The Connected Kitchen
Become a MasterChef with smart culinary aids.
There are several sets of smart scales that use an a pp to count the calories in your latest recipe
The iPhone and iPad quickly found a place in the kitchen when they were first launched, with dozens of apps providing recipes and nutrition information to help you become a better chef. There have also been some weird and (not so) wonderful kitchen gadgets released over the years for your iPhone and iPad.
Recently, we’ve seen the Hapifork, which monitors the speed at which you eat in order to try to avoid over-eating and stomach problems, while Kickstarter has given the world the SmartPlate, which includes a camera and sensors that allow it to analyze everything you eat. Even celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s been at it, using Google Glass techno-specs to record videos as he prepares dishes so that you can watch the preparation process from the cook’s point of view.
Out Of The Frying Pan
Some of these gadgets can seem a bit pointless, but there are many other smart devices that can be genuinely useful in the kitchen. If you’re watching your weight then there are several sets of smart scales that can use an app to count the calories in your latest extravaganza. However, the best set of scales that we’ve seen for the amateur chef is the
the Pantel li gent pan monitors the temperature of food, to avoid anything being over done
Drop Kitchen Scale ($100), which can talk to the recipes in its companion app to make sure you get all your ingredients just right. It can even tweak recipes as you go along, changing weights or suggesting alternatives if you find that you’ve run out of a particular ingredient.
The idea of a smart frying pan might sound a little weird, but it can be really useful to have a device such as the Pantelligent pan that can precisely monitor the temperature of food while it’s cooking, and also send you a notification if your meal starts to get a little crispy around the edges. The Pantelligent is quite costly at $199, but a cheaper option is a smart food-thermometer such as the Weber iGrill. There are several types of the iGrill available, starting at just $40 for the iGrill mini. The battery-powered iGrill can go outdoors too, which is useful for barbeques since you can relax and have a quick beer while everything is cooking; the iGrill will buzz your iPhone when your burgers are ready.
No discussion of kitchen gadgets would be complete without coffee. The Smarter Coffee Machine (around $240) enables you to easily modify the strength of your coffee and keep it warm for as long as you want right from its app. The same company also makes the iKettle 2.0, with the same app controls, which will be launching for US tea lovers in the future.
Sadly, neither machine will fill itself up, although the Smarter app can at least remind you when the machine needs topping up, as well as allowing you to brew your first cup of joe of the day from the comfort of your bed in the morning.
Having your oven connected to the internet doesn’t seem to provide any obvious benefits, seeing as you’ll always need to be there to put the food in and then take it out when it’s ready, but there are still useful features available. LG’s Smart ThinQ oven range is priced at around $1,250, and includes Wi-Fi connectivity so that you can remotely monitor timings and temperature, run diagnostics, and also activate the oven’s self-cleaning mode.
fridge over troubled water
There might be few smart options for heating food, but there are some interesting options for keeping it cool. Samsung leads the way in smart refrigerators with its Family Hub Refrigerator. This super-fridge is equipped with Wi-Fi, a 21.5-inch high-definition screen and built-in speakers, so that you can look up recipes, play some music, and even check the weather.
The Family Hub also has three cameras inside it that allow you to view the contents of the fridge
on your iPhone, and check if you need to pick up some milk on the way home. Prices start at around $5,600, though, so it’s probably of most benefit to larger families rather than single guys or gals – which is pretty much implied in the name, after all.
If you don’t want to pay for a brand new fridge, Smarter has announced a couple of nice accessories that allow you to add some internet-savvy to your existing cooler. Its new Fridge Cam enables you to remotely view the contents of your fridge, and there’s also a Smarter Mat that can check the weight of items and warn you when they’re running low.
Smarter hasn’t announced pricing for these yet, but they’re due later this summer – and they’ll definitely be cheaper than buying Samsung’s super-fridge.
airing your dirty laundry
Some kitchen appliances are more useful when smart than others, but your laundry room appliances can really benefit from it. Many people prefer to use their washer at specific times of day, so Whirlpool, LG, and Samsung all have app-connected machines that you can load before you leave home and then control during the day via your iPhone. You can select options such as an extra wash for really dirty or muddy clothes, and these apps also provide useful diagnostic options to make sure the washer is kept in good condition. Examples include Whirlpool’s new Smart Cabrio washer ($1,400). Samsung also has a good range of machines (washers and dryers) that work with an optional Smart Home adapter to connect to Wi-Fi and the accompanying app.