Appliances and Kitchen Gadgets

Typically when we talk about Web 2.0 and food, we're either talking about the snack selection at a launch party or the virtual food fights that certain Facebook apps have made possible. Not this time. Gomobo, a New York-based start-up that allows you to order and pre-pay for food at participating restaurants on your cell phone or computer, plans to announce a new feature on Thursday that will allow you to connect your Twitter account to the service.

As a result, when you order pick-up food from Gomobo, it'll automatically send a message to your Twitter feed … Read more

If speaker systems can be designed to fit in with the bathroom decor, then surely a set for the dining room table is eminently reasonable. The "Supper Sound System" delivers on the promise of its name, blending in seamlessly next to the salt and pepper shakers in ceramic cases molded to look like bottles, tumblers and other dinnerware. Technabob notes that the base station even resembles a serving dish.

The system, made by Japan-based Taguchi Craft, is apparently taking the opposite approach from other home stereo designers in believing that sound equipment should be seen as well as … Read more

When computer geeks come to Japan, they head toward the electronics neighborhood called Akihabara. But when food freaks visit Tokyo, their destination is Kappabashi-dori, a mile-plus-long street sporting several dozen stores that carry all manner of kitchenware and food.

Here you can find coffee cups half a storey tall, a thousand kinds of bowls, plastic sushi, restaurant ware, and more bento boxes than you can shake a whisk at.

CNET's sister sites CHOW and Reviews have joined their mighty forces to bring you "Cooking up a high-tech kitchen," an in-depth look at several kitchens' worth of cooking … Read more

Editors' note: The report cited in this article originally misstated the name of one of the Web sites studied. The correct Web site is RachaelRayMag.com.

The next big copyright battle may be fought in the kitchen.

Content tracking company Attributor recently conducted a study to get an idea of how frequently online recipes are copied and reposted to other sites. What it found might concern some recipe publishers.

Attributor collected all the original recipes that appear on Epicurious.com, Allrecipes.com and RachaelRayMag.com. The software then checked those recipes against what was available elsewhere on the Web, looking … Read more

If product-design firm Gray Matter is to be believed, a whopping 70 percent of us are frustrated by soggy breakfast cereal. That's why the group invented Eatmecrunchy, a bowl designed to keep your milk and cereal separate until you mix them. The secret lies in the bowl's interior shelf, which holds most of your Wheaties above the milk, allowing only a small portion of the bowl's contents to mix. No assembly is required--you pour cereal and milk as you would with a conventional bowl--but you do have to shovel cereal into the shelfless section where it can … Read more

Someone at Ford Motor company seems to have a sense of humor.

This $69 branding iron from Ford will imprint the "Ford tough" logo on your steaks, hamburgers or anything else you choose. I'm not sure why anyone would want "tough" meat, but it could be one way to mark the well-done from the medium-rare steaks at your next barbecue.

Kudos to the Truckblog for finding this gem on the Ford Collection Web site.

With the winter holidays rapidly approaching, everyone seems to have baking on the brain. I'm already plotting which pies are on the docket for me this winter, and as the weather turns colder, big plates of lasagna are starting to sound mighty good.

While you think about what kinds of pies, casseroles and other baked dishes you might whip up, it's also a good time to make sure you have all the right equipment--ahead of time, of course, so you don't find yourself stuck at the last minute.

This flexible stainless steel spatula is pure genius. It'… Read more

We hate to say this, but we fear that this whole multimedia-kitchen thing may be getting out of hand. As much as we appreciated the built-in LCDs, espresso makers and, of course, beer on tap (we're human, after all), those conveniences were restricted mostly to the refrigerator--where we spend most of hour waking hours anyway. But a range hood? That's a little sick, even for us.

Nevertheless, Siemens plans to introduce its "Media Range Hood" to North American markets sometime next year, Appliancist says. Based on the "AvantGarde MultiMedia Hood" that has been selling … Read more

For tiny apartment dwellers with limited kitchen space, this collapsible dish rack could be very handy. It's made of two separate pieces of plastic that fit together to make a dish rack when you need it. They can then be taken apart, laid flat and tucked away in a drawer when you're doing prep work and need the counter space.

I can't imagine it would be sturdy enough for pots, pans or heavy casserole dishes. But even if it can only handle the everyday stuff, the ability to tuck it away to clear the counter top or … Read more