Plenty of iPods at the iHotel California

(Credit: Runtriz)

Plenty of iPods at the iHotel California: I believe that's how The Eagles would sing their famous song if they composed it today.

The California hotel in question is the Malibu Beach Inn--quite possibly the first hotel in the state, if not the world, to implement an iPhone/iPhone-based system of hotel management.

The system is developed by Runtriz, a software firm based in Hollywood. Its product, called "Hotel Evolution," is an application designed for the iPhone and the iPod Touch that helps bring hotels up to technological speed and even a little further.

When checking in at the hotel, you'll be asked to have the application installed on your iPhone or iPod Touch, if you have one. If you don't (now what's wrong with you?), the hotel will provide you with a 16GB iPod Touch, preloaded with the application, to use during the stay.

After that, everything else is done via the app. You can order food, drinks, spa and concierge service, plus shop and more via touching the device's screen. Runtriz makes money by charging the hotel $10 per room for the service. It's unclear whether hotel guests have to take up the extra charge.

It's also unclear how the app gets installed on your iPhone (I tried looking for it at Apple's App Store, but it's not there).

What's clear though, fortunately, is that the hotel won't make Steve Jobs' traditional attire its dress code, even though chances are you already wear jeans and T-shirts yourself. And it would only be fitting if the hotel equipped its restrooms with iCarta potty iPod holders.

If after the stay, you somehow forget to return the device, your credit card will be charged for its value plus some for the hotel's revenue.

(Via Fashion Funky)

[mattallard]

My name is Matt Allard and am the founder of runtriz.
I just wanted to answer a few of the questions that were in the article, and also let you know if you have any other questions feel free to contact me at www.runtriz.com
The $10 charge is not passed on to the guest, it is a monthly fee that the hotel incurs to offer this service to their guests.
Also the reason why you cant find it on the app store is because it is a web app that is easily accessed through the browser, therefore there is no install process for the guest, no update process, and no app store approval process.
Also this allows us to release it for the Blackberry Storm, the G1, and any other touch screen device, it is platform independent and we are not tied to Apple.

[wlau]

As a frequent traveler, I really question the usefulness of this app. It sounds cool and has a bit of sex appeal but i will to bet it stops at just that. No matter how cool the front end is, the backoffice stuff such as maid service are done by human. This is no different than the services you can call up on hotel's TV or some automated phone system except it's mobile. It's not gonna solve any problem or speed up your service when the hotel is short-staffed (in 98% of the cases). Next thing you know is that those English as Second Language maids are going to push around the cart holding a iPhone or iPod...

[oooh5615]

talk about the upper limit for stupid...