For $65, this seems a bit excessive for a plush toy, unless you realize that this Mickey has a brain, or at least a microprocessor. Simply put, this plush Mickey toy is packed with electronics that interact with the various parks around the Walt Disney World Resort property. Mickey's nose is a plastic dome protecting an infrared receiver, or at least that's what I think it is. PAL Mickey picks up signals and responds to them by vibrating and giggling, and if you squeeze his tummy or hands, he will say the message that was triggered. You squeeze Mickey's hands or tummy because there are sensors in there. Some of the information is useful and some of the information is trivia. For best operational results, make sure PAL Mickey is powered on and able to be seen when you enter the gates of any of the parks. This tells Mickey where he is and is able to perform better and faster. Otherwise, it seems to take it a bit of time to figure out where he is. Some examples of useful information were reports of which attractions had short lines, which can be quite handy especially during peak seasons. Another bit of information was given to me at Animal Kingdom, where Mickey pointed out a rock and water attraction that was arranged to look like a dragon, so I took a picture of it. Sometimes Mickey tells jokes. Mickey can also play games. Sometimes Mickey just needs to shut up. Personally speaking, I wanted to get this mainly because it seemed cool, and being the tech geek that I am, you cram electronics into something and I'm generally all over it!
Picture taken after being told by PAL Mickey of this feature while in Disney's Animal Kingdom
Why did I buy PAL Mickey? The kids got their plush Mickey and Minnie, so hey, this one is mine! My thoughts were it could sit by my kids in the stroller and help amuse them, but they wanted nothing to do with it. Regardless, I was determined to purchase this anyways because in the end, I wanted it. So, Mickey rode on my waist most of the time, since he does include a clip to help attach it to clothing, backpacks, belts and other objects. They claim Mickey says over 700 things, but I'm not going to take the time to catalog it. Either way, Mickey should provide plenty of entertainment for young or old, if you're into that sort of thing.
 Picture taken from Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse |
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| PAL Mickey alerted me to short lines at Space Mountain and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Of course, this was during the parade and fireworks, so it sort of goes without saying that lines are shorter then. | |
When I first saw PAL Mickey, they were dressed, as you would normally expect to see Mickey: The shorts with the buttons, white gloves and yellow shoes. I say this because I began doing research about PAL Mickey when I saw things like "Interacts with PAL Mickey" on the Walt Disney World web site. Upon arriving in the park and finding the store to buy PAL Mickey at, I asked if they had any dressed plain. I was informed by a hard working cast member that those sold dressed plainly had been discontinued quite some time ago, so the sorcerer ones are the current models. Well, PAL Mickey is still dressed that way, but now comes dressed as a sorcerer. Underneath the sorcerer pants, shirt and removable hat is plain old Mickey. But if you're not into sorcerers and being plain, there are alternate costumes for your PAL Mickey to wear. My overall evaluation: I liked it. You can certainly live without this item, but I found it was just an accessory that helped add to my enjoyment. As I said, it stayed on my waist most of the time and was my bit of Disney that I carried with me, sort of like a kid carrying their favorite Disney toy around, except I got to be hands free. Either that made me a bigger dork, or I was cool. Don't ask me if I cared. Let's put it this way, I saw guys who looked like they could easily beat the crap out of most people wearing PAL Mickey too, and on their waist. I got my idea from these guys. Want to argue with that?
I found the ride notifications to be a handy and useful feature. I enjoyed hearing some of the neat things about the park I was in or the location I was in when the trivia was triggered. Regardless, I still wandered around the parks and having a great time. I do recommend removing your PAL Mickey before going on any rides that are going to get you wet, such as Splash Mountain or Kali River Rapids. I would suggest that you keep a plastic bag large enough to completely cover your PAL Mickey with if you are intending to take it everywhere with you, mainly to keep it dry. For me, I took it off and placed it in the stroller before going on many rides, regardless of the "wet factor".
PAL Mickey is apparently future-proof, but that's a term I have heard before, mainly in regards to various types of computer and audio equipment, that of course in time, have to be replaced because the future apparently ran out on that gear. The concept with PAL Mickey is that, like with other things, can be upgraded or updated to be more current. I lack the experience and resources to move to Orlando, Florida to test this out, but I have read on other web sites that PAL Mickey can upgrade itself, either through slowly pulling in fresh information from the emitters, or by taking it to a store and the store performing the upgrade. Since the PAL Mickey I purchased was a new item with current software, it was not necessary to upgrade PAL Mickey. I suppose on future trips I will discover if this is true or not. Unlike a big expensive Cisco router or a modem or other electronics that can be firmware upgraded to add features, PAL Mickey is a much simpler unit. Chances are, any updates to PAL Mickey would be updating sayings and maybe new games, not a major overhaul of the firmware! Even if the updates were to require a total system wipe, it wouldn't really require a whole new engine and operating system.
Do I have complaints about PAL Mickey? I don't have complaints, but rather observations that be perceived as a negative. During one area, it seemed PAL Mickey was going off too often. During one show, PAL Mickey was going off too often as well, which I thought would be distracting to others at the show. This didn't appear to be distracting for others at the show. The vibrating effect was great, as I was notified of things in case I didn't hear the giggle, so my only complaint is this is lost when not on your person. I use the same feature in my cell phone for basically the same reason. Lastly, is the power switch, which is near the top of the head, required too much partial undressing due to the sorcerer's costume to access it because the zipper in the back goes all the way from Mickey's head to his tail.
Should you buy PAL Mickey? Only if you want to, I say. I meant to buy this on Day 1, but bought this first thing on Day 2, but couldn't use it until I got back to the hotel to really unpack it from it's bulky partial box. PAL Mickey comes with a manual, that while doesn't require heavy reading or memorization, should at least be given a thorough once-over. And of course, PAL Mickey works away from the parks too, capable of playing games and telling corny jokes at home, bringing the fun home until you can predict the next joke. Battery life is unknown. PAL Mickey came with batteries, but after a day and a half, those had to be replaced. I figured Disney did the cheap battery thing everybody does: just sell it running and you have happy buyers, and that's so true. I put in 3 fresh AA alkaline batteries and Mickey worked fine for the remaining 3.5 days. Do remember to turn off your Mickey each night to save batteries and turn it back on before you enter your first park for the day. Also keep in mind that PAL Mickey only works at Walt Disney World, and should work fine on future trips. When you go back, pack your PAL and experience the fun all over again. DO pack your PAL in your checked baggage, because you probably don't want to carry this on the airplane.
There used to be a PAL Mickey rental program, but that was discontinued in 2004 due to popularity of the toy. The concept was you'd put down a deposit and you can enjoy Mickey for the day. If you bring him back, you get your deposit back minus your rental fee. If you fail to return Mickey, he's yours and you forfeit your deposit, which comes out to be only slightly more than buying it full retail. While PAL Mickey is a neat item to have, it certainly won't make or break your trip. Buy it if you want it. My opinion: I liked my purchase and would recommend it to others who want a little extra fun. By no means would your trip be any less enjoyable without PAL Mickey. In my case, I saw things and got information and enjoyed more rides all because PAL Mickey.