Your Must Have Apps for Disney

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Sat, 03/19/2011 - 18:38

Mase

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Your Must Have Apps for Disney

Alright. I think it would be great to know what Apps everyone uses when they go to Disney. My Dad came over this morning to pick up a bulb for his TV, and wanted to show me this new App he found for his iPad and its called Magic Guide. So after looking at it, I decided to grab it. Below I will have images showing it off in both iPad and iPhone/iPod Touch form. First will be the iPhone because its more handy. So here we go!

This App looks fantastic. Its $4.99 but its an App that you dont have to pay twice for if you have both an iPhone and iPad. Thats a HUGE draw for me since I have both. Now... to test drive it... I wont be able to do it till November, but this App has it all! Maps, wait times, menu's, park hours, and even has early and late hours (which are in green, and the picture above its for HS). For the dining. It tells you how many points it is for the DDP which is helpful. You can also hit the "Near Me" button on the picture above, and will show you what is near you. Again... something I cant try, but I dont see why it wouldnt work.

The one thing this App does that im going to love is, you can compile a list of your favorites!

We used an App last year called "Lines". Lines does what it basically says... lets you know the wait times for all of the rides for the parks. It was good, but sometimes it depended on people actually updating the line status, but overall it worked. Ill post more on that one later because I have to redownload it and such.

Im going to make a new post for the iPad since the two feature things a little different, and ill go into that more next post.

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Sat, 03/19/2011 - 19:19

Mase

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The biggest difference between the two versions of this App is the obvious one. Size. With the iPad being much bigger, everything is able to be displayed in a much better way. The first thing you will notice on the main screen for the iPad version is that Favorites and Near Me is not there. At first when I started writing this, I wrote that it just must had been taken out of the iPad version since most of the iPad out there dont have GPS and would need an internet connection to utilize that feature. Upon review, yes. Those buttons are gone from the main menu, but they are now at the bottom if you would click on Ride Times. Also... one thing I want to point out is that both Apps in the Map area will show you where bathrooms are.

A blunt way of putting it... the iPad version is far superior to the iPhone version. Why do you ask? It goes back to size. Everything is just able to be displayed in a much better fashion. The Maps are much easier to read. Going through the Dining part of the App is so much better as well. If you hold the iPad sideways, the screen breaks down to Dining Options on the Left, and then the information on the Right. Just makes looking at your options much easier and better.

Now. The one thing that makes the iPad a better experience also makes it harder to use in the Parks. With it being bigger, it may not be the easiest thing to use if your in a line for Winnie the Pooh. This is where the iPhone will be the best one to use out and about. Me. I carry both in the park, but when im walking and want to know something right away, I will use my iPhone. If were sitting down and talking about what to do... thats when my iPad will come out. One version may be better for you Vs. the other, and maybe you only have one option. But the great thing about this App is that for five bucks... you have your choice of one, or the other, or both!

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Sun, 03/20/2011 - 01:50

Bella

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The WDW Wait times app (that is a part of this app you just showed) and the maps app are actually free! I have both of them and check wait times a lot when I am bored! I also have an app that helps with dining but I can't remember what it's called. I don't use it much since it basically just tells about different Disney restaurants and I pretty much know about all those thanks to The Disney Food Blog.

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Sun, 03/20/2011 - 04:22

Brad

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I'm interested to see what your research turns up Mase. We've been researching the apps, but haven't found any great consensus.

Sun, 03/20/2011 - 04:26

Mase

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Brad wrote:

I'm interested to see what your research turns up Mase. We've been researching the apps, but haven't found any great consensus.

So far the only one I had a chance to use has been Lines, and it worked real well. One thing it does that the Magic Guide doesnt is it predicts which Park you should visit that day. We decided to try that a couple times, and for the most part it was very correct. When I update it, ill post pictures and do what I did above. It was very effective. As for Magic Guide... I wont be able to test it till November, but my Dad will use it when my Mom and him go in May, and he will be carrying around his iPad. So ill be able to ask him when he gets back how the App worked, and how effective carrying his iPad around. I put mine in my book bag. He is wanting to do something weird with his to carry it.

