Dial C for coffee with new Nespresso machine

February 27th, 2012

Appliance News Coffee Machines & Accessories

What’s all the brewhaha about?

Nespresso has launched two networked coffee machines that can express themselves.

Not to be outdone in the evolving connected appliance world, Nespresso has released two tabletop coffee machines with the ability to communicate the machine’s health to it’s makers.

An embedded SIM card allows the machines to ‘talk’ with Nespresso Customer Relationship Centres and run remote diagnostic tests. Preventative maintenance visits can also be scheduled.

Nespresso's answer to connected appliances

So far the Swiss-made machines, Aguila and Zenius, are aimed at prosumers and will only available in the business to business market such as hotels and restaurants. The two-way networked communication is being facilitated by Orange Business Services.

However, with smart appliances featuring more and more in the home it might not be too long before the regular Joe can enjoy a cup of app-prepared coffee.

“We found that Orange Business Services was the best suited operator that could cope with our global requirements and can support us in our future growth,” said Marco Zancolo, Head of B2B Channel, Nestlé Nespresso S.A.

“It was also very important for us to have a local team and presence here in Switzerland with machine to machine (M2M) expertise.”

So far this year, both LG and Samsung have hit headlines with their connected appliances such as smartphone App-operated fridges and ovens.

Keri Algar

Having once had to sit on the washing machine to stop it from bouncing into oblivion, Keri is today delighted with the new (smoother running) technologies that make housework easier every day. A self-confessed lazy-bones, Keri seeks out quirky inventions that ease the human workload, such as the robotic vacuum cleaner (wow). And as soon as someone figures out a Jetsons-like self-cleaning house, she will happily lay her pen to rest and retire from appliance journalism. Until then, her pick is a fridge that will tell her smartphone when it's time to pick up more beer on the way home. Magic.