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IFA 2013: LG Smart ThinQ Kitchen Android app and concept hands-on video

LG has opened the doors to the Smart ThinQ Kitchen, a smart home concept aimed at those who want to remotely manage appliances from the comfort of their smartphone.   

If you’re the kind of person who wants to micro-manage their entire domestic lives, including even seeing a live update on the temperature in both your oven and fridge on your TV screen, then this concept might be for you. 

The scenario constructed at IFA 2013 consists of a refrigerator, washing machine, microwave oven and even a robotic vacuum cleaner that can all be controlled through one mobile app.

Read Recombu Digital’s guide to the Smart HomeAnyone installing a raft of new WiFi-connected appliances can touch any Android smartphone to them to be instantly in control – a feature LG calls NFC Tag-on – using an app called LG Smart Control.

It’s a pretty easy app to use, with controls including the selections of different cycles and temperatures for the FR4160MTNH Smart Washing Machine, which includes a ‘soil level’. Nice. 

You can check your washing machine’s status and even history, thereby catching in the act those sneaky housemates who wash their clothes in your machine without asking. There’s even messages that tell you when your pie is cooked. How about that for 21st Century convenience? 

LG sure has all the bases covered; the Smart Manager app, for iOS or Android phones, can produce a shopping list, though we’re not convinced about the convenience angle since food has to be added manually from a list.

Until instant barcode scanning or ‘food recognition’ comes into play, the idea for now entails a post-shopping trip admin nightmare. There’s also a Health Manager section of the app that recommends recipes and using age, gender, weight to create a meal-plan. As a concept it’s not that hard to grasp, even if the reality fell a little short of expectations. 

IFA 2013 reporting, photos and video by Jamie Carter.

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