Pal Mickey-worth it?

[princessM0m]

Also he runs out of batteries quickly so bring extra.

What size batteries does he take? Last trip my DD wanted one so I promised her we'd get one our next trip, which is in November, so I will want to be prepared with extras.

[SAHDad]

What size batteries does he take? Last trip my DD wanted one so I promised her we'd get one our next trip, which is in November, so I will want to be prepared with extras.

3 AA, I believe.

I was going to talk the sisters-in-law into getting a Pal Mickey for my son, but I might just go the eBay route, if I can find a 3rd gen in good condition for a reasonable price.

[ibelieveindisneymagic]

DD begged for Pal Mickey, and we got her one on our last trip (against my better judgement).

It turned out to be the best thing we got her...she carried with her everyone the whole trip, not a single complaint, played the games for hours while we were waiting in lines, we loved the tips, and will be bringing him back for the next trip for sure!

[Mousefever]

If you buy Pal Mickey in DW, make sure you keep your receipt! Our Pal worked fine the first couple of days, then started stuttering in Disney Studios. I didn't have the receipt with me, but was able to exchange him after some discussion and pleading with a CM. It would have been much easier if I had had the receipt on me.
P.S. My son (9) still enjoys carrying Pal Mickey around at the parks.

[Clotho]

We had to exchange our first generation one twice, and didn't need a receipt. Usually the stores are well aware of common issues and know when they need replacement.

This time we had an issue with the transmitter in Epcot--it was screwing up Pals coming in the front gate. They had a fix for him that the store manager knew and did for us.

I love Pal. *sigh* Makes me miss WDW thinking about it...

FYI, for adults who won't be playing games a lot or squeezing Mickey unintentionally by hugging him too tight all the time, batteries last just fine for an entire trip. It is only with the little ones wearing them out that they run low (or if you got a display model that a lot of people have been poking and prodding before you got him, so the batteries were already low).

To give you an idea, our first gen Pal is still on hits original batteries, 3 years later.

[jiifigment]

Just another idea for batteries for Pal Mickey with kids. We had an extra set of lithium AA batteries for our camera with us when Pal Mickey's died, so we used those! They're still going great a year later!

[threeh]

This time we had an issue with the transmitter in Epcot--it was screwing up Pals coming in the front gate.

That's funny, we had the same problem with our Mickey. Whenever I lent him out I always had to explain how EPCOT makes him loopy. Where did you bring him to get "fixed"??

Thanks!!

[Mousefever]

We had to exchange our first generation one twice, and didn't need a receipt. Usually the stores are well aware of common issues and know when they need replacement.

I wish this was the case for us, but the CM we dealt with was very reluctant to make the exchange. It is probably true that many CMs will do an exchange "no questions asked", but if you have the receipt you'll never have to worry about it.

[Clotho]

That's funny, we had the same problem with our Mickey. Whenever I lent him out I always had to explain how EPCOT makes him loopy. Where did you bring him to get "fixed"??

Thanks!!

You can do it yourself actually.

Turn him off, open his battery compartment and pop out the *middle* battery. Yes the middle one specifically. Something about breaking the circuit completely via that center battery. Just put him back together and it should be fixed.

We had that issue happen twice at Epcot--once we learned how to do it from the manager who did it for us, and the second time we did it ourselves.

The additional fix is to make sure he is OFF when you walk into Epcot. Don't turn him back on until you get pass Spaceship Earth. So, too, for when you walk out. Turn him off around when you pass the wait times board as you are leaving the park.

[threeh]

Thanks!!!

[DisneyFanaticDargon]

Coming in this one a little late but I'm a 22 year old guy and I bought Pal Mickey while I was in Florida on the Disney College Program and I took him with me whenever I went to the parks. He's SO awesome. He sits on my windowsill now in my dorm room and all my friends are crazy about him. Definitely a great purchase.

[kbean]

Thanks for the respones back to my question about Pal Mickey. I gonna go ahead buy one when I get to the MK. I saw one on Ebay but I'd rather buy it new.
Thanks again.

[cal5755]

We plan on saving for one for our next trip in 08'. My girls love stuffed animals and it will be a bonus if they can play games while they wait in line too!!

[101pup]

Wow, I am so glad I read this because I almost forgot I got one at a yard sale for $2.00 last year. We are going in December, so I am so pscyhed!! Thanks again intercot!

[MickeyandTink]

Just got back from WDW and DD6 absolutely loved her Pal Mickey. I had a good time with him, too.

I would strongly recommend, though, get a name tag, luggage tag, or some other identification and attach it to him so if you lose him he might find his way back to you.

When we were at MGM, DW was carrying PM and accidentally left him in the understorage area on Star Tours. We realized he was missing a few minutes after we left the ride and raced back to see if we could find him. The CM's looked all over, but we never found him. One of the CM's said she had seen him just a few minutes before and that Lost and Found had picked him up, but they said they didn't have him. There's no guarantee that we would have got him back if did have a name tag, but at least whoever found him would have a way to reach us if they did and might feel some sense of obligation to return it.

However, this story does have a happy ending. After we went to lost and found (and DD in tears over losing Pal Mickey) and explained what happened, the CM there called a manager to look into it. About 20 minutes later he came over with a brand new, in the box, Pal Mickey and gave it to DD so we wouldn't have to spend any more time trying to track down our old one. Talk about being impressed. A big to Disney. They made DD's day (and DW's and mine, too).

[AbeeNormal]

Keep in mind this is coming from someone who hasn't been to WDW yet......
We bought two on E-bay for 120.00 and they each came with outfits Lanyards and lit Silver Mickey Ears for our boys to wear. We are giving them as a Christmas gift - we are going 1/3/08.
My husband and I played with them for over an hour when they came in the mail......
They seem really fun, honestly though they're heavier than we expected.... I think we will do the carribeaner idea we heard back a few posts. We can't wait to see how they interact with the park... and they're plenty loud.