First of all , Mobile key is not a fresh thing. It has been invented for over ten years.
Is it the correct use way of smartphone in hotel lock field?
It’s said that human’s brain has a flaw-prefer not thinking deeply or differently.
Because thinking will consume power much than just following.
I think that’s why people or company follow others foot is very common in this world.
Look at the worldwide hotel door lock applications- is there any new use way of smartphone, except the mobile key?
No there isn’t.
Moreover the mobile key was never become popular in worldwide hotels.
Its real results as follows
Small and medium-sized hotels do not need mobile key.
To be honest a lots of small and medium-sized hotel dont need it.
- Increase costs
In general the mobile key function hotel locks will be 10%-30% expensive more than the none models.Budget hotels give priority to construction costs.They will prefer spend the money on the room facilities firstly. - Secondely, the customers who staying budget hotels will not ask keyless entry. They have room key card to use.
Budget hotels unlikely have customers who will ask keyless entry. Basic accommodation needs are the main goal .
In this case use mobile key will not enhance the customer experience.
Installed project low usage of mobile key.
Hotels which have mobile key features get good results?
Different with home use, the mobile key in hotels use will face many different issues.
- Customer smartphone don’t have power
A very interesting matter is that, for many international travelers, when they arrival hotel their phones don’t have power, and no signal.
They played the phone during on the way, and because of international zone issues, they - Customer don’t want use their phone.
For many customers, their phone install only the app privately.There is key card, why don’t use it? - Not compatible with energy saver.
In asia, africa, and europe, the energy saver is a essential thing in one hotel room.
Energy saver help hotel save a lot of electricity bills every year.
But if use the mobile key, it is gone.
- Short-term guests do not need it.
Keyless Entry only improve experience in long staying customers, because they don’t need take a room card in very long time staying. This brings convenience.
However long staying customers are few.For example staying more than 10 nights customer maybe only 8% in total hotel customers.
So it’s not as good as it’s cracked up to be.I think there are 3 inherent problems.
- Functional positioning same as room card.
This is very likely the main problem that mobile key technology is facing.
Actually in 2010-2015 there was a fashion trend of mobile key in hospitality.But after a period of fresh feeling, many hotels have come to recognize the mobile key’s situation- solve the same problem as the room card.
It has the same task of hotel room card.This is a waste.
Do you need two goalkeepers? - Mobile key itself is an inefficient use of smartphone
Due to single function, the mobile key app uses only 1% function of smartphone.
When you look over the whole app, you will find there is only one and big button works.
Yes, that is unlock button. Nothing else.
良いアイデアは一度に複数の問題を解決できる
– Shigeru Miyamoto, a well-known Japanese game designer.
The english meanning is “A good idea is something that does not solve just one single problem, but rather can solve multiple problems at once.”
Therefore, from Shigeru Miyamoto’s creative angle, mobile key probably isn’t a great idea.
- Mobile key is a consumerism Trap and people aware of it.
The NetFlix film-Buy Now! The Shopping Conspiracy uncover a cruel reality-Sell more is the manufacturer only target, not you really need it or not.
Is there such a possibility that- who push the mobile key is just want you believe it works in your hotel, and so that you could buy it?
Actually many hotel lock supplier don’t know why do mobile key on their product.
There are many answers of why do mobile key, but no one is about hotels real needs.
Most people(company) is just watching what the competitors do, or just follow the industrial rules which everybody comply.
In other words, if everyone else is doing this, does that mean it is right?
And the industrial rules is absolutely correct?
Take Sony 3D TV as an example.
In the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in 2010, SONY pushed their latest 3D-TV hardly, just like it was the inevitable future of American homes.
As early as 2009, SONY predicted that by 2013, the sales volume of 3D TV would account for 50% of its total TV production.
Think about it.Sony-who make TV as their large part of its business,believed that in a few short years the 3D-TV market would be enormous. As the flag of TV industrial, Who dare doubt SONY?
But Sony’s dream did not come to true. Now in 2025, will you ever heard 3D TV or ever bought one?
Will any hotel never heard mobile key or never use it in 2025? There are a lot.
What is the correct way to use smartphone in hotel lock system?
Firstly you must know one thing-the smartphone in your hand, now is already a powerful terminal.
Smartphone is powerfull
One smartphone is not big, but it almost gathers all the latest technologies in the world-
the fast but low power consumption processor.
