Samsung's next tablet will be bigger than the Apple iPad Pro, and will feature a built-in, full size two-door refrigerator.
In truth, there is no other way to describe the new household appliance to be on display at CES. Pictures of the new smart refrigerator have begun to show on banners along the main halls of CES, featuring what seems to be a regular size, two-door refrigerator, with a large touchscreen on one of the doors, next to the water and ice dispenser. According to the images, voice input could also be a possibility, which could turn out to be helpful in compiling shopping lists faster.
The photos are most likely concepts, created for illustrative purposes, as the interface portrayed on the appliance is unrealistically scaled in proportion to the size of the screen, and almost better fit for a smartphone’s home screen.
With that said, touchscreen refrigerators are destined to be more common in the future, especially as major corporations invest further into services such as remote shopping and home delivery, which is already a reality in parts of the US, where services like Google Express have partnered with major retail and wholesale chains like Target, Costco, Walmart, Whole Foods, Walgreens, Guitar Center, and the list goes on and on.
Another reason for Samsung to retrofit giant touchscreens on refrigerators is Samsung Pay, the recently introduced online wallet, created in response to Apple Pay. The service is available only to Galaxy S and Galaxy Note smartphones, however it’s very possible that its integration could expand to home appliances as well, especially Samsung refrigerators, and even feature fingerprint readers to enable online purchases through home delivered grocery services like Google Express, and other vendors.
Other uses for these touchscreen-enabled appliances cover nearly everything a common tablet can do, with the added bonus of not having to hold a device in your hands around the kitchen. For instance, it makes it much easier to look up recipes and follow video instructions of how to prepare any kind of dish from services like Food.com, or straight from YouTube, while listening to music on Pandora, or other music services.
While the addition of a touchscreen might seem like a premium feature, the cost of this type of refrigerator is not likely to be higher than comparably less high-tech appliances, and within the $3500-$4000 range.
This is not the first time for Samsung to integrate touchscreens in its line of home appliances, with one of its most successful lines kicked off officially in 2013 with the Samsung T900 Smart Fridge, which featured a tablet-size screen in landscape mode, built above the ice and water dispenser.