Smart kitchen appliances: the future of the kitchen
The food replicators in Star Trek that produce perfectly cooked and hot food in seconds or the kitchen appliances that talk and think of the Jetsons family home may seem like science fiction, but the truth is that the idea behind these appliances “smart” is not so. improbable.
In fact, appliance makers including GE, Maytag, Samsung, and Whirlpool are now partnering with tech giants like Cisco, Microsoft, and Sun Microsystems to bring futuristic kitchen appliances into today’s homes. These smart appliances can take notes, generate recipe ideas, calculate cook times, and heat food at warp speed. Oh, and some of these kitchen appliances can even play movies while you wait.
Many of the prototypes in development will never be seen outside of the lab, as studies show that homeowners aren’t ready to shell out the money needed to bring these smart appliances into their homes. So for now, an oven that starts cooking with a phone call or networked kitchen appliances to a laptop will not be available to the average consumer.
But don’t worry, tech-savvy foodies, there are some kitchen appliances on the market that integrate high-tech gadgets that can make your time in the kitchen convenient and fun.
Samsung produces a barcode reading microwave in association with a supermarket chain in Europe that automatically calculates and sets the proper cook time when the frozen item is scanned.
They have also developed a wireless-capable refrigerator that features a removable LCD (liquid crystal display) screen that can be used to leave voice messages, post notes, manage a family calendar, and even play TV or DVD shows.
Tired of having to wash your dishes after having put them in the dishwasher? Those days are over now that the latest dishwashers have built-in sensors that can estimate how dirty dishes are, select the right water softness and cycles for the types of dishes (plastic or porcelain), and dispense the correct amount of detergent to reduce waste. .
Wine lovers may like GE’s new Smart Wine Vault, a freestanding appliance with cool features programmed at the factory. With a price tag of over $ 30,000, the wine vault tracks details like name, vineyard, and year and generates barcodes for each bottle. All data is backed up on a GE server through an online connection.
Induction ovens, which have been found in European kitchens for over 15 years, have finally made their way into Canadian homes. Instead of the burners generating the temperature, induction technology creates an electromagnetic response in iron or stainless steel cookware so the “burner” stays cool to the touch from start to finish. The technology is reported to be 25 to 30 percent more energy efficient than a standard stove, and it is fast. A large pot of water can be boiled in as little as two minutes.