iPad use on Silverseas Cruise Ship

I would assume that the cruise company has made the connections issues you will encounter quite clear. If I were you, I would leave the devices at home, relax during my vacation and enjoy Alaska.

Short translation: Laptop wifi antennas are 'better' than iPad ones, less sensitive and possibly with more range. They're just covering their tushes and defusing any 'but my toy doesn't work' complaints. full disclosure and all that.

From what I've heard about cruise ships you may also want to look into the cost and decide if it's worth it to you. Everything I've read suggests that cruise ship wifi is horribly expensive. but 'expensive' is a relative term.

I do know, in my own experience, a laptop, then my iTouch, then my iPad get 'better to less' signal strength.

I guess you have to ask yourself why you need to bring any device, be it a laptop or iPad. Do you need to check email from work? Or is it just for fun?

FYI, on the last cruise I took, we met some real cheapskates that would use free wifi at each port of call to collect their email. Of course, they brought their own wine to dinner so as not to buy the ship's wine too.

Actually, the short translation is they are cheap and clueless and don't want to install enough wifi routers around the ship.

Unless the Wi-Fi signal is very strong, it is likely you will experience interruptions or may not be able to connect at all.

So why don't they boost their wifi signal? (cheap)

"In addition, the satellite signal fluctuates and iPads are more sensitive to this fluctuation, which may interrupt your iPad Internet session while going unnoticed on other devices."

So wifi now comes directly from satellites? (clueless)

Can't disagree but....big metal ship. Radio signals going through metal....not so good.

As to satellites, yeah. Wifi and most communication at sea is satellite. That or radio and I don't think analog radio serves good for Internet. Not to mention oly having a limited range. Ever watch Deadliest Catch? that's why some ships have sunk with no word, there was no one in radio range to hear their calls for help. Satellite is all that has the coverage..

Read up on how reliable Hughe'sNet (sp?) signal is. That is internet-by-satelite, and has been around long enough to be a good indicator of how much atmoshperic conditions interrupt satellite signals.

At least I would.

Skydiver119 wrote;

As to satellites, yeah. Wifi and most communication at sea is satellite.

The laptops and iPads are not communicating directly with the satellite.

The internet signal to/from the ship can be via satellite but it gets converted to wifi on the ship.