A dishwasher is a luxury item some people can’t live without. It’s one of the first major kitchen devices I bought just as soon as I could afford one. And now that the kids are grown, it’s the appliance I thought I’d miss most in my nomadic vanlife pursuits.
Technology
The Loch Capsule dishwasher is small, fast, and efficient — it even sanitizes gadgets
Loch sent me its $459.99 / €459.99 countertop Capsule dishwasher to review in a tiny home on a remote beach and inside a van on a two-month roadtrip. It’s an excellent product that washes and dries two place settings quickly at bacteria-killing temperatures up to 75 degrees Celsius (167F) in as little as 20 minutes. It’ll even kill bacteria and neutralize viruses on your gadgets with a waterless blast of UV-C light. Hoozah!
What I learned during this review has less to do with the device’s limitations, and more my own. Turns out that I’m willing to do a lot of dishes by hand when faced with resource scarcity, be that space, energy, water, time, or money; and I’m unwilling to become a germaphobe despite claims that cellphones are 10 times dirtier than a toilet seat.
$391
The Good
- Cleans and dries in about 20 minutes
- Looks good on a countertop
- Fits some large pans
- Sanitizes phones and washes fruit
- Doesn’t require plumbing
The Bad
- Loud
- Expensive
- Niche product
The Loch Capsule looks clean and minimalistic on a kitchen counter, in my opinion. And while the exterior is plastic, the tub is made of stainless steel, unlike most countertop dishwashers. This differentiator improves drying speed, durability, and hygiene, while helping to keep odors under control.
The unit is tall and deep enough to accommodate large dinner plates and pans that won’t typically fit inside a short and stout countertop machine. It measures 46.5 x 26.2 x 51.5cm (18.3 x 10.3 x 20.3 inches) giving it a narrow footprint and internal volume of about 30 liters. The integrated handle makes carrying the 12kg (26.4lb) dishwasher relatively easy.
If you’re making all your meals at home then you’ll probably only need to run it once per day for a single-person household, or twice for two persons based upon my experience. It comes with an external clean water tank so it can be used anywhere you have access to power and H2O. No plumbing’s required, but a hook-up is available should you tire of refilling the tank.
Setting it up is pretty straightforward. In most scenarios, you’ll plug into the wall for power, attach and fill the fresh water tank, and run a second hose from the dishwasher to the sink to dispose of the wastewater. In my van, where I had limited space for the Capsule, I had to install it in my “garage” connected to the optional waste water tank since the 1.2m/3.94ft hose was too short to reach my sink.
The glowing white display is covered in capacitive buttons that still respond to touches when my fingers are wet. The look is warm and friendly, but operation is loud, like most countertop dishwashers, something you’ll have to consider for a device meant to be used in small spaces. I measured about 56dB max from one meter. That’s much louder than my own built-in dishwasher, which operates at 38dB. The sound intensity also varies as the water whooshes and the pump vibrates. In other words, it won’t double as a white noise machine while you sleep, if that’s what you’re hoping for.
The Capsule can also wash gadgets and fruit. The basket fits about seven apples, which take eight minutes to wash, or 12 in total if you add UV cleaning. A waterless UV mode can be used to kill surface bacteria on baby bottles and personal devices like phones and earbuds using medical-grade UV-C light.
Loading dishes into the Capsule can feel like playing expert-level Tetris. The first time I tried, it took me about five minutes to load 18 items into that small cavity. Now it takes about a minute or two, while filling and emptying the clean and dirty water containers takes another few minutes. An optional $19 “dual tray” shelf can be placed at the bottom to make space for a large pot, or at the top where it can fill any available free space to wash silverware or other small, flat items.
Several cleaning modes are available, from a 15-minute Meal Wash all the way up to a 152-minute Intensive Clean. I found the 15-minute mode to work so well that I didn’t need to resort to the longer cycles, so long as I didn’t burn anything or wait until the next day to start a wash.
