The consumer wasn't going to pay almost as much for something with less functionality. An astute colleague, also at the 3Com baby shower that day, pointed out that Audrey wasn't waterproof, a real design flaw for a kitchen device. So the digital home, where all home devices are connected to the Internet, is still an elusive dream. Consumers aren't hungry for it. But technology companies would love to wire the home and upgrade appliances to connect to the Internet.
Connected gear means new opportunities for paid services.
The popular vision, besides a connected TV and computer, is the Internet fridge, the usual coldbox with smart features that scan groceries when they go in and out of the appliance. It orders milk when it gets low, perhaps from an Internet-based grocery store, for delivery to the doorstep. That's beneficial to me. Still, home monitoring is perhaps the killer application for the digital home, though no homeowner would pay to make it more efficient for the power company to read your meters. Perhaps, a home monitoring service from a security perspective is enticing.