Premium life – iPhones to work as room keys in Hilton

Starting next year Hilton will allow iPhone users to use their phones as hotel room keys. That means that you’ll be able to bypass the front desk of the hotel completely.

Currently as is iPhone users do have the Hilton app but upon walking into a hotel they’d still need to get a physical key with the app handling online check-in, reservations and such – Android users have the same deal going on but there’s no word on using your droid to unlock Hilton doors, although it should happen as well.

The system will work like this – it will send your iPhone a key code which the phone will use to open the door via some clever mechanism. Hilton is reportedly backing your smartphone as a room key via a $550 million investment and hopes that all its hotels, globally, will be suited for the new feature by 2016.

This technology isn’t exactly new – it’s been around for smaller hotel groups. Hilton, however, is the first truly big name to jump on the key-less bandwagon, which could spur a world-wide move forward for the hotel business.