Samsung Newsroom took an inside look at the thorough quality tests that set Samsung home appliances apart.

Refrigerators: Durability and Temperature Consistency Throughout

The refrigerator is the most frequently used appliance in the kitchen. To ensure Samsung refrigerators operate in the most demanding conditions, the Door Slam Test simulates the act of opening and closing fridge doors tens of thousands of times depending on the model. During the process, engineers assess the hinges for sagging, listen for unusual noises and examine whether the doors continue to function smoothly under stress.

Tests are also carried out to evaluate proper performance throughout the four seasons. The Temperature Maintenance Test pushes refrigerators to their limits by replicating different seasonal weather conditions — from freezing winters to sweltering summer heat waves of over 40 degrees Celsius — making sure optimal cooling performance is maintained in challenging external environments.

Preserving the freshness of food ingredients, meanwhile, relies on maintaining a consistent internal temperature. Using thermocouples placed throughout the refrigerators and freezers to be tested, the Compartment Test (Notch Test) alters notch settings and simulates variations in humidity and temperature to check whether each product’s compartments and shelves are cooled evenly.

For refrigerator models equipped with automatic ice makers, the Ice-making Performance Test checks ice production capabilities and the quality of ice by varying water pressure, temperature and notch placement.

▲ The Door Slam Test (left) and the Water Protection Test (right)

Washing Machines: Ready To Thrive in Harsh Winters and Wet Environments

Washing machines are often installed in areas with lower temperatures or exposure to water, such as balconies or bathrooms. To make sure its products perform reliably under these conditions, Samsung conducts rigorous stress tests.

The Freezing Test evaluates the durability of Samsung washing machines in the winter by repeatedly exposing the appliances to temperatures as low as those in the Arctic and as high as those in scorching summers. Additionally, engineers carry out a Water Leakage Test to assess the washing machines’ resistance to leaks. They fill the drums with water, place the machines at tilted angles and monitor them for leaks over a period of 24 hours or more under varying humidity levels and different temperatures.

The Water Protection Test, on the other hand, checks whether the washing machines work properly in wet environments. High-pressure rotating nozzles spray water onto the appliances for extended periods of time, with engineers closely monitoring for water infiltration into electrical components or condensation issues caused by humidity.

Kitchen Appliances: Designed With Product Lifespans in Mind

▲ The Durability Test (left) and the Basket In and Out Test (right)

The lifespans of Samsung electric cooktops under real-world conditions can be estimated through the Durability Test. In this simulation, engineers test the durability of dozens of cooktops over several months by repeatedly heating and cooling standard containers on them while the containers are automatically refilled with water.

Samsung dishwashers undergo the Basket In and Out Test to be checked for any defects in their rollers. Engineers purposefully overload the dishwashers’ baskets beyond standard capacity and slide them in and out tens of thousands of times to ensure the quality of their rollers, rails and nozzles.

Every Samsung home appliance is built with one ultimate goal — to give users peace of mind, even in unexpected moments. Samsung will continue strengthening quality control and inspection across its product lines in constant pursuit of unprecedented levels of safety and durability.

 With this first-ever Tide Cold Certified cycle, optimized for P&G’s cold water formulated detergent¹ technology, consumers can experience great, cold wash performance on the new Bespoke AI Laundry Combo.

Image of Tide POD Cold wash cycle menu on the 7-inch screen of Bespoke AI Laundry Combo

The collaboration between Samsung and P&G uses knowledge and expertise from across the two global companies to create the new Tide POD Cold wash cycle. The new wash cycle is optimized for dissolving Tide Hygienic Clean Heavy Duty 10X Power PODS^® detergent while using cold water, providing excellent laundry performance without consuming energy to heat the water. Compared to the normal warm wash cycle,² the Tide POD Cold wash cycle can provide energy savings without compromising wash performance.

“Samsung is dedicated to providing our customers with the ultimate home appliance experience,” said Moohyung Lee, EVP and Head of the Customer Experience Team for the Digital Appliances (DA) Business at Samsung Electronics. “Our partnership with P&G is a great step in that direction, leveraging Samsung technology and innovation. Looking to the future, we are excited to further expand our partnership with P&G to enhance the customer experience.”

“We are excited to partner with Samsung to further our ambition to turn three out of four loads to cold by 2030,” said Alex Perez, Senior Director of NA Fabric Care at P&G. “This partnership and the expertise that both sides bring to the table will ensure consumers will get the best possible wash experience on cold with Samsung when they use Tide.” 

The Tide POD Cold wash cycle will be available on the new Bespoke AI Laundry Combo, which provides both a great wash and dry experience within one convenient unit, in the U.S. and Canada. The Bespoke AI Laundry Combo, also comes with AI Opti Wash & Dry,³ which adjusts to the optimal wash and dry cycles based on factors such as load weight, fabric type and soil level. Furthermore, the SmartThings⁴ app empowers our consumers to monitor, manage and control not only Samsung smart appliances, but also other smart devices within the connected home ecosystem conveniently from one app.⁵

Image of Tide Cold Certified Bespoke AI Laundry Combo

The partnership with P&G is the latest example of how Samsung continues to work hand in hand with innovative companies to improve the customer experience and deliver energy savings.

About Procter & Gamble
P&G serves consumers around the world with one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Always^®, Ambi Pur^®, Ariel^®, Bounty^®, Charmin^®, Crest^®, Dawn^®, Downy^®, Fairy^®, Febreze^®, Gain^®, Gillette^®, Head & Shoulders^®, Lenor^®, Olay^®, Oral-B^®, Pampers^®, Pantene^®, SK-II^®, Tide^®, Vicks^® and Whisper^®. The P&G community includes operations in approximately 70 countries worldwide. Please visit https://www.pg.com for the latest news and information about P&G and its brands. For other P&G news, visit them at https://www.pg.com/news.

¹ Performance tested for Tide Hygienic Clean Heavy Duty 10X Power PODS^® only. Results may differ with other detergents.
² Compared to the Normal cycle, in warm water using the Tide POD Cold wash cycle with Tide Power PODS^® in an 8lb load.
³ Detection and sensing capabilities are based on our deep learning models trained using predefined set of data and may yield inaccurate or incorrect results. New datasets may be introduced to our learning models from time to time to enhance its accuracy.
⁴ Available on Android and iOS devices. A Wi-Fi connection and a Samsung account are required.
⁵ Dependent on manufacturer rollout by product, geography and market. Individual experiences may vary.

Samsung Newsroom attended the event to experience how AI is changing life at home.

Bespoke AI That Embodies ‘AI for All’

▲ Vice Chairman and CEO Jong-Hee Han delivers the opening speech at “Welcome to BESPOKE AI.”

Jong-Hee Han, Vice Chairman and CEO of the Device eXperience (DX) Division at Samsung Electronics, delivered the opening speech and emphasized that Bespoke AI embodies the company’s “AI for All” vision — improving lives through better security, sustainability and accessibility.

“Using AI vision, AI voice and AI data technologies, we will offer new experiences in which home appliances can be controlled and connected more intuitively,” he said.

▲ Su-Hyeon Seong explains how the new Bespoke AI products will change users’ lives.

Su-Hyeon Seong from the Digital Appliance (DA) Division at Samsung Electronics believes the recent upgrades to AI technology and connectivity will lead to new innovations in creating more personalized user experiences. “I look forward to the increased freedom we will experience in our daily lives,” she said.

▲ Cheol-Min Yeom introduces the 2024 Bespoke AI home appliance product line.

“Since the latest products are now equipped with high-performance AI chips, cameras and sensors, we’ve significantly improved the user experience,” said Cheol-Min Yeom from the DA Division.

▲ Se-Rim Jeong describes how SmartThings helps users save energy.

“We plan to continue investment towards developing technologies that reduce burdens on the environment and allow consumers to experience safe, sustainable home appliances without inconveniences,” said Se-Rim Jeong from the DA Division.

Reimagining Home Spaces With AI: The Experience Zone

▲ Visitors learn about SmartThings in the Security & Easy Connection Zone.

Upon entering the Experience Zone — which reconstructed familiar home spaces such as the living room, laundry room and kitchen — Samsung displayed some of its most helpful services. In the Security & Easy Connection Zone, attendees observed how Smart Forward constantly provides device upgrades and Samsung Knox, Samsung’s unique security standard, protects users’ personal information. In addition, visitors discovered how Calm Onboarding connects products to SmartThings and minimizes the hassle of registering devices after each purchase.

▲ The 2024 Bespoke AI home appliances on display in the BESPOKE AI Experience Zone.

▲ Watch videos on the refrigerator screen by tapping a smartphone on Family Hub.

In the Bespoke AI Experience Zone, visitors tested the 2024 Bespoke AI products and Tap View on the Bespoke 4-Door Flex Refrigerator with AI Family Hub+. Users can now mirror images or videos from their smartphone screen by tapping on the refrigerator door, so they can pick up where they left off and continue the movie or TV show they were just watching.

In addition, users can check expiration dates on food packages with the AI Vision Inside feature or ask for customized recipe recommendations with Samsung Food.

▲ Check the location and status of home appliances connected to SmartThings with 3D Map View.

▲ Visitors watch a demonstration of the Bespoke AI Combo, an all-in-one washer and dryer.

The Bespoke AI Laundry Combo combines the functions of a washer and dryer into a single, all-in-one appliance that uses AI technology to recommend optimal laundry cycles based on the user’s needs. The 7-inch LCD screen and AI-powered Bixby voice recognition further enhance user convenience.

▲ The Bespoke Jet Bot Combo robot vacuum cleaner includes a sterilization feature.

The Bespoke Jet Bot Combo cleans dust, scrubs the floor and sterilizes the mop with steam. Recognizing and avoiding obstacles, the vacuum provides a report to determine if the cleaning was satisfactory.

▲ The AI Energy Saving Zone and AI Technology Zone introduce AI Saving Mode and Samsung Rewards.

Visitors experienced how to save energy with AI in the AI Energy Saving Zone and AI Technology Zone. AI Energy Mode attracted special attention for its environmental protection and energy conservation capabilities.

Planned for the first half of this year, the Samsung Rewards program will encourage consumers to actively save energy in their everyday lives.

▲ Sustainable technologies are illustrated in the For a Sustainable Future Zone.

Innovative approaches to energy efficiency were introduced in the For a Sustainable Future Zone — including the energy-efficient AI inverter compressor, the Reduced Fire Risk certification and microplastic-reducing filters. The Bespoke AI Hybrid refrigerator maximizes energy savings by combining hybrid cooling technology with an AI inverter compressor with thermoelectric elements.

At the “Welcome to BESPOKE AI” event, Samsung laid out its vision for the future of home appliances. More than just simple tools used in everyday life, Samsung’s home appliances promise to change users’ lives through innovations in efficiency, connectivity and personalization. Samsung will soon introduce the 2024 Bespoke AI product line at “Welcome to BESPOKE AI” events in the United States and France.

Samsung Electronics announced the launch of its new energy-efficient Extra Wide Bottom Mount Freezer¹ in Europe. The refrigerator was unveiled at ‘Welcome to BESPOKE AI’, a global launch event held at les Pavillon des Étangs in Paris on April 3. It achieves a high energy rating as a product itself, while its Wi-Fi capabilities allow for even further energy savings with SmartThings Energy.

“In response to the reality that energy efficiency is more important to consumers than ever, Samsung is launching a new model for the modern era,” said Moohyung Lee, EVP and Head of the Customer Experience Team of Digital Appliances (DA) Business at Samsung Electronics. “Through our considerable R&D efforts, we’ve been able to provide energy-saving opportunities in addition to the Samsung quality and features that global consumers appreciate. We’re confident that users would take advantages of Samsung’s new refrigerator in their day-to-day lives.”

Notably, the refrigerator has received an energy “A” rating according to EU energy standards, which is for the first time in Samsung’s extra wide bottom mount freezer type. Samsung implements its unique solutions to decrease energy consumption by 55.9% compared to the conventional model.² Especially the new AI Inverter Compressor³ is a key part to achieve an A grade according to EU energy standards.

The new high-efficient AI Inverter Compressor has been redesigned to increase the radius of the rotating parts which enables its inertia to be higher than the conventional compressor⁴ by 4.1 times. It means that the compressor can keep the power longer, so it uses less energy while keeping the temperature in the fridge moderate. The compressor also contributes to lowering the noise level by up to 5 times quieter than the conventional model⁵ thanks to the new control technology.

Additionally, the Extra Wide Bottom Mount Freezer supports the energy saving mode in SmartThings Energy⁶ which can reduce energy use by up to 15%.⁷ The SmartThings AI Energy Mode also allows users to easily check daily, weekly and monthly power consumption, and it even estimates monthly electric bills. If usage exceeds the established estimate, the mode can also proactively save energy.⁸ Furthermore, it can optimize the compressor speed and defrost cycle frequency, based on usage and surroundings, ensuring that users can enjoy fresher food items for longer.

Samsung also made the model to be competitive both in capacity and design as well. To enhance the capacity benefits of having a refrigerator with a wider width than common type, Samsung applies SpaceMax technology which has been the heritage of Samsung refrigerator. The fridge makes use of thin walls and efficient insulation to increase the storage volume while maintaining consistent temperatures. The extra storage space does not impact the exterior of the refrigerator, either, as the relatively compact size creates more room in users’ homes.

Apart from its performance and storage capabilities, the refrigerator brings a sleek design that makes it a great aesthetic fit for modern homes. It boasts a fully flat door and a recessed handle that grants the refrigerator a harmonious aesthetic. The Gentle Lighting controls brightness and prevents glare as well.

Availability

The energy-efficient Extra Wide Bottom Mount Freezer will be available in three capacity variants (538L, 508L and 458L) depending on the region, launching in Europe, CIS, the Middle East, Latin America, Southeast Asia, Canada and Africa.

The refrigerator is expected to be available from April in Europe and other regions sequentially.

For more information on Samsung refrigerators and other home appliances please visit Samsung.com.

¹ Stands for a large capacity bottom mount freezer (“BMF”) refrigerator with a width of 70cm or more. Referred to as Extra Wide Fridge Freezer in Europe.
² Compared to RL435EFBAS8/EF model.
³ Wi-Fi connection and SmartThings app required to enable AI Energy mode.
⁴ Based on internal testing compared to conventional S3 Samsung compressors.
⁵ Based on internal testing, in accordance with the IEC 60704.
⁶ Available on Android and iOS devices. A Wi-Fi connection and a Samsung account are required.
⁷ The test results are based on a comparison of the factory setting temperature when using AI Energy mode and without using AI Energy mode. Results may vary depending on the usage conditions and patterns.
⁸ SmartThings will display a notification before activating the saving algorithm in both ‘Maximum mode’ and ‘Custom mode.’

