Networked Refrigerated Microwave

shades6666 writes "BBC news is reporting that Tonight's Menu Intelligent Ovens has developed a refrigerated microwave that can be controlled over the net or by mobile phone. The prototype uses a Peltier cooling device. It expects the appliances to be ready by the end of the year, costing around $2,000."

Comments

Economic calculation

[f97tosc]

Time saved using device 5 min /meal

Premium payed for device $1500

Probable lifetime of device 5 years

Times per week using device 2

Cost per heated meal = $1500/(5*52*2) ~= $3

Money per unit time saved $3/5 min = $60 / hour

Conclusion: device useful only for people with high hourly incomes, short on time, and frequent eaters of microwave food. Probably a small customer segment.

Tor

Current discussion elsewhere and some useful apps

[maggard]

This sort of tech has been the subject of discussion on ne.food recently. My own take is that combo devices like the Polaris oven/'fridge are great for those with clock-steady regular lives but for myself and my friends we're too erratic with work, traffic, life, to commit to being home at 6:15pm sharp for however nice a hot meal.

Rather a unit that could be preloaded with a roast or a lasagna or whatever and then remotely triggered via webphone or such would be much more useful, improve on my parent's 50 year old CookMaster with dual timers. I'd love to prep a main course the night before, or even a series of 'em over the weekend, put them into the combo unit in the am and start it all cooking 45 minutes or whatever before I expect to be home. Or if smoething comes up I just change my plans and not trigger the cook cycle, come home at midnight after a night out on the town to my meal still ready to be cooked the next day.

However as microwave ovens are usually used as quickie-cookers I don't see a 'net enabled one of them being a big hit; most of the long cooking action happens in a heat oven. Same with most other appliances there's not much advantage to remote operation. Blender, mixer, chopper, cooktop, toaster - I wanna be there for those to be on. The 'fridge & freezer? Well it'd be nice to get an alert if they suddenly start getting warm but beyond that who cares?

Inventory control? I could see some advantage to my pantry, 'fridge & freezer keeping track of what I have, hold old it is ("Time to replace the Paprika - it's just red dust now... The chicken needs to be used within 3 days, the milk is low, the lettuce on it's way out.") but really that's a local affair, no need to make it "Internet" just networkable. Indeed rather then entering all the information locally (never had any ambition to be a market clerk) I'd just as soon prefer my grocer email me a nicely formatted file every time I shop, dismiss with the long papertape version. That my kitchen app could use to make a good guess of what is going on in the larder and make suggestions, certainly a better investment then laser-scanners on every shelf and RF tags in the dairy goods.