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More than 900 entries from 50 countries were received in this year’s contest. Undergraduate and graduate industrial design students were asked to submit their best home appliance ideas suitable for the next 90 years, in honor of the Electrolux 90-year anniversary. Designs addressed the way people prepare and store food, wash clothes and do dishes today and over the next nine decades.

Take a look at these designs. I've added my comments; please add yours. Would you actually use any of these devices?

The finalists are presented in random order.

1. Cocoon Fish and Meat Maker by Rickard Hederstierna, Lund Institute of Technology, Sweden
Similar to heating popcorn in a microwave, Cocoon prepares genetically engineered and pre-packaged meat and fish dishes by heating muscle cells identified by radio frequency identification (RFID) signals. Okay, that’s enough for me.

 2. Le Petit Prince Robotic Greenhouse by Martin Miklica, Brno University of Technology, Czech Republic
Le Petit Prince is a robotic greenhouse designed to facilitate the future exploration and population of Mars. Le Petit Prince takes care of a plant it carries inside its glass case, which is mounted on top of its four-legged pod. Well, let’s hope the Little Prince has more success in this story than the original.

3. Moléculaire 3D Food Printer by Nico Kläber, Köln International School of Design, Germany
Print and eat your food. Nico Kläber takes the marriage of science and cooking to a new level with Moléculaire, the 3D molecular food printer. Moléculaire is influenced by chefs that scientifically and painstakingly experiment with food and food states to surprise and provoke fresh ideas in cooking. Sounds like a great diet strategy.

4. Naturewash Waterless Washing Machine by Zhenpeng Li, Zhejiang University, China
Naturewash is a waterless washing machine that uses negative ions to wash nano-coated fabrics. Horizontal in shape, the washing machine has three touch screen settings: clean clothes, grass scent and flower scent. A user can lie or sit on Naturewash to clean or refresh the clothes they are wearing. Now I know my kids would love this, but my mother would not. That's the mother who constantly reminded me there is no soap in the swimming pool.

5. Renew Clothes Steamer by Louis Filosa, Purdue University, USA
Renew is a smart steamer that refreshes and cleans clothes. With two steam blades, Renew "blasts" garments clean. Renew is safe to use and disables the steamer if an unidentified object is detected, such as a hand. Good thing, could be a liability issue.

6. Teleport Fridge by Dulyawat Wongnawa, Chulalongkorn University, Thailand
Dulyawat Wongnawa envisions a time when the technologies found in science fiction become reality, specifically teleportation. Using touch-screen technology as the interface for the teleportation process, the Teleport Fridge simply teleports food to compartments in its refrigeration and freezer units. Sounds great to me, Dulyawat has my vote.

7. Water Catcher and Purifier by Penghao Shan, Zhejiang Sci-tech University, China
Penghao Shan has created a product that addresses water shortage. This automated device dispatches small flying balls in the air to catch raindrops. After the raindrops are collected, the balls return to a homing tray that purifies the water for drinking. I think a bucket would work just about as well.

8. Bifoliate Dishwasher and Storage by Toma Brundzaite, Vilnius Academy of Art, Lithuania
Putting away clean dishes from the dishwasher is often a tedious job. That's why Toma Brundzaite has designed Bifoliate, a space-saving, wall-mounted double dishwasher that allows the user to put dirty dishes in one compartment and use the other as a shelf for clean dishes. Just don’t do it in the dark.

The eight finalists will compete for the Electrolux Design Lab 2009 First Prize of approximately $7,000 and a six-month paid internship at one of the Electrolux global design centers. The second prize is approximately $4,200 and third prize is approximately $2,800.

Do comment below. ~ L