Well, for people in an apartment it doesn't matter all that much, but if your laundry washer or dryer is in the basement, you don't necessarily hear it if you're out in the garden.
Sure, it might be a "nice to have" thing. But the machines usually show how long they'll take. And even if it's a newer one with sensors that make the whole process vary in time. I'd still be like "Oh, okay it'll take about 3 hours, so ill be back at 6pm". It doesn't really matter if the clothes chill out for about an hour, especially the newer machines don't stink that fast. And on top of that, I don't think that it has to go over the internet if you needed some sorta notification. Local would be suffiecient.
If I buy something new like this and have a few choices, I intentionally pick the one with as few smart features as possible.