‘Just so many possible points of failure’: Man spots a pricey $3,300 Samsung Bespoke fridge. Then he opens the door
If the future means waving your hand under a refrigerator door to open it, we're officially in the future now.
That's what creator Shaun Cunningham (@shaun_cunningham_creates) discovered walking through a big box store and stumbling upon what Samsung is calling its Bespoke 4-Door Flex™ Refrigerator (29 cu. ft.) with AI Family Hub™+ and AI Vision Inside™.
According to its website, it includes: an "AI Family Hub+ with Bespoke 4-Door Flex ... with the industry’s largest screen and changeable refrigerator door panels," and "AI Vision Inside," which "automatically recognizes items in your fridge, so you always know what's inside, helping you manage your refrigerator storage more efficiently."
But as Cunningham discovered—and documented in a video put up on Jan. 4, which has gathered more than 700 comments as of Thursday evening—it does one thing that other fridges don't.
"When it's too much work for you to manually open the refrigerator door, look what you can now do," he says, waving his hand under each of the two top compartment doors to reveal that they open automatically.
Cunningham then zooms in on the AI Vision label.
"It has a built-in camera that takes the food you put in and take out," he says flatly. The display says it automatically generates a list of items in the SmartThings app.
This Bespoke model sells for $3,300.
Reviews are in. Do people love it or hate it?
Professional product testers on Reviewed wrote, "We tested the RF29DB9900QD model, and this Samsung Bespoke fridge combines some brand features we know and love—like a temperature-adjustable quadrant, Beverage Center, and customizable door panels—with new, ultra-modern tech—like AI Vision, SmartThings Food, and TV streaming. It also offers decent performance in terms of basic performance and temperature stability."
But then they hedged, "While there's a lot to love about this fridge, it also comes with a learning curve. We love the idea of technology helping us plan meals and keep track of all our fridge contents, but we found this feature to be a bit clunky in practice. And some more basic features fall slightly short, like temperature consistency and ice dispenser functionality."
On a Reddit post discussing the Bespoke fridges, some reported that the fridges are working great years after purchase and are an upgrade over previous versions of Samsung fridges. Not everyone was quite so positive, however.
"Apparently Samsung is for phones not appliances. Samsung wasn't able to fix our compressor so we got a check [from] Samsung. Before the compressor it was the ice maker not once but twice. So I've done a lot of research, I'd love to purchase another brand but I'm fortunate enough to receive the compensation. If anything I've learned to always buy warranty!"
What commenters thought
People in the comments offered additional feedback.
"Just so many possible points of failure," said one.
"Facts," another agreed, adding, "How long before that button or motor or sensor fails and it costs half the price of the fridge itself to fix?"
"I don’t have any patience for that," someone else observed.
"It's literally slower lol," another chimed in.
"I just want a fridge that has an ice maker that functions longer than a month," complained one.
But one commenter pointed out that some people might really love automatic doors.
"I have rheumatoid arthritis, sometimes my hands [don't] work or get cramped up. This is great for people with disabilities."
@shaun_cunningham_creates Tired of spending so much time physically opening your fridge? Heres one you can just touch to open. What will you do with all that extra time you’ll be saving?#timesaver #samsung #fridge #takingmylifebackonefridgdooropeningatatime #isecretlywantone ♬ original sound - Shaun_cunningham
The Daily Dot has reached out to the creator via TikTok and Facebook direct message and to Samsung via email.
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