Queensland resort chooses D-Link for guest Wi-Fi

Stephen Withers
Thursday, 05 November 2009 06:44

Your IT - Home IT

The manager of a Queensland resort is "100% satisfied" with a D-Link wireless LAN installed for guest use after an unsatisfactory experience with the equipment he inherited.

If your customer's customers are happy, then your customer probably will be too.

The managers of the Coolum Beach Getaway Resort on Queensland's Sunshine Coast were dissatisfied with the Wi-Fi network installed by their predecessor. The consumer grade router didn't have the coverage needed to reach all of the 18 units, and it needed frequent attention.

"It was very small-scale and very low wireless strength," said co-manager Murray Noyce.

The range issue meant some guests had to sit on their balconies to get a reliable signal, and the router couldn't cope with the number of connections.

"It was also a pain in the neck for us, because we would have to come in and re-boot the system and continually monitor the service. It was more down than up. We decided to spend the money, upgrade the system and have our guests and visitors completely satisfied with the wireless Internet service," he explained.

Furthermore, the old system offered no ability to set download limits, and the poor service meant there was no possibility of charging for access.

On the advice of a local supplier, the resort selected a D-Link multi-service business gateway with three wireless access points fitted with external antennas. Power over Ethernet simplified installation.

This provided reliable coverage throughout the premises - extending to neighbouring properties - as well as flexible access control and billing.

Guests receive 200MB of free access over three days, and may choose to pay $15 per 48 hours beyond that. Non-guests may also use their credit cards to sign up for access.

"All the guests have said the system performs extremely well and the password security provides them with additional peace of mind. The system works straight away and we haven’t had any complaints," said Noyce.

And it sounds like Noyce has gained peace of mind too: "We haven't had to touch the system since it was installed which results in cost savings along with spending less time monitoring and maintaining the system. It is no longer a nuisance factor and we are 100% satisfied," he said.