the world. 

[luckybecky]

When we started cruising, I quickly learned that I needed a very small purse to carry a few essentials. I normally carry a pretty large purse stuffed with all sorts of things, but on a cruise ship I need only a few small items: chapstick, key card, maybe a pack of gum or some tic tacs, and phone -- which I used to use only for photos, but is now becoming essential for other purposes, menus etc.

Unfortunately, most womens' clothing do not have pockets sufficient for these items so I have two lightweight cross body bags that I use almost exclusively for cruising. I love them. I put them on every time I leave the cabin, and they are small enough that I don't even notice them, they don't bother me like a heavy purse might. Since they are worn cross body, I don't have to worry about setting it down somewhere and forgetting it. And I always have my phone at hand for snapping great vacation photos. 🙂 

 

You might consider getting a casual one for pool days and a dressier one for evenings. 

[hcat]

Sad that vacations may soon  require being tethered to devices. Ours are working quite well but way too old to use with the Celeb App.  On our cruises on EDGE, many times the info on the app was not available or  totally wrong.  We were happy to share our printed dailies with others.  

 

We do not want to wear neck medallions or carry wrist devices...for us cruising is about the pleasure of being "unplugged". The TV now has much info, so less paper generated,  except for the relentles sales pitches! But now those often come on the stateroom  phone.....quite annoying but we found a way to " unsubscribe"

[happy cruzer]

To me the difference is traveling or vacationing.  When traveling, having to use a phone to check-in or see changes,  hours, options, etc is fine and can be extremely helpful.  Once in a location for vacation and relaxing, don't really want to have to carry the phone each minute.  NCL had "large" touch screens in multiple places for accessing reservation system, etc.  So hopefully most vacation spots will provide options that please most.

[LJJQ]

I wonder if you can use the smart watches that Apple and Samsung to do same functions as the phones or iPads ? The APPS show up on my IWatch so seems logical!

if anyone takes a cruise and has a smart watch please let us know the results!

[Ride-The-Waves]

I believe "smart watches" work connectivity through other smart devices, such as smart phones.  You nee both on you or nearby.

 

The reasons for this, of course, are cost reductions by the company.  They force you to "buy the paper," the smart phone, so they don't need to print.  Plus, ALL apps collect information about you and the other apps on your devices.  Cruise lines make huge profit off this by selling you preferences to other companies.  On Princess the "medallion" broadcasts who you are while traversing the ship, even to stores, dining facilities, bars, etc.  There is no such thing as a free lunch.

Edited June 1, 2021 by Ride-The-Waves

[Charles4515]

15 hours ago, jg51 said:

 

If a cruise line wants us to use a "smart phone," they will have to lend us one -- and teach  us how to use it.  We have never even touched one, so we don't have any idea how such a phone is used (to perform any function [to make calls, to take photos, to read QR codes, to access the Internet, etc.]).  We know nothing about text-messaging either. 

 

 

 

Frankly I don't think that they will provide you with a smart phone. People like you are so few that the cruise lines will probably just write off your business. 

 

A smartphone is simply a pocket computer. You are using a computer right? So you pretty much know how to use a smart phone.  Actually a smart phone is easier. Also you don't have to have cell service or a cell plan. You only need to connect to WiFi. I keep my smart phone in Airplane mode with wifi turned on when on ships. The WiFi to connect the app is free.

Edited June 1, 2021 by Charles4515

[laslomas]

Just one more thing to look after, they can be a very expensive bit of kit to have to worry about. Luckily, mine phone is not a state of the art one that costs a fortune. But even so I would love to leave it in the cabin.

 

I remember in the past having to queue at Guest Services on numerous occasions when my key card stopped working. They told me that it was caused by me keeping it in close proximity to a mobile phone. Whether this was right, or wrong. I don't know, but is it OK to keep the key card together with the phone? Or must they be separate?

