In the 1989 movie, Back to the Future Part II, Marty McFly is transported into the future to see what life is like in the year 2015. With flying cars, kids playing with hoverboards, and tennis shoes that made the wearer into a super athlete, the future looked pretty bright.

2015 isn’t that far into the future here in 2008, and while flying cars don’t seem to be on the horizon yet, a couple of coffee makers and coffee equipment companies are bringing the future into your kitchen and beyond.

Not your grandmother’s coffee table

Nespresso, an espresso and coffee division of Nestle, wants to be on the edge of that bright horizon. At this year’s home appliance section of the IFA, the world’s largest home and consumer electronics trade show, the company featured a special table that told you where your coffee came from, how the beans in it were harvested, and what type of coffee you were drinking. With the help of LCD technology, widgets featuring text and photos about the coffee would pop up each time the coffee cup was placed on the table. You can see a video of this amazing feature here.

While the table has little to do with Nespresso’s product itself, it’s fun to imagine seeing this type of table in coffee shops of the future, possibly packed with more information to enhance your coffee-drinking experience and make you a better-informed espresso drinker. However, one might choose to ignore any widgets containing nutritional information for some of the more sugary specialty drinks. Talk about a buzz kill!

It doesn’t fly, but it will give you a buzz

But if you don’t want to wait around until 2015 or beyond to see these futuristic features, Nespresso also markets a product that makes espresso in your car. A jet-black machine perfect for the jet set, the Nespresso In-Car Coffee Machine fits comfortably into your car’s center console and creates coffee and espresso drinks using pre-filled pods. While it’s probably not the best idea to try and craft a latte while you’re doing 80 on the expressway, anyone who’s ever been late for work because they’ve had to stop for coffee can certainly understand its purpose. When not in use, the machine conveniently doubles as an armrest.

Do you take your coffee with sugar or rain?

Speaking of machines that double up on functions, the Melitta Smart Mill and Brew, tells you whether or not you’ll need an umbrella while providing you with up to 10 cups of your favorite coffee. This automatic drip coffee maker features a digital display that accurately predicts the temperature and daily forecast with help from an FM signal and MSN Weather. Animated icons on the display screen also give weather warnings and alerts for up to three days at once.

In a world where cell phones also take photos, play music, and give driving directions, a coffeemaker that also predicts the weather, seems to fit right in. Whether you choose to embrace or avoid these new technologies, it’s nice to know that enjoying a good cup of coffee won’t soon be a thing of the past.

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