It’s a refrigerator that can change colors!
One of Germany’s oldest industrial exhibitions, IFA, is making a comeback of sorts this year after the 2021 edition was mostly canceled due to pandemic-related uncertainties. We’ve already come across a host of new announcements from the show that we care about, but it’s also host to some unique product announcements that we wouldn’t usually cover. Take that as your sign, then: South Korea’s LG has unveiled its new MoodUP refrigerator series featuring user-controlled, door-mounted LED panels.
LG says consumers can choose from 22 colors for the top refrigerator panel and 19 for the lower panel with the ability to mix and match colors as they see fit through its ThinQ app. There are preset modes available, too, with options like Place, Mood, Pop, and Season. Moreover, the LED panels will flash when people walk towards it and blink if the door is left ajar. If the colors are just too much to deal with, users can turn it off and return it to the standard Lux Gray/Lux White color combination.
To make things more interesting, LG has crammed in a Bluetooth speaker on the refrigerator lineup that can be paired to a phone or PC. The company says the colors can change and fluctuate in sync with music, a feature that we often associate with some fancier portable Bluetooth speakers.
But what about the refrigerator? Well, the manufacturer says it includes an on-device AI chip developed in-house on top of “advanced refrigeration and smart technologies” to improve the freshness of the food inside. However, the company has been relatively quiet about other details of this new offering. Based on the pictures published by the company, it seems like the company will have a standard single-door model plus a four-door version.
LG’s InstaView technology could also be bundled with the MoodUP refrigerator lineup, though the manufacturer doesn’t mention it in the press release, as Engadget notes. This technology utilizes a mirrored glass panel to show users what’s inside the refrigerator. It is activated with a couple of taps on the panel using a combination of camera and display tech. LG didn’t provide pricing and availability details for the MoodUP range of refrigerators at the show.
