Hmmm...faster, cheaper, "low-tech" ways to handle all of the supposed conveniences this allows us:
-- My washer & dryer aren't "smart" devices, but they do have digital displays...& since they're only 1 room away it's really easy to tell whether they're running or not (because I can hear them). But if by some chance I can't manage to tell by sound whether they're running or not, since the display tells me exactly how long the total wash/dry cycles will take, all I have to do is see what time it is when I start them. And that's really easy, since I have available a) my stove, b) my microwave, c) the wall clock, d) my wrist fitness tracker (even if I do have to push a button to see the time), or e) my smartphone available to look at when I'm starting the washer/dryer (& D & E are available to look at even if the others aren't).
-- Don't have an icemaker in our freezer (although I would love one). However...had I sprung for the icemaker kit for our fridge, it would have come with that super-cheap metal bar...you know, the one that pops up when the ice tray is full, & pops back down when the ice is used, so that the icemaker knows whether to run or not.
-- I can maybe see the oven timer thing...but only because our stove timer is sometimes hard to hear over the TV. But even then, if I'm turning off the stove/oven, it's because I'm also getting the food off of/out of it so that I can eat it right then. It's not like it's an automatic cool-off when a stove/oven shuts off, the residual hit can continue cooking (& even scorch/burn) your food for minutes after it's off.
That's just to name a few appliances.
As for those with mobility or sensory issues...assuming that those individuals aren't going to have issues just using the smartphone or other device connecting to these appliances, these "features" don't actually help with the main issue: loading & unloading. For someone who has trouble moving around, their issue isn't having to check the time left on the washer/dryer...it's loading & unloading the machine in the first place. Laundry items may be individually light, but a basket full of dry clothes (let alone wet clothes that need hung up to drip-dry) is bulky & has some decent heft to it. Same with having to pull a hot pan or dish out of the oven or off the stove top. Voice commands are of zero help in that regard.
