An article in this month's Wired details how Disney spent $1 billion developing their MagicBand system, which began to appear in public tests within Disney World during the summer of 2013.
Containing an RFID chip and 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi transmitter in a wristband, MagicBand allows guests to place their wrist against Mickey Mouse-adorned RFID antennas stationed around the park. The wearable device allows guests to verify their FastPass (Disney's system for allowing guests to reserve a spot on rides), charge a credit card for food or souvenirs, and gain access to hotel rooms. MagicBand also allows you to take any seat in participating restaurants and be served pre-ordered food immediately. The transmitter's 40 ft. range is also useful for locating a lost child.
[...] the readers had to be intuitive enough for people to instantly know how to use them. The design has a novel and clever cue: Simply touch the circled Mickey icon on the band to the circled Mickey icon on the reader. When everything works, the reader flashes green and emits a pleasing tone; if something goes wrong, it glows blue—never red. Red lights are forbidden at Disney, as they imply something bad happened. Nothing bad can happen at Disney World.
AtDisneyAgain did a teardown of a MagicBand in early 2014, complete with documents submitted to the FCC describing the device and its components.
