Milan 2016: designers Kram/Weisshaar have created a razor-thin table embedded with hidden circuitry so you can cook dinner and keep plates warm and drinks cold while you dine.
Induction rings in each SmartSlab table allow the ceramic top to act as a hob for cooking, while plate-sized heating elements ensure served food stays at an optimum temperature.
The SmartSlab Table can be used as a cooking surface and dining table at the same time
"It's really simple and it keeps the food hot," said Clemens Weisshaar of the Swedish/German design studio. "You need 42.5 degrees Celsius, not more not less. You can put your hand on it and it won't burn you."
Heat-transferring Peltier devices turn other parts of the tabletop into drinks coolers. "With the cooling you need minus five degrees Celsius to keep a glass of water or a bottle of sparkling wine cool," Weisshaar added. "It's quite simple."
This movie demonstrates the functionality of the SmartSlab table, with touch-sensitive controls embedded underneath the surface

The tables feature tops made of SapienStone ? an advanced, architectural-scale ceramic tile measuring three metres by 1.5 metres, but which is just six millimetres thick.
The tables, exhibited at Atelier Clerici in Milan this week, were developed in collaboration with Iris Ceramica Group, which manufactures the tiles.

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