Smart Phone

Appliance technology seems to evolve continually. Smart devices provide convenience and can change the way you prepare your food and eat. So, here, we’ll explore how appliance technology can help you to become a better cook and change the way you enjoy family dinners. Improve Your Culinary Skills Cooking takes time to develop as a skill; you don’t just find yourself able to make a perfect beef wellington when you wake up one morning. To become a master chef, you need to learn new skills and acquire competence. Fortunately, even if you haven’t attended culinary school, you can make your life easier in the kitchen with the right technology. With the right refrigerator, you don’t need fancy schools to learn the skills to make the perfect Hollandaise sauce; you’ll be able to learn in your own kitchen. Appliance technology has now taken us to where we can listen to music, watch television, and share notes on the device that previously just kept our food cool. Because of this technology, we can now have access to information to make cooking and eating better. You can pull up recipes, watch tutorials, or just enjoy your favorite tunes while you make your latest culinary masterpiece. Use Your Phone to Get in Control Smartphones have been a revolution, and you can basically do anything with them today. This includes helping improve your cooking. Now, you don’t have to wait until you finish at the grocery store and get home to preheat your oven to

Jenn-Air Wall Ovens take voice orders from AlexaSmart Appliances at Universal Appliance and Kitchen CenterJenn-Air® Connected Wall Ovens Respond To Alexa Voice CommandsEasy Upgradability Helps Ensure Ovens are "Future Proof"Jenn-Air® has been a true leader in using technology in their appliances, particularly in cooking products. A few years ago they launched a revolutionary oven with a 7" touch full color screen that serves as a culinary center automatically cooking food to the user's desired doneness. They've continued as an early adopter in "smart" appliances with connected wall ovens, that can be operated with apps for iPhones and Androids, and are tied in with Nest home controls. Now, they can be connected to Amazon's Alexa voice assistant. Here's how it works:Simple voice commands have been created for everything from preheating and setting timers to changing temperatures and cooking modes. For example, while hands are busy prepping and mixing ingredients, preheating the oven to a desired temperature can be initiated simply by saying "Alexa, tell Jenn-Air to preheat the oven to 400 degrees." Owners of Jenn-Air® Connected Wall Ovens can now use their voices, along with the brand’s existing IOS and Android wall oven apps, to control many essential functions of this luxury, high tech appliance. The new voice command feature, enabled by Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant, is easily activated using the brand’s free wall oven “Skill,” one of thousands available at the Alexa Skills Store.Jenn-Air® Connected Wall Ovens are already largely controllable using the IOS and Android mobile apps, whether for

Why Buy a Refrigerator With A CameraSamsung, Dacor, and LG Refrigerators with Built-In CamerasWhy in the world would you want to buy a refrigerator with a built-in camera? GOOD QUESTION. Below, we'll explore 3 appliance brands that currently offer refrigerators with cameras. The obvious answer to the question of putting a camera in your refrigerator is so that you can know what's inside.The cameras not only take photos of the contents of your fridge, they're "smart cameras" that link with your smart phones so that you can view your refrigerator contents remotely. For example, when you're shopping you may want to check the status of your milk.The Dacor, LG, and Samsung cameras can each let you view the contents of your refrigerator from your smart phone and much more. Here are just a few highlights to whet your appetite:DacorThe Dacor column refrigerators are designed for the luxury refrigerator buyer who wants high tech with his or her luxury. The built-in cameras on the all new Dacor columns are just a highlight of the advanced features on these columns. Recently acquired by Samsung, Dacor is enjoying not just an infusion of resources, but also a healthy dose of advanced features completely new to the brand and to the luxury category in general. Their beautiful new column refrigerators are just one example. Ask your sales consultant at UAKC about the new Dacor Modernist line.LGKorean manufacturer LG created quite a stir when they introduced an early edition of high tech refrigerators with a

