IR + BLE is still the default: twelve weeks to a hotel pilot

The installed base does not switch at once

A hotel group rarely replaces every television and set-top box on the same day. One property may have older IR televisions; another may have newer BLE set-top boxes; a third may have both in different room classes. A single handset has to control the room it is in, not the room the roadmap describes.

One key matrix, two radios

The handset carries IR and BLE on one key matrix. The guest sees one set of keys; the firmware decides which radio carries the command. The hard part is not adding a radio. It is keeping the behavior consistent: the same key press should produce the same result whether the room is IR-only, BLE-only or mixed. That logic is defined per property and recorded in the configuration file.

The cleaning schedule is part of the spec

Housekeeping in the reference program used a daily wipe. The previous handset’s legends had started to fail, which is a cosmetic problem until a guest cannot find the volume key. The new housing is a sealed single shell with double-shot legends, so the marking is part of the plastic rather than a layer on top. The cleaning agents and wipe cycles were part of the validation plan, not an afterthought.

Why the client stays anonymous

The program is described without the hotel group’s name. The scope is specific enough to be useful: room mix, radios, languages, cleaning and the pilot duration. The name would add nothing to a buyer’s evaluation and would put a commercial relationship on a public page. We apply the same rule to every case study on the site.

Buyers who need a reference call can ask for one. The conversation happens with the client, not through a logo on a website.

Twelve weeks to pilot

The program reached pilot in 12 weeks. Five language sets were loaded per property, and spares were cloned from the same configuration record so a replacement matched the room. The duration is not a promise for every hotel; it reflects a program where the control target and the key map were settled early. A different property mix or a new housing would move it.

What to specify

When specifying a hospitality handset, list the room types, the TV and set-top-box brands, the languages per property and the cleaning agent. Ask how the handset stores its configuration and how a spare is cloned. Those four answers decide whether the rollout is a product program or a series of one-off fixes.

Client names stay private. Twelve weeks is the duration of this program from start to pilot, not a standard lead time.