Samsung Electronics today showcases its latest home appliance lineup at the press conference held in the global launch event, ‘Welcome to ‘BESPOKE AI,’¹ which takes place in three locations — Seoul, Paris and New York City. Samsung shares its vision for how connectivity amongst them can improve the overall experience at home and how artificial intelligence (AI) enhances the performance of appliances.

Jong-Hee (JH) Han, Vice Chairman, CEO and Head of Device eXperience (DX) Division at Samsung Electronics, kicked off the marathon of events by opening the media event at the Seoul ‘Welcome to BESPOKE AI’ by describing how Samsung home appliances not only perform well with the usual tasks but can do more than previously imagined with AI applied. Especially with screens added to the refrigerator, induction range and laundry machine, Bespoke appliances become a platform for entertainment, as well as an easy-to-access control hub for other connected Samsung appliances through SmartThings.

“Since the first introduction of BESPOKE in 2019, Samsung Electronics has presented to the market on how appliances can be customized to best fit each user’s home and lifestyle,” said JH Han. “Five years later, we now share our vision for AI in appliances with the products that expand the Bespoke legacy through enhanced connectivity and AI capabilities that will take the consumer experience to the next level.”

Bespoke AI Appliances Sync To Create New Experiences in Various Home Spaces

With built-in Wi-Fi, internal cameras, AI chips and compatibility with the SmartThings application, Samsung’s latest Bespoke AI appliances come with enhanced features and connectivity to lay the foundation for a truly smart home. Also, the new AI Home, a connected 7-inch LCD display that has been added to multiple products, provides intuitive, easy access and control over the whole connected ecosystem.

The AI Home includes 3D Map View, a feature that provides users with a full 3D view of the house, allowing them to easily locate all the appliances that are connected and control them. When users are cooking in the kitchen and feel that the temperature is too hot, for instance, they could turn on the air conditioner in other rooms through the AI Home on the induction range² without leaving the pots and pans unattended. While doing laundry, they could also start the robot vacuum cleaner in the living room from the AI Home on the washing machine, without having to make the journey back and forth. Also, users can receive calls coming to their phones through the AI Home, allowing them to answer timely while also continuing the housework they were doing. Moreover, the AI Home not only makes housework easier, but more enjoyable as well. Users can play their favorite songs, watch videos on the Internet app or refer to recipes on the screen while they are cooking.

Considering how people have mobile phones with them most of the time, Mobile Smart Connect is a new feature that pushes an alert to the phone when it is at close range with registered appliances. The pop-up notification includes quick control menu to execute key functions for the appliance directly from the phone, so users no longer have to search the house, looking for the actual remote control.³ This eliminates even the few steps and clicks⁴ that were required to access same features in the SmartThings application.

At the BESPOKE AI event, Samsung also showcases the new feature ‘Calm Onboarding,’ which makes it easier for users to join Samsung’s connected life. It frees users from having to go through the hassle of product registration, as it directly registers products purchased under a Samsung account at Samsung.com on to the SmartThings app with the same account.

To provide assurance to users as they step into the era of hyper-connected home appliances driven by technological advancement, Samsung also highlighted its comprehensive Knox security platform that protects all user data located on the connected appliances. In fact, the 4-Door French Door Refrigerator with AI Family Hub⁵ became the first product in the industry to be verified to level ‘Diamond’ for its IoT security capabilities by UL Solutions, a leading global safety science company that evaluates hundreds of marketing claims each year. Other Family Hub models⁶ applying the same technology, and the Bespoke Jet Bot Combo AI have also achieved the same verification.

AI Expands Spectrum of Features to Samsung Home Appliances

The most distinctive difference between the three events, other than the location, is the product lineup unveiled during the respective press conferences, which reflects the actual appliances that will launch in each market.

The Seoul ‘BESPOKE AI’ event started off with the biggest lineup among the three locations with 14 new products including: the Bespoke French Door Refrigerator with AI Family Hub+, Bespoke Infinite Induction Line, Bespoke AI Laundry Combo, Bespoke Jet Bot Combo AI, Bespoke Jet AI, Bespoke Cube Air Infinite Line, the new 2024 4-Door refrigerator incorporating peltier technology and more.

The 4-Door French Door Refrigerator with AI Family Hub⁷ is the primary control center for all things food, connecting the refrigerator to other appliances in the home. The AI Family Hub+,⁸ which is the large LCD screen in the front right panel of the refrigerator, is the key to intuitive AI experiences, where users can view recommended recipes and play music and videos for kitchen entertainment. The 4-Door French Door Refrigerator with AI Family Hub comes with AI Vision Inside⁹ which uses an internal camera to identify 33 fresh food items that go in and out of the fridge. The recognized food items are listed and managed on the Family Hub display and can also be checked on the SmartThings app.¹⁰

Another key product is the Bespoke Jet Bot Combo AI, a robot vacuum and mop cleaner with AI-enhanced features including intelligent AI Recognition. The intelligent AI Recognition performs in different ways. The AI Object Recognition uses the AI Deep Neural Network (DNN) model and camera to recognize various objects¹¹ including humans,¹² pets¹³ and hard-to-see items like thin phone cables and rugs or mats. The AI Floor Detect senses the type of floor to clean, and when carpets are detected, the robot vacuum decides whether to lift up its mop or to go and leave the mop at its station to avoid contaminating the carpet with its wet mop. It also comes with the Clean Station Steam+ which brings a range of features for automatically maintaining the device, such as emptying the dust bag, refilling the water tank, washing and intensively steam cleaning¹⁴ the mop. The Clean Station Steam+ even sprays high-temperature steam¹⁵ onto the mop’s surface, reducing 99.99% of harmful bacteria.¹⁶

As energy-saving is an important criteria in the European market, the Paris ‘BESPOKE AI’¹⁷ event additionally introduced the new energy-efficient, extra wide fridge freezer¹⁸ and the washer lineup. The extra wide fridge freezer has received “A” grade according to European energy standards thanks to Samsung’s new AI Inverter Compressor. The new washer lineup includes various models from A-10%, A-20% and even an A-40% extra energy saving model. Especially, the A-40% extra energy efficient model is equipped with Bubble Shot Technology, which saves water and cycle time by pumping up the water inside the drum and spraying it on top of the clothes.

The Bespoke AI Laundry Combo, presented at both Seoul and NYC events, is the All-in-One washer and dryer, providing the advantages of two separate appliances while freeing up valuable space. It comes with various AI features, such as remembering the periodic and seasonal needs of users and recommending the optimal cycle for the wash.¹⁹ With AI Opti Wash & Dry, the Bespoke AI Laundry Combo intelligently adjusts the washing and drying performance for each load and senses the weight of the laundry to dispense the appropriate amount of water and detergent. It also detects the fabric²⁰ and monitors the level of soiling during a cycle. If necessary, it adds more detergent and varies the washing time. It then adjusts the drying process to suit the weight and fabric type of users’ laundry. After finishing the cycle, users can monitor how much energy and water were consumed through the report provided on the SmartThings App.²¹

A unique appliance introduced only at the New York event held in Samsung 837 was the Bespoke Slide-in Range with AI Home. This product is a multi-functional induction range that also comes with various fun factors. It comes with an Internal Oven Camera that lets users see inside the oven from remote places, like on the TV²² from the living room, or even from outside the home through SmartThings on their mobile phones. With this, users can even get a short time-lapse video clip²³ with the highlight of the cooking process that they can share on social media.

Furthermore, Samsung is showcasing its vision of implementing generative AI to home appliances within this year. Especially, Bixby, Samsung’s voice assistant, will be a key in this. Generative AI will allow Bixby to go one step further from the current ability of being able to execute one order at a time, comprehending complex sentences and engaging in natural conversations. First of all, it will be able to understand compound demands like “Turn on the air conditioner to Wind Free mode, and let me know how the weather is.” It can also retain context from previous interactions for continuity, so if the user instructs Bixby to turn off the air purifier and then add, “Oh, and the TV, too,” Bixby can assist both requests. Users will also be able to rely on Bixby to come up with solutions, simply saying “the living room feels humid,” and ask “what should I do with all the potatoes I bought yesterday?” Bixby will interpret these multi-layered tasks and respond naturally to users’ prompts.

Advancing the Future of Appliances

Samsung is not only dedicated to presenting a better home experience, but also committed to creating more innovative and efficient products. The event was especially meaningful in the context that it not only introduced the new product lineups and features Samsung is launching, but also announced globally how all Wi-Fi connected appliances including those that customers already own, can change.

Samsung continues to upgrade Wi-fi connected appliances in the market and already in users’ homes through software updates and the development of SmartThings. Users can enjoy new features even with old models, and more energy saving features with products that were already bought. Smart Forward,²⁴ announced for the first time at the event, is a service that provides the newest features, security patches and upgrades through regular software updates. Users will be able to check available update information and receive notifications from the SmartThings App.²⁵ This ensures users with peace of mind and also contributes to reducing the frequency of appliance replacements.

SmartThings also continues to evolve, allowing users to save additionally on their energy usage after purchasing a product. Features such as Optimal Charging,²⁶ for example, are added so users can strategically plan out their energy use. SmartThings Energy allows users to easily monitor and control the amount of energy consumed by the connected Samsung appliances. Samsung also plans to launch its new Samsung Rewards program in the near future, which will allow users to get stamps each day if they save a certain amount of energy using AI Energy mode. Accumulated stamps can be converted and used at Samsung.com, Samsung Galaxy store and other Samsung purchase platforms.

To make efforts more impactful, Samsung introduces collaborations it made to implement solutions resulting in tangible reductions of energy use, while also making lives more convenient for users. Through a partnership with British Gas, linking SmartThings Energy’s Auto Demand Response feature with British Gas’ PeakSave, Samsung allows users to easily enjoy economic benefits through saving energy.

As a crucial player in the home appliance industry, Samsung revealed a goal to utilize next generation technologies for purposes beyond creating innovative products. It is about using engineering solutions that prolong product lifecycles, and reduce the frequency of replacements. Some of the methods introduced in the press conference include: Hybrid Cooling, newly incorporating the newly installed high-power ‘Peltier’ thermoelectric components in addition to the compressor resulting in improved cooling efficiency and performance, and low-maintenance filters for air purifiers obliterating the need for filter purchases or replacements.

Product safety is also an important factor that Samsung prioritizes, and Samsung strives to achieve and expand certifications to prove its product liability across all appliance categories, including reduced fire risk (RFR) certification for new products. This will assure that the certified appliances²⁷ are designed to effectively prevent fire incidents caused by the product.

At the end of the event, Samsung also revealed that it is collaborating with Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” (coming to theaters June 14²⁸), to communicate the features of the new Bespoke AI Laundry Combo. A new co-branded teaser video was shown that featured Inside Out 2 clips and showcased how, with the new washing machine, you can take the stressful emotions out of laundry with AI Bubble.

* Some features may not be available yet
¹ AI based features available on select appliances
² Available in the U.S.
³ Available for the Jet Bot Combo AI
⁴ Users can set ‘Show on Lock screen’ or check through the quick panel on Samsung Galaxy phones
⁵ This is global name, naming is different by region. (North America) Bespoke 4-Door Flex Refrigerator with AI Family Hub+, (Latin America) Bespoke 4-Door French Door Refrigerator with AI Family Hub+
⁶ RF**DB99****, RF**DB95****, RF**DG9H****, available in North and South America, Europe, Middle East, Southeast Asia, India, Australia, Korea
⁷ Does not mean all services available on the Bespoke 4-Door Flex Refrigerator with AI Family Hub+ are AI or generate information or outcome using AI. The services/features that use deep learning models are limited to 1) AI Vision Inside and 2) the recipe recommendation feature available on Samsung Food
⁸ (North America, Latin America) AI Family Hub+, 32”, (Europe) AI Family Hub, 21.5”
⁹ As of April 2024, AI Vision Inside can recognize 33 food items like fresh fruits and veggies. If the food is not recognizable, it may be listed as unknown item. AI Vision Inside cannot identify or list any food items in the fridge door bins or freezer. It recognizes food items based on deep learning models, which may be updated periodically to improve accuracy
¹⁰ The SmartThings App is available on Android and iOS devices. A Wi-Fi connection and a Samsung account are required. Users are required to utilize a single log-in account between the devices
¹¹ Object recognition may be affected by an object’s shape or the environmental conditions. Only certain object types can be recognized. Example items: air conditioner (stand type), refrigerator, BESPOKE (refrigerator/dishwasher), TV, washing machine/dryer, air purifier, AirDresser, sofa, bed, bookshelf, table, pet excrement, electrical cable, towel/socks, cup, glass, bottle, bowl, vase, floor mat, rug, coat rack, shoes, pedestal, scales, power extension, furniture with a crossbar, furniture legs, wheeled chair, pet fur ball, smartphone cable, stain, bathroom, door step and doorway. A Wi-Fi connection and Samsung account are required
¹² It only recognizes a human presence based on generic visual indicators, and cannot identify individual people. The recognition capabilities may be limited when a person’s entire body cannot be seen. A Wi-Fi connection and Samsung account are required
¹³ Only dogs and cats can be recognized. It only recognizes a pet presence based on generic visual indicators, and cannot identify individual pets. A Wi-Fi connection and Samsung account are required. The recognition capabilities may be limited by the posture or position of a pet. The ability to recognize your pet may vary depending on the type of animal and the living environment
¹⁴ After cleaning, the station washes the mop pads with water and steam ranging from 50 to 60°C, and after that sprays high temperature steam measured 100°C
¹⁵ The measured temperature of the steam is 100°C
¹⁶ Based on testing by Intertek. Using the Wash the Mop cycle eliminates 99.99% of Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Not supported in the U.S. Results may vary depending on the actual usage conditions.
¹⁷ AI based features available on select appliances
¹⁸ Stands for a large capacity bottom mount freezer (“BMF”) refrigerator with a width of 70cm or more
¹⁹ Messages with cycle suggestions are displayed on the control panel or a smartphone with the SmartThings App.
²⁰ To prevent wear, wash like fabrics together. Based on AI-based algorithm
²¹ The SmartThings App is available on Android and iOS devices. A Wi-Fi connection and a Samsung account are required.
²² Available on certain Samsung Smart TV models, which must also be connected to the range via the SmartThings App and using the same Samsung account. A notification is displayed on the TV screen 5 minutes before the end of your cooking. When you select the notification, you can see your food and check its progress using the streaming video
²³ A 10 second time-lapse video is created and saved for 24 hours. Video is only recorded when the door is closed. After the cooking process ends, it takes about 20 seconds to encode the video
²⁴ Update period and applicable features may vary by region and model
²⁵ The SmartThings App is available on Android and iOS devices. A Wi-Fi connection and a Samsung account are required
²⁶ Available on VR7M*97**** only
²⁷ Available on Bespoke AI Laundry Combo only
²⁸ In the U.S. Release date varies by country

Fifty years ago, in 1974, Samsung Electronics introduced its first refrigerator, washing machine, and air conditioner to the world. In the time since, we have continuously pushed the boundaries of innovation in digital appliances.

