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<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I went to this year’s IFA and spent four hours just browsing the huge appliance selection that was on display. This is Europe’s biggest electronics fair and the appliances made up maybe one fifth of the total area. </span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">My IFA trends are</span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">- touchscreens – all the major appliances seem to have them now; even in full color and/or HD</span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">- colors and shapes: practically every manufacturer had appliance packages where every kitchen appliance matched the other one. That goes for laundry, too. Especially the Italian companies had some beautifully shaped and colored oven and small appliances</span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">- alternate ways of cooking: steam cooking, speed cooking, sous vide…</span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Of course, as every year: energy efficiency and connectivity.</span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Miele: I must say, I pretty much liked everything I saw here. The touchscreen-driven washers and dryers take you through the cycles and option in a pretty logical way – at least I had no problems navigation through them. Same hold true for the M-Touch kitchen appliances. They have some impressive capabilities but, of course, it takes longer to set the oven than just turning a dial. There are ovens with dials (or a mix of glass touch surface and dials) as well. They had six Scout robotic vacuums on display as well, whizzing across two platforms, one of which was raised to show that it wouldn’t drop down. What I did notice was the almost playful tune as I switched the ovens on and off – reminded me of something Samsung or LG would usually have. The people at Miele where, as you’d expect, very nice. There was a magician show of some sorts going on… but I was busy playing with the new flagship laundry appliances. Unlike 2012, none of the Professional appliances were on display. </span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Bosch/Siemens: I think they had the most impressive booth. Bosch had washers built into cubbies all the way up to the ceiling and Siemens’ booth looked like you were in some sort of SciFi movie setting. LED screens surrounding you. As for the appliances: again, I was pleased with what I saw. This new range washers, dryers and dishwashers now all display and estimate of how much energy and water is consumed (not that I would care). The dishwashers have glass touch panels, new cycles (Bosch) or three telescopic racks (Siemens). The openAssist feature is pretty neat: you just every so slightly press against the dishwasher door and it gently pops open – for those handle-free kitchens. The new ovens are stuffed with neat features and, contrary to what I had feared, easy to use – much like an iPod. The panels also move up to access the water tank for the steam function. I did notice, though, that the built-in microwaves had a fairly tiny interior. I also noticed that Siemens, once again, used some f’ed up lighting in their booth. Must be something related to the frequency of those lights but I could hardly take any videos because I had black bars running across my phone. I generally like BSH’s varioSpeed approach: laundry, cooking, dishes – you can either chose to save resources… or save up to 2/3 of time while getting the same results. The presenters were all nice, though I saw one woman, who also was a spokes lady on YouTube, who looked like a evil witch. Very Miranda Priestly in The devil Wears Prada. *yikes* Just like in the years before, there was plenty of cooking, baking and mixing going on and you could eat for free.</span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">AEG/Electrolux: speaking of presenters… I was being excuse me’d at least three times at AEG’s booth. Like: I was filming an appliances and a presenter just came in and showed a bunch of visitors the features of the very appliance I was just filming. Argh! Generally, AEG seems to stay true to their slowly but surly strategy: I easily managed to get a cycle time of six hours by selecting Cottons Eco + extra rinses + pre wash. I saw a bunch of dishwashers also flashing cycle time of over three hours on Eco. Just like Bosch and Siemens, AEG had invited TV chefs to demo the cooking appliances and there were plenty of dishes and healthy drinks to be had. I didn’t know the Satellite spray arm is now available in 45cm dishwashers, too. Electrolux was kinda hidden behind the AEG booth. Nothing much to see here as it was just the same stuff with a different design. I did, however, like that lower basket on the dishwasher that swings out and up to easier loading. I almost comes up to the upper rack. </span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Bauknecht/Whirlpool: I think this was the first time they made it to IFA. I think Bauknecht had the most innovations on display: induction ovens, a giant induction cook top that doubles as a tablet PC (just a prototype), the new washers and dryers, PowerDry in dishwashers, French Door refrigeration. I must say that I was impressed with the PowerClean technology on dishwashers. I had seen videos on YouTube of American Whirlpools having these extra jets in the lower back of the tub and the force was pathetic – but these jets here were very powerful, throwing water across the tub. Unfortunately, there was only a tiny bit of water in the tub (it was all about the drying system, not the wash system) so the burst lasted only a second before LEDs came on showing how the PowerDry system worked. Whirlpool’s commercial washer, however, was only a rebadged GE residential washer from the US – what’s up with that – and the Cottons cycle took over three hours. Commercial – yeah right. </span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Beko: Beko had the most beautiful booth I think. They had trees and plants and gardens and (fake) birds singing. I was primarily looking at the new range of washers and dryers. The cycle dial is like a copy of the Siemen’s one but, overall, these units made a nice impression. Gotta love that Express cycle that goes up to 90C but still gets clothes washed in little time. Cycles and options seemed very reasonable, though there was a lot of focus on speed: Express, Super Express, Refresh cycle and e separate quick wash option, too. The dishwashers have very flexible spike rows in the upper basket, which I think is great for my oversized coffee mugs. That little extra cutlery drawer is beyond wobbly, though. </span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Besides that, there were tons of other manufacturers, many of them Chinese companies displaying small appliances. Dyson’s booth was pretty small and the one Dyson Eye they had there did nothing. I didn’t get to see LG, Samsung or Panasonic because, unlike 2012, they didn’t have dedicated appliance sections but instead showed off their appliances along with their other stuff.</span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">All in all, I am looking forward to next year’s IFA. This was the second time I went and the second time I got to park right in front of the building – yay. People were advised to use public transportation or park use one of the 5000 additional parking spaces at the Olympic stadium. But I managed to arrive right in front of the entrance; only had one minor car accident. </span>
