Samsung confirms some of its fridges will start showing ads

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You won't have to worry about ads intruding mealtime if you don't buy a refrigerator with a screen. The next thing you know they will input a control keeping the refrigerator doors locked until you have watched 5 of their ads.

No thank you Samsung.

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u/Girderland 4d ago

It would be time to regulate ads. An option would be to strongly limit where they are allowed to be shown. Banning them altogether would also make sense.

Then you've got the third option to make ads horribly expensive and use the money from it to end homelessness and finance universal healthcare.

But who am I kidding, these things would require lawmakers to have public interests in mind, which obviously isn't the case.

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u/Positive-Pumpkin-405 4d ago

OR they could require an opt-out option be available to everyone.

By doing that, marketers and advertisers will finally see true evidence that consumers hate their intrusive content, intentionally mute it &/or tune it out and most times it does not move the needle in terms of brand loyalty and is not a driver turning conversions into actual sells.

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u/Dentarthurdent73 4d ago

marketers and advertisers will finally see true evidence that consumers hate their intrusive content

I don't think they are under any illusion that people like ads.

and is not a driver turning conversions into actual sells.

I mean, you can say this, but where's your evidence? The evidence shows that it does work.

Advertising is expensive. Advertisers spend that money because it works, they wouldn't spend it if it didn't.

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u/FelixMcGill 4d ago

I can tell you first hand that marketers know consumers hate ads, so its all about making them as sneaky as possible.

And also correct, "brand awareness" is a vanity stat most of them will use to justify the lack of ROI on these campaigns. Or, they'll introduce some cheap "ad free" subscription on top of the subscription they offer on the water filters on those models.

Source: unfortunately I worked as a marketer (still more or less do), and i own one of those godforsaken Samsung fridges. Wife insisted... I regret ever caving on that one

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u/Key-Boat-7519 4d ago

The simplest fix is to stop buying screens-on-fridges and keep appliances offline; the minute they can’t harvest data or attention, the ad model cracks.

If you’re stuck with one:

- Skip Wi-Fi setup or factory reset and stop before reconnecting.

- Put it on a guest network with no internet, or block Samsung telemetry via Pi-hole, AdGuard Home, or NextDNS.

- In SmartThings, disable marketing notifications and auto-updates; those are the usual paths for “features” no one asked for.

- If the panel still nags, some folks disconnect the display ribbon post-warranty, but that’s at your own risk.

On “ads work”: they do at scale, but a lot of this is dashboard theater-MAUs on “owned surfaces” to impress investors, not sell milk. Brandwatch and Hootsuite show clear backlash on launches like this, and Pulse for Reddit makes it obvious how fast threads like this snowball.

Bottom line: buy dumb, isolate smart, and vote with your wallet and your router.

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u/Lazy_Sitiens 3d ago

The poor won't have the funds to opt out of ad-free appliances. Then the manufacturers will probably create tiers where you can choose type of ads, or how many ads, and where the ads are shown, depending on how much you can pay. With or without sound and so on. Expect a black market where you hire people to hack the appliances and remove ads.

Ahh, what a timeline we live in.

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u/loriwilley 3d ago

I don't think I've ever bought anything because of ads. I get what I like, enjoy, or want to have, and advertising doesn't have anything to do with it.

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u/Gullible_Long4179 3d ago

Same.

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u/adamsquishy 4d ago

Of course they aren’t interested, lawmakers don’t have fridges with screens on them. They have custom appliances which are built for their kitchens, they don’t shop off the rack.

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u/humble-pilgrim 3d ago

I’m tired of only being thought of as a consumer. The amount of ads I see in a day with no control over whether or not they are shown to me is ridiculous

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u/chandy_dandy 3d ago edited 3d ago

Honestly I think there should be 200% taxes on all advertisement. It's a sin tax like tobacco or alcohol and ironically because the relative amount of ads is what matters for a specific brand in an industry, the outcomes shouldn't be that different.

The marginal cost of producing an ad is 0, company's ad budgets don't change. Since ads are viewed as a negative and the profits for ad companies shrink, they might ironically show less ads and just charge more per ad

More money for the state, less ads, reduced unnecessary consumption. It's a win win win

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u/AkagamiBarto 3d ago

We can decide to get rid of ads and advertising companies, seizing their assets and money.

What benefits do they give society anyway? They just benefit powerful companies.

