Smart coffeemaker runs .Net, not Java

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Nov. 16, 2006

Wake up to fresh-brewed coffee and real-time weather with the first coffeemaker to incorporate Microsoft's SPOT (Smart Personal Objects Technology) and the .Net Micro Framework. The Smart Mill & Brew, from Salton subsidiary Melitta, gets weather information broadcast over the air from MSN Direct.

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3-day forecast screen
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The Smart Mill & Brew provides current weather conditions, the day’s forecast, probability for precipitation, 3-day forecast, severe weather alerts, and sunrise and sunset times. The information comes from Microsoft's MSN Direct subscription broadcasting service, which sends selected content directly to SPOT-enabled devices through FM radio station subcarrier transmissions.

SPOT represents a set of hardware and software technologies capable of being embedded in a wide variety of everyday objects such as watches, appliances, display surfaces, and toys, according to Microsoft. SPOT's software stack has been variously dubbed as .Net Embedded and TinyCLR. More recently it has evolved into the .Net Micro Framework (.Net MF).

The .Net MF is a low-end software platform aimed at deeply embedded applications. According to Microsoft, .Net MF extends the advantages of .Net and development using the Visual Studio toolset into small devices with tight constraints on cost, memory, processor, and/or power consumption. Loosely speaking, .Net competes with Sun's Java, another managed code environment that is also available in a version targeting embedded and mobile devices.

First SPOT coffeemaker

While the Smart Mill & Brew may be the first SPOT coffeemaker, it's not the first SPOT-based weather station. Oregon Scientific introduced its Regional Weather Station at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) last January.

Nor is this Salton's first foray into the world of Windows Embedded. At the 2004 CES, the company introduced a group of networked home appliances controlled via WiFi and AC powerline networking from two "command centers" running Windows CE. The initial set of appliances included a coffeemaker, a breadmaker, and a microwave oven.

Commenting on the company's new SPOT-enabled coffeemaker, Salton CEO Leonhard Dreimann stated, "The addition of weather information to our Melitta Mill & Brew coffee makers greatly enhances the customer experience in that the entire process is simple, automatic and easy. [This is a] fun and functional product that combines two of the things that we want most when we start our days -- coffee and weather."

The Melitta Smart & Brew with MSN Direct content included is now available online from Amazon and also from Sharper Image stores for around $200.

Oh, and it makes a great cup of coffee too, Microsoft says.

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