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Dacor's Android-based ovens take voice commands from an app
We don't often write about ovens here, but when we do, we tend to come back to a brand called Dacor. Here at CES 2015, the 50-year-old company announced that it's adding voice activation to the phone and tablet app for its Discovery iQ Android-powered ovens plus ranges -- and we're looking at a base price of $8,999. While the existing app already comes with a remote control feature (including temperature, cooking mode and oven lights) plus recipe browsing, the new voice control saves you the hassle of tapping buttons, so long as your phone or tablet is on the same WiFi network as your oven.
Dacor's Android oven packs 1GHz processor, 7-inch screen, heat (hands-on)
Dacor's ninth-generation oven pulls together a 1GHz processor, 512MB of DDR2 RAM and Android 4.0.3. It also cooks food. At the front of the Discovery Wall Oven, there's a 7-inch LCD touch panel, while the UI behind its oven-centric widgets is apparently the product of a design collaboration between Dacor and BMW's DesigworksUSA -- they're all simple enough to navigate and get things done. The oven-maker's Discovery IQ controller cooking app will offer up interactive cooking guides, recipes and all other things cooking, although you'll still be able to install more standard apps from Google Play. The built-in cooking app offers preprogrammed dishes and adjustable timings for several dishes, while you can even program the oven to cook food remotely from any Android device. You'll also get notifications (text message or on-screen) through your other Android device when your meal is done. An iOS version of the app will be ready to launch alongside the oven sometime this summer, with the double unit priced at a wallet-trembling $7,499 and the single oven at $4,499 -- so there's the price for convenience. It'll arrive in three different finishes, but sounds like it should go well with our other digital white goods and digital cutlery. We've got our hands-on video uploading at the moment, but take a look at our gallery for a closer look.
The self-explanatory Millennia microwave in-a-drawer
If sporting a TV / microwave hybrid is too embarrassing for guests to see, or you just need one more completely extravagant household item to brag about, Dacor's got you covered. Its latest offering takes the conventional convention oven and relocates it away from the wall or countertop, and into a dwelling area most usually inhabited by silverware and Saran wrap. The Millennia microwave in-a-drawer was apparently engineered to be installed under a counter, in a kitchen island, or essentially any location where having a microwave would look thoroughly gauche. The 1.0 cubic foot cooker sports 950 watts of roasting power, defrost, reheat, and popcorn modes, 11 power levels, child lockout, automatic shutdown sensors, a timer function, and a nifty "one-touch" sliding door. While we aren't sure what this (presumably costly) device will run you, nor how much of your kitchen you'll ravage while installing it, you'll have the rest of the year to weigh your options and decide how important kitchen aesthetics really are to you.[Via Gizmag]
