Michael S. Lasky was lucky enough to test the amenities of the "Room of the Future" which is the Room 267 of the Hilton Garden Inn in El Segundo, California. He tells us the story in this PCWorld.com article.
Admittedly, the Hilton Garden Inn's gadget-crammed Room 267 is not your typical lodging. But stay just one night there, and you'll want it to be.
Among the niceties of this high-tech hotel room are:
- a wall-mounted, 42-inch flat-screen HDTV Panasonic plasma television connected to a Technics receiver with surround-sound Bose speakers;
- a biometric room safe that uses a thumbprint as the lock and key;
- free broadband, accessible via laptop or the TV;
- a Panja touch-panel remote control that manages lighting levels and room climate; opens and closes the drapes; controls the TV, radio, and DVD player; and even repositions the head and foot of the king-size bed;
- a Panasonic massage chair, a heated toilet seat/bidet, a computerized five-nozzle shower, and a defogging bathroom mirror.
Here is a picture of the "Room of the Future."
Needless to say, Lasky didn't have enough time to test everything during his one-night stay, but was quite pleased. I'm sure you'll read the whole story, but here was his experience with the shower.
I walked to the bathroom, which was replete with a glassed-in shower offering five nozzles and computerized water-temperature control. While it sounded luxurious, it proved ultimately more annoying than enjoyable, with a few surprises.
First, guests need 20/20 vision to deal with the plethora of controls. I don't usually wear my glasses into a shower. Since I couldn't see what buttons I was pushing, the crotch-level nozzle blasting 102-degree water came as a shock--and my attempts to shut it off only caused other nozzles to splash me as if I were in a penitentiary riot. (Hilton's plan to install a voice-activated control could be just the solution.) Another surprise: Despite all the high-end design, the shower lacks a soap dish.
Please contact the Hilton Garden Inn in El Segundo directly if you want to try this room by yourself.
Source: Michael S. Lasky, PCWorld.com, June 6, 2003
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