Thread

1. sandworm101 · 1790169670 · focus · HN ↗

   The fridge compressor answers to software? Idiocy. It need be nothing more than a relay attached to a thermocouple. I can see having a smart screen to deliver aps/ads and to collect data on people in the home, but why on earth would that need to actually manipulate temperatures?

   1. Grombobulous · 1790172902 · focus · HN ↗

      My non-Samsung fridge lets me change the temperature settings from my phone.

      That’s why the compressor answers to software. How else would I change the temperature remotely if it didn‘t?

      I find that the anti-smart device brigade among tech enthusiasts is very detached from the reality of what consumers want. The general public does demand smart features and they want them to work well.

      The sin here isn’t that the fridge is smart, the sin is that bad software was pushed out.

      My particular refrigerator also has a purposefully limited set of features. You’ll notice that real luxury brands like Sub-Zero don’t pack their refrigerators with crazy feature lists and touch screens. Their smart apps are basic and focus on essentials like “door left open” or “change filter” notifications and remote temperature adjustment. They don’t have complicated features like craft cocktail ice and even basic stuff like water dispensing is an optional extra (since it’s assumed that luxury clients may have a separate dedicated reverse osmosis and sparkling water machine for that). They don’t push out frequent updates and they keep their smart functions as modular components since it’s assumed that the refrigerator will remain installed permanently for decades (e.g., you can add a newer control system with touch screen and WiFi to your older Sub-Zero fridge).

      It would be nice if non-luxury brands followed some of these philosophies a little more.

      1. cesarb · 1790173153 · focus · HN ↗

         > How else would I change the temperature remotely if it didn‘t?

         ...why do you need to change the fridge temperature remotely?

         1. Grombobulous · 1790173236 · focus · HN ↗

            I paid $11,000 for my luxury built-in refrigerator, I expect that functionality to exist since it’s trivial to implement.

            I could implement that in a weekend on an ESP board.

            1. crtasm · 1790174678 · focus · HN ↗

               When you had an offline fridge did you ever find yourself in a situation where remotely setting the temperature would have been useful?

               1. Grombobulous · 1790178290 · focus · HN ↗

                  I’m away on vacation and weather reports say there might be a thunderstorm at my house with high probability of power outage, so maybe I lower the temperature setting to try and extend the life of the contents.

                  Kids/nanny/housekeeper changes the temperature against my wishes.

                  I’ve left the house for a long vacation with the fridge emptied and I’d like to change the temperature to consume less power while I’m gone, forgot to do it before I left.

                  And again it’s trivially simple functionality that costs almost no money or development effort to I implement.

                  1. crisnoble · 1790183051 · focus · HN ↗

                     So you spend 11k on a smart fridge, have a nanny, but maniacally control the temperature depending on contents, possible weather scenarios and and if you are vacation. Makes sense. Maybe that is why I'm still poor, imagine all the money I've wasted never once adjusting my fridge temp remotely (or even manually) in the last 14 years.

                     1. epcoa · 1790196577 · focus · HN ↗

                        "Never argue with stupid people, they will drag you down to their level and beat you with experience”

                          - Albert Einstein

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