The future of our home appliances

One of the biggest benefits of a smart home is being able to know what’s going on when you are not actually there. In this fast-paced modern world, it is no wonder that our home appliances are also getting a makeover. From smart devices in our palm, we gain access to information at the press of a button, or the touch of a screen if you must. It is only natural that our home appliances get integrated on a single platform.

When people think of the technology of the future, virtual reality, 3D printing, Artificial Intelligence, quantum computing and nanotechnology are the first things that pop to mind. All of these things are well within our reach and they will play an important part in people’s day-to-day lives.

Washing machines of tomorrow

In the West, space is at a premium and smart homes are on the rise. People are already able to connect to their home server and switch on their washing machines or heating, from any part of the globe. 

Compact washing machines of the future can connect to your phone, letting you check its progress and even schedule wash cycles.

It also lets you add extra clothes during the wash cycle without turning it off. This little machine could become the norm in the not so distant future.

Robot vacuum cleaners

Robot vacuum cleaners have come a long way since iRobot’s Roomba. Although ostensibly the same technology, they have become a lot smarter of late, a trend set to only improve over time.

The future robot can switch between mop and vacuum mode when reaching different floor surfaces. It also links to your smart device via an app to tell it which rooms to clean or not. 

Smart Fridges

With the trend for making anything and everything ‘smart’, the humble fridge is the latest victim. Although fridges with screens are nothing new, integrating a smart device functionality is. Now, you will only buy what you need. You’ll be notified when you are fresh out of milk, eggs and other essentials.

Smart security to keep our homes safe

Whether you’re worried about home intruders or just need to keep an eye on your children or elderly parents, cameras nowadays can stream a live high definition video feed straight to your phone. Artificial Intelligence will only become more important in future tech, especially within our homes. There is a plethora of home security devices out there but AI integration into them might be the future.

These smart home devices typically connect to your home Wi-Fi network and allow you to view live video footage of activities occurring inside or outside of your house. It will also send an alert to your phone when someone or something is out there, record video of the event, and depending on features, let you talk to whoever is on your property.

Even your bathroom isn’t safe

There is smart tech for your bathroom as well. You can, by voice command, make your bathroom effectively hands-free. You can warm up your toilet seat or be alerted when the bath water is at the perfect temperature.

It seems a little silly taking a pot that you do your business in and making it ‘smarter’, but it’s already happening. There are toilets in Japan that will perform a urinalysis after people do their business, and then inform them whether or not they have diabetes — or are at risk for it. It seems that’s one of the main uses for smarter toilets, keeping us healthy, which makes a lot of sense when you think about it. Toilets may soon be able to tell women they are pregnant by analysing urine, or that someone has colon cancer. There are other smart features like automated deodorizers and flushing systems in place already.

Just take a moment to consider how many of your devices are designed to be used with an active internet connection. That range of products will expand to include home appliances, tools, monitoring systems and much more.

Future homes will include closed and private network access to connect all of those devices and allow communication between them. Sure, you may have to go purchase a router to get your devices up and running today but hopefully that won’t be necessary someday. Wireless devices will automatically be installed in newer homes.

This ties in directly with a personal home security system, which can be used with the private network. Facial recognition software would allow homeowners keyless entry into the home or network. A CCTV monitoring system would allow them to patch in remotely and check their home’s status while away on vacation. You could activate an emergency alert mode via a mobile device if something goes awry. The possibilities are endless.