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Sun, 03/20/2011 - 04:29

Brad

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I always worry I'm going to break my iPad when I carry it around. I'll probably have to get over that though because it's very handy.

Sun, 03/20/2011 - 04:33

Mase

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Brad wrote:

I always worry I'm going to break my iPad when I carry it around. I'll probably have to get over that though because it's very handy.

Do you have service with it? Like the 3G? I personally use this case for my iPad, and it works great! My 23 month old daughter uses my iPad and she drops it and such, and nothing bad has happened to it.

http://www.goincase.com/products/detail/book-jacket-cl57511

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Sun, 03/20/2011 - 12:30

MrHub

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Thats the case we have for our Ipad and it is nice. But we don't take it into the parks.

Sun, 03/20/2011 - 18:06

Jess

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Great review of the app

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Sun, 03/20/2011 - 18:12

teacherdrama

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Just got an iphone, but I've been waiting until we go to pay for that app.

I have the free lines one already, just - well - no reason really other than Disney was one of the first things I searched when I got the phone!

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Sun, 03/20/2011 - 18:41

Mase

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Well... here is the full fledged paid version of Lines

This to me is the best basic Disney App you can get for ride times. It also lets you submit your own times if the time that is given is off or you want to let everyone know that it went from 30 minutes to 15 minutes. Simple to use as well, and this is available on the iPad as well, but unlike Magic Guide... there isnt a plus or minus for it. In this case the iPad version is a minus because of how big it is, and this App is ment for portability. Also... I need to mention that this App also supports Disney Land. A lot of these Apps are either one or the other, but recently Lines added Disneyland.

Now... there are a couple features in Lines that Magic Guide doesnt have. The first one makes this App a must have! It lets you know the best park to visit out of the day and the worst one to visit out of the day with green dots and red dots. They have some kind of formula and years and decades of research that helps them figure out the best Park to visit that day. They also do this 10 days out. So before you head to Disney, you can start planning what to do before you get there!

The last feature wont really apply to everyone, but I find it a lot of fun. There is are Achievements you can receive in the App. Like I said... its not for everyone but it can be a lot of fun to get. Like for example in the photo below... "Around the World" is submitting a wait time from every single park.

This is a very solid App, and there is a Free one, but to get the full enjoyment out of this App, there is a fee. Its a yearly fee while Magic Guide is a one time fee, but for the ability to know which Park to visit with the fewest amount of people is an awesome thing to know.

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Tue, 03/22/2011 - 02:39

bobaloo000

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Lines, lines, everywhere there's lines blocking up the scenery messing with my mind. LOL.

OK, I'm a Lines refugee. I love the app it's easy to use and they have some great algorithms for determining the wait times (they are not Disney wait times they are calculated) and their wait times are almost always more accurate except in rare cases when wait times are increasing or decreasing quickly.

Their algorithm for the best park does have a major flaw. A very large component of it is the park hours so if you are using it to decide what park to visit 180 days out so you can make your ADR's it can be totally different if Disney changes the park hours one month before. However, I am a big supporter of having a touring plan when you go to Disney and have even managed the Magic Kingdom on New Years Eve with minimal waits.

Lines is connected and owned by the same people who run touringplans.com (see the tie in with having a touring plan now). Another great site for resources and information and they have a blog they run with some very nice articles.

Now both are run by Len Testa who is coauthor of the Unofficial Guide to Disney.

Lines also has a chat feature and that's where the story takes an ugly turn. Suffice to say non Disney chat is not welcome anymore, the mods are brutal about enforcing that rule and don't dis them on twitter or facebook unless you want to be banned from both Lines and touringplans (my sig is a direct quote from Len). Thank god for the book. To the best of my knowledge they can't stop me from reading it.

Even with all that happened to me I would still recommend Lines and if you decide to join the chat tell them bobaloo000 said hello.

If you have any questions about the Lines app (I used it my last three trips) or touringplans.com (I was a member there since it was first launched in 2002) or the Unofficial Guide feel free to ask.

