New-Generation Homewares: Smarter and More Responsive Than Ever
Home appliances are growing up – they're getting smarter, more responsive and making life easier than ever
Georgia Madden
13 June 2019
From smart speakers and robotic vacuum cleaners to security systems you can operate from your mobile phone, there’s little doubt that Australians love their high-tech appliances and smart-home products. And the raft of offerings is getting more impressive by the day, with products that are chic, functional and designed to make life as smooth as possible. Here are a few recent offerings to hit the market, so you can think about integrating them into your existing, or updated, home.
LG rollable TV
Can’t bear the thought of your television dominating your living room or obstructing your beautiful view? If so, a television that disappears from view when not in use is sure to appeal. LG Signature is soon to release the first-ever rollable 65-inch OLED television (the price and release date are yet to be announced). When you’re done watching your favourite shows, the screen slowly and steadily lowers into a slender and unobtrusive brushed-aluminium base unit, and effectively disappears with barely a trace.
Can’t bear the thought of your television dominating your living room or obstructing your beautiful view? If so, a television that disappears from view when not in use is sure to appeal. LG Signature is soon to release the first-ever rollable 65-inch OLED television (the price and release date are yet to be announced). When you’re done watching your favourite shows, the screen slowly and steadily lowers into a slender and unobtrusive brushed-aluminium base unit, and effectively disappears with barely a trace.
Dyson V11 cord-free vacuum
The humble vacuum cleaner is getting smarter and more intuitive than ever, making cleaning your floors – and other surfaces, such as upholstery and your car’s interior – a breeze. Dyson’s high-performance new V11 cord-free vacuum (from $1,099) is one such example.
It has a smart ‘high torque’ cleaner head with a special sensor that ‘reads’ your floor type and automatically adjusts suction to suit. It also has an LCD screen that displays how much run time you have left, so you can figure out how many more floors you can vacuum before recharging the machine’s battery.
The V11 is powerful and hygienic too; it has 20 percent more suction than the Dyson Cyclone V10 vacuum, up to 60 minutes of run time, and it captures 99.97 percent of particles for cleaner air quality.
The humble vacuum cleaner is getting smarter and more intuitive than ever, making cleaning your floors – and other surfaces, such as upholstery and your car’s interior – a breeze. Dyson’s high-performance new V11 cord-free vacuum (from $1,099) is one such example.
It has a smart ‘high torque’ cleaner head with a special sensor that ‘reads’ your floor type and automatically adjusts suction to suit. It also has an LCD screen that displays how much run time you have left, so you can figure out how many more floors you can vacuum before recharging the machine’s battery.
The V11 is powerful and hygienic too; it has 20 percent more suction than the Dyson Cyclone V10 vacuum, up to 60 minutes of run time, and it captures 99.97 percent of particles for cleaner air quality.
Netgear’s Meural Canvas
Having trouble choosing the perfect artwork for a wall in your living room or bedroom? Here’s a solution – have them all.
Meural (powered by Netgear) is a wifi-connected smart art frame that allows you to display over 30,000 different works of art – or even showcase one of your own. Images are rendered rich and textured on the screen to look like real paintings you’d find hanging in a gallery.
Choose the artwork you want to display by swiping through the brand’s vast catalogue or giving a voice command via Amazon Alexa. You can even curate and schedule art playlists as you would your favourite music for a regularly changing display to suit your mood.
Find an interior designer on Houzz to help bring your decor dreams to life
Having trouble choosing the perfect artwork for a wall in your living room or bedroom? Here’s a solution – have them all.
Meural (powered by Netgear) is a wifi-connected smart art frame that allows you to display over 30,000 different works of art – or even showcase one of your own. Images are rendered rich and textured on the screen to look like real paintings you’d find hanging in a gallery.
Choose the artwork you want to display by swiping through the brand’s vast catalogue or giving a voice command via Amazon Alexa. You can even curate and schedule art playlists as you would your favourite music for a regularly changing display to suit your mood.
Find an interior designer on Houzz to help bring your decor dreams to life
Automated window coverings are fast gaining in popularity among homeowners, and now you don’t even have to lift a finger to open or close your blinds. PowerView Motorisation, a new initiative between Apple and Hunter Douglas (the company behind Luxaflex Window Fashions), allows you to operate window coverings simply by asking Siri on your iPhone or giving your Apple HomePod a voice command.
It also lets you program your blinds to operate on their own during the day, so you can control the amount of heat and light entering your interior, even when you’re not at home. PowerView Motorisation is also compatible with other smart-home systems such as Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
Windows of Opportunity: A Buyer’s Guide to Blinds
It also lets you program your blinds to operate on their own during the day, so you can control the amount of heat and light entering your interior, even when you’re not at home. PowerView Motorisation is also compatible with other smart-home systems such as Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
Windows of Opportunity: A Buyer’s Guide to Blinds
Netatmo’s Welcome indoor security camera
Home security cameras are getting smarter and more affordable than ever. One model is Netatmo’s Welcome indoor security camera ($349.99). Thanks to its facial-recognition technology it can recognise up to 32 familiar faces, and when it detects one that it doesn’t recognise, it sends a notification to your smart phone, along with a photo and a video of the possible intruder.