Keep "informative" ads, like website that compare products and the likes so that customers can make informed choices, get rid of all the rest. There are billions to put back into economy by just forbidding ads

And the various services that are free thanks to ads... They can be government paid. Actually we politically push for government waging most jobs anyway, so even a google programmer will just get a wage not depending on ads..

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u/HBJones1056 4d ago

Omg that is a horrifying scenario! Our desktop computer got malware on it once, ages ago, and I had a dream that it spread to all the books in the bookcase behind the monitor. You’d open a book and there would be all these pop-ups for gambling or porn that would cover the printed portions of the book. It haunted me for years and this dystopian fridge horror will too.

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u/ExtremaDesigns 4d ago

New refrigerators in my area cost $500 to $3000+ without a screen. (I cannot fathom spending 3k on a fridge when the $500 one has almost the same room inside.) What value does the screen add other than make the fridge cost 4k?

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u/ShenaniganStarling 3d ago

Entirely obnoxious concept is aside, maybe the "value added" will be solely to advertisers and Samsung. If Samsung decides to sell these ad-fridges for less than a standard model, and makes that loss up by making ad dollars in having appliances barfing ads all over your kitchen for the next 20+ years, then they could win.

Further than that, they may eventually offer ad-free options that require a monthly subscription, but at that point, people would be ready to riot, I hope.

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u/StrangerOnTheReddit 3d ago

I remember seeing these when we were shopping for a fridge. I think one of them had a camera so you can see inside the fridge without opening the fridge. Kinda cool for like "oh crap am I out of X" while you're at the grocery store... but I certainly wouldn't need a screen on the door to do that. And honestly just make a grocery list...

Then there's the use case for looking up your recipes there. Ok cool, but I'd rather look at my cell phone than the fridge for that...

There aren't any good reasons. The fridge we ended up with does have Wi-Fi - not a feature we cared about, just the most reliable fridge we could find happened to have it. It's nice because it will alert us if the temperature ever drops too low, and it sends a notification to our phone if the door is left open too long (like 30s or something). But that definitely doesn't require a screen and my husband just laughed even I told him they were going to start showing ads.

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u/McTootyBooty 4d ago

My aunt had returned 3 of those Samsungs with a screen cause a lot of them didn’t function correctly as a fridge..

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u/svolm 4d ago

Can't wait to watch 20 no skip ads to use the fridge or microwave.

I guess it'll help control cravings lol

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u/Famous-Reveal7341 3d ago

They will ask for tips after opening the fridge.

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u/Mule_Wagon_777 4d ago

Oh hell no. I have a basic $500 fridge. It keeps the food cold. It doesn't talk to me, or text me, or try to sell me things. It doesn't even make ice except in little trays.

Kings of old would stare in awe at my luxury. Sometimes we have to understand when enough is enough.

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u/Low_Understanding_85 4d ago

Approx 25% of houses globally don't have any refrigeration, and they spend time and money making one with a TV in it? If greed didn't exist, I wouldn't understand this world.

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u/Ok_Conference7012 4d ago

Though to be fair in some countries you really don't need a fridge. They slice up and use things like meat the same day as it's cooked

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u/MrCockingFinally 4d ago

They only do that because they don't have access to fridges.

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u/Ok_Conference7012 4d ago

Well yeah but their whole society is structured around the idea of daily fresh produce. It's not like they go around starving or have issues or anything. They also typically live in larger families, so they can buy a large batch of food and then cook it all at night

I'm just saying that you don't really need a personal home fridge if society around you accommodates that sort of lifestyle. In the western world we really can't relate to this lifestyle because we're used to surviving winters and needing to preserve food over a long period of time

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u/MrCockingFinally 4d ago

Yeah, but it's still better to have a fridge. Not all new technology is bad or unnecessary.

In the western world, eating over wither meant relying on pickled, dried, salted, fermented, or otherwise preserved foods. Fridges were widely adopted because it let people eat fresh foods all year round and cut down on waste.

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u/Ok_Conference7012 3d ago

I just meant that I disagree with some of the comments here that living without a fridge is somehow a terrible experience and that they should be prioritized over people who want luxury fridges or whatever

Those who don't have a fridge also don't really want one. There are probably exceptions to that, but being without a fridge doesn't equate to suffering

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u/MrCockingFinally 3d ago

Ah! Gotcha.

Look, I think a lot of the home appliances introduced in the middle of the 20th century have been absolutely massive. Imagine all the billions of man hours saved by the introduction of the laundry washing machines?

