“When
regulars like Laurence Wiener check into the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in
New York,they get more than a smile from the concierge and a mint on
their pillow”,this article in IHT says.”Wiener's hotel room “knows”
exactly how warm.It welcomes him with a personal message on his
television.It even loads his most frequently dialed numbers onto the
phone.And the bellhop did not have to do a thing.At the Mandarin and
other high-end hotels,new computer systems which connect individual
rooms to network servers can now keep track of guests' preferences and
change the room conditions automatically.These “smart” systems can
learn whether a frequent guest likes the lights dimmed, the curtains
closed or the room toasty warm.They can also personalize the
electronics in the room so that the music of John Coltrane,for
instance, greets jazz buffs when they enter their rooms.Meanwhile,
sensors in refrigerators alert maids when the minibar is running low on
Coca-Cola.While much of the underlying technology is not new, it is
still rare in private homes because the cost of the equipment is
relatively expensive.As a consequence, luxury hotels are the first to
embrace it.But by incorporating such technology into their guest rooms,
these hotels are starting to provide a glimpse of the networked homes
of the future”.
In 'smart' hotel rooms,everything is just right [Smart Mobs]