Fast forward to five years ago, in 2019, when Samsung debuted its first Bespoke appliances. These products were made to transform users’ daily lives with customized features and optimized designs. Now, we are set to usher in a new era of AI appliances, featuring cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) and SmartThings-based connectivity.

Ahead of the global product launch event on April 3, this editorial will explore how AI appliances and inter-connected smart homes are about to transform our understanding of modern home life.

Why Security Is the Foundation of Bespoke AI Appliances

A recent study conducted by market research firm Ipsos highlights the significance of security in the age of AI. The study surveyed 17,000 people across 17 countries, using the title of “Our Life With AI: The reality of today and the promise of tomorrow.” A key finding was that 42 percent of respondents identified “better security” as a very important application for AI, with an additional 44 percent deeming it somewhat important.

AI technology is brimming with potential, but even the best AI will not be worthwhile if it fails to protect users — in fact, it could be dangerous. And this is why security stands at the core of Bespoke AI appliances. We have prioritized security throughout our product development to ensure users can get all the benefits of AI-based digital appliances, while experiencing peace of mind.

Our AI appliances are protected by Samsung Knox to ensure safe usage. A blockchain-based Knox Matrix monitors and protects Samsung’s inter-connected appliances.

Our newest AI appliances, the Bespoke 4-Door Flex Refrigerator with AI Family Hub+ and the Bespoke Jet Bot Combo AI, have earned the Diamond level rating for their Internet of Things (IoT) security capabilities from UL Solutions, a global verification company. This rating represents the highest level of IoT security, a distinction that no other home appliance in the world has achieved to date.

But Samsung hasn’t stopped there. We are always researching new technologies that can further enhance the safety of AI appliances and smart homes.

Using AI Appliances to Advance Society

At Samsung, we aspire to develop appliances that go beyond mere convenience for the sake of convenience. Our goal is to create AI appliances that accomplish two things: they are readily accessible for everyone, and they contribute to society by reducing environmental impact.

Samsung’s latest all-in-one washer and dryer boasts a large 7-inch LCD touch screen designed for easy operation, catering to users with varying abilities. With Bixby integration, controlling the machine using voice commands is also possible, ensuring wider accessibility. Furthermore, the convenience of Samsung’s Auto Open Door allows users to effortlessly open the refrigerator with just a light touch. And the new washer and dryer also automatically opens its door upon completion of the wash and dry cycle. The combined result of all these improvements is that our appliances are now more user-friendly than ever.

As for the role our products play in society, we are leveraging next-generation technology to reduce environmental impact. This includes using AI to decrease energy usage in appliances and employing enhanced semiconductors to reduce the power consumption and carbon emissions of refrigerators. We are also developing technology that enables continuous use of air purifiers without the need for regular filter replacements.

Bespoke AI Appliances: The Pinnacle of AI Technology

Our 2024 appliance lineup represents the pinnacle of AI integration. Designed to significantly ease the burden of household chores, these appliances incorporate a range of sensors, recognition technology, big data analytics tools, powerful AI chips, and the Tizen OS.

With these capabilities, the way in which appliances are used will undergo a complete transformation. The large displays integrated into Family Hub refrigerators and the 7-inch display on Samsung’s latest all-in-one dryer and washer allow easy control and monitoring of appliances throughout the house. Moreover, you can conveniently control the main functions of the product using a smartphone, without having to search for a remote control or fiddling with buttons. This revolutionizes home life.

This year, we’re also planning to incorporate generative AI into Bespoke AI appliances, which will allow users to operate them through natural conversation — much like chatting with family members. Building on SmartThings and the strength of AI appliances, will introduce over 100 diverse inter-connecting experiences that Samsung appliances can offer.

At Welcome to BESPOKE AI on April 3, you’ll have the opportunity to witness Samsung’s groundbreaking AI appliances for 2024. Our products not only prioritize security, but also consider our society and environment. Join us as we embark on this journey to shape the future of Bespoke AI appliances.

Watch the video below to check out some of Samsung’s KBIS 2023 highlights, from its booth to its key products unveiled at this year’s exhibition.

As part of its showcase, Samsung offered a glimpse at what the future may hold for the home appliance industry through an illuminating panel discussion. The panel was moderated by Pamela McNally, SVP of Marketing and Digital at the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA), with panelists including Shane Higby, Vice President for Home Appliance Product Marketing at Samsung Electronics America, Gary So, Vice President of Demand Generation at Samsung Electronics America and Geraldine Morrison, Executive Director of Dacor.

The panelists took the stage as part of KBIS’s NEXT Stage event, a showcase for leading kitchen and bath industry experts to discuss the latest trends affecting the industry today and what they expect to be influencing the industry tomorrow.

Read on to learn more about their discussion and the future of home appliances.

▲ (left to right) Moderator Pamela McNally and panelists Shane Higby, Gary So and Geraldine Morrison at Samsung’s KBIS 2023 panel discussion.

Charting the Future of the Home Appliance Landscape

* Please note that the following responses have been edited for clarity and brevity.

Pamela McNally The appliance landscape has changed significantly over the past few years. How has Samsung been adapting to these changes?

Shane Higby It certainly has changed, and I would humbly suggest that Samsung has been leading some of that change in a few key areas. The first is sustainability, the second is connectivity and the third is design.

Sustainability is a very critical corporate initiative for us. Approximately 260 Samsung appliances are ENERGY STAR^® certified, 43 of which received have received the “Most Efficient” award.¹ Recently, SmartThings Energy was given the first-ever Smart Home Energy Management Systems (SHEMS) certification, which we’re very proud of. In the area of connectivity, over 80% of our appliances are connected, which includes Family Hub.

In the area of design, our Bespoke lineup offers consumers a choice — one that didn’t really exist in the home appliance space previously — to bring new colors and materials into the kitchen. This emphasis on customizable designs empowers them to personalize their kitchen to suit their lifestyle.

McNally Could you share more about Samsung’s approach to design in today’s home appliance market?

Gary So What we’ve been seeing is that, in the last couple of years, consumers have been spending a lot more time at home. And in many ways, their relationships with appliances have changed dramatically. Pre-pandemic, the approach to design was a lot more functionally driven and a lot more utilitarian. Post-pandemic, designs have moved on to become much more about expression. Rather than just products to cook and clean with, consumers are seeing appliances as an extension of who they are and their design aesthetic.

What’s interesting is that we’re seeing this shift toward customization permeate all age groups. Certainly for millennial home buyers, customization is a lot more natural, but we’re also seeing older consumers embrace the trend. We think this adoption is in large part due to the wide range of options Bespoke provides.

With the Bespoke Design Simulator, consumers can choose custom color panels that open up design possibilities, whether it’s a clean, one-toned option or a more expressive option with multiple tones. We also just announced MyBespoke, which allows users to print their own custom pictures onto panels for a truly personalized experience. Customization in terms of design is truly endless with Bespoke, and we think that this trend is here to stay.

“What’s interesting is that we’re seeing this shift toward customization permeate all age groups.”

We’ve also noticed that following the introduction of Bespoke, there’s been a challenge to the traditional notion of appliances that are all matching with each other. Users don’t feel the need to have all stainless or all black appliances at home. In fact, many of our customers are using Bespoke refrigerators as standalone statement pieces in the kitchen and mixing and matching other products for a more expressive look.

Furthermore, with our home spaces serving so many different functions today, Bespoke customers know that having a personalized home design means the space is always fitting no matter the time of day, serving as a place for breakfast in the morning with family, an office to take video calls in during the day and then back to dinner time with the family at night.

Importantly, we’re still able to combine functionality with aesthetics. Whether it’s an internal beverage center or recessed door handles, Bespoke offers a simple, clean design with a premium feel that fits into any environment — traditional or contemporary. That’s the future: appliances that can reflect personal aesthetics, giving consumers a way to create a design that says something about themselves.

McNally Shane, let’s circle back to your earlier insight regarding Samsung and the connected home.

Higby The connected home is not something new; I’ve mentioned that some 80% of our appliances are connected in some way. What we’re trying to do with connectivity is simplifying it as much as possible for consumers because it can come across as complex and daunting. For example, when you’re doing laundry, our connected laundry appliances can send you a notification when the wash is done and it’s time to switch it to the dryer. You can even schedule the laundry machine to start at a later time, so that when you come home from work, the clothes have not been sitting there damp all day long. Other use cases include starting your dishwasher at night if you don’t want to hear it running. With ranges, you can preheat them while you’re at work, so when you get home, it’s ready to cook dinner.

“What we’re trying to do with connectivity is simplifying it as much as possible for consumers because it can come across as complex and daunting.”

We also have some great functionality with SmartThings Home Care. Our appliances can give you notifications through SmartThings if they sense something might be wrong: overdue maintenance, an open door on an appliance or something else. It’s extra peace of mind.

McNally So far, we’ve discussed the changes in approaches to design and connectivity within the industry. How do these areas apply to luxury appliances?

Geraldine Morrison Design is paramount for the luxury consumer. At Dacor, we work with the world’s top designers to ensure that we’re using the best materials, finishes and truly the best everything in our products because that’s the standard our customers expect. This enables customers to bring their design visions to life. It’s really about preference: whether it’s something clean and recessed that disappears into the space or something extravagant that makes a statement, we have all the options available.

“We work with top designers and use the best materials and finishes because it enables customers to bring their design visions to life.”

With regards to connectivity, Dacor appliances benefit by being on Samsung’s SmartThings platform. Consumers want to know the best way to use their appliances but also keep track of what they’re doing. That’s what we deliver with Dacor.

Our wine cellars, for example, can send notifications about the status of your wine, and our refrigerators can tell you what’s inside your refrigerator at any time using built-in cameras. It’s about providing intuitive, meaningful innovations that allow customers to enjoy an elevated lifestyle with the freedom to get onto doing other things they want to do.

McNally Finally, I’d love to hear what’s new in 2023 for both Samsung and Dacor, as well as what you feel the future landscape of appliances will look like.

Higby In the Bespoke portfolio of products, there are a few new things coming in terms of refrigeration and otherwise. In refrigeration, we’re introducing a Bespoke Side-by-Side refrigerator for consumers looking for a premium look in a lower-budget option. It will offer a new Auto Open Door, making it more convenient to open and close the larger doors. Also, new is the 32” Family Hub refrigerator. The new Family Hub features an FHD, bezel-less screen that’s twice as big as the previous model but still blends seamlessly into the appliance. Taking advantage of that new screen, users can do more at once, such as using the new picture-in-picture feature to watch videos on YouTube while creating a shopping list.

There’s also a brand-new wall oven coming out with a first-of-its-kind camera inside so you can monitor your cooking and baking. By pairing the camera with AI technology, the oven can recognize what’s inside and recommend cooking settings accordingly. Users can even share their cooking videos on social media with their friends thanks to SmartThings integration.

We also have other products for the kitchen and the rest of the home in the works, so stay tuned.

Morrison With Dacor customers, we’re seeing a lot of creativity regarding how appliances are being used. Some of our users may have two kitchen setups at home, one for regular use and one for show for special occasions — or one for “go” and one for “show,” as we like to say. You might have a wine cellar in the kitchen but a wine dispenser in the closet built-in for convenience. It’s really about meeting changing needs as we spend more time at home.

Luxury consumers have high standards, and the focus is versatility — they want that one ultimate, heavy-duty appliance that can do it all. Added to that, they want appliances that can provide precision outcomes, be it baking cookies or baking a turkey. Another trend in luxury is that bigger is better. We’re seeing a lot of interest in bigger capacities, as because we’re doing a lot of things at home, we need more space to do them in.

So, with our Transitional Line, we’re introducing a new 48-inch-wide range that offers the largest capacity with a full 36-inch cavity on one side that’s big enough to cook two turkeys. We’re also introducing a 48-inch built-in refrigerator to the Transitional Line with advanced features including 3D LED Lighting, a full metal interior, precision cooling and Fresh Zone + so that users can convert the space into a fridge or freezer depending on their needs. It also includes a new ice-making feature that makes whisky ball ice as well as ice cubes, which is a really unique feature and a perfect example of flexibility blended with elevated features.

KBIS’s NEXT Stage event provided the perfect platform for the panel of experts to discuss the future of home appliances and the trends that are shaping them. As trends shift toward a more flexible home environment, Samsung and Dacor’s innovative approaches to appliance design are providing ways for consumers to personalize and elevate their home spaces through customizable aesthetics, intuitive connectivity and sustainability.

Stay tuned to Samsung Newsroom for the latest news and updates on Samsung’s KBIS 2023 showcase and Bespoke appliances.

¹ As of November 2022.

The Bespoke Home Virtual is a 3D home appliance experience in a virtual reality (VR) space using advanced digital twin technology. It allows users to roam around interacting with them to get a feel for how Bespoke appliances would look inside their home in various configurations.

Bespoke Home Virtual, unlike similar interior VR experiences, allows users to freely explore locations as if they were in a video game with a whole new level of freedom. While in the past, VR spaces were limited to certain sections being rendered, the Bespoke Home Virtual uses a new technology that opens the entire space so users can see from all angles without limitations. While exploring, users can zoom in on key points of products to compare appliances in detail through direct interaction. What’s more, the Real-Time Rendering technology being utilized presents realistic light renders that mimic real-world light behavior, bringing the scene to life like never before.

The Kitchen & Bath Industry Show 2023 attendees got to go hands-on, through a docent service, with Bespoke Home Virtual for a truly immersive experience. Modelled to reflect an average American home, the 3D environment offered consumers an easy and intuitive way to experience Bespoke products and create different moods in the home with customizations. Throughout the event, the whole experience was also simultaneously shared on Samsung’s 4K 140-inch display, The Wall, at the Samsung Booth.

Users first got to select from three distinct interior styles, including Modern, Transitional Light and Transitional Dark, then were free to roam around the fully decorated space. Cycling through three interior designs, users were able to get a deeper understanding of how the appliances would look matched with different textures such as marble backsplashes, wood or stone tile floors and light or dark walls.

More than a simple walkthrough, attendees were encouraged to get up close and experience a catered suite of Bespoke products, including refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines and dryers as well as inductions and ovens. Users were able to open the doors on the units to check out features such as the built-in water dispenser inside the fridge as well as the glide pan in the oven while swapping through vibrant colors and detailed finishes. Together, the realistic interior and exterior renditions allowed users to fully enjoy the amazing features that make Bespoke products truly bespoke.

