I don’t see product improvement as a burden. And lack of “futuristic” features does not necessarily result in reliability. On the contrary, the low price point seems to suggest the same flimsy mechanisms and materials we’ve grown to know in typical low-end consumer products.
I’m not talking about Bluetooth-enabled refrigerators but rather the occasional genuine improvements put out by these companies. For “simplified/sophisticated” styling see Smeg, for functional improvements see LG, and for tech innovations see GE’s own higher end lines.
Definitely strategically savvy to position a stripped-down suite of appliances as “artistry” but it’s certainly not novel, and it’s more marketing than design, and this is why it disinterests me.
At the very least, can we please finally give Donald Norman some inner peace on the stove knob layout? 