
In South Korea, Rivals Samsung and LG Fight Dirty Over Washing Machines - dmmalam
http://www.wsj.com/articles/in-south-korea-rivals-samsung-and-lg-fight-dirty-over-washing-machines-1420593182?mod=WSJ_article_EditorsPicks_2
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gr3yh47
Those washing machines look beastly.

Can't wait for one that moves the clothes from the washer to the dryer for
you.

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munimkazia
Automatic machines which do both in one place have been around for decades
atleast.

Or were you being sarcastic? I can't tell

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coob
They wash OK but the drying in washer/dryers sucks.

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toomuchtodo
This is because they condense the water out of the basin, whereas a
traditional dryer is generating hot air from electricity or natural gas, which
I don't believe can be done in a combined unit.

Innovation remains to be seen!

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nl
They hired Chris Bangle[1] to design washing machines?! They should get him to
do mobile phones - he sure won't do another iPhone-like copycat.

[1]
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Bangle](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Bangle)

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pilsetnieks
He's a car designer, I'm not sure that would translate very well to small
electronics that should be closely integrated with software. For example, this
is a Porsche Blackberry:
[http://i.imgur.com/JdCKdMi.jpg](http://i.imgur.com/JdCKdMi.jpg) and they have
actually had more experience with consumer electronics. It looks nice, better
than a standard Blackberry, but it seems that it would be actually worse for
real world usage.

There's really very little to be taken away from or be added to the black
rectangle of the modern day phone. If you add something, it's just as likely
to get in the way of using the phone, or being a superfluous gimmick.

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chris_wot
$2,700 for a washing machine? Are they insane?

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DanBC
The article doesn't say what the tax is on the machines.

Domestic machines tend to be cheaper than commercial machines. It's pretty
easy to find commercial machines i. That price range.

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refurb
I think the Crystal Blue is a domestic machine. Don't forget that household
appliances are a bit of a fetish item for new homeowners, along with granite
countertops, recessed lighting, hardwood floors.

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aerialcombat
Those two have been fighting forever. It's one way to keep them motivated,
however their inherent structure keeps them from innovating further, hence
will never be able to amount to the levels of Apple or Google, and they'll
soon be surpassed by Chinese companies and will walk the ways of Sony,
although they were never as good as Sony was.

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vesinisa
> they'll soon be surpassed by Chinese companies

So you are saying that Chinese companies are more innovative than the South
Korean conglomerates?

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cc438
If they aren't now, they will be soon.

Look at where LG, Hyundai, and Kia were just 15 years ago. LG had to change
names from GoldStar to shed the perception of the brand as the king of cheap
Sony knock-offs. Hyundai and Kia were releasing unbelievably generic cars with
their attempts at "styling" ending up like this:
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kia_Opirus#mediaviewer/File:Kia...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kia_Opirus#mediaviewer/File:Kia_Amanti_2005.jpg)

Samsung wasn't much better, they had little presence in the consumer market
and weren't regarded any higher than Foxconn is today in terms of
electronics/engineering prowess.

I don't see the best Chinese companies being that far off from the best Korea
had to offer back then. Look how quickly the Korean companies caught up and
then remember how fast everything moves in China.