For this year’s KBIS, Samsung enabled users to interactively experience Bespoke using a breakthrough, immersive 3D technology, providing consumers a brand-new way to go hands-on with the latest Samsung home appliances.

For more information on Samsung Bespoke Home Virtual as well as the complete Bespoke lineup, please visit Samsung.com.

With the aim of providing U.S. builders with a glimpse of the latest Bespoke appliances, Samsung’s display gives visitors the ability to experience modern, sleek home living through the Bespoke Home 2023 lineup, helping them to gather inspiration for future home builds and designs.

Read on for a more detailed look at some of the exciting home innovations on display at Samsung’s 2023 KBIS booth.

Where Sustainability Meets Innovation

Samsung’s KBIS display is showcasing to visitors an expansion of what is possible at home through the company’s truly personalized and customizable appliances that are enhanced by upgraded connectivity thanks to SmartThings.

Visitors are first welcomed into the Everyday Sustainability zone, where Samsung’s eco-conscious practices throughout the entire product life cycle are on display to provide users with a deeper understanding of how Samsung’s choices are making a difference to the planet.

Next, beside to the entrance to the Bespoke Home zone, visitors are greeted by the stunning 140-inch microLED screen of The Wall on which the Bespoke Home Virtual display is being showcased. Here, visitors are able to go on 3D virtual house tours through rooms adorned with a variety of Bespoke products. They can also peruse the full range of different Bespoke appliance finishes and colors capable of fitting seamlessly into any home design concept.

Alongside this display is the Bespoke Home zone, where visitors can learn more about all the latest Bespoke appliances and the full extent of their customizable features.

Furthermore, visitors can also enjoy a first-hand experience of the MyBespoke custom printing service. On display at this area are several possibilities of how personalized images can be used as front panel decoration, showcased on the latest Bespoke French Door Refrigerators.

Moving on, in the showcase’s SmartThings Home zone, smart home systems are taking center stage. Visitors are provided with a closer look at how SmartThings is expanding the use of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions to provide consumers with convenient appliance monitoring and management right from the updated Full HD (FHD) Family Hub display. Furthermore, for even more in-depth experiences of the full Bespoke offering, the Line-up area features the complete range of all the latest Bespoke appliances.

The final stop on a visitor’s Samsung showcase tour, situated just beyond the Bespoke zones, is the Dacor section. Visitors are able to experience premium, luxury home concepts thanks to the variety of high-end Samsung and Dacor appliances on display which have been designed to provide inspiration to those looking to curate bold, sophisticated kitchen spaces.

Stay tuned to Samsung Newsroom to learn more about Samsung at KBIS 2023 as well as the latest Bespoke home appliances.

Ahead of the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) 2023 in Las Vegas, the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) has awarded Dacor its prestigious Innovative Showroom Award for the Dacor Kitchen Theater in Irvine, California.

Dacor’s full-scale kitchen showroom in Irvine offers trade partners and consumers alike a first-hand immersive experience, with its industry-lauded products showcased in an exquisite environment designed to provide a feeling and atmosphere reminiscent of Californian homes.

▲ At the Dacor Kitchen Theater in Irvine, California, visitors are able to enjoy a hands-on experience of Dacor’s appliances in a cozy, home-like setting.

Award-Winning Design That Pairs Luxury With Innovation

Dacor earned the NKBA’s coveted award thanks to the unique aesthetics, innovative features and luxurious designs on display at its Irvine showroom.

The award Dacor has received, in the “Kitchen & Bath Design Centers” category, reflects the Dacor Kitchen Theater’s ability to bring the brand to life by offering visitors elevated experiences that honor Dacor’s history and brand mission.

A Design Narrative That Encompasses Past, Present and Future

As one of its distinguishing design features, the Dacor Kitchen Theater draws heavy influence from its Southern California roots, conveying a narrative of the brand’s past, present and future.

The showroom’s clean lines, simple geometry and use of subtle lighting help paint a picture of the Pacific Ocean and the Sierra Nevada Mountain ranges that bookend California. Bold curves in the designs mimic the California coastline while refined, brushed metallic finishes evoke a feeling of luxury, and rounded edges and stand-out textiles introduce warmth into the space.

Adding to the California motif, Dacor commissioned artisans local to the state to enhance the showroom’s décor. From custom light fixtures by Siemon & Salazar to custom refrigerator panels designed by LA-based artist Alex Turco, the workmanship of local craftsmen truly provides the finishing touches to the showroom.

▲ The Dacor Kitchen Theater’s cooking demonstration space offers visitors a truly hands-on experience with Dacor appliances.

The Dacor Kitchen Theater’s professional cooking demonstration space adds an experiential aspect to the showroom. With it, the showroom can function as an educational and training space, allowing visitors to get hands-on with Dacor appliances for fuller, more immersive product experiences.

Furthermore, the venue provides a glimpse into how Dacor’s luxury cooking appliances’ exceptional materials and precision performance can elevate any consumers’ kitchen.

A Showroom Experience With Versatility at Its Core

The richness of Dacor’s designs is matched only by their versatility. The innovative, modular designs that are at the core of Dacor’s products exemplify the brand’s versatility, personality and ability to serve a variety of lifestyles.

Concealed doors and cabinetry throughout the showroom floor provide a clean and minimal canvas for the kitchen vignettes on display that highlight a variety of Californian lifestyles. The distinct vignettes bridge luxury with life in order to help connect visitors to Dacor’s diverse yet cohesive lineup.

Throughout the showroom space, visitors are presented with three kitchen vignettes that showcase Dacor’s diverse kitchen offerings. The first vignette was inspired by the city and harnesses a muted gold, brass and silver metallic palette. The second vignette combines durability with exceptional craftsmanship, and the third leverages natural light and greenery to create a scene that blurs the line between indoors and outdoors.

▲ Vignette 1 showcases Dacor’s Contemporary appliances in silver stainless and uses a palette of muted metallics to provide a city-inspired design.

▲ Dacor’s exclusive graphite stainless steel is showcased in a kitchen set-up reminiscent of a California costal kitchen.

Beyond their designs, Dacor products harness integrated technologies to provide consumers with even more versatility. Hidden touch control panels, Wi-Fi-enabled touch screens and Samsung SmartThings integration allow users to personalize their appliances in ways that truly cater to their lifestyles and habits.

The third Dacor showroom of its kind in the U.S., the award-winning Dacor Kitchen Theater in Irvine offers a showroom experience that goes beyond a mere product display. In addition to sharing the story of the brand’s identity, the Dacor Kitchen Theater serves as the perfect venue for consumers to learn more about Dacor’s products through unforgettable experiences.

Visit dacor.com to learn more about the luxury kitchen appliances being featured in the award-winning Dacor Kitchen Theater.

Samsung Electronics today showcased innovations that raise the bar for sustainable, smart and personalized living at the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Bespoke appliances have quickly grown in popularity since they were introduced to the U.S. market in 2021, with Bespoke refrigerators as the centerpiece. The ever-expanding line now includes full kitchen packages, laundry and floor care products.

This year, Samsung is offering Bespoke customization to the built-in cooking category and also introducing new refrigerator models. With the new additions, Samsung aims to continue to help make energy savings a seamless part of everyday life, enhance SmartThings’ connected services in more ways and empower more personalized experiences in 2023.

“Sustainability, connectivity and personalization are top of mind for today’s homeowners and homebuyers,” said Ik Soo Choi, EVP and Head of Sales and Marketing Team of Digital Appliances Business at Samsung Electronics. “We’re excited to be back at KBIS to showcase how our products inspire people to create sustainable living spaces that truly reflect their personal style, with connectivity that empowers new ways of living.”

Unlock Everyday Sustainability

By integrating energy efficiency and connected technology into more appliances and in more ways, Samsung is helping make sustainability a seamless part of daily life.

At KBIS, Samsung will showcase efforts to enhance sustainability throughout the product life cycle — from production to distribution, use and disposal — and highlight the added energy savings that come with its SmartThings Energy¹ service. The service delivers easy-to-understand information about your smart home energy usage, as well as tips to help you save more power. Its intuitive AI Energy Mode² automatically optimizes settings to reduce the amount of energy consumed by connected Samsung appliances,³ making it easy to maximize energy savings and help lower your home’s energy costs. This includes up to 15% savings for compatible refrigerators,⁴ up to 20% for compatible air conditioners⁵ and up to 35% for compatible washers⁶ on select cycles.⁷

For its efforts with SmartThings Energy, Samsung has been awarded the industry’s first mass-market Smart Home Energy Management Systems (SHEMS) certification by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA has also awarded Samsung 260 ENERGY STAR® certifications, including 43 “Most Efficient” recognitions.⁸

KBIS attendees can also learn more about the new Less Microfiber Cycle and Filter, the former of which cuts microplastic emissions during laundry by up to 54%.⁹ Now available in Europe, the cycle will roll out to compatible washers in Korea from February this year and in the U.S. soon.

Empowering More Personalized Experiences With Advanced Connectivity

In 2023, Bespoke appliances will deliver more personalized experiences with connectivity to help make daily life more convenient and productive. At KBIS, Samsung will highlight how its SmartThings services are transforming the way people interact with appliances by creating more intuitive and seamless experiences that bring calm to our connected world.

The six SmartThings services on display — SmartThings Energy, Cooking, Pet Care, Clothing Care, Air Care and Home Care — add new levels of convenience and efficiency to daily life. Together, these services make managing smart homes simple by catering to consumers’ diverse needs. This is especially true in the kitchen, where SmartThings Cooking offers a more personalized take on meal preparation that considers users’ health goals and what they have in their fridge. It works seamlessly with the new Bespoke AI Oven to sync recipe recommendations with cooking settings while Samsung Health integration helps users keep track of their diet for healthier living. The oven also includes cameras that allow it to optimize cooking settings using food-recognition technology and let users create time-lapse videos of food cooking to share on social media.

Also new to the kitchen, the Bespoke 4-Door Flex Family Hub+ refrigerator features a 32-inch, bezel-less full HD display that is perfect for multitasking. The larger screen makes using SmartThings services a breeze and streamlines everything from entertainment to home management by allowing users to view multiple apps at once. This means users can take advantage of Samsung TV Plus’s picture-in-picture function to tune in to more than 190 free channels¹⁰ while adding items to their shopping list, following along to a recipe video, managing the family calendar and more — at the same time. The screen is also perfect for displaying family photos or artwork from around the world using services like Google Photos and Atelier, respectively. The new SmartThings Dashboard also takes advantage of the larger screen to make households’ smart home controls easily accessible.

Bringing Bespoke to Life

Samsung is encouraging consumers to explore the next level of customization with new Bespoke products and immersive experiences. These include both MyBespoke¹¹ as well as a new interactive showroom experience known as Bespoke Home Virtual.

MyBespoke offers endless possibilities for personalization, allowing you to personalize your Bespoke refrigerator with original designs, artwork or your favorite photos for the first time. You can design your one-of-a-kind MyBespoke fridge panels for one or two French Doors and Samsung will deliver them directly to your home.

Create your own design when you purchase a Bespoke refrigerator from Samsung.com and simply swap out your existing Bespoke French Door fridge panels with your custom MyBespoke designs. To complement your top doors’ custom designs, you can choose to outfit your fridge’s lower doors with a variety of bold, bright or neutral Bespoke colors in glass or metallic finishes.¹²

KBIS attendees can also immerse themselves in Bespoke Home Virtual, a virtual simulation that takes them on a journey through a true-to-life Bespoke showroom. Within the experience, participants can customize the colors, materials and finishes across Bespoke appliances, including kitchen packages and laundry products. They can also interact with these digital appliances to experience their usability and view their interiors.

All of these innovations and more will be on display at Samsung’s KBIS exhibit, located at Booth W4301 in the Las Vegas Convention Center. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com.

¹ Available on Android and iOS devices. Wi-Fi connection and a Samsung account are required.
² AI Energy Mode availability depends on location. Product launch schedule may vary.
³ Product schedule may vary. AI Energy Mode will roll out for refrigerator models as an Optical Transport Network (OTN) update in May 2023.
⁴ Available on specific models from May 2023 through a Wi-Fi update. Test results based on a comparison of the U.S. models’ factory setting temperatures with and without AI Energy Mode. Results may vary depending on usage conditions and patterns.
⁵ Based on internal testing of the U.S. models. Results may vary depending on the user’s actual environment and usage patterns.
⁶ Based on internal testing on the WF8900B model with an 8lb IEC except for Small Load cycle (4lb IEC). Results may vary depending on actual usage conditions.
⁷ Can be applied to Heavy Duty, Small Load, Towels and Power Rinse courses only when the selected washing temperature is “hot.”
⁸ As of November 2022.
⁹ Tested with 2kg load of 100% polyester hoodies, comparing Synthetics cycle on Samsung Conventional model WW4000T and the Less Microfiber cycle on WW7000B. The results may be different depending on the clothes and environment. Tested by the Ocean Wise Plastics Lab.
¹⁰ Samsung TV Plus is available in the United States and South Korea. Number of channels may vary by location.
¹¹ Service is limited to U.S. market.
¹² For more information on Samsung MyBespoke terms and conditions, visit: https://www.samsung.com/us/home-appliances/bespoke/refrigerators/mybespoke/terms-and-conditions/.

Intelligent Recommendations for Chefs

Chef Davide Oldani was in charge of the appetizer while Chef Michel Troisgros provided the main dish and dessert. In order to decide what to prepare, the chefs used the View Inside function on the Family Hub to look at ingredients without having to open the refrigerator.

The chefs then reached out to the audience for a volunteer to take a look at the Smart Recipe offerings of the Family Hub with them. Smart Recipe is a novel intelligent function that recommends menu options for you based on the shelf life of the ingredients stored within, accommodating its suggestions to users’ tastes and preferences. Chef Troisgros (pictured above) praised its resourcefulness, noting that the strategic nature of the Smart Recipe function meant that no ingredient would be wasted.

Chef Troisgros confessed to the audience that the Family Hub was his personal favorite feature for its aesthetic quality, intelligent suggestions and the usability of the screen – perfect for messy cooking sessions.

With the volunteer having reviewed the screen and expressed their preference for something with passion fruit, Chef Troisgros announced that he would create a Swiss meringue dessert with a passion fruit filling arranged in the shape of a sunflower, “inspired by the expansive sunflower fields of my home in France.”

When it was his turn to use the Family Hub, Chef Troisgros told the audience: “the ‘window’ function of the Family Hub is perfect for getting the most out of your food. Eliminating the need to open the fridge door frequently, ingredients inside are kept fresh and at their best for longer.” The View Inside function even lists the expiration dates of the products, ensuring your ingredients are prepared when at their best.

