Cooking Up the Connected Kitchen

Esther Schindler writes "If you're looking for technology to improve kitchen connectivity and home automation, you might be surprised at how little is available today. Turns out, that's a good thing. Our industry has a long history of trying to sell a solution in search of a problem. Maybe we can get away with that occasionally, when the solution is inherently fun, or when there are enough of us geeks to buy an cool-looking automated gizmo with blinking lights where a cheaper hand-held "solution" is just as good for the masses. But when it comes to home appliances, which cost a pretty penny by anyone's measure, nobody wants to invest big bucks in a "connected" device — however cool the home automation seems — where the technology platform goes away (my washing machine is 8 years old; I sure wouldn't use a PC or phone that age) or where the benefits are murky. That is, just what is it we want the kitchen automation to do? It's one thing to say, "The fridge could order food when I run out" but none of us want to scan every potato as we unload the groceries. Yet, as I wrote in Cooking up the connected kitchen, the manufacturers are paying attention to home automation and connectivity and giving your oven an app. And some of it, as I hope the article makes clear, is really cool. 'The manufacturers want to sell us technology, and we want to buy cool capabilities that actually improve the quality of our lives. What I found surprising, in my own hands-on evaluations, is how often I had a dual-stage response: "That's the dumbest thing I ever saw. (beat) Wait, I want that!"' The manufacturers are being thoughtful about both what we'd want and what we'd buy... which is something to appreciate. So what would you want from kitchen connectivity?"

Comments

Re:durability

[cayenne8]

Aside from something to look up recipes, unit conversions, etc....I can't really see the use or need for 'connected' tech in the kitchen on something that is so inherently manual..?

How are they doing to use tech to improve:

Knives

Pans

Gas Burners

Meat Grinder

Food Processor (I like to pulse by hand and stop when MY eye says it is done to my liking

Piston Sausage Stuffer

Stand Mixer

Vitamix Blender (ok, on this one I got the model with the extra programmed modes, and find I only use those to clean the thing with after using it)

Breville Ikon Juicer (how will it know what food I'm putting in next in order to adjust the speeds?)

Charcoal Grills

Offset hardwood smoker

I mean seriously, if you like to cook and have the right tools for things, it is almost pretty much manual work by definition. Will I somehow resort to the cloud when I want to cut a whole chicken quickly into 8 pieces?

And for the often mentioned refrigerator or pantry that will know when to order food or an item when it gets low...how is it going to know what I'm cooking that week that I'll need that? I mean sure there are SOME staples, but I tend to look weekly at the grocery store ads, see what's on sale (usually also meaning what's in season), and I plan my menus and cooking plans accordingly, based on those ingredients. This keeps me eating more things in season, and hence, US and more local products that are fresher, and I don't get stuck in a rut cooking the same things all the time, and saving a few bucks along the way while eating well and healthy.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE tech and gadgets, but I just can't see how it would improve the kitchen. Quality knives and cookware make the kitchen...