New GPS Disney device with up to minute wait times

[erin7075]

Our family participated in this beta test on Thursday August 5 at Epcot right at park opening.

We had been using Lines on my Droid Incredible. Lines was horrible and not reliable. This "gps device" was actually a droid phone. We were simply beta testing the software. The GPS program still had some kinks to work out as it did not work great in buildings, obviously. The wait times were incredibly accurate and the best I've seen so far.

The tips were nice, especially in the World Showcase Pavilions.

The bonuses were great. We received a discount in one of the gift shops and we were also invited and attended a special sneak peek screening of Tangled, Tron 3D and Winnie the Pooh in a conference room next to the Coral Reef.

Unfortunately, they did not give all the stations proper chargers so that we could charge the phones and keep them all day but we did manage to get 4 hours out of them.

It was great to see something that actually worked!

 

[Tybee]

Thanks for the report, Erin! Very curious about this device. We'll be at WDW in early January, so it'd be nice if they have these working by then. My wife and I are iPhone users and while there are several decent apps for piecing together this kind of functionality, it's not going to be as reliable as getting the info direct from Disney, which is apparently only possible if you're on Verizon (or if you are tapped to use one of these devices).

The bonuses were great. We received a discount in one of the gift shops and we were also invited and attended a special sneak peek screening of Tangled, Tron 3D and Winnie the Pooh in a conference room next to the Coral Reef.

I'm a little confused. Were these rewards for testing the device or something you could obtain by using it (or both)?

 

[durangojim]

What were those?

I tipped engadget on those years ago http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/21/disney-puts-nintendo-ds-to-use-as-interactive-tour-guide/

and now I've tipped them on this as well. We'll see if they post it

 

[durangojim]

Our family participated in this beta test on Thursday August 5 at Epcot right at park opening.

We had been using Lines on my Droid Incredible. Lines was horrible and not reliable. This "gps device" was actually a droid phone. We were simply beta testing the software. The GPS program still had some kinks to work out as it did not work great in buildings, obviously. The wait times were incredibly accurate and the best I've seen so far.

The tips were nice, especially in the World Showcase Pavilions.

The bonuses were great. We received a discount in one of the gift shops and we were also invited and attended a special sneak peek screening of Tangled, Tron 3D and Winnie the Pooh in a conference room next to the Coral Reef.

Unfortunately, they did not give all the stations proper chargers so that we could charge the phones and keep them all day but we did manage to get 4 hours out of them.

It was great to see something that actually worked!

The images look like they're running on an HTC device. Did the screen look good? I have an Incredible too and in the sunlight I have to turn the brightness way up, which runs the battery down pretty quickly. I'd definately pay for this app in the marketplace.

 

[erin7075]

Thanks for the report, Erin! Very curious about this device. We'll be at WDW in early January, so it'd be nice if they have these working by then. My wife and I are iPhone users and while there are several decent apps for piecing together this kind of functionality, it's not going to be as reliable as getting the info direct from Disney, which is apparently only possible if you're on Verizon (or if you are tapped to use one of these devices).



I'm a little confused. Were these rewards for testing the device or something you could obtain by using it (or both)?

Well, we were told they were bonuses we could get throughout the day because we were doing this. That they were "just for us". However, the way it looked on the phone was that it was intentionally added for anyone using the device to use..meaning, it looked like a permanent feature of the software, not just something they added for us. Now, the bonuses were only available at certain times of the day. So, for the screening, we had to go between 10:30 and 4:30 only. Does that makes sense?

The images look like they're running on an HTC device. Did the screen look good? I have an Incredible too and in the sunlight I have to turn the brightness way up, which runs the battery down pretty quickly. I'd definately pay for this app in the marketplace.

It looked EXACTLY like an HTC phone. The screen did look good but I imagine that they had already adjusted the screen brightness. We had to manipulate the device a couple of times with our hands to be able to really view it easily. The map section was great, too. I would absolutely pay for this App. No question. The real place to test it to me, though, would've been in Magic Kingdom.

 

[GrumpyFan]

Our family participated in this beta test on Thursday August 5 at Epcot right at park opening.

It was great to see something that actually worked!

I'm curious how you got to be a beta tester? Did they approach you, or did you see something and decide to check it out?

We'll be there in October, and I would love to get my hands on one to play with.

 

[samshem]

The images look like they're running on an HTC device. Did the screen look good? I have an Incredible too and in the sunlight I have to turn the brightness way up, which runs the battery down pretty quickly. I'd definately pay for this app in the marketplace.

According to the article, it is a Droid Eris.

