Smart Appliances Offer Convenience, Problem Solving and a Glimpse of the Future

The dawn of smart kitchen appliances has arrived – and it’s not just for large items like refrigerators or stoves either. Over the last few years products labeled as “smart” have been on the rise. Initially based in the technology category of phones and tablets, the label is gradually seeing an increased presence in a variety of categories throughout the home. Now, small electrics are getting the smart treatment; acting as the gateway appliance to the eventual connected home.

For some, on the surface, it may be difficult to grasp why a kitchen appliance that connects to an online app is valuable. Retailers might ask themselves or find customers asking: What’s the point anyway? Won’t they be more expensive? Do I really need those features? But the aim of the smart appliance is to solve problems encountered in everyday life in a way that does not add extra effort to the situation; rather it blends seamlessly into a lifestyle by adding convenience.

Belkin is a definite proponent of this stance. The company’s WeMo® system started out with smart plugs in 2012 that are app controlled so any appliance can be plugged in and then accessed through the WeMo app by phone or tablet. Belkin got word that customers were using the setup for their kitchen appliances and after encountering Jarden Corporation at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the idea for the Crock-Pot® Smart Slow Cooker with WeMo was born and then brought to market this past fall. A Mr. Coffee® 10-Cup Smart Optimal Brew™  Coffeemaker with WeMo was rolled out shortly after.

The Crock-Pot Smart Slow Cooker allows consumers to adjust, manage and monitor their slow cooker from anywhere using a smartphone or tablet. The first smartphone-controllable slow cooker, with the WeMo app users can receive notifications, change the cooking time, adjust the temperature, turn the slow cooker off, or check the status of their meal quickly and easily from anywhere at any time. It has a 6-quart capacity and retails for $129.99.

With the Mr. Coffee Smart Coffee Maker users can brew, schedule and monitor the device through the WeMo app. A week’s worth of brew times can be scheduled and users can check to make sure the coffeemaker has a full tank of water or the carafe is in place, setup reminders, and receive alerts when the water filter needs changing, or the coffeemaker needs to be cleaned. It has a suggested retail price of $149.99.

The WeMo-enabled appliances give the customer all the information they would receive if they were standing next to the machine but from wherever they might be. If you are late coming home from work, simply adjust the Crock-Pot temperature to avoid disaster and still come home to a perfectly cooked meal. If you feel like sleeping in on Sunday morning, change the brew time on the Smart Coffee Machine from your phone while still in bed. Plus, all WeMo devices can be controlled through a single app so customers can simply add on appliances as they grow their connected home.

“WeMo is the most approachable entry point to the connected home,” says Peter Taylor, Director of Product Management for WeMo. “We’re trying to appeal to those people who have yet to embrace the smart home by offering something truly compelling in terms of solving problems. Let’s say you’ve got a bread maker, or you’ve got a little fan, or you’ve got some lights, you can control all of those with the same app that’s controlling your coffee maker. That’s important because consumers don’t want to have to learn five different apps, they don’t want to set up five different products in five different ways. Our setup is the same for every product, and our app is the same for every product, so it just makes that whole journey for a consumer a lot easier to get their problem-solving products in their life.”

Escali takes a different approach to everyday problem solving through the SmartConnect Kitchen Scale; this time focusing on consumer’s interest in a healthy lifestyle and eating right. The kitchen scale sends wireless measurements to the Escali SmartConnect app on mobile devices for detailed nutrition analysis, to create a food journal or simply measure in cups and tablespoons.

The kitchen scale also connects with Escali’s SmartConnect Body Scale in the app to help users realize the connection between their diet and their body. The app can calculate BMI and create a graph of the data based on the information from the body scale. Customers using both the kitchen and body scale can use one app to keep track of all the information they are tracking about their meals and weight.

“User can compare their diet to their weight because from what we understand, half of the effort in terms of losing weight or maintaining weight has to do with your nutrition and what you’re eating,” says Noah Harber, Escali Marketing and Brand Manager. “We’re just trying to make a connection between your diet and your body.”

The kitchen scale provides information on 35 different nutrients that are displayed similarly to the nutrition labels found on packaged foods, adding familiarity for the user. Nutrition information is based on a database provided by the USDA of over 8,000 food items. The scale has a Bluetooth connection to the app so that weights are displayed on the scale and in the app in real time. If you weigh out a portion and of food and decide it is too much or too little, the app and the scale will reflect any additions or subtractions as they take place.

“We wanted to make sure that we were on the leading edge of scale technology. Our tagline is ‘Measuring What’s Next,’ so we’re always looking towards future trends and we saw that there were devices that started to become connected to apps,” Harber says Noah Harber. “We also realized that by doing this you can update the app and thus update the product continually, even after it’s been purchased by the consumer, so it adds a lot of value there.”

The ability for continual updates is a key feature for Pure Imagination’s Perfect Drink and Perfect Bake systems. The devices are essentially smart scales that connect to an app using patented technology, but are so much more as they also walk the user through the steps of making a baked good or cocktail without having to measure a single ingredient or flip through the pages of a recipe book. The apps tell users which component to add and then do all the measuring for them, sounding a ding to tell them when to stop. The apps display a virtual glass or bowl that fills up as ingredients are being added on the scales.