[springfire]

We would now never consider travel without our smartphone.   We are consistently learning new apps that have made our lives so much easier and safer.  Times keep changing and we are just trying to keep up.

[jg51]

21 hours ago, Denny01 said:

Shouldn’t be a problem at all. there will be lots of alternatives such as the TV and our steward can drop off any printed Daily and so on, and your card is your pass as it’s been forever. 

Den

.

Thanks, Den.  We will be optimistic and will trust that you are correct!  We think that the cruise line should accommodate our needs.

.

16 hours ago, jelayne said:

... Without asking we were offered a “loaned”  IPad and someone to help us with check in❗️ I don’t ever want to be that far behind the rest of society.  ...

.

If it is truly necessary, "jelayne," we hope that we will be "loaned" a device and any needed "help" (training).  On the other hand, we just consider ourselves to be "different," not "behind the rest of society."   Nowadays, "diversity" is all the rage -- and we think that our non-conformity (which goes all the way back to the late 1960s) ought to be considered acceptable, if not even admirable!

.

9 hours ago, hcat said:

.. The TV now has much info, so less paper generated,  except for the relentles sales pitches! But now those often come on the stateroom  phone.....quite annoying but we found a way to "unsubscribe"

.

Hello, "hcat."  Would you be willing to share with us how to "unsubscribe" to the undesired phone calls?  Thanks.

.

6 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

 

Frankly I don't think that they will provide you with a smart phone. People like you are so few that the cruise lines will probably just write off your business.

 

A smartphone is simply a pocket computer. You are using a computer right?  So you pretty much know how to use a smart phone.  Actually a smart phone is easier. Also you don't have to have cell service or a cell plan. You only need to connect to WiFi. I keep my smart phone in Airplane mode with wifi turned on when on ships. The WiFi to connect the app is free.

.

Due to the income they have derived from us, we seriously doubt that they "will ... just write off [our] business."  (That remark of yours was hurtful!)  If a ship can accommodate seriously physically handicapped people and can allow a dozen or more people with "scooters," surely they can and should accommodate folks like us, without "writ[ing off [our] business."

 

Regarding your second paragraph, we could not understand what you were trying to tell us, because you used lots of jargon with which we are not familiar (for example, "cell service," "cell plan," "WiFi," "Airplane mode," "app"). 

 

Also, you said that we already "pretty much know how to use a smart phone."  But that is not true.  We wouldn't even know how to turn the power on or how to move from any one feature to another!  We have been using big desktop computers ... since (roughly) 1981 for "word-processing" and other programs ... and since 1994 for daily e-mail and daily Internet access.  Still, we have no desire to carry a "pocket computer," which has a display that is too tiny for us to read and a keyboard that is too tiny for us to manipulate.

.

5 hours ago, laslomas said:

Just one more thing to look after, they can be a very expensive bit of kit to have to worry about. ...

 

.

Yes, "laslomas."  Thank you for that.  We do not want to purchase "a very expensive bit of kit" and "worry about" it.  Everything else is already very costly for us.

.

5 hours ago, springfire said:

... Times keep changing and we are just trying to keep up.

.

Life always remains basically the same.  We prefer not to "try to keep up with the Joneses."  Although we believe in being law-abiding citizens, we do whatever we can to prevent society, government, etc., to impose things on us!

.

[LGW59]

6 minutes ago, jg51 said:

.

Thanks, Den.  We will be optimistic and will trust that you are correct!  We think that the cruise line should accommodate our needs.

.

.

If it is truly necessary, "jelayne," we hope that we will be "loaned" a device and any needed "help" (training).  On the other hand, we just consider ourselves to be "different," not "behind the rest of society."   Nowadays, "diversity" is all the rage -- and we think that our non-conformity (which goes all the way back to the late 1960s) ought to be considered acceptable, if not even admirable!

.

.

Hello, "hcat."  Would you be willing to share with us how to "unsubscribe" to the undesired phone calls?  Thanks.

