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Original poster

WiFi washing machine - why?

50 replies

Bzzzzzbumblebee · 02/03/2021 16:58

I’m looking at buying a washing machine and a lot of them have WiFi, an app and/or can be controlled via Alexa.

Why?

I have to physically be at the machine to put the clothes etc in, so it is really easy to push the start button! I also can’t see myself checking on the app where in the wash cycle it is, quite happy just waiting for the beep at the end, or as is more usual spotting it has finished when I wander past.

Does anyone have a WiFi washing machine? Am I missing something marvellous that it does?

Any other appliances that you are puzzled by their connectivity?

OP posts:

allthegoodusernameshavegone · 02/03/2021 18:03

I’ve never used it on mine, pressing the on button when I’ve just loaded it has never really been an issue for me. What I would like is for someone to unload it, dry it an£ out away.

oohmyback · 02/03/2021 18:06

I went out with a guy who worked with WiFi and then blue tooth development before it was widely used. I couldn't get my head round it for most things but we definitely had that discussion about washing machines lol

Anyway now he's very rich and works in silicone valley but there's still no point in a WiFi/Bluetooth washing machine!

MsFogi · 02/03/2021 18:15

I keep reading about the "Internet of Things" with all our appliances connected to wifi and being super smart. It takes about two seconds for me to turn the washing machine on and I have absolutely no need for it/the fridge/dishwasher to be connected to wifi. Somehow no-one has come up with really helpful stuff to help with the time consuming/annoying stuff like clothes that walk themselves from teenage bedroom floors, into the relevant colour basket and then pop themselves in the washing machine.

PattyPan · 02/03/2021 18:19

I don't see the point of any appliances being wifi-controlled with the possible exception of a robot hoover but even then you still have to make sure there's nothing on the floor (like phone chargers to help you control them!). I've seen adverts for wifi fridges so that you can add stuff to your shopping list. Personally my shopping list is stuck to the front of the fridge so it's no easier...
I also refuse to get an Alexa in my house. Old school all the way here

Bedforme · 02/03/2021 18:22

@Kitkat151

One of my neighbours must have a WiFi tumble because when I go to log onto my internet I am offered ‘Samsung dryer’ as an option to connect to😁

Further to this I’m looking for a new washing machine and a lot are WiFi. I won’t use the feature (would just be because it was the most suitable model). I use the internet. Is there anything I need to do to keep it secure and avoid any hack into my normal WiFi or can I just ignore the feature altogether? (I have security software on laptop). Thanks to knowledgeable MNetter that can help.

Summerunlover · 02/03/2021 18:23

I have one but I am blind. It’s changed my life as I can actually start and set up my washing machine myself. It’s a game changer for accessibility.

Exhausteddog · 02/03/2021 18:25

A work colleague who is the laziest person imaginable noticed when he replaced his kettle that you could get wifi ones you could control from your phone. Even he didn't see the point as you still have to fill it and pour the cup of coffee afterwards!

itsgettingwierd · 02/03/2021 18:27

Mine came with that.

I also don't use it!

I just think it can be used if for example you leave washing in a machine overnight ready to go and can activate it when you wake up!

But I go and make a coffee when I wake up anyway even if I curl back up in bed so I just physically switch it on!

itsgettingwierd · 02/03/2021 18:29

@DaffodilSunshine

I only use mine for checking how long it's got left without getting up

But I know if I put on a 1.5 hour wash it'll finish after 1.5hrs. Why would you need to check?

miserablecat · 02/03/2021 18:30

my washing machine has a very annoying buzzer to tell you its finished. Thankfully its optional, but I would hear that wherever I was in the house whereas I do not have my phone with me all the time. And if I was out, I couldn't do anything about the fact the washing has finished!!

itsgettingwierd · 02/03/2021 18:31

@Summerunlover

I have one but I am blind. It’s changed my life as I can actually start and set up my washing machine myself. It’s a game changer for accessibility.

