We've come a long way from beating our clothes against rocks in the river, but early washing machines weren't much better, giving users a couple of knobs for water temperature control and a timer for indicating how long the thing should agitate. Washing machines now commonly come with dozens of presets for all manner of fabrics, and can even communicate electronically with the dryer so you don't have to input the information twice. Better yet, the next generation of washers will figure out what's being washed automatically: RFID tags embedded in shirt buttons will alert the washer to the color and delicacy of your garments.

The home robot has finally found its footing in the arena of vacuum cleaning, a noisy chore that no one seems to enjoy very much. The Roomba is common enough that "roomba" is on its way to becoming a verb à la "google," as this pint-sized, pizza-shaped robot seems to be constantly cleaning the floor just about everywhere you go. Recent models even know when they're running out of juice, and can find their way back to base when it's time to recharge. All you have to do is empty the detritus it picks up once in a while.

The traditional parking meter embodies the worst of all worlds. No one carries much in the way of cash anymore, and we're expected to pony up coins at the time when we're least likely to have them? This arrangement may be great for cash-strapped municipalities that rely on parking tickets over meter money, but it's terrible for us drivers. Fortunately, the parking meter is rushing into the '10s with a bevy of smart technologies that let you pay by prepaid card, credit card, or . And apps coming on the market can keep tabs on open spaces to help you .