To test, I loaded the Capsule with all the mess produced at breakfast and lunch by two people, including two 10.5-inch plates covered in bacon grease, silverware covered in peanut butter, a milky yogurt bowl, espresso cups, a juice glass, a chef’s knife, tongs, and a sport bottle. And while the diameter of my 12-inch pan does fit inside the Capsule, its handle does not, contrary to Loch’s claim, so I had to handwash it. (My 10-inch pan with 8-inch handle just fits, but the angle doesn’t leave room for much else.)
Everything came out clean, hot to the touch, and mostly dry in the 15-minute Meal Wash mode, on par with my much larger built-in machine. I was impressed. The cycle used 2.5 liters (0.66 gallons) of water and consumed between 220Wh and 300Wh in my repeated tests, with power usage peaking at around 900W. The 15 minute wash cycle actually takes between 20 and 25 minutes to complete. The most intensive wash mode ran for 2 hours and 28 minutes, and consumed 420Wh and almost 4 liters of water.
A 33.3 percent increase on my average daily energy usage and 100 percent increase in water consumption. I can’t justify that.
For comparison, when applying my hippie-approved vanlife dishwashing technique to the same dishes with the same mess, I was able to wash and dry everything – including the 12-inch pan – in just six minutes from one liter of water and zero power consumed. This approach involves wiping everything off with a used paper towel or discarded food packaging, filling a bowl with unheated tap water, dipping in a soapy sponge and getting to work. Mind you, vanlife is less clean than regular life, but we haven’t died yet.
If I installed the Loch Capsule in my van I’d have to run the 15-minute mode twice each day to clean all the dishes my wife and I typically use. That’s about 500Wh and 5 liters of water a day — a 33.3 percent increase on my average daily energy usage and 100 percent increase in water consumption. I can’t justify that. This dishwasher is for rigs carrying a lot more water and battery power than I do, or anyone willing to frequently dock at serviced campsites.
1/11
Importantly, vanlifers don’t usually travel with full-sized dishes and pans. So, a more compact countertop dishwasher from companies like Comfee or Farberware that costs around $300 or below might be a better option. Loch does sell a Capsule Solo for $399.99 without the UV stuff and plumbing hookup. It’s otherwise the same dishwasher and currently on sale for $339.99.
Even inside a tiny house I find it hard to justify the $459.99 price tag of the Capsule, even at its sale price of $390.99, despite the surf shack’s ample supply of hot water and electricity. For one or two people, it’s just faster to wash the dishes myself and I don’t lose any precious space on top of the counter, or below it. And my freshly washed hands leave me little use for a UV blaster that kills bacteria that doesn’t pose a real threat anyway.
To justify buying a Loch Capsule dishwasher you, and at most one other household member, must really hate washing dishes, have ready access to water and power, and have almost no space but still use large pans and dishes. That’s a niche, but one that the Loch Capsule dishwasher fills admirably.
The Loch Capsule is an excellent countertop dishwasher with minor flaws – it’s just not for me.
Photography by Thomas Ricker / The Verge
Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.
Hot showers, like electricity, are a luxury that’s easy to take for granted. That all changes after a few nights camping at a music festival, a week toiling at a backcountry job site, or overlanding all summer in the great unknown. An itchy scalp and the vague smell of warm clams suddenly make the idea of spending hundreds on a portable shower seem less absurd.
I’ve been testing the Hottap Go from Australia-based Joolca while vanlifing to shower after surfing and to wash up after cooking. It features a 12L integrated water tank which is an improvement on other portable showers that require an external container and long, cumbersome hose that’s easy to trip over. The Hottap Go also recirculates the water until it reaches your chosen temperature. This slows things down a bit, compared to “instant” portable showers, but it doesn’t waste water since it won’t produce an initial shock of cold water that’s usually sprayed into the ground.
The $554 Hottap Go requires an external 12V power source, but in the US Joolca sells a 12V / 5A $165 power bank that attaches magnetically to the case. In Europe I had to roll my own with an €85 (about $100) power bank found on Amazon. The result is a true, fully self-contained hot water system that can be taken anywhere.
