Early Verdict
The Samsung FlexZone Side by Side fridge ticks almost all the features for a modern fridge. It's spacious, has three independently temperature controlled zones and a built-in ice making mechanism. It's a shame that Samsung didn't make it a connected or smart appliance.
Pros
- +
Flexible zones
- +
Rapid cooling
- +
Integrated ice maker
Cons
- -
Not a smart appliance
- -
Expensive
- -
Water pump for dispenser sold separately
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Update: This fridge has stopped cooling twice in a matter of four months so we are removing our star rating from this review. We are coordinating the issue with Samsung and will update the article when we have a better understanding of the issue.
Refrigerators are essential appliances in every kitchen, and depending on the size of your family or your cooking habits, their appeal could lie between a necessary evil to the centerpiece of your kitchen. The Samsung FlexZone Side by Side fridge is gunning towards the latter.
Pricing and Availability
The Samsung FlexZone Side by Side is available in only one color and capacity which is silver and 602 liters. Samsung has set the price for it at AED 5,999 and the unit can be purchased through leading retailers. It also comes with a ten year warranty on the compressor.
Design
The rectangular design and the steel finish of the Samsung FlexZone Side by Side fridge will add flair to any kitchen. Do make sure that you have plenty of space in your kitchen as it is a rather large unit, measuring 912 x 1780 x 716 mm (W/H/D).
The Samsung FlexZone Side by Side fridge is divided into three zones, each with its door and independently controlled temperature settings. The doors are nice and flat with without any handles which makes the fridge flush nicely with your cabinets or an enclosure.
On the left door is a water dispenser that can also dispense ice in cubes or crushed formats. The ice reservoir can hold plenty of ice- enough to fill a medium to large sized bucket. You will need to connect the dispenser to a water source that can either be a main on the wall or a gallon bottle. To use the bottle, an additional electronic pump is needed that is sold separately.
Traditionally, refrigerators have a rather thick frame inside their doors which makes the usable space smaller than it appears. Samsung has narrowed these so you end up with a little more space in each zone.
Zoning out
The Samsung FlexZone Side by Side has three independently temperature-controlled zones, each of which serves a different purpose.
The left zone that runs from the top to the bottom of the fridge is used as a long and narrow freezer. This allows for more shelves to store things and the temperature in this zone can be set between 15 °C and -23 °C to keep your items frozen.
The top shelves are smaller in size due to the water dispenser and ice tray blocking the top part of the freezer, however there is good space at the bottom with the last two selves equipped with sliding doors to stack more food.
The wider right side is divided into two, with a larger zone at the top that houses your everyday fridge items with a temperature range between 1 °C and 7 °C. The temperature of this zone also controls the temperature of the water from your dispenser
There’s ample storage space in this zone with three large shelves inside as well as three on the door that could be used for multiple storage options such as eggs or bottles and jars of sauces. These door shelves are deep enough to accommodate two litres bottles of milk. You can also equip a wine rack in this zone.
Finally, the lower zone on the right has two rather large draws that are good for storing fresh meats, fruits or vegetable or even drinks if you prefer storing them at a different temperature than your regular fridge. It can also go down to 0 °C.
Featured, but not smart
The Samsung FlexZone Side by Side has plenty of useful features to make your cold storage easy and flexible. There’s a Power Cool and a Power Freeze feature which, as the names imply, offer a rapid cooling performance by blowing intensely cold air into the fridge or freezer to quickly cool your groceries, or firming up frozen food and making ice.
There’s also a deodorizing filter present inside the fridge that eliminates strong smells as the air is continually passed through activated carbon filters. The Metal Cooling duct in the rear retains the cold and prevents the loss of cool air when the door is open. It also tries to quickly restore any loss of cool air when the door is shut again. LED lighting is bright and uniform to lighten up the fridge while a door ajar alarm alerts you in case you forget to close the doors.
Although the Samsung FlexZone Side by Side has a decent set of traditional features, we are surprised at its complete lack of smart features. Samsung had made a point a few years back to shift almost all the products they make to a connected and smart platform, and considering how premium and expensive this fridge is, we wonder why Samsung chose to ignore putting the smarts in it.
Final verdict
The Samsung FlexZone Side by Side is a high-end fridge with a beautiful design and a big price tag. It performs the duties of a traditional refrigerator with good flexibility, but lacks the connectivity that we look for when building a smart home.