Perfect Bake includes a smart scale, three color coded bowls, an oven thermometer, tablet/phone stand and complete access to the app. Users can select a recipe from the hundreds included in the app, modify one of these recipes, or add their own original recipe. Recipes can be selected by ingredient or category, or searched by keyword to bring up suggestions. Users can also add items that they have on hand through the Pantry Feature which will then suggest recipes they are able to make based on the ingredients they have entered. Perfect Bake will scale recipes based on the bakeware the user intends to use; so if a recipe calls for a 9-inch round pan but only a 10-inch square pan is available, the recipe will be adjusted. If a user has a limited amount of a certain ingredient, that component can be measured first and the app will then automatically readjust all of the other ingredient amounts and let you know how many servings you are able to make.

Once a recipe and a quantity have been selected, the app will then walk the user through adding ingredients, telling them when to stop and start each as they go along. The included bowls are used for wet ingredients, dry ingredients and for mixing. Next, a mix timer will inform which attachment to use, what speed to set the mixer at, and how long to mix for. Once the batter is ready the bakeware can be placed on the scale so that portions may be perfectly measured in the case of some foods, like muffins, cookies, or cupcakes. After that, timers let the user know how long to bake for or when to rotate depending on the recipe. Perfect Bake has a suggested retail price of $69.99.

“Anybody who’s ever wanted or aspired to bake anything, whether you are an expert baker and you love to bake all the time or not, this is a great product for you,” says Darin Barri, Pure Imagination Partner. “If you’ve never baked before a day in your life or you want your kids to bake, it works for you. If you’re an expert baker, this device does things that you can’t normally do no matter how well you bake … This takes all the guesswork and all the inconsistencies out, while making the process more efficient, with less mess and, of course, the results are perfect every time.”

Perfect Drink includes a stainless steel shaker, phone/tablet stand, complete access to the app and the smart scale. Recipe selection is similar to Perfect Bake and users can also add in the ingredients they have on hand through the Cabinet Feature. Over 400 recipes and ingredients are included in Perfect Drink. Users can make drinks by the glass or by the pitcher and any quantity in between. The pitcher or shaker can go right on the scale; if a blended drink is being made, the blender jar can be placed directly on the scale. Any over-pour can be easily fixed, as the app will automatically adjust the rest of the recipe accordingly. The final step is to add ice and shake; a timer lets you know exactly how long to shake so the drink does not become watered down. Perfect Drink has a suggested retail price of $49.99.

“When you go out to a really high-end bar and you get some really, really special cocktails they come with a very special price tag,” says Barri. “To get four really cool drinks at a bar it’s about $75; plus you have to pay for a ride home because you can’t drive after having four drinks! So from the cocktail perspective, Perfect Drink is for anybody who likes cocktails and wants to be able to have that high-end bar experience at home. For those who have no idea how to make a drink, it empowers and enables anybody to make a perfect drink every single time.”

Both Perfect Bake and Perfect Drink have received multiple updates through the app for recipes and user-friendliness since they first rolled out. Barri says that users will continue to see new additions to the app that reflect feedback given directly from customers. This is a strong selling point for all smart appliances as customers no longer need to worry as much that their new investment will soon be outdated.

Notable upcoming products in the smart appliance category to be unveiled at the International Home+ Housewares Show include the Connected Home Coffee Roaster by Behmor from Boyd Coffee Company. The roaster enables hands-on control of coffee roasting via the mobile app. Users can create roast profiles, save favorite settings, or use quick start controls to go from green beans to roasted coffee. Users can also download roasting profiles by bean origin and recreate the roast. Patent-pending smoke suppression allows for indoor roasting, and users can roast up to one pound of green beans at a time. The roaster has a lighted interior and a chaff tray that captures chaff debris and is removable for easy cleaning.

Taylor Kitchen is introducing the SmarTemp Bluetooth Cooking Thermometer, a smartphone-enabled thermometer that monitors foods, oven and candy temperatures via Bluetooth technology. SmarTemp comes with two thermometer probes, one to monitor meat, fish and other grilled or baked goods; the other monitors ambient temperature or candy, and both can be used simultaneously. The thermometer syncs to Taylor’s app, which provides a variety of data and capabilities, including a menu that outlines USDA temperature guidelines as well as key candy zones and stages, independent timer functions, historical records of everything made and it also allows you to post to social media. The SmarTemp Bluetooth Cooking Thermometer will be available in March for a suggested retail price of $69.99.

The smart connected home – that can control lighting, heating, cooling, door locks and has sensors letting you know who’s coming or going, which faucet is being used at any moment, and includes a fridge that talks to the stove – may not be for everyone just quite yet. However, the smart small appliances can be the next step up from the smartphone; allowing customers to become familiar with the concept on a small scale before committing to the big picture.

This story was originally published in the March 2015 issue of Kitchenware News, a publication of Oser Communications Group.