Feature: A Skeptic's Guide to In-Room, High-Speed Net Access

The lure of a plug-and-play, in-room, high-speed Internet connection using my notebook was a prime reason why I stayed at The Park hotel on a recent business trip to Charlotte, North Carolina. (The fact that the hotel has an outdoor pool and hot tub didn't hurt, either.) And yet, I was highly skeptical: How many times had promises of "plug and play" turned into "crash and curse"?

Easy Set-Up

On the desk in my $149-a-night room was an STSN Internet access box. STSN is a Salt Lake City-based company that supplies high-speed Internet access to participating hotels in the United States and a few other countries. The box is about the size of a standard external Digital Subscriber Line modem; you lift the lid for instructions on how to make Ethernet, Universal Serial Bus, or standard dial-up modem connections. As the instructions promised, I found the required connection cables in a plastic bag hanging in the closet. The bag also included a CD-ROM that included the drivers I would need if I chose to connect via USB--a convenient option, as practically all notebooks have a USB port but some (particularly older) models don't have Ethernet ports.

I used the supplied Ethernet cable to connect my notebook to the STSN box, turned on my notebook, and launched my Web browser. To my surprise, an STSN Web page appeared. So far, the whole procedure had been delightfully uncomplicated, particularly compared to the dial-up modem connection nightmares I've experienced in other hotel rooms.

Test Drive

At the STSN sign-up page, I chose to buy 24 hours of service (from noon to noon) for $9.95. The other options were $39.95 for a week and $119.95 for a month. The charges were added to my hotel bill. And that was it. Suddenly, I was surfing the Web at DSL-like speeds of approximately 300 to 500 kilobits per second, incredulous at how easy it had been. (I could also view my hotel bill online and get information about the hotel.)

I noticed a toll-free tech support number listed in the instructions. When I called, I was further impressed by the fast, courteous, knowledgeable response. And the next morning, I printed a three-page black-and-white Word file using the STSN service ($1 per page for color or black and white); it was waiting for me when I checked out.

Corporate-Friendly Surfing

It's important to note that STSN supports virtual private networks--a plus for corporate, security-minded users--though I didn't test that feature. The company's Web site lists the VPNs it supports; among the 13 currently supported are Microsoft's Windows 98, NT, and 2000 VPNs, and Shiva's LanRover.

Based on my experience, I'll be checking STSN's Web site for participating hotels the next time I travel on business. Currently, there are STSN-equipped hotels in Canada, Germany, Norway, Singapore, and the United Kingdom, with the majority (several hundred) found in the United States, primarily in Marriott properties. The STSN Web site lists all participating properties, but doesn't break them out by state, so you'll have to scroll through a long list--or do a keyword search on the Web page--to see if there's a hotel at your destination.

More High-Speed Options

STSN isn't your only option for high-speed, in-room Internet access, however. Austin, Texas-based Wayport delivers in-room Internet connectivity at near-T1 speeds in more than 450 hotels and business centers for about $10 for 24 hours. Wayport also offers broadband wireless Net connections in some hotel conference rooms, lobbies, and guest rooms.

MobileStar offers wireless high-speed Internet access in selected hotels. The service, which was teetering on oblivion's edge when acquired by VoiceStream Wireless in January, is fast and reliable, based on my tests at a Hilton hotel in Charlotte last year. Various service plans are available, ranging from $2.95 for 15 minutes to $59.95 a month for unlimited minutes. MobileStar is offered at many Starbucks and other locations, too.

You can read more about Wayport and MobileStar in an earlier newsletter, "Mobile Computing Tips: Broadband To Go, Safe Notebooks."

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