Chef Oldani then utilized the Family Hub’s Smart Recipe function to settle on a unique bruschetta appetizer, regaling the audience with the fascinating story behind the evolution of the bruschetta recipe and even providing guests with a special Italian tomato water taster. Chef Troisgros then decided on a dynamic recipe of his own for the main course, ‘Le Jaune Ivre de Rouge’; a baked potato with egg yolk and parma ham in a red wine sauce.

Precise Cooking for Any Recipe

As the chefs got down to cooking, the audience was amazed when both of the chefs were able to cook their dishes, with different cooking times and temperatures, simultaneously with the Dual Cook Flex Oven. Chef Troisgros made the point that the Dual Flex makes the cooking process so much less stressful; “with many dishes to prepare at once, it can be stressful to know when and what to do. But at least with appliances like the Dual Flex, people can be more confident with the assistance these smart features provide.”

In addition to this helpful dual function, Chef Troisgros informed that audience that the Dual Cook Flex Oven automatically maintains the temperatures of both its compartments to ensure each dish is cooked to perfection, a feature critical to food preparation.

As the chefs moved along to the stovetop cooker, the audience watched in awe when, as Chef Oldani switched on the hob on, the hood automatically activated and the Virtual Flame function lit up. Virtual Flame, which glows just like a real flame to alert users to the heat of the cooker, is particularly useful in a family home to keep children away from open flames. Chef Oldani was quick to inform the audience that this feature was his favorite; “Chefs can get a feel for the temperature of the appliance and also stay safe in a busy kitchen.”

Premium Design, Smart Function

The built-in smart kitchen that was used during the cooking show is a collaboration between Samsung and German premium furniture company Nolte, with Samsung’s latest smart appliances fitting seamlessly into the luxurious design and décor of Nolte’s signature kitchen furnishings. The sleek design and sophisticated layout of the cooking space attracted many guests’ attention.

This year’s Samsung’s built-in kitchen booth was also designed with other luxury furniture brands including Italy’s LUBE, which are shown in the ‘Premium Kitchen Zone’ alongside Nolte products, and at luxury built-in brand ‘Dacor Zone’, attendees are able to peruse some of these innovative designs. The IFA kitchen is a testament to how Samsung smart kitchen appliances with AI and IoT can harmonize seamlessly with kitchen furnishings. Samsung has also collaborated with renowned brands including Scavolini and Veneta Cucine, and participated at exhibitions like EuroCucina to strengthen its commitment to building world-class premium appliances.

The smart kitchen zone was enhanced by luxury built-in kitchen appliance brand Dacor for a seamless finish incorporating the premium smart appliances into the kitchen space fluidly.

Having finished their meals, audience members expressed their wonder at the delicate tastes of each course, all cooked to perfection with Samsung’s intelligent kitchen appliances. Audience member Michael Wasiau especially appreciated the experimental nature of Chef Oldani’s bruschetta course, made with such simple ingredients as discovered in the Family Hub fridge.

Audience members Michael Wasiau and Thea Frosshoph

Other audience members found the cooking show informative, as it highlighted the practice usage features like Smart Recipe can offer; “I usually check myself what’s in the fridge to see what I can make,” said Thea Frosshoph. “So, when cooking, besides getting creative myself and thinking ‘okay, what am I going to make today?’ I can find some cooking inspiration with what’s available.”

The audience left the cooking show inspired to make their own meals effortlessly with the help of the Samsung smart appliance ecosystem. “We are focused on bringing kitchens to life with smart technology that simplifies everything and creates new lifestyle opportunities,” affirms BK Kang, Executive Vice President of Digital Appliance Business at Samsung.

From left: Chef Davide Oldani, BK Kang, Chef Michel Troisgros and presenter Louise Houghton

Thanks to the development of smart technology, the era of simply pressing a few buttons on a home appliance and having that be that is long gone. Smart personal assistants, powered by AI (artificial intelligence) and IoT (the Internet of Things), have become an integral part of our daily lives – two-thirds of Europeans state that this smart technology would help make their lives easier and more enjoyable*. Recognizing this, Samsung is committed to delivering AI-based solutions at home that can learn from user behavior to provide personalized recommendations. The seamless integration of these intelligent home appliances promises to open consumers’ minds to the full potential of smart innovation in their lives.

Transforming the Home Life: Laundromat Lab with QuickDrive

The tour begins in the Laundromat Lab, which showcases the latest of Samsung’s laundry innovations, the QuickDrive washing machine. Launched here at IFA just last year, the QuickDrive washer is already paving the way and has notably transformed people’s home lives for the better. QuickDrive achieved the highest growth among the top 10 brands in the European washing machine market** in the first half of this year compared to same period of 2017.

QuickDrive can wash clothes in half the time of conventional machines without compromising on washing performance, freeing up consumers’ time. The QuickDrive washer includes the unique Q-Drum, which features a drum and a backplate that rotate independently so that loads are moved dynamically in opposite directions – resulting in a full clean.

In order to best control each and every wash cycle, Samsung has integrated three key smart functions into QuickDrive machines through its AI-powered laundry care solution “Q-rator” for more intelligent and personalized control over laundry cycles. Firstly, the Laundry Recipe function recommends the best cycle to you based on the fabric and color of the specific load you select. Secondly, Laundry Planner allows you to designate a desired wash end time which the machine will automatically work back from, minimizing the time you spend on washing clothes and allowing you to stop and start laundry according to your schedule. Thirdly, HomeCare Wizard monitors the machine itself to provide diagnostic feedback on the machine’s cycle, energy and use pattern data – so that this is one less thing for you to have think about. More intelligent than ever, QuickDrive can even detect when your washing detergent will run out, and will automatically order more on a contract basis.

Home appliances have never been more helpful or easy to navigate, and according to recent surveys, consumer feedback shows that their lives are truly being transformed by the new ‘QuickDrive approach’ to doing laundry. On top of this, it has garnered a slew of recognition from leading industry peers, with the 2018 Which? Awards announcing Samsung as the leading Large Appliance brand and KBIS awarding QuickDrive the ‘Best of KBIS’ award for its leading innovation in Smart Home Technology.

Home Bistro Assistant: Dual Cook Flex Oven

Moving across to the Cooking section of the Cooking zone, visitors are getting to know Samsung’s industry-leading Dual Cook Flex Oven, in which consumers can cook several dishes simultaneously at different temperatures and cooking times. The freedom that this offers users is no small feat – Samsung has created an oven that allows you to take advantage of the dual cook feature with ease, with the specially designed oven door allowing you the flexibility to either cook two different dishes at once or use the entire oven for one dish with a larger cooking space.

Visitors to the Zone are being treated to demonstrations of the SmartThings app. With the Cooking Guide feature, the Dual Cook Flex Oven offers the most appropriate oven settings based on the ingredients of the dish you are preparing. Whether you are baking a cake or cooking a lasagna, Cooking Guide can suggest the best oven mode, temperature and time for optimum results.  The oven’s intelligent features can even go one step beyond this, as well, featuring the capacity to save preferred recipe settings and notes using My Recipe and Scrapbook for even smoother cooking experiences. Perusing the Dual Cook Flex Oven’s handy intelligent settings, you can get a real sense of the convenience these smart features offer – along with providing the ultimate in cooking personalization.

The Center of Home Communication: Family Hub

This part of the tour ends in the Smart Kitchen booth, which is showcasing the latest version of the innovative Family Hub fridge. The kitchen has become the epicenter of a global shift in how people utilize their home spaces. Recent studies show that almost half (46%) of Europeans now spend most of their leisure time in the kitchen*. As a result, Samsung Electronics has broadened the scope of its products for the kitchen, the center of everyday home life, through this year’s more evolved Family Hub.

The Family Hub has been designed with the understanding that convenience and personalization in food preparation is a priority for families, and so the Meal Planner capabilities suggest recipes based on your family’s food preferences, dietary restrictions and even food expiration dates for convenient weekly and monthly tailored meal plans – based on the ingredients already stored in the fridge and users’ taste. Visitors can get a feeling for just how hands-on this smart appliance is by interacting with the Family Hub’s dedicated touch-screen tablet.

With Bixby and Voice ID, the 2018 Family Hub does more than just react intelligently, and IFA attendees are experiencing the tailored responses Family Hub and Bixby can provide. Family Hub can recognize individual voices and match them to each family member’s profile. Users can start off their day just by asking “Hi Bixby, what’s new today?” and full, personalized information relevant to that user will appear instantly.

Family Hub not only offers you a personalized experience with just the one device, but thanks to SmartThings, consumers can also enjoy a connected living experience across Samsung appliances as well as other devices. You can control your robot vacuum cleaner, washing machine, and even your air conditioner, all from the Hub’s screen. With features such as this, Samsung and Family Hub endeavor to build technology geared towards making a real difference in consumers’ everyday home lives.

Stay tuned for further installments in this series exploring more of Samsung’s IFA 2018 booths and find out more about different ways Samsung Electronics is making the everyday more innovative.

* Samsung’s European Kitchen Trends report surveyed 13,185 adults (18+) across 11 European countries in an online study to explore the changing role of the kitchen and how technology is shaping the way we interact with our kitchens. Fieldwork was undertaken in March 2018, and all figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. 

** 22 European markets

Samsung Electronics today announced that it has won two KBIS 2018 awards, the new and first year category award for Smart Home Technology and Best of Kitchen Silver award, presented by the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show (KBIS).

The kitchen and bath industry’s premier awards program highlights the best new kitchen and bath products that push the boundaries of design, technology and innovation. Winners are selected based on innovation, design and function.

The Samsung Front Load Washer with QuickDrive is a major step forward in laundry innovation and cuts washing time.  Equipped with faster wash time and enhanced smart capabilities, the new washer with QuickDrive technology and intelligent Q-rator laundry assistant takes the guesswork out of doing laundry from your mobile device. It has smart capabilities that simplify the washing cycle with intuitive features that provide automatic recommendations for optimal wash cycles, manage the time that a wash cycle will finish and adjust cycle settings, and monitors the washer to keep it operating at optimal performance.

The Samsung FlexWash + FlexDry are a versatile new laundry pair that provide ultimate flexibility to wash and dry multiple loads of laundry at the same time.  FlexWash + FlexDry provide an unprecedented amount of flexibility to let you do multiple cycles at the same time, so you can keep a wide variety of clothes in great condition.

This year, KBIS added new categories to recognize and honor brands at the forefront of smart home innovations which are driving the kitchen and bath innovations of tomorrow. A total of six awards were given out including Kitchen Gold and Silver, Bath Gold and Silver, Best in Show and the new Smart Home Technology award.

“We are proud to be the recipient of two KBIS awards this year, as it underscores Samsung’s dedication and commitment to bringing meaningful innovation to the home appliance industry and to consumers,” said Tom Halford, Vice President of Samsung Premium and Builder Brands. “Our combination of technology, performance and design is resonating strongly, and we are looking forward to a game-changing 2018.”

Following KBIS 2018, voting for the Best of KBIS People’s Choice award will take place online, via the KBIS Facebook page. Voting opens January 12, 2018, and show attendees can cast their vote for their favorite products. There will be three People’s Choice Winners (First, Second and Third Place).

We caught up with Geunbae Lee, the Head of the AI Center, to talk about how Samsung plans to lead the field of artificial intelligence.

Q. The integrated AI Center, with Samsung Research, was officially launched last November. What is your vision for the center?

With technology innovation rife within the AI sector, our vision is to prepare industry-leading AI-based solutions in the areas of recognition, thinking and movement to compete with other key market players by 2020. We will also enhance the competitiveness of our existing businesses. Furthermore, the AI Center will contribute to not only new business and product creation but also effective management, as we are applying AI throughout the manufacturing, marketing and data analysis processes.

Q. What projects are the AI Center currently working on?

In 2018, the first year of the AI Center, we plan to focus on establishing AI platforms which will serve as the foundation for Samsung’s AI technology. We will achieve this first by collecting AI research capacity from within Samsung and recruiting global talent. Our mid- to long-term goal is to show leadership in AI technology development along certain major themes including virtual assistants, robotics and data.

Q. What are your thoughts on how AI will progress in the future? How will Samsung lead the conversation within the industry?

Samsung has already demonstrated its leadership in the field of virtual assistants through Bixby. In order to maintain and expand this capability, we are going to not only develop innovative AI-related products and services, but also establish global AI hubs around the world. For example, we can cooperate with the world’s best universities and communicate with external industry talent through regular, open forums. By doing so, we are planning to take the world’s awareness of Samsung’s AI capabilities one step further.

Q. How is Samsung integrating AI into its various products, including home appliances (Chef Collection, Family Hub, Smart TV, etc.)? Any examples of how it is being used?

Bixby, which supported only Korean and English at the beginning, is now provided in Mandarin Chinese, and it will support more languages in the future. It is also innovating the user experience by connecting itself not only to smartphones but to multiple devices and services. Moreover, based on sensor data in appliances like air conditioners, unusual signals are caught and addressed before they develop into severe issues. This shows that through innovation, combined with existing devices and services, smart electronics are evolving into intelligent electronics.

Q. Samsung has AI research labs in Korea, Canada, the UK and Russia. How will you expand upon these labs and what kind of synergistic effect do you expect?

Samsung is conducting AI research based on local insights through 22 overseas research labs in 15 countries, including the US and the UK. Samsung is also planning to establish new hubs in areas with specialized AI capabilities and will focus on finding the best talent to increase competitiveness. By strengthening our global networks, Samsung will continue to build a single robust, flexible and expandable platform to integrate and optimally utilize AI technology. The AI Center will be at the center of this development by working closely with our global network based on each region’s individual competitive advantages and capabilities.

Collaborating with Super Fans

So where did the idea originally come from? Dongwook Kim from the Digital Business Division revealed: “I’m a big fan of Star Wars and I began to wonder about how to make a vacuum cleaner more fun, exciting, and something that users could enjoy using daily. Then, it came to me: How about Star Wars designs on the POWERbot vacuum cleaners?”

The device strongly evokes the likenesses of two of Star Wars’ most iconic images: the masks of Darth Vader and a Stormtrooper. Each edition includes the detailed features of the two characters, particularly their sounds. For example, when the Darth Vader unit starts, the vacuum will play ‘The Imperial March’ and mimic the Sith Lord’s chillingly mechanical inhale and exhale. When you turn on the Stormtrooper version, you will hear ‘let’s go’ with the theme song playing in the background.

Different types of drawings and mockups created by the Samsung Electronics design team for the Star Wars Limited Edition POWERbot.

