Once a network is in place, home owners can install special Web-enabled boxes between their appliances and the network, not unlike X10 boxes , that allow the appliances to be turned on and off, or monitored, over the Web. Then as appliance makers roll out washing machines and microwaves with built-in Net connections, they can be plugged directly into the home network. With this new generation of devices, home owners will have a much wider variety of services, Marsh said. Many of today's appliances have sophisticated logic built into the hardware. Clothes dryers, for example, can tell when the washing is dry.
Toasters know when the toast is about to burn.
But if you want new features, you have to buy a whole new device. Instead, appliance makers in the near future hope to deliver new capabilities via software and the Internet. So, as your collection of fine china grows, you could download a special wash cycle for your dishwasher tuned specially for porcelain. The range of services would become pretty specialized. Oven manufacturers will beam the perfect temperature settings for baked Alaska straight to the range, and makers of washing machines could download complex pre-rinse and wash cycles for removing tough stains from delicate fabrics.