.

.

Due to the income they have derived from us, we seriously doubt that they "will ... just write off [our] business."  (That remark of yours was hurtful!)  If a ship can accommodate seriously physically handicapped people and can allow a dozen or more people with "scooters," surely they can and should accommodate folks like us, without "writ[ing off [our] business."

 

Regarding your second paragraph, we could not understand what you were trying to tell us, because you used lots of jargon with which we are not familiar (for example, "cell service," "cell plan," "WiFi," "Airplane mode," "app"). 

 

Also, you said that we already "pretty much know how to use a smart phone."  But that is not true.  We wouldn't even know how to turn the power on or how to move from any one feature to another!  We have been using big desktop computers ... since (roughly) 1981 for "word-processing" and other programs ... and since 1994 for daily e-mail and daily Internet access.  Still, we have no desire to carry a "pocket computer," which has a display that is too tiny for us to read and a keyboard that is too tiny for us to manipulate.

.

.

Yes, "laslomas."  Thank you for that.  We do not want to purchase "a very expensive bit of kit" and "worry about" it.  Everything else is already very costly for us.

.

.

Life always remains basically the same.  We prefer not to "try to keep up with the Joneses."  Although we believe in being law-abiding citizens, we do whatever we can to prevent society, government, etc., to impose things on us!

.

You were able to cut and paste 6 separate CC responses to your question...you can operate an iPad or smart device, the on/off buttons are very easy to use.

 

[Denny01]

JG51, I think there’s too many customers who either cant use the digital tools, or just wont on a cruise / vacation that the Line will ensure there are options. And options that don’t require you to stand in long lines fo a few printouts and so on. 

 

Yes, they are looking at the upcoming generations and so on, but its really not that hard to meet the needs of those who arent into digital connections. 

 

But as you can tell, my posts are based on opinion and an opinion that is based on…..??

 

den

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

16 hours ago, hcat said:

Sad that vacations may soon  require being tethered to devices. Ours are working quite well but way too old to use with the Celeb App.  On our cruises on EDGE, many times the info on the app was not available or  totally wrong.  We were happy to share our printed dailies with others.  

 

We do not want to wear neck medallions or carry wrist devices...for us cruising is about the pleasure of being "unplugged". The TV now has much info, so less paper generated,  except for the relentles sales pitches! But now those often come on the stateroom  phone.....quite annoying but we found a way to " unsubscribe"

 

Please share the method for unsubscribing from those relentless calls on the stateroom phone.  I absolutely hate those!

[iamaqt2]

I use this setup to secure all my electronics at any resort.  Cord around locked in area of chair, lock through two zipper loops and boom.. locked to chair.

[luckybecky]

7 hours ago, jg51 said:

...

 If a ship can accommodate seriously physically handicapped people and can allow a dozen or more people with "scooters," surely they can and should accommodate folks like us, without "writ[ing off [our] business."

Regarding your second paragraph, we could not understand what you were trying to tell us, because you used lots of jargon with which we are not familiar (for example, "cell service," "cell plan," "WiFi," "Airplane mode," "app"). ...

 

 

I have been biting my tongue because I prefer to try to be positive. I like Cruise Critic to share cruising tips, excursions, meetups, trip reviews. In fact I earlier in this thread tried to offer a helpful tip. But this has me burning. I'm sorry. Comparing willful ignorance to a disability is not reasonable. Are you trolling?

Yes, the cruise ships should do all they can to accommodate passengers who have disabilities. Refusing to figure out how to power on a cell phone is not a disability. The cruise line has no responsibility to accommodate that or to provide "training." Your comparison is an insult to people who live every day of their lives with serious mental or physical disabilities. 

"Wifi" and "cell service" are not a foreign language. Cell phones have been around for a couple of decades now. Learning to use one is not rocket science. 

