2001: A Space Kitchen

Strange as it may sound, Miele, a German manufacturer that produces some of the world's top high-end appliances, grabbed our attention by displaying a really unusual looking cooker hood fan. Keep in mind that this fan held our attention over a full fashion show and assorted chefs cooking small tidbits for patient spectators. It's rather hard to find words that do justice to the Miele DA6000 W Cooker Hood, so we'll go ahead and quote the elderly woman who happened to be standing beside us the first time we saw it descend. Mouths agape, she met our eyes and said simply "Sexy, right?", then took another bite of her scallion pancake. Enough talk, just watch the video; we'll be here when you get back.

Pretty impressive, right? It's got dimming halogen bulbs, can be controlled either from the cook top (which you saw in the video—yes, the staff member was confused as you might think by our fascination with a fan), and can be activated using touch controls that are located on the fan itself. The products it happened to be paired with are the KM 6386 Induction Cooktop and the H 5981 BP, the largest oven available by Miele on the German market today.

All of these products have been out for a while, so there's nothing really special about them except novelty for the under-exposed. What may interest consumers is the connection these particular products have with the company Busch-Jaeger. The representative I spoke to said they've been operating in America since 1995 under the company heading KNX this company handles home automation, everything from lights to electronics. As of four years ago, they've added Miele to their stable of partner companies, which means you can control your applicable home appliances from the comfort of...whatever chair you happen to be sitting in, as long as your smart mobile device is with you. Seems like those cartoons of futuristic houses that we watched so many years ago are one step closer to becoming a reality.

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