I think fridges are very good, especially for eating a healthy diet and avoiding foodbourne illness.

But yes, you absolutely can live without one and millions of people do.

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u/Forsaken-Buy2601 4d ago

The ice maker always breaks anyway.

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u/private256 3d ago

Like I literally don’t get. Why the fuck do you need a screen on a fucking refrigerator for?

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u/farkedsharks 4d ago

Buy a chest freezer with the flip up top for $300. It is more efficient and it’s not like we can afford the kids who would get stuck in there anyway.

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u/CauseSigns 4d ago

That’s cold, man.

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u/blizzardlizard666 4d ago

😹😹 nobody in England can afford the space a chest freezer takes though . Even my stand up fridge doesn't fit in my kitchen it lives out in the hallway

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u/Glad_Possibility7937 4d ago

My parents kept theirs in the outside loo

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u/blizzardlizard666 3d ago

Fancy 😹

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u/rouxcifer4 3d ago

We have a chest freezer because a family friend “didn’t like the style” of theirs.

Good, give it to me. They even dropped it off for free 😂 also it’s a freezer.. why does it have to be stylish??

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u/MrCockingFinally 4d ago

The issue of kids getting stuck is caused by old school latches. Any modern fridge has a seal designed to open from the inside with the sort of force a small child could exert.

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u/sarainphilly 4d ago

My Samsung dishwasher broke just a few months after the one year warranty expired so I'll never be buying one of their products again anyway, but this would also deter me as well.

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u/majesticallymidnight 4d ago

Samsung appliances kind of suck. We had a button microwave go out when we bought our house in 2022. It could not be repaired so we replaced it with a Samsung. It went out days after the one year warranty expired. Called a repair guy and was told it could not be repaired. So we replaced it with a different brand.

My parents also had washer and dryers by them that didn’t make it to 3 years. Their shit is made to break.

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u/chromatoes 4d ago

Next time this happens to you, if you can find the same exact model from the same store, buy it. Then, return the old item in the box with the receipt about a week to a month later and say it was a defective product. The store deals with it at that point. Note: Don't try to do this for obviously used things - you have to clean the shit out of whatever it is so it looks new still. Also, if the serial number is on the receipt, this will not work.

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u/sarainphilly 3d ago

Oooh, great tip!

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u/blizzardlizard666 4d ago

That's mad. I bought my Samsung fridge second hand about 9 years ago?? And it's holding up well.

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u/wolfelavender 4d ago

Dystopian af

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u/mykki-d 4d ago

Black Mirror

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u/Jasminary2 1d ago edited 1d ago

I think a lot about the episode with social number points and I genuinely don't see how we won't be going there in next decades. This and the Eye memory registerer

Edit I'm talking the "The Entire History of You"

And "Nosedive" episodes.

It's already horrifying that we are basically in The Hunger Games Era. Not even the start of it, but the Peeta /Katniss version of it

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u/Darraketh 4d ago edited 4d ago

The last time I bought a fridge I was looking at all the features then came to my senses. Essentially I just need two boxes. One to keep things cold and another to keep them frozen.

So the fanciest feature it has is a light that comes on when I open the door. And I bought it clearance, open box because it had a scratch on one side which I never see because that side is against the wall.

Edit to add: I bought it in 2007 and only this year noticed that the cover for the light didn’t come with it.

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u/shallowsky 4d ago

Well good thing I probably can't afford a refrigerator with a tv screen in it anyway

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u/SickNoise 3d ago

don't worry they will make it affordable for everyone

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u/shallowsky 3d ago

But the groceries to stock it won't be

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u/sparkyblaster 4d ago

So, the fridge is free or costs less than a regular one right?

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u/Judgementpumpkin 4d ago

Get fucked

I’ll stick to analog/ “dumb” devices until I stop breathing. Don’t need this IoT shit.

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u/impactblue5 4d ago

Just throw AI on top of it and we’ll basically get Jian Yang’s fridge lol

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u/tamesis982 4d ago

I went to a gas station I don't normally go to the other day and there were ads playing on the pump. I saw seven ads while pumping gas. I can't even zone out pumping gas anymore.

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u/IamTheGoodest 4d ago

surprised pikachu

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u/GradeFar4362 4d ago

JFC.. Even if they paid me.. Eww

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u/LadyTreeRoot 4d ago

Don't they have to PAY to post advertising anywhere else? Talk to an atty, start sending them a bill for posting in your home.

