Photos: GE's smart grid kitchen of the future

There are a number of ways that consumers can interact with a home energy management system, which can display aggregate energy usage, individual appliances' energy usage, and daily trends.

In areas where utilities offer demand-response, consumers also need a way to program their preferences. GE's smart-grid lab shows some alternatives for accessing home energy management systems

Photo by Martin LaMonica/CNET

Caption by Martin LaMonica