+ Electrolux has just launched the new Inspiro oven that is billed as “auto-focus for chefs”. The Inspiro uses sensors to calculate the precise amount of time and energy needed to cook the food, just the way a camera works.

+ Two new designs by Frederik Aerts for Berghoff have won red dot awards. The Neo cookware’s flat cover allows for easy pouring and the Zeno mixing bowl has a lid that can be used as a stand for the bowl, thanks to a rim on the inside.

+ The Low Tech No Tech #3 is a lamp that makes use of an everyday object. Iulius Lucaci has started a series of designs that put the emphasis on repurposing old favourites.

+ The Mude portable LED lamp by Nicolloe Alves Rincon is battery-operated and geared towards a younger consumer who wants to mix and match the colours and designs.

aquaovo's OVOPUR is the environmentally friendly water dispenser. So much so that 1) it doesn't consume any electricity, using gravity instead to filter and revitalize tapwater, 2) the unit itself is made of porcelain, glass, and metal, and 3) it features a reusable, multilayer filter cartridge whose contents are 100% recyclable. The main reservoir can hold up to 11 liters of fresh water, with the water level indicated by the magnetic gauge. The filter cartridge uses a combination of KDF 55, activated carbon, microporous bioceramics and quartz crystal to remove impurities from the water.

+ aquaovo.com

+ The gas-fired Blitzgrill by Radius Design is a sleek barbecue that is ready in 5 minutes and comes with a cast-iron barbecue plate.

+ Japan’s GG-Kids have some interesting wooden toys, like the Step to the World set of flag-printed socks for matching and the Mame Ohagki wooden bean sorting game.

+ The Urbanati DJ Console by Trevor O'Neill is made entirely out of recycled materials (except the light fixture).

+ Aton’s new line of Elio tables combines fanciful swirls in clay, not unlike swirls of rope, with panels of glass and wood. The clay is either matte white or glazed a gunmetal grey and casts intricate shadows on the wood that is either lacquered white of stained dark.

This year's Electrolux Design Lab competition winners will be officially announced tomorrow at the International Forum on Design and the Environment in Paris. As they have since the global competition began, Electrolux asked design students to come up with innovative household appliances for the future. That the designs be energy- and water-efficient is a given; they must also “foster sustainable behaviour and product usage.”. The eight finalists hail from around the world and the projects include a fridge with compartments suited for a variety of foods; a home composter and one that will compost plastic bags; a solar-powered cooking pot and an air cleaner powered the same way; a fog shower that uses only 2 litres of water for a 5 minute shower; a combined sink and dishwasher; and a washing machine that uses soap nuts instead of detergent. Photos of all final entries after the jump.

+ electrolux.com

Ecosmart Fire is also at Maison & Objet with some new designs. The Ecosmart is an open fireplace that is flue less and fuelled by denatured ethanol, which makes it suitable for any environment. The Retro fireplace is inspired by the 60s and has a tube design with rounded corners. It is made from fibreglass, stainless steel and toughened glass, with a PVC protective cover. After the jump we have the Switch, which allows for interchangeable external panels in the surround. The Layers steel table is better suited to larger spaces as it is a table that surrounds the Ecosmart burner in the centre.

+ ecosmartfire.com

Kitchen-maker Alno has created some Cooking Tables that combine “the hearth and kitchen table as the focal point of home life once again.”. The table-cooking collection includes the Liberty Island, a mobile cooking element with a glass cover and mobile container that can be positioned against a dining table, either indoors or out. When opened, the glass cover protects against splattering while cooking and closed, it covers a dual-zone induction cook-top. LongIsland can be positioned anywhere in the room and combines a fixed ‘cooking block’ with a sliding tabletop that’s supported by a base frame (it can be moved to the right or left). A four-zone electric cook-top is flush-fit in the stainless steel cooking block. All the Cooking Tables were originally created by design students at the Muthesius College of Art in Kiel, Germany.

+ alno.com