A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now • Hacker News Board

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#251

Post by brenainn » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:29 PM UTC

I bought a Mitsubishi fridge about 2 years ago that's been going good. 470L french door model (MR-WX470F but I think that's an Australian SKU).

No touch screen but the controls are capacitive which is a bummer. The ice maker isn't plumbed, you fill up an internal container so no water line to worry about. Little details I like about it like how the ice draw is lined with foam to dampen the noise when the ice drops in. It has this weird "super cooling" metal-lined draw, intended for storing leftovers without freezing them. I never used it until I realised it's really good at chilling beer. Made in Japan for what that's worth. Time will tell if it craps out early but I have a good feeling about it.

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#252

Post by rsynnott » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:29 PM UTC

onlyrealcuzzo wrote: post #162

jrochkind1 wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, in general, things we buy today are a lot more "affordable" while being lower quality. Googling says the average cost of a refrigerator in 1950 was $250 to $400 (for 10 cubic feet -- a fridge today is 20 to 30 ft^3), which would be $3K to $5K in 2023 dollars. If you pay $3K to $5K for a fridge today (for a fridge 2-3x as big as the 1950 fridge), do you get a better longer-lasting one? I'm not sure.

Is there really a correlation between price and durability in appliances?

Yes. It's far from perfect, of course, but there are high-end appliance manufacturers who do make very reliable appliances.

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#253

Post by beezlewax » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:30 PM UTC

starbugs wrote: post #3

> Thing is, producing crappy, cookie-cutter, uninspired, overpriced junk that falls apart within 5 years (generously speaking) pays more to the shareholders. That's how we got from there to here. This summarizes it quite well for me.

And this should be regulated so it can't happen. So much waste is generated to keep shareholders happy.

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#254

Post by spacecadet » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:32 PM UTC

You can definitely still buy dumb fridges, TVs, toasters, etc that are all well made and when adjusted for price are similar in cost... Its just hype noise selling bottom line Internet of Shit, dont listen.

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#255

Post by Phrenzy » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:32 PM UTC

bombcar wrote: post #156

faitswulff wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just really want that vegetable box. Any recommendations?

The vegetable box on mine makes things last a long time with a filter for ethylene gas, perhaps something like these could help: https://www.amazon.com/ethylene-gas-absorber-fridge/

How will that help? Does the dog inhale the ethylene gas?

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#256

Post by markus_zhang » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:32 PM UTC

lopis wrote: post #245

markus_zhang wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nowadays it's difficult to just pay premium and trust things to last for decades. A more likely event is that you pay premium, get more features, and the appliance breaks down if one of which breaks.

Specially since companies are moving to selling you the service of repairs. It's well know that fridges with water coolers and ice makers are very prone to breaking. I like the features in the video though, as those are just fancy shelves that are unlikely to break. Nowadays, most fridge special features come in the form of complex electronics, IoT and other tech that is likely to break within a couple years.

Yup what I really need is a sturdy, large volume fridge with basic functionalities and last for decades. I don't need ice makers or a touchscreen that can play Quake on.

On the other side, I'm really itchy to get into IoT security if I had more time. I'm sure security is not the first concern of fridge makers (or whatever "modernized" appliances) so it might not be difficult for an amateur to break into them.

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#257

Post by kjkjadksj » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:34 PM UTC

seer wrote: post #160

A side not I always wondered why don't we have refrigerator models that are "split system" as we have with ACs. As it stands now it's a heat pump that pumps the heat from your refrigerator into your home. Wouldn't it be possible to create way more energy efficient model that has an outside body? Or even better connects to the AC body you already have outside? Like in the summer it would "help" the AC by being another…

This is why its more efficient to have your fridge in your garage versus your kitchen. You aren't having ac fight your fridge generating heat. You aren't having your fridge fight your stove baking out the room.

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#258

Post by AdamH12113 » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:34 PM UTC

UncleMeat wrote: post #81

quartz wrote: post #25

Wait is this actually better? It's well presented in the ad but: - that removable veggie holder in the door looks crazy heavy and super awkward to put back in place (lining up at a sharp angle while gripping likely slick sides) - you have to open the refrigerator door to get at the freezer - the door compartments are narrow and probably can't handle odd sized containers - the shelves have holes in them so anything th…

Yeah the only two features that this fridge has that my fridge doesn't have are the pull out shelves and the removable bin for vegetables. I've got no idea why you'd really want the removable bin for vegetables. Carry all my veggies over to the sink first and then pick out the ones I want? And look at how small that thing is. Pull out shelves seem nice I guess, but they'd only be useful on lower shelves. My fridge se…

> I've got no idea why you'd really want the removable bin for vegetables.

They say in the video that it's for when you bring a bunch of fresh vegetables home. You put the bin next to the sink and then load the vegetables into the bin as you wash them.

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#259

Post by globular-toast » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:37 PM UTC

c-linkage wrote: post #37

My wife is a brute[1]. She's broken two of the plastic refrigerator drawers -- the vegetable drawer and the deli drawer -- which were impossible to repair. Yes, I tried super glue, but the bond never held. It's cost me $400 to replace both drawers -- 1/3 the cost of a new refrigerator. I wish I had one of these refrigerators; they look virtually unbreakable! And even if it did break, I could hammer it back into shape…

Yeah, women tend to break stuff for some reason.

Re: A fridge from 70 years ago has better features than the fridge I own now

#260

Post by tetromino_ » Mon, Jul 31, 2023, 3:38 PM UTC

distances wrote: post #120

rwultsch wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am getting a Sub-zero in a few weeks which is damn near the most expensive fridge. It does not have nice pull out shelves or the veggie compartments. I expect the sealing and ethylene scrubbing will keep veggies fresh linger.

Why does everyone keep their veggies in the fridge, do you buy them in bulk? Basic veggies like onions, tomatoes, cucumber I eat fast enough to just keep on shelves and in regular rotation, and all more special plants are anyway bought for a certain meal in mind so they're used within a day or two. My fridge does have a veggie section but I use that for beer.

1. Ants, cockroaches, and flies invade one's apartment fairly regularly, and will stay if you leave food for them.

2. Inconvenience of going to a grocery store every day.

3. Unavailability of non-basic ingredients within a short distance of one's home. I can walk to a nearby store to get some carrots or cabbage, but if I want bitter melons, black radishes, or oyster mushrooms, I have to drive to a different neighborhood. And once at a store there, may as well load up and buy in bulk to reduce the number of trips.

3a. Unavailability of affordable ingredients within a short distance. Buying in bulk at a big store gets very tempting when one notices how much cheaper it is per pound. (Alas, one forgets that some of those bulk pounds will wilt.)

4. Unpredictability of consumption. Maybe the toddler really doesn't want tomatoes on the table today. Maybe there is a production outage at work, so you don't have time to cook.