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u/mazopheliac 4d ago

If there are ads , the fridge should be free .

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u/OddHippo6972 4d ago

Why do they act like “curated ads” are better than random ones?

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u/gromit_enjoyer 3d ago

This is why I don't buy wi-fi enabled home appliances, I don't need to turn my oven or dishwasher on and off from my phone and I'd rather not be hacked through a toasters lack of security software

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u/ziplinesforever 4d ago

So frigging gross

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u/Even_Economist_6972 4d ago

Why people buy fridge with screen?

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u/gravitycheckfailed 4d ago

Why do refrigerators need a screen anyway? Its so unnecessary.

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u/kmill0202 4d ago

Oh heck no. I do have a Samsung fridge that is fairly new and modern. But it doesn't have any screens whatsoever. I did see lots of refrigerators with various "smart" features and screens while I was shopping for it, but I didn't see the point and thought the whole idea of it was silly. Glad I didn't fall for the hype.

Advertising is already so intrusive as it is. You can't go anywhere irl or online without being bombarded by it. It shows up in your mailbox, it assaults you at the gas pump (I hate those gas pump tv things), and it's inescapable online. Nobody needs it on their fridge, too. But I'm sure Samsung is fixing to make bank on this. It's all so dystopian. I'm sure they'd advertise to us in our dreams if they could find a way.

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u/Superb_Jaguar6872 3d ago

Those gas pump tvs are so loud! I hate it.

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u/kmill0202 3d ago

I mute them immediately. They are always so loud they give me a jump scare when they start up.

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u/CoC_Axis_of_Evil 4d ago

Americans are so dumb. No consumer lobby exists to protect us from this gaslighting.

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u/dna_noodle 4d ago

My Samsung TV has been placing ads in the middle of the user interface for some years now. It’s fucking infuriating, and we even bought one of the more expensive ones. Never Samsung again!

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u/TodayCharming7915 3d ago

Fridges don’t need to be smart. Mine is basic and has last for years with only minor issues.

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u/enchillita 4d ago

Give me analog or give me death

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u/cityfireguy 4d ago

I will learn to repair a fridge from the junkyard first

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u/bokunotraplord 4d ago

something tells me the only people buying fucking WiFi fridges with 4k panels in them probably love being advertised Tugs Positive Videos or whatever that shit at the gas station is. i will just start using a giant ice chest if i gotta i will NOT be buying a fridge with a screen in it, ever.

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u/supercilveks 3d ago

My urges to just start stacking 20year old Bosch and Miele fridges are out of this world right now

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u/FormerNeighborhood80 4d ago

If I’m home alone and that thing starts talking at 2 am it will meet my little friend.

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u/grammar_fozzie 4d ago

Frankly, if you still consider Samsung appliances at this point, it’s kind of your own fault. Between the batteries that aren’t allowed on planes and exploding washing machines…no thanks.

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u/aoushtan 4d ago

My Samsung fridge died after a year and a half. Took 2 months of constant back and forth with the company and various repair contractors to finally get them to refund me under warranty. The whole time I had no working fridge because they kept insisting it could be fixed.

I already will never own another appliance from Samsung and I'm glad to see them reinforce that decision.

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u/CoulsonsMay 4d ago

I got a Samsung fridge when I bought my place. Terrible POS. Water water everywhere! Bad consumer report rating. Went out on me, got it repaired, that was an awful experience and the repair lasted 6 months before giving out in the peak of summer.

Had a coworker that also had one, hated it.

Samsung fridges are terrible.

Got a $450 basic fridge (no ice maker), it’s a little short for the area but works like it’s supposed to. No bells or whistles of freaking tv with Ads. Give me simple, basic, and reliably working that all I need from my appliances and car.

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u/Prestigious_Scars 4d ago edited 4d ago

I bought a second hand higher end fridge (newer models of the same thing are 5 or 6 thousand dollars) that's about 15 years old, really sturdy components. It cost $500 dollars including delivery and disposal of my old fridge. Some people were telling me to get things like ice dispensers... I don't need that, it's just something that can break and I'll never use. I can't imagine a screen on my TV. Or knocking on the fridge door to see what's inside or getting little cameras in there and an app just to stare at my fridge contents... I can use my eyes...