And that’s not all the system can do; it gives you an option to track motion caused by pets in your home so you can check on them when you’re out, and it will alert you if the security, smoke or carbon-monoxide alarm goes off.
Home security cameras are getting smarter and more affordable than ever. One model is Netatmo’s Welcome indoor security camera ($349.99). Thanks to its facial-recognition technology it can recognise up to 32 familiar faces, and when it detects one that it doesn’t recognise, it sends a notification to your smart phone, along with a photo and a video of the possible intruder.
And that’s not all the system can do; it gives you an option to track motion caused by pets in your home so you can check on them when you’re out, and it will alert you if the security, smoke or carbon-monoxide alarm goes off.
Mophie Charge Stream Pad+
Forever losing your USB charging cord? The latest wireless charging pads mean you’ll never have to worry about it again. Plus, they take up minimal space and eliminate that annoying cord clutter that most of us have lurking at the back of our desks. Simply pop your QI-enabled smart phone on top of a product such as the Mophie Charge Stream Pad+ ($59.95) and it will automatically start recharging.
If you prefer to be able to see your phone screen while it’s recharging, you can also choose a Charge Stream Desk Stand ($69.95).
Boost Your Creativity With a Decluttered Desk
Forever losing your USB charging cord? The latest wireless charging pads mean you’ll never have to worry about it again. Plus, they take up minimal space and eliminate that annoying cord clutter that most of us have lurking at the back of our desks. Simply pop your QI-enabled smart phone on top of a product such as the Mophie Charge Stream Pad+ ($59.95) and it will automatically start recharging.
If you prefer to be able to see your phone screen while it’s recharging, you can also choose a Charge Stream Desk Stand ($69.95).
Boost Your Creativity With a Decluttered Desk
LG Twin Wash
Nobody wants to spend their entire weekend doing the family’s laundry in your already busy schedule. If you have multiple big loads to get through, consider upgrading to one of the new-generation twin-wash machines with extra-large capacity, which let you run two generous loads at once.
LG’s Twin Wash range of machines (from $1,949 for the 11-kilogram size) is the leader of the pack. They go up to a whopping 18.5-kilogram capacity ($3,999), offering a 16-kilogram front loader up top and a 2.5-kilogram mini-washer in the base for cold-water delicates down below. You can even start and monitor the progress of the wash remotely via LG’s SmartThinQ app on your mobile.
How Do I… Choose a Washing Machine?
Nobody wants to spend their entire weekend doing the family’s laundry in your already busy schedule. If you have multiple big loads to get through, consider upgrading to one of the new-generation twin-wash machines with extra-large capacity, which let you run two generous loads at once.
LG’s Twin Wash range of machines (from $1,949 for the 11-kilogram size) is the leader of the pack. They go up to a whopping 18.5-kilogram capacity ($3,999), offering a 16-kilogram front loader up top and a 2.5-kilogram mini-washer in the base for cold-water delicates down below. You can even start and monitor the progress of the wash remotely via LG’s SmartThinQ app on your mobile.
How Do I… Choose a Washing Machine?
Upright Go2.0 ($149.95)
Most of us would like to improve our posture, but it can be hard to find the time to prioritise it and to remember to stand up straight whenever ambling down the street. One useful smart product we recently encountered is the Upright Go 2.0 ($149.95) – a wearable posture trainer with an app that gently vibrates against your upper back every time you slouch. The discreet device will even collect your posture data and let you know if your habits are improving.
Your turn
Which of these new-generation smart appliances would you use in your next home? Tell us in the Comments, save your favourite images, like this story and join the conversation.
More
Want to find out what else we can expect to see in our homes soon? Don’t miss 6 Furniture Trends: Curves and Customisation at ICFF in New York
Most of us would like to improve our posture, but it can be hard to find the time to prioritise it and to remember to stand up straight whenever ambling down the street. One useful smart product we recently encountered is the Upright Go 2.0 ($149.95) – a wearable posture trainer with an app that gently vibrates against your upper back every time you slouch. The discreet device will even collect your posture data and let you know if your habits are improving.
Your turn
Which of these new-generation smart appliances would you use in your next home? Tell us in the Comments, save your favourite images, like this story and join the conversation.
More
Want to find out what else we can expect to see in our homes soon? Don’t miss 6 Furniture Trends: Curves and Customisation at ICFF in New York
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Ikea are rolling out remote operated window blinds later this year, not sure when they are coming to Au.—
Many (most) of the ‘home security’ offerings are a dangerous waste of money - except for the manufacturer who can monetise your data. They are usually fairly easy to hack, have rubbish facial recognition, require a subscription so they can store your data in the cloud and software will need to be updated, assuming the firm stays in business long enough to bother.
—Nest was purchased by Google recently and the interwebs are raging. Nest thermostat software crashed a while back, leaving thousands in the US with freezing cold homes for days on end.
—-Anything that needs the internet to operate is inherently likely to suffer from lack of availability, not something you want in a security device imho.
—- I do love my Miele Scout automated floor cleaner though - no phone required :)