Hilton Debuting 'Connected Rooms' Controlled via Smartphone Next Year

Hilton today announced the upcoming debut of the "Connected Room," a high-tech guest room that will enable hotel guests to control the temperature, lighting, TV, window coverings, and more from their smartphones using the Hilton Honors app.

Guests will also be able to personalize their rooms using technology that loads popular streaming media and other accounts to their in-room TVs. Eventually, guests will also be able to use voice commands to access content and upload artwork and photos to display in their rooms.

Hilton already allows guests to use the Hilton Honors app to check into their rooms and open their room doors using their smartphones, but with the Connected Room expansion, additional in-room controls will be available.

"At Hilton, almost all digital products are born out of necessity and shortcomings in the marketplace - and Connected Room is no exception," said Joshua Sloser, senior vice president of Digital Product, Hilton. "The technology we put in hotel rooms has to be intuitive, simple and quick to pick up because guests typically spend a limited amount of time in their rooms and we want them to spend that time enjoying the experience instead of adapting to new technology."

The Connected Room is live in one Hilton hotel and will deploy "in the coming weeks" to several more before rolling out on a wider scale in 2018.