Carnival is trying out a new shipboard technology it hopes eventually to roll out across all its cruise lines: A watch-sized medallion that can make dinner reservations, order drinks, tell you what’s happening around you, remind you of events and even let you know who else is near you.
The device, which the company calls Ocean Medallion, goes a step, actually a lot of steps, past simpler devices that let you charge shipboard drinks and meals to your room account. Users can create a ‘tagalong,’ or avatar that follows the passenger through the ship and provides updated information.
It’s being tested ship-wide on a November 13 Regal Princess cruise, but after that it will be spread slowly to allow updates and fixes. The system depends on the company’s new higher-speed shipboard Wi-Fi, so implementation on other ships will happen as the networks are upgraded.
