For a connected kitchen, the future is now

This prototype Siemens refrigerator has a camera inside that can help you keep track of your groceries from your mobile device

A growing number of home appliance manufacturers are releasing smart appliances that put aside high-tech features for simple, commonsense innovations. It's a new take on the connected kitchen, one that's designed to help out busy families and even save them some money.

For years, consumers have been promised fridges that can tweet and ovens that can download and follow recipes. But the latest models ditch those gimmicks, instead hiding subtle technological advances behind traditional exteriors. With features like smartphone-based alerts and energy grid connectivity, this new generation of smart appliances promises to give consumers more control over their kitchens.

Take, for example, the connected fridge that Siemens showed off at September's IFA consumer electronics and appliances show in Berlin. In the past, smart refrigerators have promised to help consumers keep track of their groceries, but until now they've required shoppers to perform an extra task when putting food away. Currently available "smart" fridges from Samsung and LG, for instance, require users to manually input and delete every carrot, egg and milk carton into a food-tracking app.

Siemens came up with a simpler solution. With a built-in Wi-Fi connection and multiple cameras positioned throughout its interior, the company's latest fridge lets you instantly spy on its shelves from your smartphone. So, instead of calling home from the dairy aisle to find out if you need butter, you can simply look for yourself without leaving the grocery store. Though it's still in the concept stage, the Siemens connected fridge should be on the market in Europe by 2014. Similar products from Siemens' sister company Bosch may go on sale in the U.S. as soon as 2016.

GE's latest wall ovens also let you keep an eye on your kitchen, and they're already on sale. The Brillion app lets you preheat your oven, check your timer and add time to a recipe all from an easy-to-use smartphone app. Notification Lighting — a bar of LEDs that runs underneath the oven's control panel — glows to let you know when your oven is preheated, and will slowly fade as your timer runs down. It's an easy way to keep an eye on dinner if you're busy chopping veggies or helping the kids with homework, and it doesn't require any specialized technical knowledge.

The Samsung T9000 smart refrigerator has a touch-screen LCD built into its door.  Samsung

The GE Notification Bar, a row of LED lights that runs underneath the oven's control panel, glows to let you know when your oven is preheated. It slowly fades away as your timer runs down. It can integrate with the Brillion App.  GE

Unfortunately, Brillion app compatibility and Notification Lighting is only available on GE's high-end wall ovens, which cost a few hundred dollars more than their non-connected counterparts. That's not surprising, since today's smart appliances tend to be significantly more expensive than their traditional counterparts — partially to pay off initial development costs, and in part because early adopters may be willing to pay more for the latest tech.

It will likely be a few years before smart appliances come down in price. But the Whirlpool 6th Sense Live line of home appliances, released early this year, offers a glimpse into a future where Internet-connected appliances will actually save you money.

Since energy prices often vary between peak and off-peak hours, 6th Sense Live-equipped refrigerators, dishwashers, washers and dryers are designed to run only when electricity costs are lowest. Equipped with Wi-Fi connectivity, the appliances can access a database of real-time energy pricing to automatically determine when it's cheapest to run the dishwasher or defrost the fridge. It might save you a few dollars in energy costs each year, and it certainly helps your electric company manage its overburdened grid, but the appliances themselves cost a few hundred dollars more than their non-smart counterparts.

Luckily, there are other benefits. Whirlpool's 6th Sense Live technology also lets you control your appliances with your smartphone and get alerts via text message if you need supplies or service. Upscale smart washers and dryers from LG and Samsung offer similar connectivity, but LG's remote diagnostic service extends across most of the manufacturer's lineup, even to lower-cost models.

Called Smart Diagnosis, it plays a soft tone that can be decoded by a smartphone app. If the problem is relatively minor — say, a refrigerator water filter that needs replacement — the app will offer instructions on how you can resolve the situation yourself. If the problem is more significant, it'll set up a service call.

It's just another way that appliances can make life easier by connecting your home to the wider world. Whether arranging for a repair, letting you know when dinner will be ready, or helping you shop for groceries, the newest smart appliances prove that technology doesn't have to make the kitchen more complicated.