To fulfill user expectations, Samsung Electronics also collaborated with an online community of Star Wars fans. The members of the community are so passionate about Star Wars that many of them say being a Star Wars fan is their job. Some decorate their vehicles with Star Wars images, and others mimic the voice of Darth Vader. In fact, a member of the online fan community provided the voice for the Darth Vader edition POWERbot.

The collaborative efforts with 20 members of the online fan community helped the design team to come up with the most detailed features, such as the color scheme, the number of grills, how deep the eyes should look and feel, and other different details. As the two sides worked together, the POWERbot continually evolved.

Overcoming Design Challenges

The designer’s task was to create a product that conveys that essence of Darth Vader from the movie. To find the perfect design, the team members focused on the color and the appearance of the eyes.

They studied many different shades before they discovered Death Black, a color that perfectly fits into the character. Sangin Lee from Design 2 Group, right below, said, “Death Black is really fitting for a character like Darth Vader: it’s just the right shade of menacing.” He also added, “I never knew there were so many different shades of black, it wasn’t easy to narrow it down to just one.”

The eyes obscured by the mask on Darth Vader’s face create a particularly sinister feeling, so the design team made that part of the product even darker. Yet if the shape of the eyes was even slightly irregular or asymmetrical, the whole look was distorted. The team went through a lengthy process of trial and error as they changed the dimensions over and over again, with similar painstaking attention to detail required for the Stormtrooper model.

“We drew the characters on the products so many times and printed out tens of mockups. But, seeing it in two dimensions on the screen and then seeing it in three after applying it to the product are very different experiences,” said Sangin Lee. “We decided to use silk printing to ensure the quality but when we first brought the design to silk printing experts, some said it would be too difficult.”

Thankfully, the design team was able to locate a silk printing expert who lives in GwangJu, a city 268 km away from Seoul. This expert was invited to consult during their business trip to Vietnam, where they visited the production site and conducted training sessions fitting the design to the POWERbot.

Keeping Stars Wars at the Center of Design

It wasn’t just the appearance of the POWERbot which was transformed: the design team applied the Star Wars concept to every part of the Star Wars Limited Edition POWERbot.

Nooree Na from UX Innovation, left above, suggested that they add the voices from the movie. “When we first started this project, I watched the whole series of Star Wars films and read each and every script from cover to cover,” she explained. “Focusing on the Stormtroopers and Darth Vader, I narrowed down the quotes that could be applied to our product. The previous model has a very friendly voice but Darth Vader is not that type of character, as we all know. Even so, we didn’t want the cleaner to sound like it is ordering our users about! It was tough work finding just the right expressions to fit the product.”

Sunghoon Jung from UX Innovation, right above, who was in charge of packaging design, understands how important it is to meet the expectations of the fans: “Many super fans keep the packaging as well as the products, so we paid a lot of attention to designing the box as well as what’s inside it.”

In addition to an eye-catching design, the Star Wars Limited Edition POWERbot promises all the powerful cleaning technology and features of the original VR7000. CycloneForce technology offers high-end suction power and Edge Clean Master, helps the unit clean close to walls and edges. What’s more, the product has a Navigation Camera that recognizes the structure of the entire house and finds the fastest cleaning route and the FullView Sensor 2.0 that allows the unit to clean around home decorations and valuable personal items as small as 10mm.

“The team members say that when you are using Edge Clean Master, it looks as if Darth Vader has taken out his lightsaber,” said Sangin Lee from Design 2 Group. “We actually had a lot of fun in completing this challenging project, and we hope users have fun as well, as they use the product.”

This is the first time that Samsung Electronics has applied iconic movie characters to its home appliance products. Samsung hopes that the Star Wars Limited Edition POWERbot can help users feel that cleaning is no longer a chore, but is something they can enjoy doing, as they try the many different fun features.

(From left) Nooree Na, and Sunghoon Jeong from UX Innovation, Yongkyun Shin from Product Marketing, Dongwook Kim and Hyunjoo Lee from Digital Business, Sangin Lee, Hyoungsup Choi, Hwandong Lee, and Deoksang Yoon from Design 2 Group

Did you know that four out of ten refrigerators in the European market are built-in types?

It is a simple yet noteworthy statistic of the European market. Unlike other regions, the percentage of built-in appliances in Europe is over 40 percent. Especially in Germany, around 50 percent of households use built-in appliances. This shows how much European customers love to use built-in type products that will perfectly fit into their home.

This is why Samsung Electronics and other home appliance manufacturers have such a fierce built-in appliances competition in Europe. Because built-in products exceed other types by far in terms of growth rate and profitability, the European market is all about built-in appliances. Global appliances manufacturers cannot miss this market as built-in appliances are an integral part and excellent test bed for the Internet of Things (IoT) in future households.

Opening a Premium Built-in Showroom in Poland

Samsung recently opened a built-in showroom “Cook Story by Samsung” in Warsaw, Poland. This showroom was the first of its kind in the European market and is full of premium built-in products that are optimized for European lifestyles. Samsung was the number one manufacturer of refrigerators, washing machines and electric ranges in Poland since 2012. As the new built-in products gained huge popularities after their release in the market earlier this year, Samsung also took the first place in the built-in refrigerator market in July.

Poland is just a starting point for Samsung to showcase its built-in products, as it plans to add more built-in showrooms in many other European countries. These showrooms will offer hands-on experiences of the leading built-in products to the customers, along with cooking shows and other various events. Samsung will bring unprecedented kitchen experiences for its customers.

Building a Full Lineup of Smart Built-ins

Samsung introduced a variety of the new built-in products to European countries to build its unique lineup in this year.

The lineup includes refrigerator models with No Frost technology and Twin Cooling Plus that maintains an optimal humidity level up to 70 percent, ovens with Gourmet Vapour Technology that efficiently delivers a super-heated vapor that quickly spreads from corner to corner to ensure even cooking, and Dual cook that is divided into two small ovens for separate cooking processes. It also contains induction cook tops with Virtual Flame Technology as well as Water Wall dishwashers that clean all of your dishes from corner to corner using high pressure wall of water that glides back and forth.

Another special feature of Samsung built-in appliances is that all major functions can be simply controlled via smartphones. For example, your smartphone can tell you whether the doors of refrigerators are opened. You can also check the temperatures of fridge and freezer so you can adjust the numbers from outside or start Rapid Cooling function. The products also support a smart warranty service that automatically diagnoses and treats any problems without consulting the manuals. In addition, Samsung plans to adopt soon the IoT services that will realize a more convenient connected home by enabling connection between appliances and other devices with Samsung Connect.

Close Collaborations with European Furniture Companies

Built-in appliances are basically the fusion of furniture and appliances, and therefore cooperation with furniture companies is inevitable. Samsung will collaborate to showcase and sell built-in appliances with major European furniture companies such as Nolte of Germany, Nobia of Northern Europe (including Marbodal), Veneta Cucine of Italy and more.

At the beginning of this month, Samsung revealed a European style built-in kitchen composed of elegant design and technologies at IFA 2017 that took place in Germany. The kitchen, a result of collaboration with three companies, drew a lot of attention with Family Hub refrigerator at the central point for an IoT-based built-in kitchen system that enables convenient management of food, ingredient, family communication and even entertainment.

“Built-in as a New Driving Force for CE Business”

Samsung has been expanding its built-in appliances business in not only Europe, but also North America, Asia and other parts of the world. Samsung showcased new products this year in cooperation with Dacor, a North American premium built-in appliances company which Samsung acquired last year.

“B2B and IoT are the new driving force for us to overcome the stagnated global CE market,” said BK Yoon, CEO of the CE Business at Samsung Electronics, at IFA 2017. “In three years, we will raise our competitive edge by becoming the top-tier in the North American built-in appliances market.”

BK Yoon, CEO of the CE Business at Samsung Electronics, introduces one of the Column Refrigerators of “Modernist Collection”, a new suite of sophisticated luxury appliances of Dacor, at the launch event on March in the U.S.

The washer’s performance is made possible by its unique Q-Drum^TM , which consists of a ‘main drum’ and a ‘back plate’ that rotate independently, in the same or opposite direction, ensuring clothes move dynamically around the drum in multiple directions to provide a safe yet thorough wash.

See, in the video below, how Samsung’s QuickDrive^TM technology saves consumers time without compromising washing performance, energy efficiency, fabric care and durability.

*Tested on WW8800M compared with Samsung WW8500K. Saves 50% time on Cotton (40℃, half load) and eCotton cycle with washing performance within ±2%. Saves 20% energy on Cotton (40℃, half load) and Super Speed cycle (40℃, 5kg load), based on Intertek data.

– Product : Quick Drive(WW8800M), Conventional of Samsung(WW8500K)
– Setting : Cotton 40℃ course / 1 Cycle
– Clothes Type & Weight : 5kg of cotton clothes included 5 artificial soiled fabrics
– Standard Washing Machine(Wascator FOM 71CLS) based on IEC/EN 60456 standard
– Artificial Soiled Fabrics : EMPA 108(IEC/EN 60456 strips)
*From left “Aged wine, Cocoa/milk, Blood, Carbon black/mineral oil, Sebum”
– Danish Mechanical Action Swatch(5 hole MA) based on AHAM Standard
– There may be differences in actual use, based on Samsung test data.

The household appliances and products featured in Samsung’s booth combine state-of-the-art technologies, which simplify everything from preparing meals to communicating with family, with elegant designs that seamlessly enhance their surroundings’ aesthetics.

The result is a lineup of innovations whose performance and versatility are truly reflective of families’ needs.

Catered to European Tastes

The booth’s Social Kitchen showcases contemporary kitchen suites assembled with the help of acclaimed European kitchen specialists.

These include suites designed by Nolte, a premium kitchen brand that has been rated Germany’s most popular for two years running*; Marbodal, a Northern European brand of the Nobia Group that is known for functional and stylish designs; and Veneta Cucine, Italy’s largest kitchen manufacturer, which utilizes premium materials and the latest technologies to create thoroughly modern and beautiful kitchens.

The suites have been designed with a focus on performance and luxury, and feature some of Samsung’s latest ovens, cooktops, hoods, dishwashers and refrigerators. Nolte and Marbodal’s suites also feature Samsung’s Family Hub refrigerator, an IoT-connected kitchen control center that allows families to streamline everything from meals and food management, to entertainment and communication.

In addition, in a particularly tasty demonstration of Samsung’s appliances’ ability to modernize consumers’ kitchens, early on at IFA 2017, Nolte’s suite served as the setting for a special Club des Chefs cooking show, in which Michelin-starred members of Samsung’s culinary club whipped up world-class cuisine for attendees.

Exploring New Ways to Enhance Consumers’ Lifestyles

The booth’s Lifestyle Zone showcases Samsung innovations that allow families to transform their TV into the centerpiece of their living room.

Samsung’s latest lifestyle TV, The Frame, resembles a true work of art. The TV features an elegant frame design as well as a dedicated Art Mode that allows it to display photos and true-to-life renditions of paintings when powered off.

The Frame Gallery showcases the display’s ability to introduce more beauty into consumers’ lives, and invites guests to view impeccable digital depictions of artworks curated from museums around the world, including Spain’s Prado Museum, the U.K.’s Saatchi Gallery, and Germany’s Lumas Gallery.

The contents of the gallery span ten categories, and include a total of 100 stunning works from 37 renowned artists – all of which are available for users to access and enjoy via The Frame’s Samsung Collection feature. Samsung also plans to expand the library of artworks available in The Frame’s Art Store from over 450 to over a thousand.

By curating a world-class collection, and allowing users to exhibit their own photos and images through the TV’s My Collection feature, Samsung is making it easier for consumers to enhance their homes with exceptional art.

The Lifestyle Zone also highlights exciting customizations for Samsung’s latest TVs, including The Frame and QLED TV. Among them are the five finalists of the QLED TV stand design competition, which Samsung organized with leading design and architectural magazine Dezeen.

Exhibited to their left are unique customization options for The Frame that have been crafted by acclaimed Dutch design duo Scholten & Baijings, as well as French designer Inga Sempé.

The former’s art and bezel design is distinguished by its striking use of minimalist lines. The latter’s is a dynamic and colorful blend of flowing lines that evokes liveliness and movement. Some may liken its aesthetic to a breeze blowing through a field. However, like many works of art, interpretations vary depending on the viewer’s perspective.

Check out Samsung’s complete range of lifestyle-focused innovations in the photos below.

Samsung’s Social Kitchen area showcases contemporary kitchen suites assembled with the help of acclaimed European kitchen specialists such as Nolte, whose design is pictured here.

Earlier at IFA, Michelin-starred members of Samsung’s Club des Chefs used Nolte’s suite (pictured here) to whip up world-class cuisine in a special cooking show.

Marbodal’s understated suite features a full range of Samsung innovations, including the Family Hub refrigerator.

Guests examine the fine craftsmanship exhibited in Veneta Cucine’s kitchen suite.

Samsung’s Induction Cooktops project a virtual flame around pots and pans that creates an intuitive way to keep tabs on heat.

Guests explore the range of convenient features that allow Samsung’s latest Family Hub refrigerators to serve as control centers for modern, connected homes.

Samsung’s latest lifestyle TV, The Frame, is available in 43-, 55- and 65-inch models, and features an elegant design and a dedicated Art Mode that allows it to display paintings and photos when powered off.

The Frame Gallery invites guests to view impeccable digital depictions of artworks curated from museums around the world, including Spain’s Prado Museum, the U.K.’s Saatchi Gallery, and Germany’s Lumas Gallery.

Samsung collaborated with Dutch design duo Scholten & Baijings to present a custom art and bezel aesthetic for The Frame that features colorful, minimalist block and grid patterns.

French designer Inga Sempé’s art and bezel design is a colorful blend of flowing lines that evokes movement and liveliness.

Guests examine the winning entries from the QLED TV stand design competition.

*Based on surveys conducted by the German Institute for Service Quality (DISQ) at the behest of German news channel n-tv.

“All Samsung Electronics products will be connected and form an IoT (Internet of Things) ecosystem with external partners. We will lead the hyper connectivity of the future,” said BK Yoon, CEO of the Consumer Electronics (CE) Business at Samsung Electronics at a press meeting at IFA 2017.

Samsung Electronics is one of the few global companies that covers everything from IT and home appliances to integral abilities and components including an IoT platform, cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), voice recognition, wireless communication, semi-conductor chips, sensors and security solutions. The company also offers the best B2B solutions for vehicles, communication, electricity, distribution, content and other areas of interest to the company’s global partners.

CEO Yoon revealed his business vision and said “Samsung will draw out synergies from all product lines. By connecting them to the external IoT ecosystem, we will be able to provide added value to the customers along with enhancements to their everyday life experiences.”

