3 recommended AI-equipped refrigerators｜Commentary on merits, demerits, and how to choose!

There are many types of refrigerators on the market today. Among them, ” refrigerators equipped with AI ” are attracting particular attention .

AI-equipped refrigerators continue to expand production while improving performance, mainly by major home appliance manufacturers. However, while it is nice to have new functions and types, you may be at a loss as to which refrigerator to choose.

Also, some readers must be thinking, “I don’t know if AI functions are actually necessary.”

Therefore, this time, we will explain in detail from the merits and demerits of “refrigerators equipped with AI” to how to choose and recommended products.

After reading this article, your doubts and anxieties about AI refrigerators should disappear. Please read to the end.

What is an AI-equipped refrigerator?

An AI-equipped refrigerator is, as the name suggests, a refrigerator that uses the power of AI ( artificial intelligence ) to make it smarter and has a role to play closer to people.

The beginning of AI refrigerators dates back to 2014, when LG Electronics released a product that can communicate with refrigerators via “LINE”.

Back then, you could have a text message conversation through the fridge, or use the camera to send pictures of the inside to the owner. Since then, AI-equipped refrigerators have continued to evolve, and seven years later, various functions have been added, such as automatic power saving and optimal storage.

In this way, AI refrigerators that bring additional convenience have been increasingly developed in recent years, and are becoming more familiar to our lives.

From here, we will dig deeper into the advantages and disadvantages of AI refrigerators that are making such progress.

Advantages of AI-equipped refrigerators

There are four benefits to using an AI-equipped refrigerator.

1. Proposing a menu from the ingredients in the refrigerator
2. Tells you about supermarket deals
3. Automatically saves energy
4. Teach you how to store food properly

I will explain each.

1. Suggest menus based on ingredients in the refrigerator

The AI-equipped refrigerator will help you make a menu.

On days when it’s been raining all day, or when you’re busy and tired, you want to make dinner with what’s in your fridge instead of going shopping.

In such a case, if you have an AI-equipped refrigerator, it will tell you the recommended menu based on seasonal ingredients and ingredients in the refrigerator. In addition, there is also an AI refrigerator that suggests menus that our family likes and when buying ingredients based on the history of menu consultations.

2. Tell me about special deals at supermarkets

By registering your zip code in the app, the AI-equipped refrigerator will notify you of special sales information at supermarkets near your home.

Another appeal of AI Refrigerator is that you can check bargain information according to your life activity line, such as shops close to the station, shops close to your home, shops close to nursery schools, etc. from multiple registered shops. .

3. Automatically take measures to save power

The AI-equipped refrigerator works in conjunction with the GPS of a smartphone to save electricity according to the rhythm of life. This is because the refrigerator has a built-in system that automatically switches to power saving mode when it detects that you are going out from your smartphone’s GPS.

In addition, when the location information is detected as a shopping destination, it predicts bulk purchases and switches to a mode to cool the inside of the refrigerator.

4. Teach you how to properly store ingredients

The AI-equipped refrigerator advises the appropriate storage method for each ingredient.

In addition, refrigerators equipped with motion sensors will tell you how to store food in an interactive manner, so you don’t have to take out your smartphone and look it up.

With this function, you will no longer have to worry about “I bought ingredients in bulk to reduce the frequency of going out due to the corona crisis, but I accidentally spoiled them before I used them because I made a mistake in storing them!”

Disadvantages of AI-equipped refrigerators

There are two advantages to using an AI-equipped refrigerator.

1. Expensive to install
2. There is a risk of information leakage

I will explain each.

1. Expensive to install

According to the retail price statistics survey conducted by the Statistics Bureau of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in August 2021, the average price of one refrigerator nationwide was 244,711 yen.

On the other hand, the new product “WXD / WX series” of the refrigerator “smart large capacity freezer room in the middle” series released by Mitsubishi Electric in April this year is MR-WX47LG with a lower body price in the series. Even so, the estimated market price is around 360,000 yen.

In this way, AI refrigerators tend to be more expensive than general refrigerators, so when considering purchasing, it is recommended to understand the price properly and compare various types.

2. Risk of information leakage

Not only AI refrigerators, but all IoT home appliances carry the risk of information leakage.

In recent years, security has been strengthened, and the risk is extremely low, but there is a possibility that personal information and health information registered in smart home appliances can be stolen by hacking.

When purchasing an AI refrigerator, take measures yourself to eliminate security vulnerabilities, such as updating to the latest firmware, checking whether the version is up to date, and reviewing the settings of the home Wi-Fi router. is important.

How to choose an AI-equipped refrigerator

There are two points to consider when choosing an AI-equipped refrigerator.

1. Does it have the desired functionality?
2. Does the price match the features?

I will explain each.

1.Is there a desired function?

When purchasing an AI-equipped refrigerator, it is important to ask whether it has the desired function.

For example, AI-equipped refrigerators from three major home appliance manufacturers have the following functions and features.

▼ SHARP AI-equipped refrigerator

▼Panasonic’s AI-equipped refrigerator

▼Mitsubishi Electric’s AI-equipped refrigerator

As you can see, AI refrigerators have a variety of functions, and the balance of functions installed varies depending on the product. It’s important to compare.

2. Does the function match the price?

As mentioned earlier, AI-equipped refrigerators are more expensive to introduce than general refrigerators. Therefore, when choosing an AI-equipped refrigerator, it is important to determine whether the price is properly commensurate with the function and whether the price is acceptable.