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Tue, 03/22/2011 - 14:19

caitiesus

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That story makes me sad. I love WDW Today and Len seems really cool on there.

Tue, 03/22/2011 - 14:50

Lizzy_B

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Wow! So much drama. I'm new to it all, and I had no idea. This is my first forum...I think I'll stick with it

Thanks for the apps discussion...we're old-fashioned and just wing it. I don't have a single Disney app on my iPhone.

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Wed, 03/23/2011 - 00:15

JustCar

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I have a few of the apps like WDW Maps, WDW Guides (my fav) WSW Dining, WSW Secrets, Disney World, Where in WDW, DisneyMaps and Tink's WDW, those are the ones on my iPhone right now. I have lines and whatnot sitting in itunes but I put the others on my phone to try them out. I find most are using the same basic coding and GUI's but WDW Guides can see to locate you and put you where you want to be with the info of wait times and a bit of everything else. I can get some screen shots if you like but I am just sitting here at work.

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Wed, 03/23/2011 - 00:30

Mase

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JustCar wrote:

I have a few of the apps like WDW Maps, WDW Guides (my fav) WSW Dining, WSW Secrets, Disney World, Where in WDW, DisneyMaps and Tink's WDW, those are the ones on my iPhone right now. I have lines and whatnot sitting in itunes but I put the others on my phone to try them out. I find most are using the same basic coding and GUI's but WDW Guides can see to locate you and put you where you want to be with the info of wait times and a bit of everything else. I can get some screen shots if you like but I am just sitting here at work.

I say go for it when you can.

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Sun, 03/27/2011 - 13:25

bobaloo000

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caitiesus wrote:

That story makes me sad. I love WDW Today and Len seems really cool on there.

Makes me sad to. I've been a TP fan and member since its first inception. I've been a fan and promoter of the book for about 15 years. I had over 8,000 posts on the chat and I log in one day and find out the non Disney chat is gone. I make a couple of posts asking what happened and giving my Facebook and Twitter info and I'm banned on chat and touringplans a direct violation of what they told us would happen.

There's more but it ends with Len telling me rational discourse with myself and other Line chat users is not possible.

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Mon, 03/28/2011 - 01:10

Bella

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Lizzy_B wrote:

Wow! So much drama. I'm new to it all, and I had no idea. This is my first forum...I think I'll stick with it

All the ones I've been a part of (two including this one) have been great..but some forums can be narrrrrsty!

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Sat, 04/02/2011 - 15:17

bobaloo000

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Don't get me wrong the people who posted where great. Very little drama and we all got along. I'm still friends with a lot of them on facebook and I've been trying to convince them to come over here (many would but want a mobile app first). It was the admins who were out of control.

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Wed, 04/13/2011 - 17:09

Raven

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Has anyone used the Undercover Tourist app? I've only had my iPhone for like a month and I do have the magic guide, but the Undercover Tourist app is really neat. I've only had my iPhone for a month so I haven't had the chance to use it yet at the parks.

Wed, 04/13/2011 - 22:16

Lizzy_B

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Raven wrote:

Has anyone used the Undercover Tourist app? I've only had my iPhone for like a month and I do have the magic guide, but the Undercover Tourist app is really neat. I've only had my iPhone for a month so I haven't had the chance to use it yet at the parks.

No, but it sounds neat. What does it do?

(bobalooooo - you know we're glad to have you. I think an app's been discussed, but I believe at present, many just access from their phone's browser. I'm old fashioned, and usually just chat when I'm on my laptop )

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Wed, 04/13/2011 - 22:47

Mase

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Lizzy_B wrote:

Raven wrote:
Has anyone used the Undercover Tourist app? I've only had my iPhone for like a month and I do have the magic guide, but the Undercover Tourist app is really neat. I've only had my iPhone for a month so I haven't had the chance to use it yet at the parks.

No, but it sounds neat. What does it do?

