I just received my new Starwood card that should work like this at Alofts.

I kind of liked the Hilton system when I used it a couple years ago: you could log in the day before and select a room and, in a few of the bigger hotels, go straight to the concierge lounge to get the key. Allowed elites to preselect their room but didn't really change the hotel operation too much.

It's been a while since I've stayed at a large full-service Hilton so I'm not sure if this is still common. Everything I've read on their boards is about how they've tightened up on upgrades across the board, somewhat defeating the purpose of checking in a day early and being able to look at 5 or 6 specific room numbers to choose from.

I think there are some other brands that need a technology advance more than Marriott. I can't recall waiting in any kind of a long line to check in to a Marriott in recent years. More than I can say for Sheraton, Westin, and the mainline Hyatts. Those hotels should at least have the kiosks.