Smart guide to lazy living
AS The French philosopher Simone de Beauvoir once said: ‘There is nothing more like torture . . . than housework, with its endless repetition.’
That might be a little extreme — and certainly maintaining a home is easier than it used to be — but for most of us, it still feels like a chore. That is why the new wave of home technology, designed to make cleaning a cinch, has never been more welcome.
here is the pick of cutting-edge gadgets. You’ll wonder how you ever managed to live without them.
PERSONAL CHEF
There’S always some newfangled, must-have gadget for your kitchen coming onto the market, so we relish the prospect of streamlining everything down to just one item: the Thermomix.
This does pretty much everything except the washing-up.
It stirs, mixes, blends, chops, weighs, grinds, kneads, whisks, simmers, emulsifies, cooks and steams to perfection.
And it uses one bowl and one blade so you do not have to change the fixtures endlessly.
no wonder it’s the preferred choice of chefs such as heston Blumenthal. It’s the closest many of us will get to having a professional chef in our own home.
THermomix Tm5, £925, which includes a demonstration, the basic cookbook, the recipe chip with 166 digital recipes and a two‑year domestic warranty. UKThermomix.com.
CLEVER KETTLE
The British famously love a good cuppa, never more so than when someone else is making it, so the Smarter iKettle is as ingenious as they come.
When you’re getting up on a grey winter morning, simply use your smartphone to boil the kettle from anywhere in the house using wifi.
It can keep the water hot for up to 30 minutes if you’re not quite ready to head downstairs, and you can even check the water level remotely.
It also has a brilliant formula mode for parents doing midnight baby feeds, boiling the water as soon as it hears the baby cry and cooling it to just the right temperature.
SmarTer iKettle 2.0, £99.99, firebox.com.
WIFI WASHING
WheTher you’re at the office, the gym or picking up the children from school, you can get your laundry done before you walk through the door.
The hoover wifi washing machine connects to your tablet or smartphone through the Wizard app, allowing you to set the time you want the wash to start.
Most impressively, it has an intelligent wash system that weighs your laundry within the first four minutes of the cycle, then adjusts the time, water and electricity accordingly.
It also has an all-in-one wash programme to allow you to do your weekly laundry in one go, with whites and colours thrown in together and not a stain in sight.
Hoover Dynamic Wizard freestanding wifi washing machine, £499, johnlewis.com
THE SUPER HOOVER
The Vileda relax floorcleaning robot is so much more than a vacuum — it could well become your best friend!
Simply choose from three room-size settings and off it goes to do the sweeping and vacuuming while you kick back with a cuppa (or glass of wine). It doesn’t need a dust bag as you simply tip out the bin compartment, and it has special sensors that help it avoid anything in its path, or an unfortunate tumble down the stairs.
vileDa relax floor‑ cleaning robot, £199.99, argos.co.uk
HOME SECURITY
When you’re away, it’s reassuring to know that your home is in safe hands. And nest offers everything from smoke and carbon monoxide alarms to gadgets that help you set your thermostat when you are out. The brilliant nest Cam senses motion and sound and sends an alert to your phone if anything seems out of the ordinary. This little camera has a 130degree view of the room and night vision LeD sensors so you can see your home in the dark, too.
NeST Cam HD 1080p, 3mP, 8x digital zoom, wifi streaming with built‑in microphone and speaker, £159, johnlewis.com
ROBOT MOWER
SoMe people with smaller gardens choose artificial grass rather than the real thing as the thought of mowing even a tiny patch of garden at the weekend is a bore.
If you still want real grass, but without the hassle, you’ll love the brilliantly named robomow, designed to mow lawns up to 400 square metres in size, without you lifting a finger.
Just pre- set the days and times that are most convenient for you, and let the robomow do the rest.
It mows up to a 35 per cent slope and can trim the lawn to your specifications, finishing off the edges to perfection.
It charges on a base station between outings before independently heading off on its set time and day for its next mow, while you’re sitting on the sofa.