The Multi-touch and high-pixel display technology.
Very fast storage-UniversalFlashStorage.
Today’s most advanced smartphones are powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, the world’s fastest mobile chip. Its 3rd Gen Qualcomm Oryon CPU delivers performance on par with desktop computers, handling multitasking, high-definition content, and even light creative workloads seamlessly.
Everything made up of smartphone now is making it can do the works that PC do.
Just us it as a virtual Key, it is a waste of smartphone’s talent.
Smartphone can deeply participate in the management of hotel locks.
This is a small device that add-on to the smartphone (android first) via USB-C port.
After add it, run the special App, the smartphone become a handheld device.
Generally,the handheld device is usually called PDA, handset, Handsim.
In conventional solution it serves the hotel door lock hardwares.
There are many functions of it. for example set the hotel lock, download lock events (transactions), open the door etc.
If you ever install or manage hotel locks, you will know it is very usefull.However the conventional solution never tried connect to smartphone.
Sadly,the regular solution is usually self develop a group of hardwares- including screen,keyboard, battery power circuit.
That would make the device huge, unstable, and completely lacking in scalability.
But this is the first time-just like the mobile phone go to smartphone age.
The hotel lock handset go to smart age too.
To speak frankly, the future is coming. Tomorrow is 2026 first day.
At this moment, this is really a modern way of using smartphone.
Such a design has many advantages.
For example, reduce the manufacture costs.
In this way, there is no need to redesign and manufacture the general hardwares(including battery, screen, memory etc).
The benefits it brings are that it greatly simplifies the design and offers ultimate ease of use and stability
Add-on Handset VS Mobile key
| Smartphone use as Handset | Smartphone use as Mobile key | |
| Main function | Multi-functions | Single function-Open the single hotel lock |
| Use the camera of smartphone | Yes, scan the QR code to Sync data from PC software to smartphone | NO |
| Use the Drag operation on touch screen | Yes, when view the lock events downloaded from hotel lock | NO |
| Who use it | Hotel staffs | Hotel guests |
| App menu | Multi-level menus and functions | No menu, just One button- unlocking |
| Management level of hotel door locks | Improving greatly | there is no improving |
| Functional positioning | Unique | Same as hotel room card |
| Unlock function | Yes, for hotel staff go to room when needs | Yes |
| Increase hotel costs | No | Yes |
| Incompatibility problem | All android phones. It only borrow the screen, battery, storage from phone. The communicate module are self manufactured and quality stable. | There may be a problem, depending on the Bluetooth version and the smoothness of the network. |
All in all, The above proof the new application use the smartphone as a lock manage tool is much more powerfull than use it as a key.
Add-on Handset VS Conventional Handset
How conventional PDA looks like?They looks like this
Let’s see it compare with conventional handsets.
| Smartphone add-on handset | Conventional Handset | |
| Power | lithium battery (from phone) | AA or AAA battery X2 or 4pcs |
| Screen | Small and big flexible, depends on the smartphone screen size, touch available | Fixed 3~5 inch screen, no touch function |
| Rooms Capacity | 128G/256G/512G/1T depends on the smartphone memory size. Store 500+ rooms one time | 64MB, 128MB, can not store more than 200 rooms |
| Opening records storage | Unlimited how many rooms, no need clear storage | less than 50 rooms, when full it need clear storage |
| Function | Collect lock events Update lock clock Check lock status Checkout room Setup hotel lock | Collect lock events Update lock clock Check lock status Checkout room Setup hotel lock |
| Using cost | Low, no need buy batteries. Re-buy price is less than 90USD | High, will need buy batteries many times. Re-buy price is up to 120-200USD. |
| Portability | Yes, small size could put in pocket | No, big size |
| Operation Way | Touch, drag, on touch screen, high efficiency | Press button on keyboard, poor efficiency |
What’s the value of it?
In the first place, this is the future’s shape-Simple appearance, but inner strong.
Time will test everything.If a tech is useless, it will be forgot by people very soon.
But if it really works, it will become a classic thing.
In conclusion, 3D TV failed. About mobile key you can’t say it failed but very far from popularization.
In my view,there is nothing about technology is inevitable.Once a new tech come out, there’s voice that it must be the next big thing that will change our lives forever. But that’s not always happen.
Sometimes tech may failed, even if industry giant bold bet on it.