I'm really sorry that you have not learned any new technology since 1994 (by your own accounting), but that is not the cruise ship's problem. If you don't want to carry a cell phone, that is perfectly fine. But you need to understand that the world has moved on. It has no responsibility to stay in the past with you. 

The more that I think about it, the more your comments seem unreal. Maybe you are just trolling. If so, you got me. Touche. 

[LGW59]

4 minutes ago, luckybecky said:

I have been biting my tongue because I prefer to try to be positive. I like Cruise Critic to share cruising tips, excursions, meetups, trip reviews. In fact I earlier in this thread tried to offer a helpful tip. But this has me burning. I'm sorry. Comparing willful ignorance to a disability is not reasonable. Are you trolling?

Yes, the cruise ships should do all they can to accommodate passengers who have disabilities. Refusing to figure out how to power on a cell phone is not a disability. The cruise line has no responsibility to accommodate that or to provide "training." Your comparison is an insult to people who live every day of their lives with serious mental or physical disabilities. 

"Wifi" and "cell service" are not a foreign language. Cell phones have been around for a couple of decades now. Learning to use one is not rocket science. 

I'm really sorry that you have not learned any new technology since 1994 (by your own accounting), but that is not the cruise ship's problem. If you don't want to carry a cell phone, that is perfectly fine. But you need to understand that the world has moved on. It has no responsibility to stay in the past with you. 

The more that I think about it, the more your comments seem unreal. Maybe you are just trolling. If so, you got me. Touche. 

Totally agree with you here.  Look at what he/she posted re technology and the 60’s, diversity etc, total troll looking for reactions.

[Denny01]

This whole issue is ridiculous. If you want to use a digital device to get ship info and whatever, do it. If not, pickup the blasted piece of paper w the info on it. 
 

we are finally getting back to cruising, and thread after thread on this forum is some completely blown out of proportion concern that the sky is falling.  Chicken Little ended up on some plate in Popeye’s and deserved it. 
 

let’s start planning and talking about cruising and drop this silliness. No one is forcing you to join the later half of the 20th Century. 
 

den

[LGW59]

18 minutes ago, Denny01 said:

This whole issue is ridiculous. If you want to use a digital device to get ship info and whatever, do it. If not, pickup the blasted piece of paper w the info on it. 
 

we are finally getting back to cruising, and thread after thread on this forum is some completely blown out of proportion concern that the sky is falling.  Chicken Little ended up on some plate in Popeye’s and deserved it. 
 

let’s start planning and talking about cruising and drop this silliness. No one is forcing you to join the later half of the 20th Century. 
 

den

Please Den, stop it, I’m trying to watch the Brady Bunch.  And it is the color TV episode!

Edited June 2, 2021 by LGW59

[luckybecky]

15 minutes ago, Denny01 said:

 

let’s start planning and talking about cruising and drop this silliness. No one is forcing you to join the later half of the 20th Century. 
 

den

Agree! We are booked on the Equinox in just 7 weeks or so. I'm trying to be positive that it will go. Planning, planning, planning. Thinking positive. Booked air yesterday. Looking at hotels in Fort Lauderdale. Upgraded our drink package, and booked the Tuscan Grill for my birthday. Ready to book excursions. Let's go! 🙂 

[upwarduk]

9 hours ago, LGW59 said:

You were able to cut and paste 6 separate CC responses to your question...you can operate an iPad or smart device, the on/off buttons are very easy to use.

 

I wondered how you quoted 6 posts and I consider myself at 79 reasonably tech savvy.

This is because I took my doctor’s advice when I took early retirement from teaching. He said, ‘Don’t let your brain go dead.’

Since then I have taken a Master’s degree from the Open University and written a book. The publisher did all their edits using IT.

In the last year I have relied on IT for online shopping and Zoom Church services.

I carry my phone in a ‘belt’ which I strap around my waist. It also records my steps for fitness. It has also provided  invaluable connection with family who we haven’t been. able to visit due to the pandemic.