Buying a new refrigerator/freezer a few months ago turned into a much bigger process that I expected.
I did research. Consumer Reports. On-line reviews. Asked my friends. Talked to salespeople.
I found evangelists who swore by certain brands and certain features.
Then again, I was solemnly warned against those same brands and features by others who recounted their tales of horror.
Who Knew All A Fridge Could Do!
I found models that were amazing.
I could look inside without opening the door. A great way to save energy!
I could get a glass of water without opening the door thanks to the ice & water dispenser in the door. Of course, there was the worry of water spilling on my hardwood floor.
I could “look inside” with my smartphone while at the grocery store to check on a particular item. No more forgotten milk!
One refrigerator had a compartment that could be either a freezer or a refrigerator.
There were buzzers, special features, ad nauseum.
Water Water Everywhere
People with ice makers and water dispensers in the door shared tales of woe balanced by those whose experiences were wonderful.
In my limited experience, the ice maker in my Liebherr stopped working just as the warranty expired. The icemaker in the other refrigerator I had while my sons were growing up never worked after the first few months.
My BFF experienced two episodes of water damage with expensive floor and ceiling repairs.
Simple Works for Me
I decided that more gizmos on the refrigerator meant more things to go wrong.
I didn’t need the capability to look in my refrigerator via my smartphone. I would make a list.
I nixed the water dispenser on the door. Surely I can open the door to get a drink of water.
Nor, did I need an ice maker. This was a hard decision as the convenience of lots of ice in the summer is nice.
Yet, I have never owned a refrigerator with a reliable icemaker. The ice clumped together, often there was more ice than I needed and sometimes, the ice had a funny smell…that is when the icemaker worked!
So, I opted for a refrigerator with two ice trays. Filling the trays was easy, almost meditative…yes, a stretch but I don’t mind.
On hot days, I make ice more often or buy a bag of ice especially if I have guests coming.
Getting rid of the extras made my decision easier
I would make a decision, act on it and not talk with anyone about it.
I did not want to second guess my decision.
I could focus on the features that mattered to me.
I decided that the fancy features did not matter or were not worth the additional cost or potential headaches if and when they stopped working.
Reliability was the biggest concern. When all is said and done, reliability is often a roll of the dice.
As I have an open floorplan, a quiet refrigerator was important also.
My Fisher Paykel.
It is quiet.
It has the essentials without a slew of extras.
It beeps if I leave the door open.
It fits my space perfectly and is beautiful.
So, far it has operated perfectly.
It makes ice in covered ice trays.
It keeps my food cold and my frozen items frozen.
What more could I ask?
Lori Greer in Portland 
Sounds like you made a wise decision to me!
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I so agree. Streamlined appliances are the way to go. In fact I would like to simplify my whole kitchen but keep the dishwasher, the disposal, the toaster, the microwave, etc. etc. etc.
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I went through that. Even the most expensive refrigerators seemed to have the same problems. Water spilling…etc.
my ice maker quit in the house I just sold.
For the price to fix it…I could’ve bought a new fridge. Off to buy ice trays.
I have a nice one here but it was never connected to the water supply. Glad I brought my trays! 💧
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I had no idea a fridge could do all of that.
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thank you. You spoke of a fridge. Simplicity works fine for me in ALL things. (regarding fridges the one my Mum and Dad bought when iceboxes became fridges lasted 40 years. It kept food cold in blazing summer heat. We always had cold water and our ice creams never melted in our freezer. Some of the newest fridges have only a three year guarantee these days. I think we are already on fridge No 4 in our married life. The last one became non-functioning just because the ice making device fused. (Whole fridge had to be scrapped) People who come to ? repair will shake their heads in disbelief. The cost of the repair is not worth the money or the effort…’better get a new one’. I now have simple ice trays once again. Cheers!
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Oh I am as gob-smacked as you at all that appliances now want us to want them to do. I also prefer simplicity. And a Fisher-Paykel has just entered my life! except I didn’t choose it; it was here waiting for me. I have yet to learn to use the ice-making capacity (low on my list), and I snarl at it when it beeps at me — the door is still open because I am still putting things inside! You clearly adapt with more grace than I do…
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God luck. I hope you like it as much as I like mine! My friend also bought a new refrigerator but decided not to connect the ice maker. I hope that life is going well for you!
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I giggle. My ice-maker also remains unconnected…
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I loved reading this and reliving the woes and occasional adventures of my friends and family.
The story that kept popping to mind for me is the running gag in my family over my dad’s glucose monitor.
When his sugar is out of whack, his monitor will beep.
Just like the smoke alarm if we forget to put on the hood fan while cooking or his fridge if the door doesn’t shut tightly.
Regardless, we all enjoy putting on mock surprise and yelling, “Dad! Your sugar!” whenever a random alarm goes off. I’m not unconvinced that my brother and sister aren’t leaving his fridge door open intentionally at this point.
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I’m with you on not wanting a lot of the gimics that seem to come with appliances (and other products) these days. Companies are so desperate to keep selling people new stuff by making what they have seem inadequate, that the real functionality is forgotten. And of course it all just generates so much waste and pollution.
Fisher & Paykel is a New Zealand company btw. I don’t think we actually MAKE anything here now (heaven forbid, we’d provide local people with jobs), but I believe they are still designed in NZ. I used to have two cats called Fisher and Paykel — named because they always answered to the sound of the fridge door opening.
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I think you were wise to forego the fancy extras. More things to go wrong. Our plain Amana refrigerator has been good for 27 years (I’ve probably put a curse on it now, by saying that), but I’ve always believed in “simple is better.”
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I’m with you, Lori. Sometimes too new is just too much.
BTW, I don’t have a smart phone, I don’t text and won’t read them if they come across my old, inexpensive flip phone.
I’d rather donate the money I didn’t spend to a worthy cause and have fewer things go wrong with my old fashioned but serviceable stuff.
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