Magic Band Question

[ProudSoccerMom]

The magic bands from our last WDW trip five years ago are still active according to MDE. I have a few questions.

I’m confused as to whether or not we can use these for our upcoming trip, or do we only need to scan our ticket barcodes when we enter the parks?

Also, even though MDE says the magic bands are still active, do we need to do anything with them when we check in to our resort to ensure they will work?

And finally, in past trips, we used the magic bands for just about everything, including point of purchase for shopping and dining, room entry, etc. Do we still need them for these purposes? Or, does Mobile Magic now do all of this?

There have been so many changes since our last visit, I feel like I’m starting at square one, so to speak. Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[thanxfornoticin]

We have a number of MBs that old, and absolutely use them for so many things on our trip. They make it so easy to: enter the theme parks (if your tickets are linked in MDE), pay for meals and merchandise (make sure you remember your pin, which you'll need to enter to charge to the room), unlock our room door, if you drive it'll get you back into the resort through the security gate, if you drive they can scan the band to confirm you're a resort guest and don't have to pay for parking.... I'm sure there's more we do with the MB. I don't have direct experience with the Mobile Magic, as we have just continued to use the MBS - but I expect MM is used much the same way as MB.

With all the changes in the past 5 years, Magic Bands still work pretty much the same.... If they show as active in MDE, you should be fine. You can always verify at the front desk of your resort if you're not certain. The only thing with a 5 yo band - if you get off a ride that does ride photos, it might not pick up your band automatically to share the photos with you. If there's a ride photo we like, we just make sure we scan the photo with our MB after we exit the ride.

 

[BrianL]

The old Magic Bands will work for tapping into the parks and at attractions, etc. - anything with a short-range tap-point. The only issue is that the long-range battery may have died, so you won't get those automatic ride photos through them. Other than that, they are good to go.

 

[CarolynFH]

I agree with above - as long as they’re still Active in MDE, they’ll do everything they’ve always done except link ride photos that don’t have tap points at the end of the ride. But if you let MDE link to Bluetooth on your phone, it will link ride photos that you are in.