The company’s plan is to first connect all Samsung products by 2020. The products will be connected based on Samsung Connect, a cloud computing based integral platform and application, and also controlled by it. The smartphone intelligent interface Bixby will allow easy control over IoT services. In order to increase the synergy effects from the company, Samsung is currently running an IoT committee in which each department is participating. Furthermore, a task force team is in operation to provide comprehensive IoT and AI services.

Samsung also leads the establishment and spread of IoT standards as a board member of the Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF), the biggest IoT standardization group in the world. The company plans to work collaboratively with Google Home, Alexa and other services through the open platform strategy. At the same time, the company will enhance external IoT product connectivity using its own SmartThings platform with great scalability. Additionally, Samsung is going to reveal its IoT-related cloud computing source code to expand the ecosystem at the Samsung Developers Conference (SDC) in San Francisco, U.S. in October.

“An easy to use IoT service for everyone is impossible without cooperation between businesses,” Yoon emphasized. “By making open cooperation between Harman, SmartThings and internal groups with external IoT businesses, we will realize a user-oriented IoT service at home, in the office, in vehicles and other areas.”

Samsung continues its efforts to suggest a “New Normal” to consumers in their everyday lives by developing unprecedented products in its CE business. The company is drawing attention with brilliant new products at IFA 2017 such as The Frame Lifestyle TV, which includes the Art Store that offers art pieces to display in its picture frame mode. The QuickDrive^TM washing machine is also breaking new ground by reducing the washing time by half* with no compromise on washing performance.

“IoT and B2B will be our main focus of investment to continue innovation in the CE business,” Yoon commented. “We will enter the North American built-in home appliances market as one of the top-tier companies in three years by building the best lineup with Dacor who we acquired last year,” he added.

*Tested on WW8800M compared with Samsung WW8500K. Saves 50% time on Cotton (40℃, half load) and eCotton cycle with washing performance within ± 2%. Saves 20% energy on Cotton (40℃, half load) and Super Speed cycle (40℃, 5kg load), based on Intertek data.

Samsung Electronics announced today that it will expand the voice recognition function of the Family Hub refrigerator to European countries in the second half of this year. It will also introduce the “Samsung Connect” smart home feature for the first time at IFA 2017.

Samsung has already applied cloud-based voice features to the Family Hub in Korea and the U.S., and will add European languages on a phased basis this year, starting with British English, German, French, and Italian.

“Samsung has continuously enhanced the Family Hub since its first introduction at CES 2016, focusing on improving consumer lifestyles,” said JS Park, Executive Vice President of the Digital Appliances Business at Samsung Electronics. “Our endeavor to advance the smart features of home appliances has always been closely tied to our mission to make a meaningful difference in the lives of individual consumers and families with innovations that matter.”

In addition to touch command, the Family Hub’s voice capabilities provide a new way to interact with the refrigerator. Users can ask for the time and weather updates, search the internet, read news articles, play music and radio, add items to their shopping list, and even view inside of the refrigerator without opening the door.

Standing at the center of the home, Family Hub is now ready to help households take control of their various Samsung smart devices. Samsung Connect enhances this as a platform capable of connecting and controlling IoT devices regardless of their operating system, such as Android or iOS. Samsung Connect is now integrated into the Family Hub.

Users will be able to turn on and monitor their AddWash^TM washing machine, or tell their POWERbot^TM vacuum cleaner to begin cleaning up the living room from Family Hub’s interactive screen while cooking or entertaining in the kitchen.

Furthermore, Samsung continues to grow Family Hub’s partner ecosystem with innovative new services and content. More than 100 partner companies collaborate with Samsung’s Family Hub platform across North America, Europe, and Asia/Pacific. As an example, Instacart, Shoprite and FreshDirect provide consumers in the U.S. with seamless e-Commerce shopping experiences. European versions of the Samsung Family Hub feature European retailers like Supermercato24 and Eataly to provide grocery shopping.

For news and entertainment, consumers around the world can enjoy their favorite music on various music streaming services like Spotify, or stay up-to-date with the latest news via NPR or upday. Lastly, cooking enthusiasts can find daily inspiration from recipe apps like Allrecipes, Whisk!, and Samsung Club des Chefs.

Visitors to Samsung’s exhibition booth at IFA 2017 in Berlin, beginning on September 1, can experience the Family Hub’s new voice recognition feature as well as Samsung’s smart home and IoT services implementing with Samsung Connect.

Samsung Electronics today launched its new brand campaign for Home Appliances in 10 countries around the world, highlighting its mission to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. The new campaign video contains moments when consumers encounter Samsung’s helpful appliances and use them to improve an aspect of their day.

Through this campaign, Samsung aims to convey the purpose behind its continued efforts to develop new technology that puts the diverse needs of consumers first. With smart innovations and solutions that thoughtfully foresee consumer needs, Samsung offers brilliant value that not only can be immediately recognized but that also leads to the question: “why didn’t we think of this before?”

“Consumers have always been at the center of our longstanding spirit of innovation,” said JS Park, Executive Vice President of the Digital Appliances Business at Samsung. “This brand campaign, which is the first of its kind for us at Samsung Home Appliances, reflects our concerted efforts over the years to fully understand the everyday challenges consumers face and find truly meaningful solutions.”

This new campaign introduces how home appliances have changed from one’s parents’ generation to be able to support the modern lifestyles of the millennial-minded generation to make their life better. The video highlights AddWash^TM door which enables users to add clothes into the washer mid-cycle. It also features Family Hub’s recipe functions to easily read out for users and food management functions to allow users to set freezer temperatures to suit their needs.

The campaign is set to run in the UK, Germany, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Lebanon, Jordan, and Australia.

To learn more about the new brand campaign for Samsung Home Appliances, please visit www.youtube.com/SamsungHomeAppliance.

The goal of the ongoing research initiative is to identify common difficulties that the elderly and people with disabilities face when using household appliances. Each time Samsung invites these consumers to provide their valuable insight, they reveal new ways to improve its appliances’ accessibility, ultimately helping Samsung design innovations that make it easy for all users to experience seamless convenience at home.

Innovating for Ease of Use

Participants sampled a wide range of Samsung appliances, including its latest refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners, vacuums and ovens, in the Campus’s Home Experience Lab, commenting afterward on the impact that enhancements such as voice support and ergonomic designs had on ease of use.

As one participant explained, “[For me], analog products have always been relatively easy to use, but digital appliances can be more difficult, due to features like touchscreens that change the way they work. But when I tried using the appliances that had voice support, I thought I could use them easily, even by myself.”

A Lineup of Inclusive Offerings

Some of Samsung’s latest home appliances, including its flagship Family Hub refrigerator line, as well as select vacuum cleaners and air conditioners available in Korea, feature advanced voice-recognition or voice-guidance technology that makes them easy for anyone, including those with various visual impairments, to use.

Voice guidance and recognition are deeply rooted into the Family Hub refrigerator’s intuitive interface, allowing the visually impaired to easily access the wide range of useful information that the smart appliances were designed to provide. This includes auditory updates on their refrigerator’s contents, as well as voice readouts of Family Hub’s morning briefs, which inform users of the day’s weather, and recipes in the refrigerator’s built-in cooking apps.

In addition, the built-in displays of Family Hub refrigerators in the U.S. market allow users with color blindness to convert their displays to black and white for easier reading, and allow short-statured users to lower their display to an optimal height.

The Virtual Flame that lights up Samsung’s Induction Range also makes it easier for users with visual impairments to comfortably manage meals. Built-in LED lights shine onto pots and pans to create the impression of flames on a gas cooktop, allowing users to check, with a simple glance, whether the range is off or on and even at what strength.

Lastly, the Samsung Connect app, which offers users a control center for a wide variety of smart home appliances, has also been optimized with voice guidance, making it easier for visually impaired users to control their devices.

Samsung’s efforts to identify new ways to deliver convenient and inclusive products to consumers’ homes underline its ongoing commitment to developing user-friendly products and services that offer anyone access to cutting-edge innovation.

Guests were welcomed by BK Yoon, President and CEO of Samsung Electronics, who began by discussing the collection’s contemporary design, connectivity and premium features, as well as the brands’ common commitment to innovation. “Samsung and Dacor share a legacy of innovation,” he explained. “A strong history of reimagining what our products can do and what sorts of experiences they can deliver.”

The subsequent video and panel discussion shed light on the kitchen’s evolving role, and demonstrated how Modernist appliances allow users to bring entertaining to the next level by fostering communal, connected and delicious dining experiences. Participants included Michael Magnani, Dacor’s Director of Product Marketing; Harry Choi, Samsung Design Center’s Vice President of Digital Appliances Design; Newell Turner, Editorial Director of Hearst Design Group and the panel’s moderator; as well as the actor Alec Baldwin and his wife, Hilaria, who served as hosts.

Following the discussion, guests were invited to get an up-close look at the full suite of appliances and mingle with their hosts over cocktails and hors d’oeuvres.

Explore the Modernist Collection’s innovations for yourself in the photos below.

BK Yoon, President and CEO of Samsung Electronics, welcomes guests to the Modernist Collection’s launch event, summing up Dacor’s new appliances as “sleek, stunning and delightfully innovative.”

(From left) Newell Turner, Editorial Director of Hearst Design Group and moderator of the event’s panel discussion, Michael Magnani, Dacor’s Director of Product Marketing, Harry Choi, Samsung Design Center’s Vice President of Digital Appliances Design, and Hilaria and Alec Baldwin, who served as hosts.

Actor Alec Baldwin and his wife, Hilaria, discuss their kitchen’s communal role and key Modernist Collection features that resonate with them.

After the panel, guests were invited to get an up-close look at the Modernist Collection appliances and mingle with their hosts over cocktails and hors d’oeuvres.

BK Yoon opens up one of the Modernist Collection’s Column Refrigerators, which feature LED light displays, industry-leading cooling technology and striking interiors.

BK Yoon and Alec Baldwin demonstrate an idea at the heart of the Modernist Collection – that the kitchen can foster entertaining and memorable experiences.

Alec Baldwin addresses guests at a communal meal at the end of the event.

When Samsung introduced its Family Hub refrigerators at last year’s CES, it did so with the goal of bringing new standards of convenience and innovation to consumers’ kitchens.

Family Hub 2.0 features key enhancements designed to take user experiences in the kitchen to a new level, including advanced voice functionality, user profiles, a streamlined interface and an expanded catalogue of built-in contents.

Samsung’s Vice President of Smart Appliances and Home IoT, Sunggy Koo, elaborated on Family Hub’s role, and explained how Samsung will build on the industry-leading IoT technology in the future.

The Next Step for the Smart Home

Samsung designed the Family Hub refrigerator to bring new levels of functionality to the appliance and ultimately transform its role in the kitchen.

Featuring a large touchscreen display and innovative features for food management, family communication and entertainment, Family Hub offers families a fun command center at the center of the home.

Koo explained Samsung’s commitment to building an ecosystem of connected, smart appliances centered around the kitchen-enriching refrigerator line.

“Family Hub is the center of Samsung’s smart home/IoT initiative,” Koo explained. “Samsung continues to innovate in these areas, and we expect to deliver more smart capabilities across all of our appliances and smart home infrastructure.”

Connecting More Kitchens

The first step in delivering more value to users’ kitchens is creating a wide selection of options to suit a variety of households. “Our users are all different, and have different needs, wants and tastes,” said Koo.

“To meet a variety of customer needs, Family Hub 2.0 takes flexibility and functionality to new levels, offering food management, family communication, entertainment features and voice capability to help consumers manage and enjoy their lives,” Koo continued.

Accordingly, Family Hub 2.0 will soon be available in more markets across the globe, and also see an expansion in its selection of available models. Family Hub 2.0 will encompass a full range of Samsung’s three- and four-door French Door refrigerator models, as well as its existing 4-Door Flex lineup, bringing the total number of available models from four to ten.

‘Easier and More Fun’

Going forward, Family Hub 2.0 and the line’s future generations will, as Koo put it, “continue to make consumers’ lives easier and more fun.”

Family Hub 2.0’s ‘fun’ aspects stem not only from its innovative entertainment functions, but from enhancements to its usability and app integration as well. Its advanced voice functionality, for example, allows users to easily control many built-in apps. Additionally, the expansion of the app catalogue itself reveals further cool new functions.

“We have so many great apps,” said Koo. “These apps make our customers’ lives more convenient, and have content localized to each market. For example, Eataly provides European customers the ability to order premium Italian groceries through Family Hub, while Groceries by MasterCard offers further convenience, allowing consumers to use their voice to handle e-commerce grocery shopping with Family Hub.

“Samsung is also closely collaborating with partners like GrubHub, Nomiku, Glympse, LidL, e-mart, Upday, Kakao, Ring, Spotify and iHeartRadio to provide more options for grocery shopping, cooking, home security and entertainment now and in the years to come.”

Powered by Allrecipes.com, Family Hub’s Recipe app offers users instant access to delicious dishes from around the world. As Allrecipes President Stan Pavlovsky pointed out, Family Hub’s philosophy of championing kitchen innovation is well in line with that of the world’s largest digital food brand.

“Allrecipes has always been at the forefront of leveraging new technologies to make home cooking easier and more rewarding,” said Pavlovsky. “It’s widely recognized that the kitchen is the center of the home for families. Family Hub’s location on the front of the refrigerator, along with its large touch screen, voice capability and wealth of other features that support busy families’ everyday needs make it an ideal solution.”

“Internet of Things technologies are driving the next big wave of consumer technology transformation,” he continued. “Working in partnership with Samsung is allowing us to be at the forefront of this shift, to pave the way for what the future of food and cooking will look like.”

Dacor, a luxury kitchen appliance manufacturer acquired by Samsung Electronics in August 2016, today announces plans to unveil a new full lineup of premium household appliances at The Kitchen & Bath Industry Show 2017 in Orlando, Florida.

KBIS hosts over 2,500 exhibitors annually from various home appliance brands, while attracting more than 120,000 attendees across diverse industries. Dacor will showcase its new full-package Heritage Lineup which reflects the powerful combination of Dacor’s 50-year expertise in the built-ins segment with Samsung’s industry leading technologies and design.

The new luxury lineup, upgraded from its popular and traditional originals, will feature completely reimagined premium Built-In Column and French Door refrigerators, Range, and Wall Oven. The Range and Wall Oven are Wi-Fi-enabled, allowing users to control the appliances with their smartphone using the iQ^TM feature, and will include Dacor’s Four-Part Pure Convection^TM technology which heats and cooks food quickly and evenly, inside and out.

Award Winning Energy Efficient Refrigerators

Additionally, nine Dacor refrigerators received the EPA’s Energy Star 2016 Emerging Technology Award and were recognized for their innovative refrigerant systems developed by Samsung. All nine including the Built-In Column refrigerator come in various sizes and were the first Dacor refrigerators to be awarded.

