You're at the supermarket and you've forgotten if you need milk. Solution: grab your smartphone, ask it to connect to the fridge and see inside for yourself.
This scenario - being hailed as part of the 'fourth wave' of technology - is already a reality yet Kiwis, like many other people around the world, are not quite ready for it.
A major US study shows that while there are billions of smart devices in use worldwide, people have yet to fully grasp the idea of a true smart home where devices are interconnected and able to talk and work together.
The 2017 study - prepared as part of the PwC Consumer Intelligence Series - says although consumer interest is increasing "we are far from" a world where people sign up for or graduate to a life in which multiple smart devices can work together in the home.
These findings come as tech giants like Google, Amazon and Samsung are investing millions upon millions of dollars into creating AI assistants that can allow for an integrated network of smart appliances.
Central to this is Bixby, Samsung's own artificially intelligent (AI) voice assistant which acts as the controlling platform of a home's connected ecosystem. The company says Bixby, which was launched on the company's flagship Galaxy smartphones, represents the "fourth wave" of smart technology.
Most experts agree it is only a matter of time before networks like this are commonplace in homes. Peter T Boyd, president of Florida-based web design company Paperstreet, is one who believes connected homes mean everyone will eventually have a personal assistant to get routine jobs done.
And Rishi Khanna, CEO of Texas-based IT services company ISHIR, asks: "What can possibly stop the growth of voice assistants?"
Samsung's Head of Mobile Portfolio in New Zealand, Todd Selwyn, says while there is no doubt the development of intelligent voice-activated assistants is a rising trend and people are highly aware of what smart devices are, if they aren't simple and easy to operate together, they won't be widely used.
"One barrier is the difficulty consumers face in ensuring all connected devices can work together seamlessly," he says. "If every object has an app or service the experience becomes too complex and challenging."
Selwyn says Samsung has been putting a lot of effort into developing open ecosystems to set common industry standards while within its own services it has united its Internet of Things (IoT) cloud and service applications into one platform – the SmartThings app.
The app enables people to connect and control any SmartThings-enabled device directly from their phone, TV or car.
He says smart technology could be the new way of "keeping up with the Joneses" in the near future where people are "house-proud about integrated and connected technologies" and shift away from modern renovations or artwork as a way of impressing neighbours.
Selwyn says New Zealanders are enthusiastic smart device adopters: A recent report from the University of Otago's Centre for Sustainability shows many are open to having a smart home with 25 per cent very interested in this and 35 per cent "somewhat interested."
"The vast majority of us own and use smartphones," says Selwyn. "They are the central hub of the connected home and an important first step in allowing people to easily control other devices."
Sunggy Koo, the company's vice president of Smart Appliances and Home IoT, says Bixby will enable people to not only check the weather but by adding Bixby Voice to the family refrigerator will allow people to "build shopping lists and order groceries with the power of your voice."
Koo says having programmable objects connected and communicating throughout the house could be considered the fourth wave of smart technology.
"In this way we are moving beyond simply connecting devices to the internet but taking the next step by connecting devices to intelligence," he says. "This new era is what we are calling the 'Intelligence of Things'."
Selwyn says this means your fridge can tell you if you've left the door open by mistake; or you can ask your TV what the weather will be or to recommend a good movie.
"Bixby is still in its infancy and while there are a growing number of people using it in New Zealand, our experience shows the more people use it the more they enjoy it. Bixby is intelligent, so the more you provide it feedback the more it will earn and adapt to become useful," he says.
The key benefits identified by consumers for smart tech includes increased security, making their lives easier, more control of household routines and cost savings. Kiwis are also keen on being able to remotely control and monitor appliances – and to schedule them to run at pre-defined times.