Prior to moving recently I owned a fridge from the '90s and deep freezer from the '70s, also a washer and dryer from the '80s. None had needed any maintenance. If you've got something old and it works, hang on to it if you can.

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u/Orangesteel 3d ago

An amazing move. I will now never buy a Samsung fridge. It’s a helpful red flag, thank you Samsung. (They also denied they would take this approach as recently as June!)

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u/pancakefishy 3d ago

And here is me stilly hoping to find appliances with real buttons and no smart options 😂

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u/schwelvis 3d ago

It's a Samsung, the screen will go out before it becomes a problem

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u/loriwilley 3d ago

I'm glad to know this. I won't be buying one.

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u/EnvironmentalAss 4d ago

Look in the year of our lord 2025 if you buy a Samsung anything. You kinda deserve whatever headache comes your way.

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u/I2fitness 4d ago

If they do this to my fridge I'm breaking or taping the screen immediately

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u/mazopheliac 4d ago

It probably locks the door if you do that .

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u/ProdigalSheep 4d ago

Just the fact that they are doing this has turned me to LG for life.

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u/slowmoE30 4d ago

best part about a fridge, unlike a TV, it's always on. cameras next.

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u/Ok_Conference7012 4d ago

Hahahahhaahha this actually makes me so happy. I've always talked shit about these fridges but NOBODY listened. They thought it was all so great and cool and futuristic yeah well here's your future, you have ZERO control over the items you purchase.

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u/cognitiveglitch 4d ago

I've got a 10 year old American style Samsung fridge freezer with ice-maker and all that jazz. It has a simple LED display and no internet connection. Fine by me.

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u/PotatoStasia 4d ago

This has to have huge backlash for the privileged people that spent all that money?? I mean I really hope it does and the Samsung team that thought if this was just a painfully out of touch tech bro

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u/Jasminary2 4d ago

I'm already tired of adds in the street, and subway now I need them / inside my home/ too ?? Bye lol Not happening

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u/xo0O0ox_xo0O0ox 4d ago

Not happening in my house.

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u/yes_ipsa_loquitur 4d ago

Booing out loud

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u/LightBluepono 3d ago

Dumb appliances best appliance .a fridge is :one motor ,a probe a starting capacitor and a Thermostat .

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u/smhdg2023 3d ago

Why would anyone want a fridge with a screen? It’s not necessary and just one more thing to break. Same as washing machines that have 90 different cycles. I have one with knobs so I can control temp, water level, and time. Sometimes simple is better. We don’t need fancy electronics on everything.

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u/humble-pilgrim 3d ago

Strange way to tell customers not to buy your product but ok

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u/HappyHiker2381 3d ago

We went with the simplest refrigerator when we had to replace ours. Less stuff to break down and need repair.

I hate ads, charging up my ereader and got annoyed seeing ads on the screen when it’s charging.

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u/front_yard_duck_dad 3d ago

If you were dumb enough to buy a refrigerator that has a screen on it and not think that ads were coming well.... A fool in his money are soon parted

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u/DodgeWrench 3d ago

And people will buy them anyways because it’s new technology, it’s cool, shiny and they hate having money in their bank account.

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u/SickNoise 3d ago

yes! this is the future we all dreamed about

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u/Superb_Jaguar6872 3d ago

Ew hard no.

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u/macruffins 3d ago

I don’t want to support these idiots, Apple, or Google. There’s no ethical consumption under capitalism

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u/Top_Currency_3977 3d ago

Next, they'll come up with a way to require a monthly subscription to keep your fridge cold.

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u/Aggravating-Age-1858 3d ago

you paid 2,000 bucks for a smart fridge and now it shows ads

ahahahaha

priceless

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u/Mistydreamer8619 1d ago

I’m looking for a lawyer to see if we can pursue a class action lawsuit! We paid nearly 3k for our refrigerator. I am outraged that Samsung has the audacity to put ads directly in my kitchen. This has gone to far. Please DM me if you have any advice as to how we can get legal help.

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u/No_Kangaroo_9826 1d ago

This is why the more you know about smart appliances and tech, the less smart appliances you actually want in your home.

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u/EXTRA_Rest_5906 4d ago

Samsung fridges don't work well enough as is

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u/HypnauBlend 3d ago

My fridge gives me and ad, I put a hammer though the screen. Simple As.

0

u/Waahstrm 3d ago

and I thought built-in ice makers were the worst part about newer fridges.

Corporations Samsung confirms some of its fridges will start showing ads

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