LAS VEGAS— Considering they are positioned and priced as part of the luxury hotel market, the 51 penthouse level Skylofts at the MGM Grand here fully embrace the idea that guests must have access to the latest in comfort- and experience-inducing technology. In furthering that strategy, the Skylofts are continually adding to their high-tech accoutrements, with one of the most recent being an improvement upon a decades old, disregarded guestroom item. That perpetually overlooked item is none other than the peephole, which has been revolutionized at the Skylofts through the installation of what is essentially a video monitor that’s mounted in the same spot as the traditional peephole. Called the Digital Door Viewer, the color, 5.6-inch, LCD monitor shows guests, through the push of a button, a clear, expanded, video view of much of the corridor located on the other side of the guestroom door. According to James Hogg, the director of operations for the Skylofts, it’s a simple yet significant upgrade on an old-fashioned hotel room aspect. “One of my colleagues had gone to a trade show and saw the Digital Door Viewer and it just makes perfect sense,” he said. “Why would you want to look out an old-fashioned peephole? This is sleek and cutting edge and we’ve been really pleased with it. You hold your finger on the button and within seconds the screen comes to life and you have a live camera view of the corridor. I mean, we bought it because it looks good, but you don’t realize how much it can change your guests’ perceptions.” Provided by First View Security, the Digital Door Viewer uses a CMOS image sensor in a camera to capture the outside image and the LCD display to show the image. That camera incorporates a special lens that delivers a wide field of view even in low light conditions. The camera and the LCD display are also designed to use small amounts of electric power that is produced by the Digital Door Viewer’s set of eight AA size batteries. “We actually installed [the Digital Door Viewers]after the Skylofts had already opened. And they basically took out the old peephole and popped in the LCD and camera in its spot and then the viewer fits over the old hole. It took about five minutes to fit,” Hogg explained. “And once they are in, they are battery-operated, so there’s no hard wiring required, no running of new lines. That was a big thing because we wanted to look smart and didn’t want to break into our walls. Our wallpaper costs a lot of money, so we didn’t want to have to cut into that.” Hogg added that the Digital Door Viewer helps with Americans With Disabilities Act compliance because it can be mounted lower on a door and still show the view of the entire corridor. “You see a wide view with the viewer with the corridor and surrounding areas,” he said. “In terms of security, the traditional view is just the person in front of the door, but with this technology you see the person directly in front and the person behind him and the whole corridor.” When asked if the battery power runs out quickly on the viewers, Hogg said that MGM replaces the batteries every six to 12 months based on a set rotation. But none of the batteries have been replaced because they had died as of yet. Of course, the Skylofts’ luxury guests are interested in more than just reliability when it comes to technology. They want something that surprises them and adds to their experience. Based on the feedback given, the Digital Door Viewer is fulfilling those needs. “I’ve never, in a hotel, seen 99% of the guests love something so much. They ask how they can get one for their house,” Hogg noted. “One guest even put it this way: ‘I want people to ring my room doorbell just so I can look through it.’ People love playing with it. It’s tactile and smart.” By the same token, Hogg said that the Digital Door Viewers only enhance the Skylofts standing in the competitive Las Vegas luxury market. “I’ve not seen them anywhere else in Las Vegas,” he said.
