The Tiny Connected Tetra Dishwasher

The Tetra is the kind of unusual home appliance one only tends to see at CES 2018-- a compact countertop number able to not only wash a handful of dishes, but also... cook seafood?

TetraDeveloped by connected water heater maker Heatworks and design firm frog, the Tetra is designed to handle the dishwashing needs of 2-person household. As such, it is large enough to hold 10 plates or 12 pint glasses. It promises to use less water than handwashing, without the need to wait for enough dishes dishes to fill a larger dishwasher.

“Our research indicates that although the average household is comprised of 2.58 people, the modern dishwasher holds place settings for 13 or more,” Heatworks says. “This makes people believe that they either need to handwash their few dirty dishes-- which wastes 10 times more water than using a dishwasher-- or wait for a fill load to run a cycle. With Tetra, we hope to change people's mindset.”

Interestingly, the Tetra only needs a standard electrical outlet to operate. Users fill it with water by hand, while an internal reservoir holds enough detergent for "dozens" of cycles. Actual dishwashing comes through "Ohmic Array technology," a combination of graphite electrodes and electronic controls the company claims provides more precise water temperature control.

Such precision, Heatworks adds, allows customers to sanitise baby products, wash plastic containers without melting them, wash clothes and even clean fruit or cook seafood. In addition the device is transparent to provide a view of the washing process.

The Tetra should ship from late 2018.

Go Heatworks Tetra