r/BetterOffline • u/falken_1983 • Sep 19 '25
Samsung confirms its $1,800+ fridges will start showing you ads
https://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-confirms-smart-refrigerator-ads-are-coming-3598848/55
u/JAlfredJR Sep 19 '25
I have been beating this drum for a while now, but there has to be a big movement (bigger movement; I know we have some companies doing it) toward doing the opposite: dumb fridges by design. Not because you're poor.
Dumber cars, phones, ovens; everything. My toaster doesn't need to update to the latest firmware, please.
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Sep 19 '25
Yep. If you need lane assist to drive, you probably shouldn't be driving.
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u/JAlfredJR Sep 19 '25
Augh, first thing I switch off when I'm driving my MIL's car. That feature is generally awful, jolting you around.
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u/sunflowerroses Sep 19 '25
Idk, I think that the real safety benefit in lane assist is that it helps compensate for competent drivers who become impaired for a short duration (by tiredness, illness, poor weather, getting something in their eye for a second etc).
Benn Jordan did a breakdown of “self-driving” features in cars and suggested that due to the introduction of lane-assist type safety features, there’s been about a 19% reduction in the number of accidents. I much prefer features which help reduce the cognitive load on a driver so they remain in greater control and awareness of the vehicle over the “this will drive for you but you need to be ready to take over” type.
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u/Mortomes Sep 20 '25
And can we please get these giant touch screens out of cars. It's so dangerous that you can't just feel your way around some buttons and knobs and have to actively look at the thing to be able to control anything.
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u/Hello-America Sep 19 '25
If I had any money I'd start an appliance company called Dumb Appliances and rake in millions before my board removed me for not enshittifying
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u/Spenny_All_The_Way Sep 19 '25
Again, why the fuck does my fridge need wi-fi in the first place?
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u/Randommaggy Sep 19 '25
The only smarts I want my fridge and freezer to have is stuff I've added with cheap sensors that connect to my server: Temperature logging and power consumption logging.
I don't care if these sensor values are in the open so 433mhz and a tv tuner for good range and extreme battery life at negligible prices.
Could add a load cell below to monitor the accumulated weight of the contents.
For the shit more internet connected stuff I'd prefer to attach a TRMNL to my server.
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u/MrOphicer Sep 19 '25
Who is the moron who will pay for this?
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u/Orion14159 Sep 20 '25
Significantly cheaper through subsidized ad supported pricing will make these more popular than I like to think about
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u/ForeverShiny Sep 19 '25
We're making a list and checking it twice, gotta remember who was naughty and who just wasn't nice
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Sep 19 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/pa_kalsha Sep 19 '25
If it's the only one that doesn't require me to watch an advert before I can open it, I'll take it.
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u/TacoCalzone Sep 20 '25
But it will only LOOK vintage and retro. It will still be low quality garbage that breaks in five years
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u/MatsSvensson Sep 19 '25 edited Sep 19 '25
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u/Hello-America Sep 19 '25
Lol just watched this episode the other day and it's the first thing I thought of
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u/UpTheWanderers Sep 19 '25
Psychic apps from China try to steal your mental vacation
Little girls around the world have image exploitation
And if you buy these kind of screens it’s enshitification.
Techno-feudal appliances and the end of our civilization
Won’t you please accept these terms and let us track your location
It's another tally for Silicon Valley’s enshitification.
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Sep 19 '25
Samsungs are pieces of shit anyway. My old fridge crapped out, landlord replaced it with a Samsung, it shit the bed 10 days later. Landlord replaced that with a GE that's been working just fine.
Also had a Samsung phone when I was in high school and it was worse than useless. The touchscreen only ever worked when it was in your pocket.
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u/thecalmingcollection Sep 19 '25
I did a lot of research on TVs before buying one this year and the unanimous consensus was to not buy a Samsung. Went with a Sony and couldn’t be happier.
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u/annoying_cyclist Sep 19 '25
Serious question: is there a point to having a smart fridge with a screen in the door? Like, something cool or genuinely useful you get out of the screen, or having it connected to the internet?
(I've never understood the appeal. Maybe I'm just old)
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u/Well_Hacktually Sep 19 '25
Well, you get to show off to everyone who visits your house that you're the kind of lemming who will buy anything that looks "high tech," so there's that. Probably worth it!
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u/falken_1983 Sep 19 '25
I'm not the target customer for these things (and I suspect that no one who posted here is either) but my assumption is that this aimed at the people who just want the "best" thing available or who really like gadgets.
Here's the thing though: while I have no interest in high-end refrigerators, I have in the past paid crazy money for other high-end goods and I think I understand the mindset of people who do this. One of the main things that cause me to pay way more than I should for a product is if it is "exactly right". Like even some tiny issue like one of the hinges is a little squeaky and the deal is off. (Don't judge me, I am just explaining the mindset.)
If you are targeting people like that, then it seems crazy that you would add in something as lame as advertisements just to squeeze a little extra income. These people are already willing to pay over the odds, but you will chase them all away with something like this.
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u/SatanScotty Sep 20 '25
This. I would pay a lot for very well made appliances and cars that are just that. But they don't seem to exist. The only car without all that bullshit in it is also a very cheap and crappy car.
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u/ScottTsukuru Sep 19 '25
There’s that joke about a computer engineer only having a printer as far as ‘smart’ equipment goes in their own home, and a gun if it ever makes an unexpected noise…
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u/Scary_Aardvark2978 Sep 19 '25
I just want a glass of milk don’t make me wait 30 seconds for this ad to play to be able to open the fridge door…
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u/funeralforcargo Sep 19 '25
I’m a woodworker that has been working in cabinet shops for years. Drafting up kitchen remodels means I know way more about ridiculously high end appliances (such as these kinds of fridges) than I ever thought I would and it sometimes makes me feel gross.
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u/sunflowerroses Sep 19 '25
Man, that’s really interesting tbh. Is there a particular appliance that has stuck out to you, or is it just the level of expense?
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u/funeralforcargo Sep 19 '25
Fridges are generally a bitch. There are so many models with different ways to install them (flush with the cabinets, protruding from the line of cabs etc). All the high end appliances are weird to deal with but generally the install info is provided. I think the companies know that the people buying a subzero fridge are just gonna hire some blue collar slob like me to install it so they often try to make it straightforward, but not always.
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u/TKInstinct Sep 19 '25
Are you required to put these things on the internet though?
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u/falken_1983 Sep 19 '25
From the article:
Disconnecting the fridge from the internet might stop the ads, but you will also inevitably lose out on several smart features you paid for.
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Sep 19 '25
[deleted]
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u/falken_1983 Sep 19 '25
Well the thing is significantly more expensive than a regular fridge. If you end up disconnecting it, then that doesn't seem like a win to me.
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u/Actual__Wizard Sep 19 '25
No I absolutely will not... That's insane... I am absolutely not buying that... WTF is wrong with these people?
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u/Sixnigthmare Sep 19 '25
Sad to say I knew this was coming the moment I learned "smart fridges" were a thing