What to look for in Smart AppliancesSmart Choices at Universal Appliance and Kitchen CenterWhat's a smart appliance?There's more than one definition, but for our purposes here we're going to say that a smart appliance has some degree of connectivity. It might be as simple as an app that notifies you if your refrigerator door has been left open for some period of time. Or it might be remotely pre-heating and cooking a roast from your smartphone. All of this may sound wonderful, but there are pros and cons.Is it safe?Some manufacturers, as well as UL (Underwriters Laboratory) have expressed views on limiting remote capabilities for certain products. For example, should a remote app for ovens allow consumers to put their ovens through a self-clean cycle while nobody is home? Even remotely operating a cooking appliance of any sort has some consumers wary. One manufacturer has a remote app that can be set to operate only by Bluetooth which gives the homeowner complete use of remotely operating the appliance only within the house.How much is the premium for Smart Appliances?The first refrigerator with a TV built into the door launched over a decade ago and retailed close to $10,000. It really had little functionality, and failed miserably. Today, Samsung has a Family Hub refrigerator with a 21" tall wi-fi enabled full-featured communications center in the door and cameras inside that can be viewed remotely eg. from the grocery store with the Samsung app. The Samsung Family Hub refrigerator retails for $5800.

Smart Appliances are Here to StayTechnology that makes kitchen chores easierWait no more to be able to cook a roast at home while you're still at the office. Just use your smart phone to notify your oven. Need to check your refrigerator temperature while you're on vacation? No problem. Don't know what cycle to use in your dishwasher. *Let your dishwasher determine how dirty your dishes are and set the cycle for you. These are just a few capabilities of today's connected appliances.*For years many dishwashers have come equipped with sensors that measure turbidity in the water to determine how dirty the dishes are and adjust the diswasher cycles accordingly,Here are examples of just two smart appliances available at Universal Appliance and Kitchen Center:Jenn-Air connected wall oven.Jenn-Air’s new connected wall oven is available in single, double, or micro-combo convection oven models. The ovens can be operated with either iOS or Android apps connected through your home wi-fiThe app can provide complete control of the oven. Users can operate the app and view outputs on the oven screen, and also use the app remotely.Jenn-Air® 30” Connected Single Wall Oven with V2™ Vertical Dual-Fan Convection System JJW3430DB JJW3430DP JJW3430DS.Features: V2™ Vertical Dual-Fan Convection System 7-Inch Full-Color Touch-Anywhere LCD Display Jenn-Air® Culinary Center DuraFinish™ Protection Soft, Auto-Close Door WiFi Connectivity Halogen Theater Lighting 5.0 Cubic Foot Oven CapacityJenn-Air connected ovens also available in double oven and microwave-oven comination versions.Whirlpool 6th Sense Live Whirlpool Duet WFL98HEBU Front‑Loading WasherAlways stay connected to your Whirlpool® front

Time to Get Smart Appliances? The Consumer Electronic Show (CES), and the Design and Construction Week (IBS + KBIS) are all being held this month in Las Vegas. New "smart" appliances are sure to be shown at each venue. What's a "smart" appliance? Maybe not what you think. When the word "smart" is prepended to the word appliance, it usually means that the appliance connects remotely to a device such as a smartphone to allow the device to communicate with the appliance and vice versa. So far, the appeal of smart appliances has been limited. Most of the very early smart appliances didn't do much. So you can control the appliance from your easy chair or maybe even from your car. Not exciting. But much more is on the way. For example, new smart refrigerators can send you a text message to tell you that you left the refrigerator door open. I'm not going to rush out of the house just to buy a new smart appliance...BUT if I'm buying a new appliance, and I can get one with smart capabilities, I won't laugh it off. If my new refrigerator can send me a note telling me that the power to my refrigerator has gone off, I want that! Here are just a few new developments in smart appliances coming soon: GE Currently GE makes smart wall ovens that allow you to pre-heat your oven when you’re on your way home. They're now adding smart appliances including a French door