Budget food/living

Make it easy to cook dried beans and pulses (cheaper than the tinned stuff), which are otherwise a bit tiresome (all that extra soaking and pre-cooking).

Are you suggesting just chucking dry beans into a slow cooker without soaking?

Soaking beans isn't just about re-hydrating them, it also starts the germination process which makes them sweeter and changes the texture (less floury)...also some beans are poisonous (kidney beans) if you do not boil them rigorously for 10 minutes.