By the way, even AI-equipped refrigerators from the same manufacturer may have slightly different functions and prices. For example, “SJ-AF50H” and “SJ-AW50H” are both AI-equipped refrigerators that represent SHARP, and although they have the same size with a rated internal volume of 502L and a width of 68.5cm, their functions and prices are slightly different. .

In this way, there is a price difference of about 50,000 yen between the electric assist door and the presence or absence of the liquid crystal panel. When choosing an AI refrigerator, you should carefully consider whether it is worth paying that much for this function before purchasing.

3 Latest AI-Equipped Refrigerators

From here, we will introduce the latest AI-equipped refrigerators. This time, we will introduce the following three.

1. Sharp｜SJ-AF50H
2. Panasonic｜NR-F657WPX
3. Mitsubishi Electric | MR-WX60G

I will explain each.

1. Sharp｜SJ-AF50H

Sharp’s “SJ-AF50H” has three features.

① “Large-capacity freezer mega freezer” that can reduce the number of shopping trips

This refrigerator has a large capacity. It is also suitable for bulk purchases, so it can be said that it is a refrigerator that can be highly recommended for families.

In addition, freezer functions such as “Fresh Frozen” and “Immediately Frozen” can be used to maintain freshness and deliciousness at the time of purchase.

(2) Plasmacluster keeps vegetables and fruits clean and fresh for longer

The Plasmacluster Ion keeps the vegetable compartment clean and protects the vitamin C of the ingredients. In addition, the freshness lasts longer with low temperature and high humidity control. It also increases sweetness.

③ Wireless LAN connection makes it even more convenient

It connects to the cloud service “COCORO HOME” via wireless LAN, and provides menu suggestions for the “COCORO KITCHEN” recipe service and various information via voice and screen.

In addition, the more you use it, the more it learns about your family’s preferences and usage, and suggests information that is more suitable for you.

2. Panasonic | NR-F657WPX

Panasonic’s “NR-F657WPX” has three features.

(1) Cooperate with smartphones to smartly save power and cool down according to the rhythm of life

When you leave your home, the GPS function of your smartphone detects that you are out and shifts to power-saving mode for energy-saving driving.

The “shopping preparation mode” that detects when you are at the shopping destination by location information, predicts “bulk buying” and cools the inside of the refrigerator firmly cools down.

(2) Smart support for food management and cooking by linking the “weight detection plate” with a smartphone

You can detect the weight of ingredients placed on the “weight detection plate” and check the remaining amount with the app even from a distance.

You can share information with each family member’s smartphone, so you can reduce double purchases. Also, if you use the stock manager, you can check the stock of frequently used ingredients registered in the app on your smartphone.

(3) Slightly frozen at about -3°C for fresh storage and easy cooking without thawing

At about -3°C, just before freezing meat and fish, a micro-freezing layer is quickly created from the surface of the food, preventing oxidation and preserving delicious meat and fish.

Meat can be kept fresh for about 14 days or about 10 days, and fish can be kept fresh for about 7 days.

3. Mitsubishi Electric | MR-WX60G

Mitsubishi Electric’s MR-WX60G has three features.

① Ready to use without thawing

Supercool Freezing AI freezes raw vegetables in addition to meat and fish. You can save the trouble of pre-boiling before freezing, and you can easily loosen it by hand while frozen and use only the amount you need, so you can shorten the cooking time on busy days.

In addition, Mitsubishi’s unique freezing technology, which freezes food evenly from the core, suppresses food cell destruction and preserves delicious texture.

In addition, AI learns how to use the refrigerator for each household and predicts future usage. Just put food in the versa compartment, and it will automatically freeze deliciously.

②Long-lived

“Subzero Stocker D AI” can learn how to use the refrigerator for each household and predict future usage. By controlling the temperature according to the user’s usage, meat and fish can be stored deliciously raw for a long time.

Therefore, you can buy fresh food in bulk and do not need to freeze what you use on weekends. Also, since it is raw, there is no need to defrost it, and you can cook it immediately after taking it out.

In addition, if you put frozen ingredients in the freezing stocker room in the morning, you can thaw deliciously with less drip in the evening.

③ Plenty of moisture, vitamin C is also up

The “Clean Morning Vegetable Room” improves the airtightness of the vegetable room, and the stable low-temperature environment suppresses the evaporation of water from the vegetables and keeps them moist.

In addition, vitamin C is up while saving with the power of 3-color LED light. It also promotes greening, looks delicious, and adds color to dishes.

In addition, an antibacterial “clean tray” with “dual barrier material” applied to the bottom of the vegetable compartment is used, making it difficult for dirt to stick and easy to remove. The tray can be easily removed for easy cleaning.

What will happen to AI-equipped refrigerators in the future?

Refrigerators are expected to become more sophisticated in the future, and the number of functions will also increase. For example, a refrigerator with purchase functionality may be realized.

Insider has revealed that Amazon is working on its own smart refrigerator. This project is internally called ‘Project Pulse’ and is reportedly being developed by the department that developed Amazon’s high-tech store ‘Amazon Go’.

The refrigerator is said to be able to remember expiration dates, suggest recipes based on the items in the refrigerator, and reorder from Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods grocers.

summary

This time , we have explained in detail about ” AI-equipped refrigerator “. How was that.

Refrigerators equipped with AI are currently evolving and becoming more familiar. AI-equipped refrigerators will continue to evolve and make our lives richer.

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p dir=”ltr”>Also, if you are currently considering purchasing an AI refrigerator, it would be a good idea to refer to the selection methods and recommended AI refrigerators introduced this time.