$554
The Good
- All-in-one solution for hot showers anywhere
- Water tank large enough for two showers
- All accessories and attachments store inside the unit
- No water wasted unlike competitors
- Temperature remains steady
The Bad
- Very expensive
- Battery is optional and attaches to the outside of the case
- Have to wait a few minutes to heat up
- Water pressure is just okay
To clear up any confusion right away: the Hottap Go requires electricity to power the integrated water pump and display but it heats the water with propane gas. It works with standard 1lb propane canisters out of the box, and larger tanks with a hose and regulator you must provide.
One thing I love about the Hottap Go is that the hoses, battery, showerhead, and gas canister can all be stored inside the water tank when not in use for easy portability and storage. I also like that the flow-adjustable showerhead comes with a magnetic holder. Taken together with its approach to preheating the water through recirculation, it’s clear that Joolca’s product designers have learned from the shortcomings of the current crop of portable propane showers.
To shower, you first attach the quick-release hoses for the gas and showerhead, plug the shower into a 12V power source (power bank, power station, or the cigarette plug inside your car), set your desired temperature and wait. The unit will begin heating and recirculating the water until a series of beeps indicates that the target temperature is reached. I brought tap water up to a hot 47C / 117F (per the display) in exactly four minutes, which was just enough time to gather everything I needed to shower outside my van with my modesty preserved.
On one windy day at the beach, I noticed the Hottap Go had to keep reigniting, despite its leeward venting. It failed so often that I saw an E3 error message on the display. Repositioning the shower out of the wind kept the flame lit. The handle on top makes it easy to move, and the seal around the lid ensures that water won’t slosh onto the ground or your power bank. Otherwise, the Hottap Go always lit and stayed lit without issue during my testing.
Joolca says the Hottap Go is good for two “great showers” or a single “long, luxurious one.” I was able to take two functional yet satisfying showers from its full 12L (3.2 gal) water tank, making liberal use of the on/off switch on the showerhead to conserve water while lathering.
1/11
Water flow is just okay, even at maximum setting. It’s strong enough to penetrate long, thick hair when shampooing but it’s not going to jettison grime from my mountain bike, for example. The magnetic holder is strong and the showerhead feels good in the hand with a nicely positioned on/off switch. Adjusting the flow rate dial is a two-handed operation, but mostly I just left it on max.
If you’ll only use it once or twice a year, then spending over $554 for the Hottap Go portable shower doesn’t make much sense, especially when tankless portable showers like BougeRV’s cost half that. I much prefer the Hottap Go’s recirculating water tank, performance, and overall convenience, though I do wish the optional $165 magnetic power bank was included in that price. Still, for vanlifers like me or anyone who regularly spends days away from plumbing, $719 can be easily justified for what could be the best portable hot water shower available.
- Tank: 12L (3.2 gal), ~2 showers
- Water flow rate: 1.5 – 3.5 L/min (0.4 – 0.9 gal/min)
- Shower hose: 3m (9.8 ft)
- Showerhead has an integrated magnetic mount and controls to turn off the water and adjust its flow
- Two-stage filter lets you use creek water
- Cigarette socket power cable: 5m (16.4 ft), 12V DC
- Power draw: 45W
- Max temp: 60°C (140°F), pre-heats in ~5 min
- Gas: 0.45 kg (1 lb) canister, ~15 showers
- Gas flow rate: 20MJ/hr (18,956 BTU/hr)
- Weight: 9.5 kg (20.9 lb) without water
- Size: 495 x 359 x 180 mm (19.5 x 14.1 x 7.1 in), designed to fit most jerry can holders
Photos by Thomas Ricker / The Verge
Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
If your clean laundry has been sitting in a basket long enough to qualify as furniture, Isaac 1 may sound like the robot you have been waiting for. Weave Robotics has introduced Isaac 1, a mobile home robot designed to handle household chores that many of us keep pushing off to tomorrow. It can pick up dirty clothes, handle loaded hampers, fold laundry and put clothes away.
It can also help with making beds, fixing pillows and blankets, plus putting everyday clutter back where it belongs. That sounds pretty amazing to me, especially if your house has kids, pets or a laundry pile that seems to regenerate overnight. However, Isaac 1 also raises a very personal question: how much access would you give a robot inside your home if it meant fewer chores?
