The Voltaire isn’t the first coffee grinder we’ve seen with Wi-Fi connectivity and a companion app, but it is the first we’ve come across that’s picky about the beans you put in it. According to creators GIR (it stands for Get It Right), the Voltaire uses an array of sensors to detect when the coffee beans in its hopper get stale. At this point it can either ping you to let you know, or automatically order a new batch of beans to your house.
Exactly how well the Voltaire works is a bit of an unknown though. GIR says its “sensing platform” detects temperature, humidity, bean mass, volume, “gas concentration,” and “volatile compound release.” However, the Voltaire’s Kickstarter campaign (currently halfway to its $100,00 goal) doesn’t go into any detail about exactly which sensors are used and how GIR calculates its “freshness” scale. Will all that tech really add up to a better cup of coffee? GIR promises it will, but let’s just say the nuances might be lost on the average coffee drinker.
Wi-Fi coffee grinder sorts the beans from the has-beens [TheVerge]