appliances

Disassembled electric appliances

Ever wondered what the inside of your waffle maker looks like? Yes? No? Well, even if not, you might be surprised how interesting small electric appliances are when you take them apart.

Brittny Badger has produced a wonderful series of still-life photos of disassembled small electric appliances, such as a waffle iron, electric knife, and a can opener. Rather than the usual slapdash tear-down photos one sees of the latest tech gadget, these are artfully composed images that show the inner complexity of mundane objects that we typically take for granted.

As my colleague Denise Gershbein says:

Seeing the sheer … Read more

Whirlpool updates its French-door fridge offerings

Three years ago, we switched from an ordinary refrigerator to a French-door, bottom-freezer model, and the difference in space is nothing short of amazing. If you spend just a little bit of time planning your fridge layout, you'll quickly find that you really can open just one door most of the time to reach your favorite drinks and quick snacks. But when you need to store trays of food for easy access, you have the space, and a terrific presentation. Slide open the full-length deli drawer and wow your guests--really! I have at least two friends who bought a … Read more

Google expands search appliance capacity

Google has expanded the capacity of its Search Appliance and made other improvements to the customized server that lets people search their companies' documents.

The earlier incarnation of the device could index as many as 3 million documents, but the newer model can handle 10 million, said Matthew Glotzbach, director of product management for enterprise at Google. Other changes include the ability to present search results based on descriptive metadata associated with documents and the ability for administrators to customize search results for different categories of employees, he said.

Google makes the vast majority of its revenue and profit by … Read more

See what's in drawer No. 2

Appliances have made their way off counters and floors and into a place that's far less conspicuous: drawers. Drawer freezers and fridges have made their way into savvy cooks' kitchens because they make reaching items easier, they blend in under countertops, and they're handicap-friendly.

But the drawer is a space that has great potential outside of the realm of cooling. If you haven't seen it yet, you should take a moment to check out Dacor's Millennia Microwave-in-a-Drawer. Granted, the microwave in a drawer was first released in 2006 by Sharp, but one important lesson to learn … Read more

Cool, carbonated drinks on tap at home

If I tell you how much soda my husband drinks in a day, you won't believe me. Let's put it this way: when he switched from Coke to Diet Coke and made no other changes in his diet, he lost 8 pounds in a month. And he's a skinny guy with a 32-inch waist. Five cans a day, sometimes six. And guess who gets to haul all those cans home from the store? Also, they aren't free, something I've been muttering under my breath for years.

I've heard of Soda-Club before--it was popular in … Read more

Is the stand-alone toaster an endangered species?

Pity the poor toaster. Like a single person surrounded by married couples, it seems destined to be fixed up again and again, with the promise that this coupling will be the match that lasts.

The latest pairing to come to my attention: a Breakfast Set from Team Appliances, which combines a two-slot toaster with a five-cup drip coffee maker. All the expected features are here, from a removable crumb tray and adjustable darkness settings on the toaster to a reusable filter and automatic shut off on the coffee maker. What's missing? A timer to start your coffee brewing before … Read more

Ice, ice, baby

The Fourth of July is just around the corner, so you'd better dust off the barbecue and hose down the plastic chairs. And if your weather is anything like the extreme heat we're enjoying in Houston, you'll want to figure out how to keep things cool while you're standing over an open flame.

A few weeks back, my colleague Jennifer mentioned the Scotsman Brilliance residential ice maker, which is one option, but my priorities are a little bit different: I don't want the 47 children who invariably follow the scent of hot dogs and descend … Read more

Cooking.com stirs up $13 million

Bon appetit for Cooking.com: The kitchen appliance retailer announced Wednesday that it has pulled in $13 million in venture funding in a round led by Azure Capital Partners. ORIX Venture Finance also contributed venture debt to the round, and Azure partner Michael Kwatinetz is now on the company's board of directors.

The new cash will be used toward a variety of goals at Cooking.com: expand editorial and social-networking operations on the site (a sound decision when it seems like everyone can't stop talking about Bobby Flay and Mario Batali), opening a new distribution center in Ohio, … Read more

Internet-connected coffee maker has security holes

An Australian man has discovered security vulnerabilities in his Internet-connected coffee maker that could allow a remote attacker to not only take over his Windows XP-based PC but also make his coffee too weak.

Craig Wright, a risk advisory services manager at professional services firm BDO, found several security holes, including a buffer overflow in the Internet Connection software that links his Jura F90 coffee maker to his PC.

Once connected to the Internet, the high-end coffee maker, which retails for nearly US$2,000 on Amazon, lets you do things like set the strength of your coffee and get … Read more