Keith Watanabe * NET 2.0

I saw a brief news headliner about the gadgets of tomorrow on CNET that seemed to focus on Japan household goods.  Naturally, a Japanese woman accompanied the photo but it got me thinking about the whole notion of these future household appliances (that is, without even reading the article).  Here's a simple formula for people out of ideas that want to invent something new: giving a housewife more time for TV and her bath.

Seriously.

That's your challenge future inventors.  Interview a housewife and figure out ways of allowing her to watch more TV while being productive.  If a housewife watches less TV and spends more time cooking or cleaning, you've already failed.  Here's some things I'd like to see:

• A device that automatically picks up clothes off the floor, sorts them and puts them away for washing in the appropriate order and type (whites with whites, towels with towels, etc.)
• A device that removes expired food from your refrigerator and disposes of it properly (bonus points to those who come up with something that sorts it for people like me living in Japan)
• A better dishwasher.  If you have old food clinging in bulk in your pans, the dishwater should automatically dispose of it.
• An automated lightbulb replacement tool.  No more step ladders or attempts in figuring out what volts you need for a light.  The tool just switches it when one burns out (or better yet, how about a light that just doesn't burn out???)
• Something that handles and sorts your mail.  I think paper mail should just go away regardless, even official documents because we have computers!  That said, if we can't do away with the post office, mail man, hand written letters from your grandma, and of course junk mail, then have something that just delivers it in a nice pile to our desk.  Junk mail gets automatically shredded.
• Automated grocery delivery.  WebVan was a great idea but poorly executed (obviously).  I think the idea is still valid but they have to figure out how to make it worth it.  I think the idea is that we should get rid of the postal office and have daily delivery of groceries.  It sounds a bit socialists but imagine a system like the postman or newspaper boy who just delivers groceries to each house on a daily basis.  Somethings were made to be automated.  Grocery shopping is one of them.

Anyway just some ideas for now.  Join my site to make comments or additions.