High-Tech Gadgetry
Wows Homeowners
Jan. 13, 2004 -- The idea that every appliance in the home someday will communicate with each other like a well-oiled staff of digital servants has been spun relentlessly for years by the consumer electronics industry. You know the dream: The alarm clock tells the coffee machine to start brewing, which then tells the toaster to heat up when the coffee is almost done, which in turn lets the car know you will soon be on your way. It all sounds fabulous, but it's still a relatively complex goal, despite huge strides in wireless and broadband technologies.
So while the buzz at the Consumer Electronics Show continues to center heavily on a home networking technology -- especially moving information and entertainment around the home -- it's more satisfying to consider some really cool devices that are about to hit store shelves. There's a fingerprint-lock that eliminates the need for keys; a clock radio hub that can also check on the status of the coffee machine; a flat-screen television that pretends it's a mirror; a vending machine you can plant right in your living room; and an ultra-stylish digital jukebox. All of them aim to perfect existing devices by adding newer features. Most will be available starting in the spring.
MayTag's SkyBox, which can now be pre-ordered on Amazon.com and will also be sold soon at Home Depot for about $500, is an attempt to create a whole new category of gadget frivolity, a "personal" vending machine. In other words, the beverage dispenser from the corner can be put right into your home -- or, as its marketers envision, its targeted room that they call the "man cave" -- and loaded up with either 33 12-oz. bottles or 66 12-oz. cans of soda, beer or your beverage of choice. Best of all, you can add a front logo panel of pretty much any professional or college football or hockey team (and eventually most other sports) for about $40 each. For an additional $70, you can set the whole thing on a stand where you can also store munchies. (Because they aren't yet on the market, the SkyBox and the other devices discussed weren't available for testing.)
In the hot sector of biometrics, prompted by intense interest in all things related to the digitization of security technologies, ArrowVision Technologies is offering a new compact fingerprint identification doorlock for $599 that allows a user to store up to 50 fingerprints of those people they match to enter.
These kinds of locks are more common commercially, but are typically complex to install and maintain and often requiring separate computer programming and keypads. ArrowVision says it has created a stand-alone lock that is easy to install, compatible with common lock types and uses batteries that last a year. While there is a hidden keyhole just in case, its creators are touting that it virtually eliminates the need for keys in situations where it is easy to lose many (such as a front door of an apartment house) or there is need for limited access (such as closet holding a weapon or critical files).
Pretending that there are no devices in sight is the aim of Philips Consumer Electronics with its Mirror TV, which is exactly what it says it is -- a flat LCD television that looks like a mirror when it is off due to a special coating that is applied. Available in 17, 23 and 30 inch versions and costing $2,500 to $5,500, it comes with a frame that is customizable and can be wired for PC usage. While it is being primarily marketed to hotels, consumers interested in buying it should send an e-mail to philips.itv@philips.com.
The idea of the connected home remains the main goal. Frankly, it works better in a simpler form. Salton, which sells a range of well-known brands, is trying to update old appliances under a new moniker, Beyond, to form a more connected home. It had already attempted a more elaborate iCEBOX unit, a flip screen that was a combination television, DVD/audio CD player, Internet access, FM Radio and home video monitoring unit that sells for about $1,800.
To simplify matters, it's now offering a smaller Home Hub for $499, a clock radio that plays CDs and radio and controls other appliances (a coffee maker for $99 and a breadmaker and microwave for $179 each) via its Web connection, a home electrical wiring and a Microsoft operating system. Some uses: It will send bar-code information to the microwave to allow it cook using them, recipe instructions from the breadmaker, or brewing timing to the coffeemaker.
Finally, the affluent consumer who isn't satisfied with a simple music player is the target of the well-known Wurlitzer jukebox, a nostalgic brand name that is now owned by Gibson Audio. Its newest offering has left the past behind completely with a sleekly designed number that looks nothing like jukeboxes of yore. A sweeping black stand with two slim speakers, it comes with a removable wireless PDA that allows the user to program and organize about 1,000 CDs complete with lyrics and artwork, as well as the capability to order songs online or rip them into the jukebox from a CD. Let me assure you, this unit, which will likely retail for about $1,000, is sure to look a lot better in the man cave than a vending machine.
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