French Door Refrigerator With Ice Maker Review
French-door refrigerators blend design and function. They have stylish double doors that show a large fridge on top and a freezer drawer below. Special features like through-the-door dispensers, higher-end ice machines and flex drawers that can be customized make them stand out from the crowd.
We asked Ladina Schopf - interior designer, architect, and founder of LS Projects - for her tips on how to select the right home. They considered the storage capacity, layout, and energy efficiency, among other features.
GE Profile Counter Depth French Door Refrigerator
The name implies that GE's Profile series targets the consumer who wants to incorporate cutting-edge technologies into their kitchen. This refrigerator is packed with features, from an in-the-door Keurig K-cup coffee maker to a sophisticated water dispenser. But these flourishes don't mask mediocre performance, especially in the refrigerator's freezer and an ineffective temperature-controlled drawer. Given that this fridge costs more, I'd expect higher quality.
Other than that however, this refrigerator is a great option. It comes with a huge freezer compartment, which is uncommon in counter-depth French door refrigerators. Additionally, it can hold a decent amount of frozen food in comparison to similar models.
Inside the fridge, there are 17 shelves and compartments. The fridge compartment is 18.5 cubic feet, which is the standard for a French-door fridge at this price. It also has an adequate-sized icemaker that is tucked away in the left door, though it's not the largest I've seen.
You can adjust the shelves in each compartment to create a custom storage setup for whatever you have to store. The interior design of the GE PYE22PYNFS also looks attractive. The LED lighting is a nice feature, and the in-door storage bins have the third shelf, which folds down to make it possible to store large items. The drawers include temperature controls that let you set them to Meat, Beverage, or Deli settings. The drawers are simple to open and close however I found the textured plastic coatings to be a bit rough on my fingers.
The GE PGE29BYTFS Smart Refrigerator comes with all the features you would expect from a refrigerator in this price range. This includes Wi-Fi as well as app support, and GE's SmartHQ Software. The app is available for iOS and Android devices and allows you to manage your refrigerator from anywhere in the globe. It also has a lot of customization options. It will also send you notifications when the door is unlocked and when the freezer or fridge needs to be defrosted, and when the filter needs to be changed.
It is nice if the GE PYE22PYNFS included Precise fill which is an option that is available in other GE fridges that allow you to choose how many cups of water you'd like to dispense at once. It does offer a countdown on the display of the fridge to show how much water you have left, but it's not as helpful as Precise Fill.
Bosch Counter Depth French Door Refrigerator
The Bosch French-door Refrigerator is a striking piece. It's designed to appear like it's a seamless part of your kitchen. The fridge uses fingerprint-resistant stainless steel, which is a great feature for busy households. It also comes with a veggie compartment that helps keep vegetables and fruits fresher for longer, and two compressors to ensure the best food preservation. The ice maker is one of the top we've tested and produces pyramid-shaped ice with a low use of water. This fridge is ideal for a single household or a kitchenette with an elegant design and top of the line food preservation.
This fridge was rated as the most efficient in our Refrigerators Test for several reasons. Its freezer temperatures held firm at a level that was just above 0 degrees Fahrenheit, never moving more than a fraction one degree. This is crucial to avoiding freezer burn. The fridge section of the fridge also did well. It reached the initial temperature within an hour, and remained at the temperature throughout our testing.
Bosch has a reputation for high-end appliances and appliances, so it's not a surprise that this counter depth refrigerator is also a smart appliance with the option of connecting to your home Wi-Fi as well as Bosch's Home Connect platform. The app lets you monitor and manage your fridge remotely using your smartphone or tablet. The fridge is a bit expensive, however it has excellent features and functionality for the cost.
While the fridge is an amazing piece of equipment, it's important to know the limitations. It has a limited space for shelves, so you may need to be creative when storing tall items. The shelves are also not spillproof and can easily be damaged or stained by sharp objects. It's easy to remove the refrigerator trays However, be sure to keep them clean to avoid mold growth.
If you're thinking of buying this refrigerator, be sure to review our opinions on the GE Appliances French Door Refrigerator and the Bosch Bottom Freezer Refrigerator.
LG Counter Depth French Door Refrigerator
The LG LRFLC2706S counter-depth refrigerator is a great option for those who require a lot of space in a small frame. It has a sleek, fingerprint-resistant stainless-steel finish and features thick handles that make them comfortable to grip. Inside, the fridge features a standard French-door layout with gallon-sized door bins at each door, two rows of spill-capture shelves and a set sleeker drawers. The top shelf on the right can be folded down to give tall items more headroom. You'll also find a full width drawer for deli and an inside water dispenser.
One of the great features of this refrigerator is that its ice maker is inside the freezer, which makes it easy to transfer frozen ice to the fridge to use as needed. The freezer also comes with clever design features, such as sliding drawers that allow you to organize your items. It has a large bin to store frozen food items, and a separate bin for ice.
Another great feature of this refrigerator is its Smart InstaView panel. You can control the temperature, lighting, and more of your fridge from your smartphone. It's an easy way to monitor your fridge and manage it, particularly when you're not at home.
The Smart InstaView feature is neat, but it doesn't necessarily improve the efficiency of the fridge. In fact it took a bit longer to defrost and chill foods in this refrigerator than some of the others we tested. This is likely due to the larger capacity.
The doors are another problem with this fridge. The handles with a sunken design let shorter people open them from the bottom. However taller people will have a hard time closing them without slamming. It would have been better if they came with a front-mounted handle.
The LG Counter-Depth MAX fridge is an excellent option for those looking to blend the look of a French door refrigerator with an efficient design. Its capacity is higher than average for a counter-depth model and it cools evenly and has a great layout. It's also a bit cheaper than the top counter depth refrigerator that comes with an icemaker, which makes it a desirable option.
french style fridge freezer is a good choice if you want a French-door refrigerator that doesn't cost a lot of budget. It has a simple design that isn't as striking in appearance as some of the competition however it comes with enough features to make it a solid pick. Its main feature is the adjustable temperature drawer which helps keep food items such as meat and vegetables fresher for longer. It also has a large water and ice maker dispenser.
Another feature that is worth mentioning is the "Chill Drawer" that sits over the two crisper bins. This drawer lets you divert a portion of the fridge's cooling power directly to this area, meaning you can store foods that need extra attention. This feature can be adjusted by using an outside slider that is located inside the drawer. It is also possible to use this to set a general cooling setting for the whole fridge, however, I've found that changing the general settings tends have a better effect than specific ones.
In my tests, I discovered that the temperatures in the refrigerator were fairly consistent in different areas of the refrigerator. The temperatures in the top, bottom and middle of the fridge didn't differ significantly from 38 degrees. This is a great performance but doesn't quite make it to the top of our rankings.
This fridge has a few other neat features, including a temperature-monitoring display that alerts you to fluctuations and provides a forecast for the day ahead. This fridge can be connected with a smart thermostat in order to get more accurate readings on the internal temperature of your fridge.
The exterior of the Frigidaire is made from gray-bodied stainless with a "smudge resistant" finish. It does a great job of removing streaks and fingerprints even when compared to the glossier stainless steel finishes on other appliances I've tested.
Stephanie Cronk is the executive editor of Reviewed's Commerce/Product Reviews team and oversees the site's buyer's guide and test-product reviews. She has more than 15 years of experience in publishing and commerce, primarily digital and retail. Stephanie is enthusiastic about finding and recommending the top products for consumers, with a focus on home goods and tech.