My experience at the Stratosphere may differ from yours because we were provided the upgraded room in the "Select" tower.
We arrived in Las Vegas close to midnight and didn't check in until close to 1am. The line to check in was ridiculously long and it was steadily growing. Because we checked in so late, none of the standard rooms were available so we were provided an upgraded room in the "Select" tower that normally costs $20 more per night. We didn't have much of a view but the room was overall very clean and the beds were very comfortable.
You're provided with an option to check out via text messaging upon checking in but we'd recommend declining the offer since you can easily check out using the television inside the rooms. Would we stay here again? Possibly, but then again, we don't think we'd get lucky again getting an upgraded room while paying the rate of a regular room.
If you want the cheapest rates, I'd highly recommend booking Stratosphere through Hotwire. Most of the hotel names are revealed prior to booking and it makes the sting of having to pay the resort fee that much more tolerable.