Smart phones while waiting in line....

[danyoung56]

Some of the queues provide a lot to look at and add to the atmosphere of the attraction. And some of the queues are just BORING. There are 2 that come to mind - the single rider queue at Test Track, and at DCA the single rider queue at Radiator Springs Racers. Both move very slowly, and more in bursts than continuous movement. I have a Kindle book reader on my phone, and enjoy reading a few pages while standing still. So yeah, the phones can be very cool in boring queues. But people who walk through the parks with their heads buried in their cell phones are missing the entire experience.

 

[gobstoper27]

I like to think I'm really good @ multi-tasking. I can snap a pic, or check Instagram and check out the queue and walk without bumping into people. I'm not one of those people that is glued to my phone in general..but I think it's acceptable to check your phone from time to time and still enjoy the queue experience.

 

[slappy magoo]

This topic reminded me of this

 

[mimitchi33]

The worst I saw was when we were waiting for the EPCOT Character Spot to open to meet Joy and Sadness-there were these two little kids who were siblings and were watching cartoons on their Mom and Dad's smartphones (they each had separate ones). One of them, whom was a boy, was watching Curious George, and the other, a girl, was watching Goldie and Bear. 5 minutes later, we were let in. They were the second family in line. I found this odd, as the girl spent the whole time waiting in the actual queue telling her brother about the movie and explaining everything since he had never seen it. Kids just boggle my mind sometimes.

This topic reminded me of this

That's literally the funniest thing I ever saw! I was laughing so hard that I nearly wet my pants and tears came from my eyes!

 

[UpAllNight]

Nar I actively dislike use of phones at all when I'm away.

Theme parks are about escapism, so leave the outside world outside.

Also, put the thing away when there's a group of us trying to have a meal. There's people here to socialise with, you don't need to log onto Facebook to read about how Debra's had a a s*@* day at work, and drag me into the mundane reality of routine with it.

 

[Dead2009]

If I have a 45 minute wait for a ride, then yeah I'd probably use it to kill the time.

 

[PMC0849]

We play Heads Up in longer lines, it really kills time, and you sometimes make friends with the people in line around you. Like in DCA recently we made friends with a group of 4 women because of this.

 

[Derezzed85]

I'm guilty of using my phone while in lines, or having it glued to my hand. But I'm usually on the Disney app looking up ride times or trying for dinner reservations. Aside from that, I'd rather take in the surroundings. I love looking at all the details in the parks and listening to the music. I'm not against people using phones in lines... but I've seen people stand there and watch Netflix on their iPads. THAT is ridiculous. It's not that hard to stand in line... and you know... maybe talk to people you're with.

 

[Punky]

I use my phone to take pics, check fp & dining reservations, and maybe check the gram while I'm in line. Other than that I don't use my phone. I barely want to be bother while I'm home so I definitely don't want to be bothered on vacation.

 

[Jimmy Thick]

I hate to lose the immersion of the parks on vacation but since the parks are so busy and the lines are getting absurd, smart phones are a must.

Fifth gate needed soon.

Jimmy Thick- Gotta love you're IPhone 6s.

 

[WDWVolFan]

Phone on me all times. Pictures in the queues, looking at wait times, maps to decide where to go next based on Wait Times, etc.
With the My Disney Experience App, more and more people will be using their phones which means they will need to invest more and more on Wifi and cell companies will need to start putting more and more antennas around the parks.

 

[Nathanael Bareham]

Smart phones are fine if you are considerate to others. On my recent trip in April I had a guy in front of me in the line for Pirates of the Caribbean who was talking on his phone the whole way. This would have been fine (its only him who's missing out) if it weren't for the fact that his flash light on the back of his phone was on. He was completely oblivious to it, even though it was clearly illuminating the dark areas and as we snaked past other people it was shining right in their faces. Lots of people made comments and there was lots of tutting going on but he didn't notice. He only turned it off when we reached the front and a CM pointed it out to him. I prayed that I wouldn't be in the same boat as him as I was 99% sure he would be a flasher (not the type who inappropriately expose themselves, but someone who uses flash on their camera/phone on dark rides!) But I ended up right behind him and I was correct.... he insisted on flashing all the way round! But that's a rant for another thread!!

 

[SAV]

I play a geo location game that has thousands of virtual spots on property that I use my phone to capture. Being in line is the perfect place to do this.

I consider playing that game part of my vacation so I am having double the fun.

 

[ry_s]

Is it wrong to be on a smart phone while waiting in line for a ride?

This is pretty much the new cool, or has been since Apple released the IPhone, but is it right?

Developers put a lot of time any money in designing a lot of the queues to put you in the right frame of mind before experiencing the attraction. But, waiting 40 minutes can get pretty boring pretty quick.

Do smart phones take away from the magic or can they honestly improve it?

Do they belong in your pocket once you flash your fast pass return or do you think they are great time wasters?

Jimmy Thick- Above the law.

 

[WhatJaneSays]

On both this smart-device discussion and basically all smart-device discussions I go back to my old standby statement: it's never the object that's inconsiderate, it's the user. There have always been inconsiderate people and there always will be and it's the same proportion of people it's always been. Using a smart-device is not inconsiderate in and of itself, nor is the user. The user is getting the exact experience they want at that moment, regardless of if that experience is what an outside observer thinks or would chose.

______

I play a geo location game that has thousands of virtual spots on property that I use my phone to capture. Being in line is the perfect place to do this.

I consider playing that game part of my vacation so I am having double the fun.

Is it Ingress? I play almost exclusively in park. 100s if not 1000s of portals within walking distance plus free wifi is like Ingress heaven.

 

[ScarletBegonias]

Like a PP said, I have a two year old, so there really is no idle time to look at my phone. The only time we really look at our phones is when DD falls asleep in the stroller and we stop to rest our feet. As far as MDE, we always take a screenshot of our FP/ADR's in the morning so that we aren't killing the battery by pulling up the app 80x a day to see what we are doing next. I do use my phone to take pictures and video, but I really don't look at my phone much in Disney.

 

[donaldtoo]

I have my iPhone on me at all times, including at a Disney Park. Mainly, it's my camera and camcorder. Also, I check in here from time to time (although mostly late at night from the resort), and it also comes in handy if we get separated or go our separate ways for a bit.
Generally, you will almost never see me with it in a queue, unless I'm snappin' pics.
Also, the others in our group are usin' the Disney app, so I don't need to.