Toys R (’nt) Us
Awhile ago, PC Magazine waxed poetic about the glories of the wired home. Hey, I’m all for wi-fi so I can be online throughout the house. And I need my TiVo. But don’t touch my kitchen.
I love electronic toys — podcasts on my iPod, music from my smart phone, games on my pda — even little Roomba to clean my house. But few of these come without frustrations. Like when I couldn’t get into iTunes to download “Wait, Wait don’t Tell Me,” before a business trip. Or when my smartphone stopped giving me e-mail when my mom was in the hospital. The last straw was when my Palm stopped making a bluetooth connection with my cell phone after the hours I spent configuring e-mail and Internet access. (Only little Roomba performs his little heart out, all the time.)
So I began thinking. As we harness technology in the kitchen, how are we going to connect to access all the services promised and how are we going to maintain the technology? What does a service contract look like for an Internet-enabled refrigerator?
If we don’t have the technical know-how or access to the Geek Squad, will we end up paying upgraded prices to enjoy only a small number of the promised features? Will we need to call tech support in India every time some appliance balks? (Tip: always get the tech support’s name and employee number to ensure best service.) Or will we require expensive service calls?
I don’t need the microwave oven that recognizes UPC barcodes to heat packaged meals perfectly. Are we really so lazy that we can’t read the number of minutes on the instruction package, or is frozen food now so delicate that a slightly different power setting will ruin your dinner?
And I don’t want a kitchen computer to cook from. I may research recipes online, but when I cook, give me a recipe on paper — something light and mobile that I can carry from the prep area to the range. I also need to see the whole page — don’t make me scroll down to get the rest of the instructions.
Where we can benefit from technology is in developing performance-enhancing equipment. The kind of experimentation chefs like Charlie Trotter are doing, improvising with medical devices to roast foods quickly and perfectly. Or to freeze food instantaneously for a specific effect. Sous vide for the home. Commercial style ice cream makers. There are a lot innovations on the cusp that can transform cooking.
I wish manufacturers would talk to me or others like me who understand home cooking before they invest in more pie-in-the-sky devices. But then again, maybe nobody cares about authentic cooking. Only the cool bells and whistles.