Oh that's good to know. I'm glad it's made a positive difference for you

StressedTired · 02/03/2021 18:38

The only benefit I could think of would be to put my clothes and washing powder in manually, then go out to work, then switch it on from my phone about an hour before I'm due home. This would prevent washed clothes sitting in there smelling damp all day if I switched it on when I left, or me having to wait longer if I switch it on after I get home. Very little benefit though tbh, I just switch it on manually when I'm not working.

Icenii · 02/03/2021 19:05

I have a toothbrush that connects to an app to tell me what part of my teeth I have cleared! I used it once. Bluetooth though.

But, if you don't secure things with WiFi, and you expose them to the Internet or your router is vulnerable, they are easy for others to control.

rwalker · 02/03/2021 19:14

I'd use it we have a time delay on ours fill it up in morning set it finish just as I come in .

WhatWouldPhyllisCraneDo · 02/03/2021 19:22

Mine has an app that connects by NFC. Supposedly you can set your own wash cycles if the eleventy billion pre set ones don't suit. Only it didn't work when I first got it and I've never checked if it was updated at all. Which shows how useful it must be!

I also have a Bluetooth toothbrush. I used the app a couple of times but got annoyed with the phone holder refusing to stay stuck to the tiles so the phone ended up in the sink. And yes I could use the app anyway, but I seem to remember you need to be able to see it while you're using it so stuck by the sink was the easiest way.

Siepie · 02/03/2021 21:56

But I know if I put on a 1.5 hour wash it'll finish after 1.5hrs. Why would you need to check?

When I put on a 1.5 hour wash, it often takes longer than 1.5 hours. Sometimes it gets down to 2 mins left then goes up to 5 mins, or gets stuck on 1 min for a while. I'm not sure I've ever had a completely accurate machine.

Bargebill19 · 02/03/2021 22:01

Does it make a decent brew!

If not what’s the point, it’s just a washer.

PreyingMantlepiece · 02/03/2021 22:05

Ours had a Bluetooth thing, I think so you can set up your own bespoke cycle maybe. Don't know. Never used it.

Nubbled · 02/03/2021 22:05

My toothbrush has wifi, it constantly asks me to link it to my phone. To tell me off for not brushing my teeth to it’s liking I think. Yet it keeps prolonging my teeth brushing sessions to ten minutes

Nubbled · 02/03/2021 22:06

Sorry blue tooth

WhatWouldPhyllisCraneDo · 02/03/2021 22:20

@Siepie

But I know if I put on a 1.5 hour wash it'll finish after 1.5hrs. Why would you need to check?

Apparently that's some kind of clever thing modern machines do because they know how much washing is actually in there and adjust accordingly. But that could be a load of bollocks

ExtraordinaryQuince · 02/03/2021 22:23

@adagio

I wondered this when we had to get a new one last year! As we are in a global pandemic and stuck wfh I literally don’t leave the house so that makes it even more superfluous.

In other news I can inform you my old direct drive LG machine was noticeably quieter spinning than my new ‘totally equivalent’ direct drive Samsung I replaced it with.
The Samsung plays a marginally longer unnecessary song at the end.
I miss the LG (the quieter spinning)

Our current machine plays several verses and choruses - totally unnecessary!

entrytohr · 02/03/2021 22:29

I use mine often. It's got a few extra programs which are really handy. Stuff like a really good drum clean. Can only access them via the app. Keeps the dial simple so oh doesn't stick everything on for 10 hours (slight exaggeration but Hes of the "the longer it's washed the cleaner it'll be" mindset) but the extra stuff's still there if you need it.

Tippytaps · 02/03/2021 22:49

I use it for the notification when the load has finished.

It could automatically order more detergent for me if I wanted it too, quite tempting when finding the last box is empty, but I haven’t got around to it yet.

optimistic40 · 03/03/2021 17:43

Hmm, I don't have one. Maybe people use them after getting everything ready for a wash load when they're going out for the day? So if you didn't want it all to finish hours before you got home and just sit there..?

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