Login
Most people out there, from celebrity chefs to ordinary folks, love their gas stoves, despite the hazards and health risks. Some gas-stove enthusiasts insist that food over an open flame, atop iron grates, tastes better. Some homeowners just think they look superior, even sexy, in their kitchens. And others, apparently, would die before giving them up.
What if the majority of Americans just don’t know that there’s an alternative? Enter induction, a cooking technology that’s popular in Europe and Asia, but has captured less than 5% of the U.S. market. For Bloomberg Businessweek, Aaron Gell writes an informative and entertaining piece that explores induction’s benefits and its potential to change the way we cook. (The hero image, too, will make you laugh.)
But a home appliance that summons gorgeous blue flames with the twist of a knob still induces a bit of wonder, and people aren’t likely to give it up without a fight. “I mean, gas has the UX [user experience],” says Sam D’Amico of Impulse Labs, a Silicon Valley startup gearing up to pitch its new induction stove to the masses. “The UX is, literally, you’re turning the valve and gas is burning. That’s going to be tough to defeat.” There’s a reason that nearly all competitive cooking shows—with the notable exception of The Great British Bake Off, which uses induction—feature chefs frantically turning out dishes on commercial gas stoves. “It’s kind of sexy,” says Stacy Jones, founder and chief executive officer of product placement agency Hollywood Branded. “You see the flames licking up into the pan, and you can almost feel the heat coming off of it even though you’re on the other side of the television.”
Why AirBnb when you can bring your own comfortably personalized accommodations nearly anywhere and everywhere you go? That’s the premise behind the Bowlus Volterra, the world’s first all-electric RV, a luxuriously appointed 25-foot-long aerodynamic silver bullet designed for travelers seeking adventure sans the “roughing it” part of the equation.
The Volterra stores up to 50-gallons of water to keep occupants hydrated, while capable of extending the range of an EV tow vehicle up to 65 miles.
You may remember the Bowlus Terra Firma Limited Edition, a similarly styled luxury liner on two wheels outfitted with a laundry list of contemporary technologies and accoutrements delivering glamping galore. The new Bowlus Volterra is basically the same deal as the Terra Firma, but with twice the mobile electric power and few additional updates.
The heart of the new Volterra’s power is its Volterra Battery Management System, a lithium battery management system powered by the brand’s AeroSolar Solar System, resulting in a 17 kWh of all-electric power capacity (for comparison, a Tesla Powerwall offers 13.5kW of storage capacity).
Induction with two cooktops means meals prepared faster and safer.
And it needs every bit of this extended electric and solar power, with the interior cabin outfitted with creature comforts such as in-floor heating, air conditioning and heating, continuous hot water for showering, hot drinking water on-demand, LED lighting, wi-fi networking, and the option to add high-speed satellite connectivity anywhere the RV dares to venture.
Because navigating a 25-foot trailer isn’t always easy, especially at night, Bowlus thoughtfully includes a full-color night vision camera.
This being the brand’s most luxurious and expensive model (the Volterra starts at $310,000), the RV is offered with a limited-edition La Cumbre earthen color palette inspired by the mountain peak behind Santa Barbara, California. The limited-edition interior seating – fully vegan – supposedly draws inspiration from the California sunset, with complementary hues in the bedding area executed in 100% linen duvets.
If this isn’t all luxurious enough, Bowlus also offers a Bespoke Customization Program to allow buyers to tinker and tailor the silver bullet RV trailer to their exact specifications (*Rivian not included.)
FreshRSS 