(bobalooooo - you know we're glad to have you. I think an app's been discussed, but I believe at present, many just access from their phone's browser. I'm old fashioned, and usually just chat when I'm on my laptop )

I enjoy accessing it from my iPad, but not my phone. I love my iPhone, but most sites arent the best to view on a little screen... lol. But when im in Disney... ill probably update on here the most with my phone, and this site is easily one of the best to post on with Safari.

And I would like to know more about this Undercover Tourist app as well

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Thu, 04/14/2011 - 21:22

Raven

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Undercover Tourist is like the magic guide, but free. It has a crowd forecaster (using the green, yellow, and red lights), dining menus, maps with the wait times (also with the green, yellow, and red lights), and a schedule thingy (haven't played with that yet). There is also a link to the Undercover Tourist website to buy their discount WDW tickets. Like I said it's free and it's 1 of the best free apps I've seen.

Mon, 04/18/2011 - 19:25

JustCar

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Ok starting to play with Undercover Tourist and as well i am not there to see how it works within, but wow so lovely and compact. WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

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Sun, 07/24/2011 - 16:33

mandyandriley

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Can't wait to try out Magic Guide!

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Mon, 07/25/2011 - 01:31

Bella

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JustCar wrote:

Ok starting to play with Undercover Tourist and as well i am not there to see how it works within, but wow so lovely and compact. WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

I should have re-read this thread before I started my thread the other day--oh well!!

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Thu, 01/19/2012 - 19:02

Ryry991

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So it's not an app, but if you are at Disneyland and have an iphone, just go to their website and it becomes a mobile website that is basically an app. And the most up to date one at that. I tried it for WDW but it doesnt work there. But the Disneyland one even lists where and when to find characters...and best part is its free!

Fri, 01/20/2012 - 14:01

Kristen K.

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Y'all use more "fun" apps than I do. I don't think I use many dedicated Disney Apps. I'm usually working when at WDW, so this is what my must have app list looks like!

TripIt - Where I'm going, when I need to be there, reservation numbers, confirmation codes, even personal notes, TripIt stores all of my important travel information for me. This great app has actually replaced my Passporter as far as what I carry with me (I still use the Passporter Guide for planning but don't carry it) to the parks. With this app and the handy itinerator, you can organize trip details into one master online itinerary, and it automatically includes maps, directions and weather! If only it had park maps too.

Lines - I simply wouldn't even think of leaving for a Disney vacation without the mobile app from TouringPlans.com. Called "Lines", this handy application keep me up to date with park hours, a crowd calander, highlights special events, suggests which parks are the best to visit on a given day, and up to the minute information on wait times for every single attraction at Walt Disney World. It also allows me access to the touring plans, lets me submit ride times, has a chat, and gives me a 10 day park forecast. If you don't have Lines... well, why on earth don't you have Lines!?!?

Weather.com - Rain or shine I'm headed to the parks, but I like to make sure that I'm dressed well for the day! Current conditions, 10 day forecasts, and tropical tracking during hurricane season make this a must have for my vacation!

Dropbox - Dropbox gives me the opportunity to access important files and share them with contacts all from my iPhone. With 2GB of free space, I can store, share, and edit my working documents on the go. It's my office in super mobile form.

PDF Reader - Another application for instant access to the information I need, Like All of the Disney Food Blog's Publications, like the must read DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining and the DFB Mini-Guide to Magic Kingdom Snacks come in PDF format, don't eat the world without them!

Wed, 02/01/2012 - 01:59

MrHub

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Ryry991 wrote:

So it's not an app, but if you are at Disneyland and have an iphone, just go to their website and it becomes a mobile website that is basically an app. And the most up to date one at that. I tried it for WDW but it doesnt work there. But the Disneyland one even lists where and when to find characters...and best part is its free!

Ryry991, worked in WDW for me on my Iphone, full mobile Website for WDW. It was great.

Sat, 07/28/2012 - 02:33

Jess

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Disney just released this free app today...looks kind of fun

http://thedisneyblog.com/2012/07/27/disney-releases-free-pixeld-art-app-for-apple-mobile-devices/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheDisneyBlog+%28The+Disney+Blog%29

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