French Door Refrigerator With Ice Maker Review
Melding form with function, French-door refrigerators offer stylish double doors that open up to a spacious fridge up top and freezer drawer below. These refrigerators stand out because of their unique features, such as door-to-door dispensers and more expensive ice makers.
We consulted Ladina Schopf - interior designer, architect and the founder of LS Projects - for her tips on how to select the right one. We looked at the capacity of storage, layout, and energy efficiency among other aspects.
GE Profile Counter Depth French Door Refrigerator
The name of the series suggests that GE’s Profile series is targeted at people who want to integrate cutting-edge features in their kitchens. This refrigerator has it all, from the Keurig K cup coffee maker in the door to a smart dispenser of water. But these flourishes don't mask mediocre performance, especially in the refrigerator's freezer and an ineffective temperature-controlled drawer. Given that french door fridge freezers costs a premium, I expect higher quality.
This refrigerator is a good choice, despite the small blip. It features a large freezer compartment which is uncommon for counter-depth French-door fridges. It also has a large capacity for frozen food, which is a big difference from other models.
reference is equipped with 17 shelves and compartments. The fridge compartment has 18.5 cubic feet, which is standard for a fridge with a French door at this price. It also has a decent sized ice maker that is tucked away in the left door, though it's not the biggest I've seen.
You can adjust the shelves in both compartments to create a custom storage setup for the items you need to store. The interior design of the GE PYE22PYNFS also looks attractive. The LED lighting is an attractive feature. The bins for storage inside come with a third shelf that can be folded down to store large items. The drawers come with temperature controls so you can set them for Meat, Beverage or Deli settings. The drawers are simple to open and shut however I found the textured plastic coatings a bit hard on my fingers.
The GE PGE29BYTFS Smart Refrigerator has all the features you would expect from a refrigerator within this price range. This includes Wi-Fi, app support and GE's SmartHQ Software. The app is available on iOS and Android devices and allows you to control your refrigerator from anywhere across the globe. It also has numerous options for customizing. It will also send you notifications when the door is left unlocked as well as when the freezer or fridge requires defrosting, and when the filter needs to be changed.
It would be nice if GE PYE22PYNFS had Precise Fill which is an option that is available in a few other GE fridges that allows you to choose how many cups of water you'd like to dispense at a time. It does have a countdown feature on the fridge display to display how much water have remaining, but that's not as useful 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 component in your kitchen. The fridge uses fingerprint-resistant stainless steel, which is a great feature for busy households. It also has a vegetable compartment that helps keep vegetables and fruits fresher longer, and two compressors to ensure maximum preservation of food. The ice maker we tested is one of the most efficient, and it produces the shape of a pyramid using only water. This fridge is ideal for a small household or kitchenette that needs an elegant design and top of the highest quality food preservation.
This fridge was rated the best in our Refrigerators Test for a variety of reasons. The freezer temperature remained steady at just above 0°F and never changed more than a fraction - this is crucial to prevent the risk of a freezer burn. The fridge section of the refrigerator also performed well. It reached the initial temperature within an hour, and maintained the temperature throughout our testing.
Bosch has a reputation for premium appliances and appliances, so it's not a surprise that this counter depth refrigerator is also a smart appliance that has the option of connecting to your home Wi-Fi and Bosch's Home Connect platform. The app allows you to control and monitor the refrigerator remotely using your tablet or smartphone. The fridge is a bit expensive, but it comes with great features and capabilities for the price.
While the fridge is a fantastic appliance but it's important to be aware of the limitations. It is possible to be inventive with tall items since the fridge has a limited shelf space. Also the shelves aren't impervious to sprills and could be stained or damaged by sharp objects. The trays can be easily removed from the fridge. However, they should be cleaned regularly to prevent the growth of mold.
If you're thinking of buying this refrigerator, be sure to look over our review of the French Door GE Appliances Refrigerator and the Bosch Bottom Freezer Refrigerator.
LG Counter Depth French Door Refrigerator
The LG LRFLC2706S counter-depth fridge is a great option for those who need plenty of space in the space of a compact frame. It has a sleek, fingerprint-resistant stainless-steel finish and features thick handles that make them comfortable to grip. Inside, the refrigerator has the standard French-door layout, with gallon-sized bins for the doors on each door and two rows of shelves that capture spills, and a set of crisper drawers. The top right shelf can be folded down to give tall items more room. You'll also find a full width drawer for deli and an inside water dispenser.
One of the best things about this refrigerator is that its ice maker is inside the freezer, making it easy to move ice into the fridge to be used when it is required. The freezer has thoughtful design elements, as well, such as sliding drawers to help you better organize the position of your items. It also has a large container to store frozen food items, and a separate bin for ice.
Another cool feature of this refrigerator is its Smart InstaView panel. It lets you manage the refrigerator's temperature, lighting, and more via your smartphone. It's a great way to monitor and manage your refrigerator, especially when you're away from home.
The Smart InstaView feature is neat however it doesn't improve the efficiency of the fridge. The refrigerator took longer to defrost food and chill it than the other fridges we tested. This could be due to its larger capacity.
The doors are another problem with this fridge. They have handles that are sunken on the front, which allow smaller people to open them from the bottom, however they're not easy for taller people to guide closed without slamming them. It would have been better if they had a front-mounted handle.
The LG Counter-Depth MAX fridge is an excellent option for those looking to blend the look and feel of a French-door refrigerator with more efficient design. Its capacity is above average for counter-depth models and is able to cool evenly. It's also a bit less than the top counter-depth refrigerator with an ice maker, which helps make it a popular choice.
Frigidaire Counter Depth French Door Refrigerator
This Frigidaire French door refrigerator is a good choice for those looking for a French-door refrigerator that doesn't cost a lot of budget. It has a simple design that's not as striking in appearance as some of the competition, but it has enough features to make it a solid option. Its most notable characteristic is the adjustable temperature drawer that helps keep food items such as meat and vegetables fresher for longer. It also comes with a huge water dispenser, as well as an excellent ice maker that operates quickly.
Another feature that is worth mentioning is the "Chill Drawer" that sits over the two crisper bins. The drawer allows you to divert part of the refrigerator's cooling power directly into this area, meaning you can put away food items that require special attention. This feature can be adjusted by using a slider located outside the drawer. You can also use this feature to set a general cooling level for the entire fridge, however, I've found that changing the generic settings tends to have a better effect than specific ones.
During my tests, I discovered that the temperatures in the refrigerator were fairly consistent in different parts of the fridge. The temperatures in the middle, top and bottom of the fridge didn't differ significantly from 38 degrees. This is a pretty good performance however it doesn't be among the top in our ratings.
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 to get more accurate readings on the internal temperature of your fridge.
The Frigidaire FGHB2866PF's exterior is made of stainless steel with a grey-bodied body with a "smudge-proof" finish. It does a great job of repelling fingerprints and streaks even when compared with glossier stainless steel finishes on other appliances I've tried.
Stephanie Cronk, executive editor of Reviewed's Commerce/Product Reviews Team, oversees the site's buyer's guides as well as product test reviews. She has more than 15 years of experience in publishing and commerce including retail and digital. Stephanie is enthusiastic about finding and recommending the top products for consumers, with particular focus on home items and technology.