Some might deem this impatient, but I don’t understand why pilot tests are being done for possibly making home appliances that report to computers across a network wirelessly. They should already have this technology here already and available now.

The project, which involves Whirlpool Corp., Panasonic and Microsoft Corp., relies on a wireless network, two TV tuners and Microsoft Media Server software to send the details to devices across the home network and beyond. It could be at least a year from the marketplace, depending on how the pilot and other studies iron out.

Hopefully when this year or so is up, we will receive this data in a non-proprietary format — are you listening, Microsoft? — so we can work with it and incorporate it into spreadsheets. These machines should be smart enough to tell us when they are overheating because of a clogged air vent. How did we find out recently that we had a clogged air vent? We looked. Why isn’t the machine able to tell when it is overheating. Doh, it knows enough to trip a breaker inside itself, so why doesn’t it send out a signal to our PC or cellphone and say: “Houston, we have a problem.”

Our household appliances for the most part are dumb. Manufacturers have spent foolish amounts of time and money putting LCDs inside the doors of refrigerators instead of giving us features that would help us be proactive to breakdowns. At Best Buy recently I saw one of these TV-in-door fridges and thought: why wouldn’t people buy an LCD monitor and mount somewhere besides the door of the fridge? And who would watch TV on the door of their fridge for any extended time? While cooking is the pitch, but why not a laptop or slate Tablet and Slingbox instead? Much more portable.

Now I fully expect somebody to comment and tell me the TV in their fridge door is the greatest idea ever. Just another thing to break.

Did this post make you go hmm?

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