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Is this misleading re: Wifi

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Old Sep 2, 2014, 10:48 pm
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Is this misleading re: Wifi

Just pulled up the details for my flight later this week from EWR-YVR. Under the amenities tab it says "ENTERTAINMENT and WIFI" and then goes on to describe the direct TV. It gives the impression to the average person that wifi is available on this flight even though I know it isn't. It used to say something like "Wifi will be installed in the future" or something similar. Now, because it says nothing other than Entertainment and Wifi, it implies that's what it has. It's a 737-700

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Old Sep 2, 2014, 10:57 pm
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"Food", "Beverages", "Entertainment and Wifi", and "Inseat Power" are just the categories of amenities -- the category labels stay the same for all flights and don't provide any information about what's actually offered. I guess it might be confusing for someone who doesn't fly that much that you have to actually click on, say, "Inseat Power" to see whether it will be offered on that flight. But... I don't know. Doesn't seem like a huge issue to me?
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Old Sep 3, 2014, 2:38 am
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No it does not give that impression at all.
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Old Sep 3, 2014, 2:42 am
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Not at all. Using that logic, one might assume that a flight that doesn't have food has food based on the existence of the "Food" tab.

I agree that it's clear that it's simply a tab name. I wouldn't even say they should separate them into 2 separate categories, because long-term, they'll be very much intertwined
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Old Sep 3, 2014, 7:22 am
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What is misleading is when you fly to Central America and a flight is advertised as having Wifi. While technically true, you only have it for a few minutes out of IAH. They even send emails the day before the flights to advertise the fact.
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Old Sep 3, 2014, 7:39 am
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It was a question, not a complaint, take a pill. I still believe that a non UA regular flyer would read that and think that wifi was available on the flight. No Big either way..., this is a discussion forum, to discuss....
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Old Sep 3, 2014, 7:47 am
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I think it used to say, wifi coming soon. They should put that back as someone may see that and think they do have wifi. Thats a long paragraph to read.
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Old Sep 3, 2014, 7:59 am
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Originally Posted by LASUA1K
I think it used to say, wifi coming soon. They should put that back as someone may see that and think they do have wifi. Thats a long paragraph to read.
Even on flights where food is not offered there is a section with the heading food. So I have no problem with a section with the heading Entertainment and Wifi since I believe nearly all mainline flights now offer DirecTV, Wifi, or AVOD. (assuming the respective system is functioning as designed)
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Old Sep 3, 2014, 8:06 am
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Yes it is misleading...because I have been fooled by it!
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Old Sep 3, 2014, 8:12 am
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Originally Posted by joshwex90
Not at all. Using that logic, one might assume that a flight that doesn't have food has food based on the existence of the "Food" tab.

I agree that it's clear that it's simply a tab name. I wouldn't even say they should separate them into 2 separate categories, because long-term, they'll be very much intertwined
But as before, they could put Wifi coming soon after the blurb on DirectTV
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Old Sep 3, 2014, 8:59 am
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Originally Posted by Air Houston
Even on flights where food is not offered there is a section with the heading food. So I have no problem with a section with the heading Entertainment and Wifi since I believe nearly all mainline flights now offer DirecTV, Wifi, or AVOD. (assuming the respective system is functioning as designed)
Yes, Food- food for purchase or no food available. It says what to expect. It should say no wifi available.
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Old Sep 4, 2014, 3:06 am
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Originally Posted by CO_Nonrev_elite
But as before, they could put Wifi coming soon after the blurb on DirectTV
But that's not true. WiFi is not coming soon to your flight. There either is or is not WiFi.
UA say: "Here's what you get under the Entertainment & Wifi category. You get entertainment." In theory, they could say "No WiFi."
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Old Sep 4, 2014, 7:36 am
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Originally Posted by CO_Nonrev_elite
But as before, they could put Wifi coming soon after the blurb on DirectTV
They could but with a paragraph that long most people aren't going to read it anyway. If they see the header and think it means the aircraft will have wifi then they'll likely stop right there.
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Old Sep 4, 2014, 7:57 am
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Originally Posted by CO_Nonrev_elite
It was a question, not a complaint, take a pill. I still believe that a non UA regular flyer would read that and think that wifi was available on the flight. No Big either way..., this is a discussion forum, to discuss....
And people WERE discussing. No need to get defensive when others aren't agreeing with you.

I could see someone misreading it, but I don't think that means it's misleading.

Originally Posted by vkng
What is misleading is when you fly to Central America and a flight is advertised as having Wifi. While technically true, you only have it for a few minutes out of IAH. They even send emails the day before the flights to advertise the fact.
Same with DIRECTV, which lasts for about an hour, at best, until you hit open water. At least the movie channels still work.

Last edited by gobluetwo; Sep 4, 2014 at 9:20 am
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Old Sep 4, 2014, 9:15 am
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Originally Posted by vkng
What is misleading is when you fly to Central America and a flight is advertised as having Wifi. While technically true, you only have it for a few minutes out of IAH. They even send emails the day before the flights to advertise the fact.
Even worse, it's only the 737 wifi system that doesn't work in latam - the Airbus (and widebodies) system does work.

Last edited by mduell; Sep 4, 2014 at 12:36 pm
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