So how do they work?

Inside each rubber wristband is an RFID chip and a transmitter, sort of like what’s in a cordless phone. RFID stands for “radio-frequency identification,” and it’s used all over the world in common items such as credit cards, keyless car entry remotes and video game controllers. Walt Disney World has used the technology for several years to control rides and parades, as well as to provide costuming services for cast members and laundry services for guests.

The band’s battery will last for two years and the bands can be used on multiple vacations. The bands are synced up to a huge system of sensors throughout the parks, and the technology could at first seem intrusive and overwhelming, but Disney makes sure that it’s not.

Standard, single-color MagicBands are free for guests who book a stay at a Disney resort hotel or have a Walt Disney World annual pass, and cost $12.95 plus tax for all other guests. The MagicBands are waterproof and they are easy to deactivate if they get lost. The company says that people who have pacemakers should typically keep their medical device 9 inches away from the MagicBand transmitters, and they say that people who have other medical devices, such as insulin pumps, hearing aids and neuro-stimulators, should check with their device manufacturer and physician before putting them near a MagicBand. 

MyMagic+ essentially turns Walt Disney World into a huge computer, with real-time data streaming on what guests are doing and where they are. The system is designed to anticipate guests’ desires – often before they even know what those desires are themselves. Disney is leading the way on this technology, which Google, Apple, Facebook and other companies would love to employ as well (imagine going to a grocery store and having every item you put in your cart instantly scanned – you’d no longer have to wait in line to check out because all of your purchases would be debited from your bank account immediately). Though many appreciate technology that makes life easier for them, MagicBands (and MyMagic+) hasn’t been without its critics too. The bands can be read by long-range readers on rides, so what’s to stop them from being read by anybody with their own reader in the parks? What exactly will Disney do with all of this data? 

Disney says that the MagicBands let them authenticate a user and the benefits assigned to them by a randomly assigned code that links securely to an encrypted database. The company says the bands aren’t made to store any additional information about each user.

Guests who are concerned about the technology can opt to forgo the bands in favor of the old plastic credit-card-like system, but Disney points out that some features, such as the instant delivery of ride snapshots to PhotoPass, won’t be available to those who aren’t wearing MagicBands.

And guests who find it hard to enter their room with the bands on their wrist can simply snap them off before holding them up to their room door sensor – which is pretty practical since the bands will likely be coming off at the end of the day anyway.

The system’s incoming data also lets Disney know where it needs to place more employees, and guests and workers spend less time on transactions that previously required cards and tickets.  The company has gained a new way of looking at the business and can focus on keeping supplies up and the customers who are continuously flowing through the park happy.

Despite the fact that the technology is still relatively new, the MagicBands don’t really stand out on anyone’s wrist. They’re everywhere at the Florida parks, as common as wristwatches (before everyone started checking the time on their cell phones, that is).

While some guests don’t like the fact that the bands make them do too much pre-planning before their trip (such as selecting rides and restaurants far in advance), Disney takes the position that, by guests pre-selecting the “big things” they want to do, it actually allows them to be more spontaneous in the park, without worrying about checking off each thing on their list. The choices of things to do are almost endless at Walt Disney World, and by making the choices easier, Disney hopes to inspire more guests to come back year after year. And guests aren’t required to pre-plan everything; there are still standby lines. But MyMagic+ takes some of the guesswork out of the dizzying array of options.

If Disney installs the same sensors that are available at Be Our Guest throughout Walt Disney World, even more personalization could be possible. Instead of guests rushing around trying to find Mickey and Goofy, those favorite characters could find them, even wishing a guest “happy birthday” by name. Cameras throughout the parks could capture a family’s candid adventures and weave those moments into a personalized movie. (Developers are already calling this the “Story Engine.”) Opportunities to improve customer service and leave positive impressions on guests could abound as well, as data could show that a guest has waited too long in a restaurant line and he will be emailed a coupon for a free Mickey ice cream bar, for example.