The kitchen is often referred to as the heart of the home since it sees so much use. In fact, the average person walks through their kitchen 30 times a day. However, what was originally designed as an area of utilitarian function, the kitchen has since evolved into a space that far transcends simple meal preparation.
The kitchen is also a source of fond memories, made by hungry children sneaking cookie dough, by the parents who love them, and by all the dinner guests who forego a comfy couch in favor of a spot next to the oven.
So, with all the traffic your kitchen sees, shouldn’t it include smart functionality that makes food prep and cooking simple and intuitive? As smart kitchens become more commonplace, so too is the need to design a cooking space that allows for maximum productivity and ease of use.
Read on as we provide the latest in smart home kitchen innovations and how you can best incorporate these technological time-savers into your space.
What is Smart Kitchen Technology?
Smart kitchen technology refers to devices connected via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or IoT (Internet of Things). Smart devices are programmed with functions that are intended to make your life easier and can be controlled through Amazon’s Alexa or your mobile phone. Below are a few of the most common kitchen dilemmas we face, their corresponding smart device, and how you can integrate them into your existing kitchen design.
Smart Speakers
The first step in building a smart kitchen is to have a control hub that connects all your devices. Smart speakers such as Amazon Echo or Google Home serve as the central command post and allow voice functionality to your other smart devices.
Smart speakers in the kitchen can also help you build a grocery list, provide recipes, and set cooking timers.
If you find you don’t always have the right measuring cups or spoons, a smart speaker can help you convert measurements such as teaspoons to tablespoons. This function can also be useful for doubling or tripling a recipe to ensure the ratio of ingredients remains the same.
And, if you’ve got other smart speakers in your home, you can use the one in your kitchen as a modern-day dinner bell and announce, over the intercom, when it’s time to eat.
These devices can be placed anywhere in the kitchen as long as there’s no obstruction to block their hearing functionality.
Low Inventory Alerts
Let’s face it – the primary function of a kitchen is still to cook meals, and you just can’t do that without the right supplies. Have you ever started a recipe, only to stop midway through once you realized you were missing a key ingredient?
Thanks to smart kitchen technology, you’ll never again face the cake mix without eggs dilemma.
With the Amazon Dash wand, you can scan the barcodes of pantry items once you’re running low and have them delivered the same day with Amazon Fresh delivery.
For dry goods, smart kitchen canisters hold ingredients such as sugar, flour, and cereal. Furthermore, thanks to the built-in digital scale, will measure how much you have left. Once the canister senses you’re running low, its automatic reorder function will place an order with a local grocery delivery service.
Like smart speakers, smart canisters and the Dash wand can easily be integrated into your existing kitchen design scheme, and there’s really no right or wrong spot to place them.
Smart Ovens
Now that all ingredients are smartly secured, it’s time to get cooking! But if your culinary specialties are little more than burnt toast and rubbery Ramen, you may need a little help in this department.
Fortunately, smart ovens exist to ensure all dishes are cooked to perfection.
Smart ovens rely on a camera that points at the food as it’s placed in the oven. Through the magic of Artificial Intelligence, the oven senses the food’s ingredients and determines an optimal temperature and cook time.
However, keep in mind that smart ovens are usually small, countertop-sized units, so they won’t replace a full-sized oven. But thanks to their relatively small size, smart ovens can be placed anywhere in your kitchen to maximize ease of use and functionality.
Smart Faucets
If you’re looking for a kitchen product that can help you save money, a smart faucet is the way to go. With their motion-sensing technology, these kitchen faucets are touchless and know when to turn on and off, so only the required amount of water is used.
And, if you’re tired of waiting for water to heat up, consider a thermostatic faucet, which can be preset to the ideal temperature so there’s no more needless waiting for cold water to turn warm.
Besides the water-saving factor, there are also safety benefits to owning a smart faucet. Since touchless technology immediately shuts off the water once your hand is moved away, this eliminates the possibility of a child scalding themselves while fumbling for the faucet handles.
And, a smart faucet operates independently of IoT, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth, so there’s no worry of losing functionality if the internet signal is interrupted. Therefore, a smart faucet can work seamlessly with your existing kitchen design as its functionality is not dependent on strategic placement.
Smart Dishwashers
After dinner’s over, if you’re not one to pop right out of your chair and wash the dishes, you’ll appreciate owning a smart dishwasher. Besides their on-off voice functionality, you can also check detergent levels, wash cycle status, and receive alerts if a malfunction or leak is detected, all from your smartphone.
But perhaps one of the best features of a smart dishwasher is their load sensing technology, which automatically senses load size and grime levels, and adjusts the water and energy levels accordingly.
And, the newest smart dishwashers even offer the option to download specialty cleaning cycles, such as “pots and pans” and “wine stemware”.
Since smart dishwashers are dependent on the internet for functionality, they’ll need to be strategically placed in your kitchen to ensure the signal remains unobstructed.
