Android being used for smart appliances?

Seems like companies are beginning to take the leap to install Android on our normal home and kitchen appliances like rice cookers and refrigerators.

Is this new? I doubt so. Personally, I think that the first few versions of smart appliances are running on some variations of Linux as it's the cheapest method. The only difference with Android is that there is an established market and it is built to be connected to the Internet.

However, I believe the companies should ask themselves the fundamental question, what's the use of smart appliances? Seriously, do I care if I can connect to my rice cooker or refrigerator using my smartphone?

I cannot think of any reasons why I will like to connect to my rice cooker but for refrigerators, it will be useful if the refrigerator is able to tell me what's inside the refrigerator at this point in time. But then again, is the technology there?  Unless all the food items inside the refrigerator are tagged with some sort of NFC that is similar to the ISBN number so that it is able to calculate accurately all the items inside the refrigerator, I feel that it is useless at this point for me to connect to it from the Internet. Serves no purpose.

Idea is good, but I believe that there must first be a fundamental reason why our home and kitchen appliances need to connect to the Internet. Let's not forget that as long as you're connected to the Internet, you're vulnerable to hacking attempts. Can you imagine someone hacking into the system, causing your refrigerator to turn off by itself, or switching on your air-conditioning when no one is at home, causing your power bills to go sky high.

Let's see for now.