 

[erin7075]

I'm curious how you got to be a beta tester? Did they approach you, or did you see something and decide to check it out?

We'll be there in October, and I would love to get my hands on one to play with.

We were there a little after Rope Drop and there was a CM with a clip board near Spaceship Earth dressed in ordinary clothes, not a uniform. We were just walking through and she stopped us and asked if we wanted to do some testing for them. We were just in the right place at the right time.

 

[durangojim]

Hey, got it up on Engadget! Two for two Disney tips in the past 2 years!:sohappy:

 

[TomHendricks]

Hey, got it up on Engadget! Two for two Disney tips in the past 2 years!:sohappy:

Yup, read it this morning. Came here to tell you if you hadn't already known.

 

[durangojim]

Yup, read it this morning. Came here to tell you if you hadn't already known.

Cool, thanks!

 

[wdwmagic]

Hey, got it up on Engadget! Two for two Disney tips in the past 2 years!:sohappy:

Nice work!!

 

[CaptainWinter]

I tipped engadget on those years ago http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/21/disney-puts-nintendo-ds-to-use-as-interactive-tour-guide/

and now I've tipped them on this as well. We'll see if they post it

Well played, sir!

 

[DocMcHulk]

I would bet they arent developing "hardware" to rent at the park. My guess is that this is just a test unit for their software development.

My guess is that it will be an Android/iPhone app that you can buy.

 

[scpergj]

We were there a little after Rope Drop and there was a CM with a clip board near Spaceship Earth dressed in ordinary clothes, not a uniform. We were just walking through and she stopped us and asked if we wanted to do some testing for them. We were just in the right place at the right time.

The DS testing worked the same way - when we tested one a few years ago, we were approached at the entrance to the Magic Kingdom and asked if we wanted to test. I think this might be cooler than the DS was...even if I'm an iPhone type!!!

 

[TomHendricks]

The DS testing worked the same way - when we tested one a few years ago, we were approached at the entrance to the Magic Kingdom and asked if we wanted to test. I think this might be cooler than the DS was...even if I'm an iPhone type!!!

You have to imagine that its actually just the App they are testing. They are just using the phone because to load it on peoples phones would be prohibitive. So if it is really just an App, then it can be made for the iPhone as well. Yes, Android is up and coming. I can't imagine Disney denying the Gorilla in the room, an iPhone a version.

 

[Master Yoda]

You have to imagine that its actually just the App they are testing. They are just using the phone because to load it on peoples phones would be prohibitive. So if it is really just an App, then it can be made for the iPhone as well. Yes, Android is up and coming. I can't imagine Disney denying the Gorilla in the room, an iPhone a version.

Actually Android is beginning to overtake the iphone and with the simply insane approval process the iphone app store has it is only a matter of time before app developers star to jump ship. While I agree that they should make an iphone app I can see why the android one would take precedence.

 

[wdwmagic]

Actually Android is beginning to overtake the iphone and with the simply insane approval process the iphone app store has it is only a matter of time before app developers star to jump ship. While I agree that they should make an iphone app I can see why the android one would take precedence.

The approval process is done for a very important reason. Have a read of http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-10912376

Without it you are going to have absolute chaos with security problems. Contacts, location, call logs, emails are going to be stolen all over the place.

The iPhone approval really isn't as a lot of drama queens like to make out. If you do it right and your app works, it takes 1 to 2 weeks.

 

[Master Yoda]

The approval process is done for a very important reason. Have a read of http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-10912376

Without it you are going to have absolute chaos with security problems. Contacts, location, call logs, emails are going to be stolen all over the place.

The iPhone approval really isn't as a lot of drama queens like to make out. If you do it right and your app works, it takes 1 to 2 weeks.

Stuff like this is what I am talking about.
http://gizmodo.com/5611169/why-the-hell-did-apple-pull-camera%252B-from-the-app-store

 

[wdwmagic]

Stuff like this is what I am talking about.
http://gizmodo.com/5611169/why-the-hell-did-apple-pull-camera%252B-from-the-app-store

Apple quite rightly want to protect the user experience. They make the rules on what buttons do, and to suddenly have the volume button do something else is not what they want. If you are a developer, they make all this very clear in the developer guide. A lot of people choose not to read that, and then wonder why their app gets rejected. One of the strengths of the iPhone apps are their consistency with the interface. This is why the iPhone has such ease of use amongst anyone who picks it up.

Gizmodo are on a crusade against Apple after Apple took a dislike to them buying the stolen the iPhone 4 prototype. They are not a reliable info site anymore.