French Door Refrigerator With Ice Maker Review
Combining form and function, French-door refrigerators come with stylish double doors that open up to an expansive fridge on the top and a freezer drawer below. Special features like door-to-door dispensers, higher-end ice machines and flex drawers that can be customized make them stand out from the rest.
We asked experts like Ladina Schopf, an interior designer, architect, and founder of LS Projects, for tips on picking the right one. They evaluated the capacity of storage and layout and energy efficiency as well as other features.
GE Profile Counter Depth French Door Refrigerator
The name of the series suggests that the GE Profile series is targeted at those who wish to incorporate cutting-edge technology into their kitchen. This refrigerator has it all including a Keurig K cup coffee maker inside the door, to a clever 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 this fridge costs a premium, I expect higher quality.
Apart from that minor flaw however, this refrigerator is a great option. It has a large freezer compartment, which is quite uncommon in counter-depth French door refrigerators. Additionally, it holds a fair amount of frozen foods as compared to similar models.
The fridge has 17 shelves and compartments. The refrigerator compartment is 18.5 cubic feet, which is the standard for a French-door refrigerator at this price. It also has an adequate-sized icemaker in the left door, though it's not the largest I've seen.
You can alter the shelving in each compartment to create a customized storage layout for the items you need to keep. The GE PYE22PYNFS's design for the interior is good-looking, too. The LED lighting is a nice touch, and the in-door storage bins have a third shelf that folds down to make it possible to store items that are tall. The drawers come with temperature controls that allow you to set them to Meat, Beverage or Deli settings. The drawers are easy to open and shut, but I found the textured plastic coatings to be a bit rough on my fingers.
The GE PGE29BYTFS Smart Refrigerator includes the full suite of features you'd expect from a refrigerator at this price that includes Wi-Fi as well as app support through GE's SmartHQ software. The app, available for iOS and Android devices, lets you control your fridge from anywhere in the world, and has numerous options for customization. It will also send you notifications when the door is left unlocked and when the freezer or fridge needs to be defrosted, and when the filter needs to be changed.
It is nice if GE PYE22PYNFS had Precise Fill the option that is that is available in a few GE refrigerators that allow users to choose how many cups they want to pour out. It also has a countdown feature on the fridge's display to show how much water you have remaining, but that's not as useful as Precise fill.
Bosch Counter Depth French Door Refrigerator
It is designed to look like a seamless part of your kitchen Bosch's French-door refrigerator looks seamless and is an eye-catching piece. The fridge uses fingerprint-resistant stainless steel, which is a great feature for busy households. It also features a veggie compartment that keeps fruits and vegetables fresher for longer and two compressors to preserve food items. The ice maker is one of the best we've ever tested, and it produces a pyramid-shaped form of ice with a low water consumption. This fridge is the perfect choice for single household or kitchenettes looking for an integrated look and top of the line food preservation.
This refrigerator was the highest-rated refrigerator in our Refrigerators Test for various reasons. The temperature of the freezer remained constant at just above 0° Fahrenheit and never fluctuated more than a fraction - this is essential to avoid the risk of a freezer burn. The fridge section of the fridge also did well. It reached the initial temperature set within an hour and maintained that temperature throughout our testing.
Bosch is known for its top-of-the-line appliances, so it's no surprise that this counter depth refrigerator is also a smart appliance, with the option to connect to your home Wi-Fi network and Bosch's Home Connect platform. The app lets you monitor and control your fridge remotely from your smartphone or tablet. The fridge is expensive, but it comes with excellent features and functionality for the cost.
While the fridge is an incredible appliance, it's important to know the limitations. It has a limited shelf space, so you'll need to be creative when storing tall items. Also the shelves aren't sprillproof and can be easily stained or damaged by sharp objects. The trays are easily removed from the fridge. However, they must be cleaned regularly to prevent the growth of mold.
If you are considering this refrigerator, be sure to check out our review of the GE Appliances French Door Refrigerator and the Bosch Bottom Freezer Refrigerator.
LG Counter Depth French Door Refrigerator
The LG LRFLC2706S counter-depth fridge is a great choice for those who need plenty 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 the standard French-door layout, with gallon-sized bins for the doors on each door, two rows of shelves for spill-capture and a set of sleeker drawers. The top shelf to the right can be folded down to make space for tall items. There's also a full-width drawer for deli and an inside water dispenser.
One of the nice aspects of this refrigerator is that the ice maker is inside the freezer, making it easy to transfer the ice to the refrigerator to be used when it is required. The freezer features thoughtful design elements, too, like sliding drawers that help to organize the place of your items. It also has a large bin that can accommodate plenty of frozen food and an container for storing ice.
Another cool feature of this refrigerator is its Smart InstaView panel. You can manage the temperature, lighting, and other aspects of your refrigerator from your smartphone. It's a great method of monitoring and managing your refrigerator, especially when you're away from home.
The Smart InstaView feature is neat, but it doesn't necessarily enhance the efficiency of the fridge. This fridge took longer to chill food and defrost it than other models we test. This could be due to the bigger capacity.
Another issue with this refrigerator is its doors. The sunken handles let shorter people open them from the bottom. However taller people will have a difficult time closing them without slamming. It would have been more effective if they had handles mounted on the front.
The LG Counter-Depth MAX is a ideal choice for those who want to combine the advantages of a fridge with a French door with a more efficient layout. Its capacity is superior for a counter-depth model, and it cools evenly and has a great layout. It's also a bit less than the best counter-depth refrigerators that have an ice maker, which can make it an attractive option.
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 isn't as striking in appearance as other models but it does have enough features that make it a great choice. Its most important feature is the adjustable temperature drawer that helps keep food items like meat and vegetables fresher for longer. It also has a large water dispenser and a decent ice maker that operates quickly.
The "Chill Drawer", which is located above the two crisper bins, is a nice feature. The drawer lets you use some of the fridge's cooling power to the area so that you can store foods that require special attention. You can adjust this feature by using a slider that's located right outside of the drawer. You can also use this feature to adjust the general cooling settings for the whole fridge, but I've noticed that adjusting the generic settings tends to be more effective than specific ones.
In my tests, the refrigerator's temperatures were fairly constant across the different areas of the refrigerator. The temperatures in the middle, top and bottom of the fridge didn't differ significantly from 38 degrees. french door fridge freezer is a great performance but isn't quite at 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. You can also combine this fridge with a smart thermometer to get more precise measurements of your fridge's temperature.
The Frigidaire FGHB2866PF's exterior is made of stainless steel with a grey-bodied body with a "smudge-proof" finish. It does an excellent job of preventing streaks and fingerprints from appearing, even compared to glossy 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 guides and product reviews for test products. She has over 15 years of experience in publishing and commerce including retail and digital. Stephanie is passionate about finding and recommending the top products for consumers, with an emphasis on home products and tech.