Home is where these electronic essentials are

It happened during the lockdown four years ago.

A friend was moving into her new apartment and, in the process, got a new fridge. Home deliveries took longer during that period and it was too late when she realized that wouldn’t be getting her brand new fridge until several days later, leaving her with a week’s supply of eggs, dairy, cut-up fruits, greens, and some leftovers that would surely go bad if not kept in cold storage.

My quick-thinking friend then borrowed my insulated cooler bags and a couple more ice boxes from other friends, filled them with ice from the grocery, and, voila, a stopgap until her snazzy new fridge got delivered to her home.

We may not immediately realize it, but certain household appliances have become part and parcel of our lives, even from the time of our grandparents. We may even say that we’re guilty of taking these machines for granted, given that these have been present in our lives ever since we can remember.

Inquirer Property has come up with a list of home appliances that have become an essential part of our daily lives.

Refrigerator

Before our high tech refrigerators of today, ice boxes were non-mechanized metal or wooden boxes that simply had a compartment for storing a block of ice. Ice blocks were then delivered on a regular basis to those who had iceboxes in their homes.

Today, we have refrigerators that are so sophisticated they might as well help you run the household.

Samsung has a line of refrigerators with an interior camera, which can show the contents of your fridge via the paired smartphone app. There’s no need for you to call whoever is at home to check what else needs to be bought during a grocery run–you can simply “ask” your fridge directly.

There’s also what the brand calls the “Family Hub,” a touchscreen control panel on the fridge’s door which you can use as a digital whiteboard for the entire family. You can share notes, photos, and other reminders for each other.

LG InstaView refrigerators feature a tinted glass panel that lights up after two quick knocks, letting you see what’s inside your fridge without opening the door. It also has a Craft Ice maker that can make cubed, crushed, and round ice–talk about fancy.

Oven

The ovens of old were made of clay and stone, and were built outside the house due to their large size. Our grandparents had to chop wood in order to fuel these.

Today, we have ovens so compactly built they can occupy a small spot on the kitchen counter. You can also opt for gas- or electric-powered ones, whichever will be more convenient for you. There are also pizza ovens such as Ooni that are lightweight and portable. You can cook your very own Neapolitan pizza and flatbread right on the dinner table at home.

Blender

Another kitchen staple are blenders. It can crush ice, puree fruit into juices, smoothies, and shakes, and make salad dressings and soups.

Before the emergence of kitchen blenders, our grandmothers turned to their trusty mortar and pestle which was used for mixing, pounding, smashing, and grinding both wet and dry ingredients.

Convection oven

Air fryers surged in popularity during the pandemic, when everyone was exploring healthier alternatives in cooking. The technique wasn’t anything new, though, as it was simply based on the principles of convection ovens.

Our moms’ turbo broilers are basically the predecessors of air fryers. A smaller and more energy efficient alternative to traditional ovens, convection ovens have fans to circulate hot air, allowing food to cook evenly.

Water dispenser

In a country where tap water is not really trustworthy to drink, water filters and/or dispensers have become a compulsory addition to homes.

Before water dispensers, our forebears stored their drinking water in huge clay jars. We can see these earthen jugs in many ancestral homes turned into museums.

Vacuum cleaner

When it was first invented, vacuum cleaners were reserved for the wealthy. The huge machine was drawn by a horse, to the homes of affluent Londoners that require the cleaning service.

Today, vacuum cleaners have evolved into more manageable, portable and, most importantly, affordable cleaning machines. There are even cordless ones and some, such as the Roomba, are hands-free and app or remote controlled.

Washing machines

The earliest washing machines featured a tub and a hand crank which needed to be turned to wash the garments. The first mechanical washing machine was introduced in the 1850s. It was a drum-based contraption that relied on water pressure to stir up the clothes to remove dirt.

Today, we are presented a myriad of options when it comes to washing machine types and models. One can choose between a front loader and top loader, there are washer and dryer combos that allow you to wash and dry your clothes in one machine, and there are ones you can conveniently operate through an app on your smartphone.

The Samsung Airdresser, though not a washing machine, is a cabinet that removes dust and odor and sanitizes clothes by infusing high temperature steam deep into the fabric. This results in fewer trips to the drycleaners. Its Wrinkle Care feature smooths out creases in clothes, saving ironing time.

Turntables

Before the advent of turntables so sleek that it can occupy a small space on your room’s dresser, record players used to take over a good area of our grandparents’ living rooms. These turntables of old were housed in wooden cabinets, with sections for huge speakers and compartments for vinyl albums. 

Now, there are even turntables which have USB ports and can connect to your wireless speakers or headphones via WiFi or Bluetooth.

TV set

One of my favorite things as a child was the TV at my maternal grandmother’s house in the province. It was contained in a wooden cabinet with two disappearing sliding doors.

It didn’t really matter if the TV itself was in black and white, not remote controlled and only had five channels. Watching TV back then was such an event because we would have to dramatically roll the doors to the sides before tuning in to Saturday morning cartoons.

These days, TVs come in flat-panel displays and ultra high definition that can rival that of cinemas. Smart TVs have also given us a myriad of options, allowing us access to streaming services, games, apps, and even social media.

Sources: homeadvisor.com; interestingengineering.com; slashgear.com; techradar.com; sciencemuseum.org.uk