HUMANOID ROBOT CLEANS FIRST US APARTMENT
Weave Robotics’ Isaac 1 home robot can fold laundry, make beds and tidy rooms, but its $7,999 price tag raises questions about cost and privacy. (Weave Robotics)
Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy Report
- Get my best tech tips, urgent security alerts and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox.
- For simple, real-world ways to spot scams early and stay protected, visit CyberGuy.com – trusted by millions who watch CyberGuy on TV daily.
- Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide free when you join.
What is the Isaac 1 robot?
Isaac 1 is a wheeled mobile robot built from the ground up for the home. Weave says it designed and assembled the robot in San Francisco. The robot has a soft fabric shell, a solid internal structure and a collapsible torso. It can shrink down when it is off duty or extend up to a more human height when it needs to work.
Unlike a robot vacuum, Isaac 1 can reach for objects, move items around and interact with clutter in your home. You control it through a smartphone companion app. That app lets you request a task on demand or schedule one for later. So, Isaac 1 could work while you are home or handle a chore while you are away.
How the Isaac 1 robot folds laundry and resets rooms
Isaac 1’s main features fall into two areas. The first is Laundry Flow. Isaac 1 can find dirty clothes, pick them up, handle loaded hampers, fold clothing and put items away. Depending on your home setup, Weave says Isaac 1 may also help with related tasks, such as loading and unloading clothes from a washer or dryer.
The second area is Daily Reset. That means Isaac 1 can tidy rooms so they feel ready to use again. It can make beds, straighten pillows and blankets and return toys, shoes and other clutter to their places. For many homes, that could be a big deal. Laundry and daily pickup chores tend to drain time because they never really end.
Isaac 1 robot specs for your home
Isaac 1 has an 8-hour battery life and a listed charge time of about two hours. It connects through Wi-Fi and has a footprint of 20.5 inches by 22 inches. Its height ranges from 3 feet to 5 feet 9 inches because the torso can collapse or extend.
Weave also lists an 80-inch vertical reach and a 38-inch horizontal reach. Those specs help explain how Isaac 1 could reach beds, hampers, shelves and other parts of a normal home. It also uses a wheeled base, which Weave says makes it passively stable as it completes tasks.
At preorder, you can also choose a color preference, including Sage, Gray, Slate Blue, Terracotta or Vesper.
CHINA’S ROBOT-RUN HOTEL OPENS TO PUBLIC IN 2027
Isaac 1 is designed to help with laundry, clutter and daily home resets while using cameras, Wi-Fi and possible remote assistance. (Weave Robotics)
Isaac 1 robot autonomy and privacy questions
Weave says Isaac 1 is autonomous by default for Laundry Flow and Daily Reset. However, the company also says teleoperation assistance may step in when needed to make sure tasks get completed. That detail deserves your attention because Isaac 1 works inside your home. Teleoperation means a person can help the robot remotely if it gets confused by an item, a room layout or a task. In some cases, that could make the robot more useful. It could also help prevent chores from getting stuck halfway.
Weave says privacy is core to Isaac 1’s design. The company also says the robot has physical cues that show when it is working. However, Weave’s privacy policy says its robots have video cameras and may record visual content about their surroundings. That can include tasks being performed, objects in the robot’s field of view and people nearby. The policy also says Weave’s workforce may remotely access that information in connection with the robot’s operation. That does not mean you should panic. It does mean you should read the policy before putting down a deposit.
Isaac 1 may need cameras to fold clothes and move through your home. Still, your bedroom, laundry area and living room are private spaces. You deserve clear answers about what gets recorded, who can see it and how long it is stored. Before ordering, ask whether video can be deleted, whether you can opt out of AI training uses and how you can limit where the robot operates.
Isaac 1 robot price and preorder details
Weave lists two payment options for home customers. You can pay $7,999 upfront, with an optional $99-per-month premium membership, or choose a $449-per-month subscription plan. You can also preorder Isaac 1 with a fully refundable $250 deposit. That deposit reserves your place in line and remains refundable until your robot ships.
For some, the math may come down to time. If Isaac 1 handles enough laundry and daily cleanup, the cost may feel easier to justify. For others, $449 a month may feel like too much for an early home robot.
