Waterless washing machine, smart AC could save you $$ on clarkhoward.com

Sanyo has invented a washing machine that cleans your clothes with no water. The Wall Street Journal reports this product is already being sold in Asia and will be marketed here in the future.

The device uses high-powered air to wash, disinfect and remove stains from clothing. The best part of all? You don't need a dryer; your clothes never get wet in the first place! That means you'll only use about one-fifth of the normal electricity required for laundry. The bad news is that the retail price is around $2,000 right now.

Meanwhile, Mitsubishi has a new home air conditioner that senses when people are no longer in a room and automatically shuts off. This has obvious implications for your wallet. The AC works with sensors that detect body heat.

Clark loves the creativity involved with these kinds of inventions and the way they could potentially save you money. The only disappointment is that they're made in Japan. How come we're not doing this stuff??

What others are saying

magic Jack
I have ordered the Magic Jack but they keep setting the order up in someone else's name and sending it to him. I have spent over an hour on the computer on 2 different occasions trying to get it straightened out plus a 7 mile round trip to the post office and they still havne't gotten it right. I am so upset I sent them an email and asked what kind of morons do they have working there! Think about it-My credit card, My account, and they set it up in someone else's name and send it to them. Their excuse is that the other name is tied to the address that I give them. That other person has nothing to do with the account, the computer, the telephone, the credit card, absolutely nothing and they continue to send it to the wrong person. I don't think I'll ever know if it is a good deal or not because I will never get one!! If they even think that they are going to charge me for it they are out of their cotton picking minds.
Erika Stewart-Seybert
By erika s @ 08/18/08 08:03:05 PMreport abuse
Magic Jack
whats your take on magic jack
By Donneth @ 08/12/08 04:39:41 PMreport abuse
Why Not Here?
It has nothing to do with gov't. When we sent manufacturing overseas, our knowledge of what is possible from a practical standpoint went with it. You can't invent what you can't figure out how to build!
By Tom Whitney @ 07/14/08 09:08:33 PMreport abuse
Why not us ?
Most of the corporations in the U.S. are so worried about the bottom line, thier not investing enough in the future.
By Jim Sullivan @ 07/14/08 08:08:06 PMreport abuse
Sanyo Water less washing machine
Clark.
I'm confused on this new washing machine. In one place you say that the machine save one fifth of electricity and another place you say it uses only one fifth of electricity.Do I read this wrong?. Sincerely. Alex.
By Alex Hoarau @ 07/14/08 05:34:02 PMreport abuse
Read the Limitations
Clark, you should read the limitations of the waterless washer. It removes 80% of the BIODEGRADABLE dirt. Note there is no comparison to traditional methods in that number. Also, the machine uses ozone which is a pollutant and USEPA has warnings about exposure. Bottom line, this machine appears to use less electricity, but with some big tradeoffs.
By Henry Boyter Jr. @ 07/14/08 02:30:52 PMreport abuse
Great idea for the a/c, especially if you are having a 'hot flash'! Ha!
By janice @ 07/14/08 01:49:31 PMreport abuse
inventions
The only disappointment is that they're made in Japan. How come we're not doing this stuff??

Because we ARE a nation of whiners looking to the gov't to do it all.
By hank kennedy @ 07/14/08 01:29:21 PMreport abuse
Waterless Washer
Clark, it's not quite waterless. It uses 50 liters of water if you recycle the water 80 liters if you don't.

Also Sanyo made the Neptune washer for Maytag, which is the washer that drove Maytag to bankruptcy.
By JBR @ 07/14/08 11:58:56 AMreport abuse
hold on
anyone with an iphone in their pocket or using a data network all of which are powered by cisco routers says we have plenty of invention .. those of us who weren't born here but chose to come here (and go thru the immigration and naturalization process) know this country still innovates every day in every way .. you cant blame the government for everything .. get out there and fight for your right to succeed and be happy
By gvcv61 @ 07/10/08 09:26:29 PMreport abuse
Made in Japan
Yes they are made in Japan but some of the new stuff are invented in the US and made and sold in Japan first because of the risk factor. Its all about the MONEY
By Joesnopy @ 07/10/08 01:20:29 PMreport abuse
We're not doing this because
We're not doing this because the lobbyists run the country. As Mark Twain once said "We have the best politicians money can buy."

And to think they arrested a college student for trying to sell his vote...
By PJ @ 07/10/08 07:16:21 AMreport abuse
Another Why
Because this type of innovation will not see a ROI of less than 6 months; therefore Wall Street rejects it. Remember, the definition of insanity is repeating the same behavior and each time expecting different results!
By Louie @ 07/10/08 06:46:38 AMreport abuse
AC
The air conditioner seems like a good idea until you realize that you will always be walking into a hot room
By Bill @ 07/09/08 08:11:03 PMreport abuse
Why?
The US has gotten to the point where we wait for Washington to figure it out and create incentive packages for trying this stuff. We'll be waiting a while before we can really start seeing this kind of innovation here.
By Stephen @ 07/09/08 07:06:41 PMreport abuse

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Jul 09, 2008 -- Waterless washing machine, smart AC could save you $$

What others are saying