Isaac 1 robot shipping timeline
Weave says first shipments begin in fall 2026. California deliveries come first, with broader U.S. availability expected through 2027.
After you preorder, Weave says you should receive a confirmation and thank-you email. As your delivery date gets closer, the company plans to coordinate a demo.
That demo may happen in person at a Weave location or remotely over a video call. Weave also says it will use that time to understand your top priorities for Isaac 1 inside your home.
What this means to you
If Isaac 1 works as promised, it could give you back time from chores that never seem finished. Laundry alone can take hours each week, especially in a busy household. It could also help if bending, lifting or carrying loaded hampers has become a hassle. For some homes, a robot that folds clothes and resets rooms may offer more than convenience.
However, Isaac 1 is still a connected device moving through private rooms. It uses cameras, connects to Wi-Fi and may involve remote help when needed. So before you place a deposit, think about your home layout and where you would actually feel comfortable letting it work.
GOOGLE TURNS OLD PHONES INTO CLOUD SERVERS
Weave Robotics says Isaac 1 can pick up dirty clothes, fold laundry and put items away after users schedule chores through an app. (Weave Robotics)
Watch the CyberGuy Live replay: Lock Down Your Phone in 30 Minutes
Your phone holds your email, passwords, photos, banking apps and personal data. In this free CyberGuy Live replay, Kurt the CyberGuy walks you step by step through simple phone security fixes you can do at your own pace. You’ll learn how to improve your privacy settings, spot the latest phone scams, use trusted security tools and walk away with a simple checklist to stay protected. Watch the replay and get our checklist here: CyberGuyLive.com.
Kurt’s key takeaways
Isaac 1 is the kind of robot that makes you stop and say, “OK, now we’re getting somewhere.” Nobody looks forward to folding laundry, making beds or picking up the same clutter again and again. These are the chores that eat up your precious time and seem never-ending. The price is the hard part. At $7,999 upfront or $449 a month, Isaac 1 has to do a lot more than look cool in a demo. It has to save you real time, work reliably and fit into your home without creating new headaches. Then there is the privacy side. Isaac 1 uses cameras, connects to Wi-Fi and may involve remote help when needed. That does not make it a dealbreaker for me, but I would want very clear answers before letting it work in private spaces like my bedroom or bathroom. I love the idea of a robot taking laundry off my hands. I am just not sure most of us are ready to pay nearly $8,000 for that privilege quite yet.
Would you let a robot see inside your home if it meant you never had to fold another load of laundry again? Let us know by writing to us at CyberGuy.com.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy Report
- Get my best tech tips, urgent security alerts and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox.
- For simple, real-world ways to spot scams early and stay protected, visit CyberGuy.com – trusted by millions who watch CyberGuy on TV daily.
- Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide free when you join.
Copyright 2026 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.
We’re aware of at least two forged letters circulating on the internet, including this one, that purport to be cease-and-desist letters from our legal department. To be clear: these letters did not come from me or from anyone at Flock.
Flock welcomes and encourages public debate about our technology. We have not and would not seek to discourage, prevent, or prohibit such discussion and debate. In fact, we would be happy to participate in any such discussions the group in question might host in the future.
-
South Dakota1 minute agoSouth Dakota GFP Commission Holds July Meeting
-
Tennessee4 minutes agoForward Chris Washington Talks First Month With Tennessee Basketball | Rocky Top Insider
-
Texas9 minutes agoTexas Man Finds Hidden GPS Tracker in His New Truck: “They Didn’t Want Me To Find This”
-
Utah16 minutes agoVoices: America at 250 could use a little more Utah
-
Vermont19 minutes ago
VT Lottery Mega Millions, Gimme 5 results for July 10, 2026
-
Virginia24 minutes agoVice President JD Vance eyes estate in Virginia
-
Washington31 minutes agoChisholm’s homer keys 3-run 9th as the Yankees rally past Washington 5-3 – WTOP News
-
Wisconsin34 minutes agoQuiotepec en Wisconsin brings Oaxacan basketball fever to the Midwest