To qualify for the EPA award, the refrigerant system must have a Global Warming Potential (GWP) rating below 15 and produce an energy efficiency gain of 5 percent or higher. Dacor refrigerators have a negligible GWP rating and utilize the eco-friendly R-600a hydrocarbon refrigerant, which can reduce energy usage by 6.5 percent.

“Our most recent luxury packages are built using Dacor’s top-tier technologies and decades of industry knowledge, paired with the strength of Samsung’s pioneering innovation,” said David Nichols, vice president of products at Dacor. “We are honored to receive recognition from the US EPA, and we will continue to invest in new luxury kitchen appliances utilizing green technology in cooperation with Samsung.”

Founded in 1965 in California, Dacor was acquired by Samsung Electronics in August 2016. The brand is well known for its luxury home appliances and has been a prominent player in the housing and real estate markets in the US and Canada.

The Dacor booth will be open at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando from January 10 through 12 for KBIS 2017.

About Dacor

Founded in 1965, Dacor is a leading manufacturer of ultra-premium kitchen appliances. Designed and built in Southern California, Dacor’s cooking appliances integrate function, technology and design to create high-performing, intuitive products that reflect the lifestyle and needs of the passionate cook. Dacor’s full suite of award-winning appliances includes ranges, cooktops, wall ovens, refrigeration, ventilation and wine preservation. Family-owned for three generations, the company is responsible for many of the innovations that have improved the way people cook in the modern kitchen. www.dacor.com. For additional information, please visit LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter @dacorkitchen.

For its achievement, Samsung was formally recognized at an award ceremony on January 6 at the Samsung CES 2017 Booth at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The EPA first awarded the ENERGY STAR Emerging Technology Award in 2011, and focuses on a different product category or eco-conscious theme each year. For 2016, the EPA recognized Innovative Refrigerant Systems used in ENERGY STAR certified residential and commercial products that aim to reduce energy use and lower greenhouse gas emissions.

As a naturally occurring and climate-friendly refrigerant, R-600a has no ozone depletion potential and boasts a low Global Warming Potential (GWP) rating. It requires less work to be done by the unit’s condenser, which reduces energy usage by 6.5 percent and makes the refrigerator quieter than previous models.

In addition to being recognized for its 2017 refrigerators, Samsung also received the award in 2013 for its eco-friendly DV457 clothes dryer.

Samsung receives the ENERGY STAR Emerging Technology Award during CES 2017. From left: Steve Sungki Kim, Vice President of Customer Satisfaction Team at Samsung Electronics North America; Hye Soon Yang, Principal Engineer of R&D Team, Digital Appliances Business, Samsung Electronics; Verena Radulovic, ‎Product Manager at ENERGY STAR Program, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; and Shane Higby, Vice President of Home Appliance Product Marketing, Samsung Electronics America.

The EPA’s ENERGY STAR program is the trusted source for energy-efficient product labeling and consumer education. This award recognizes products that are at the forefront of energy conservation and climate protection.

Samsung developed the R-600a technology ahead of the EPA’s planned changes to refrigerant qualifications by 2021. In addition to meeting these qualifications, Samsung’s R-600a refrigerant has been approved for use in the US market by the EPA’s Significant New Use Alternative Policy (SNAP) Program.

The use of low-Global Warming Potential (GWP) refrigerant systems like Samsung’s R-600a, can offer customers and end-users additional energy savings along with the superior product performance that they already expect from ENERGY STAR certified equipment.

The ENERGY STAR Emerging Technology Award provides forward-thinking, environmentally conscious consumers and end users with a tool to identify and purchase cutting-edge technologies that offer energy savings and help to reduce their carbon footprint

The Chef’s Home Cooking event welcomed CES attendees for an intimate and illuminating cooking show in Samsung’s tastefully decorated kitchen.

With the unveiling of Family Hub 2.0 and its latest range of built-in appliances at this year’s CES, Samsung has introduced new ways for consumers to bring their kitchen experience squarely into the twenty-first century.

The event’s delectable dishes were catered by Michelin-star Chefs Daniel Boulud (left) and Christopher Kostow.

As the chefs prepared their acclaimed cuisine, they discussed the peace of mind that cooking with premium and reliable appliances brings to the kitchen.

Samsung’s Club des Chefs pairs culinary visionaries from around the world with Samsung engineers to design appliances that foster a more modern cooking experience. This year, members of the Club treated CES attendees to a gastronomic event that showcased the fresh innovations at the core of Samsung’s latest appliances.

After much anticipation, the guests enjoy their world-class dinner, prepared with Samsung’s built-in appliances.

Here, Chef Christopher Kostow, of The Restaurant at Meadowood in St. Helena, California, and Chef Daniel Boulud, the world-renowned chef and owner of several restaurants, including Manhattan’s Michelin-starred Daniel, discuss both their membership in the prestigious Club, as well as what Samsung’s latest kitchen innovations bring to the table.

Q: What made you decide to join the Club des Chefs?

Chef Kostow discussed the joy that cooking at home with family gives him – a sentiment central to the philosophy behind Samsung’s Family Hub refrigerators.

Chef Kostow: It was an interesting opportunity to collaborate with Samsung on their next generation of premium culinary appliances – to provide my insights and experience as a chef to help develop tools that would benefit the home cook.

Chef Boulud is a Club des Chefs veteran and the owner of several restaurants, including Manhattan’s Michelin-starred Daniel.

Chef Boulud: The Club des Chefs is a unique collection of global talent led by one of the most creative, respected and admired chefs, Michel Troisgros. It is where every chef has utmost respect for our profession, and is very open-minded toward the employment of state-of-the-art equipment at home.

It’s very rewarding to be part of this evolution in home cooking, where technology meets tradition and creativity meets practicality, to design for the next generation of home cooks. ‘Club des Chefs’ is basically a seal of approval. If great chefs enjoy cooking with Samsung, everyone at home will, too!

Q: What is your favorite recipe you’ve submitted for the Club des Chefs?

Chef Kostow prepared a delicious meal of prawn toast and pork belly stew with potato flatbread.

Chef Kostow: The Pork Belly Stew and Potato Flatbread is a great recipe for the cold weather months, and when entertaining a large group at home. This dish is very comforting and familial, and uses simple and flavorful ingredients.

Chef Boulud prepares his famous Poulet Grand-Mère, or ‘grandmother’s chicken’.

Chef Boulud: That would be the Poulet Grand-Mère. I personally love chicken in all forms of preparation, but this is a simple yet tasty recipe which can be done as a one-pot meal, where you need the stovetop and the oven to accomplish it.

It captures all the roasted flavors together, and is an easy recipe to do. It is very French to me, but it can also be prepared anywhere in the world. It’s the kind of dish I cook on Sundays for our family meal at home.

Q: What is your favorite Samsung home appliance, and what are some features you’d like to see included in upcoming products?

Chef Kostow: I love the WaterWall Dishwasher; it’s such a smart technology. Also, the Family Hub refrigerator is extremely innovative. As a husband and father of two young daughters, it’s an interactive way to make grocery shopping and meal planning for the entire family more productive.

Chef Boulud: Every appliance is very interesting, as each has a unique function which creates a very comfortable, practical and well-controlled environment for your kitchen.

The fridge, with its many functions and storage units for different foods and beverages; the induction cooktop, where you have the Virtual Flame around the pots which gives you a visual sense of the heat; the oven, which offers dual-cooking functionality, meaning you can bake two dishes at the same time. There’s a lot of logic behind their products.

At the company’s booth, attendees of the event can experience firsthand the latest in Samsung’s innovations, from appliances that connect families and seamlessly integrate into a connected ecosystem, to televisions, computers and speakers that completely transform the entertainment experience.

Take a tour of the exhibit and witness the excitement of Samsung’s CES 2017 booth for yourself via the video highlights below.

Samsung is showcasing, at CES 2017, a full lineup of intuitive built-in kitchen appliances designed with equal focus on exciting innovation and exceptional style. The products of the Black Stainless Kitchen Suites introduce new levels of convenience and connectivity to the built-in category, completing a modern collection that’s both stylish and smart.

Samsung’s stylish kitchen setup was designed with the help of renowned Italian furniture brand Scavolini.

To properly showcase the premium appliances, Samsung partnered with renowned Italian furniture brand Scavolini to build a modern kitchen exhibit at the heart of Samsung’s CES booth. The kitchen’s sleek and refined aesthetic blends seamlessly with those of the showcased appliances, which include Samsung’s latest cooktops and ovens, as well as a hood, refrigerator and dishwasher.

Visitors to the space are provided up-close looks at exciting innovations designed to create a smarter and more convenient kitchen experience.

Samsung’s 4-Door French Door Refrigerators, for instance, feature FlexZone technology to allow users to customize temperature settings to best suit stored foods. The collection’s WaterWall Dishwasher, meanwhile, features jet-powered technology to eliminate the most stubborn of food stains.

Samsung’s built-in Wall Oven features Flex Duo technology, which allows the two stacked ovens to effectively serve as three independent ovens. This innovation allows users to simultaneously cook two different dishes in the same compartment and at different temperatures.

The Built-in Wall Oven (left) and MWO Combination Wall Oven.

Also integrated seamlessly into the kitchen setup for visitors’ perusal are the collection’s induction and gas cooktops, as well as a hood. The latter two appliances are presented connected to a Galaxy S7 edge running Samsung’s Smart Home app.

The Induction Cooktop features heat-adjusting Flex Zone technology, as well as an LED Virtual Flame.

The Hood’s Bluetooth technology allows it to sync with the collection’s cooktops and automatically power on when a connected cooktop is in operation.

The smartphones on display demonstrate how the connected appliances can provide users with useful information, such as the cooktop’s temperature and power status.

Like the rest of the collection, each device is available in a choice of either a black or traditional stainless steel finish – to cater to contemporary consumers’ refined tastes – and each features a proprietary Samsung technology that streamlines the cooking process.

When inspected up close, the built-in products reveal to visitors the level of detail to which Samsung applied the collection’s theme of premium, ‘smart’ design. Each product’s knobs, for instance, are illuminated with a stylish icy blue light that makes their controls easy to adjust.

The appliances’ knobs are illuminated with an icy blue light that reflects the collection’s stylish aesthetic and makes adjustments easy.

Speaking of controls, each of the built-in appliances was designed to enable users to enjoy a more connected and streamlined cooking experience. The appliances’ ability to communicate with one another allows users to automate certain steps in the cooking process, and quickly and easily monitor the status of a dish via the Samsung Smart Home app.

Featuring a large touchscreen display and a comprehensive suite of intuitive apps, Samsung’s Family Hub refrigerator brings the timeless art of cooking well and truly into the twenty-first century.

The latest edition, designed for European consumers, allows more people to take control of their kitchen, with tools to streamline not only cooking but also food management, communication and even entertainment. Transforming how European families use their most important appliance, and helping them eat, and live, smarter.

More Flavors

Cooking a delicious meal doesn’t have to be a chore. Apps like Allrecipes, as well as localized apps like Whisk and CHEFKOCH.DE, offer users the blueprints to craft some of the world’s tastiest foods from the comfort of their kitchen.

Some of the world’s greatest dishes are staples of European cuisine, and some of its greatest chefs are members of Samsung’s Club des Chefs. Family Hub’s Club des Chefs app offers users unbridled access to the masters’ wealth of culinary expertise, with recipes, detailed “How to” articles and accompanying video walkthroughs. So users can watch and learn, and enjoy great food.

More Insight

Family Hub was designed to not only help families prepare delicious meals, but to also give them more insight into the freshness of their food.

With Family Hub’s three inner-view cameras, users can peek into the inside of their refrigerator without opening the door, and even when they’re not in the kitchen. That camera functionality, along with Family Hub’s dedicated smartphone app, allows users to shop smarter by staying on top of their refrigerator’s contents when they’re at the store. Providing the intel to help them stop forgetting the milk once and for all.

More Communication

East to west, Austria to Zanzibar, one thing that’s truly universal is the value of family. Family Hub’s collaborative notetaking, photo and calendar functions allow it to serve as a touchpoint for families to share and keep in touch conveniently. Got an event? Add it to the family calendar. Got something to say? That’s what the Whiteboard and Sticki app are for.

More Fun

Family Hub’s suite of entertainment functions offers users the ability to add a soundtrack to their sautéing. With Tune-in, they can listen to their favorite radio station, enjoy personal playlists and access a catalog of over 10,000 music, sport and talk channels from around the world.

When it comes to football, Europe is in a league of its own. And with Family Hub’s TV mirroring function, users can quickly and easily keep an eye on the big match, or their favorite TV programs, while they cook.

August 10, 2016, Samsung Electronics America today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Dacor^®, a leading American brand in the luxury home appliance category.  The acquisition marks Samsung’s continued investment in the home appliance market and an expansion of its portfolio to include ultra-premium home appliances under the Dacor brand.

Founded by Stanley M. Joseph, the California-based company has been designing and manufacturing American-made luxury kitchen appliances since 1965 and has emerged as a trusted industry leader. Upon completion of the acquisition, Dacor will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics America. Dacor will maintain its corporate identity and brand, with no changes to its operations and US-based manufacturing.

“Dacor has been delivering innovative products to the luxury home appliance market for more than 50 years,” said Boo-Keun Yoon, CEO of Consumer Electronics at Samsung Electronics. “We welcome the Dacor team to the Samsung family and look forward to leveraging their expertise in the luxury home appliance market while scaling their continued success in North America.”

“Samsung is a world-renowned organization and we could not be more delighted to share our family company with them. We are thrilled to be a part of a truly great global company,” said Michael Joseph, Chairman of the Board.

“The entire Dacor family is very excited to be joining Samsung,” said Dacor President and CEO, Chuck Huebner. “We expect that, with Samsung’s global scale, financial strength and market leadership, we will be able to accelerate our growth as we better meet the needs of both our high-end consumers and our retail partners.”

As a leader in the ultra-premium kitchen appliance market, Dacor’s innovative, high-quality products have been recognized with numerous prestigious awards including GOOD DESIGN, Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) Best in Show, Digital Trends Best of Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Home Award, and many more. Dacor is also the first and only major appliance brand to be recommended by the Master Chefs of Le Cordon Bleu, the premier culinary institute headquartered in Paris. Dacor products include ranges, cooktops, wall ovens, refrigeration, ventilation and wine preservation. To learn more about Dacor and its selection of ultra-premium kitchen appliances, visit www.dacor.com.

Samsung is America’s fastest growing home appliance brand and continues to deliver products with premium design and exemplary performance. With a deep understanding of the consumer marketplace, Samsung is redefining the appliance category with innovations that bring convenience into the modern lifestyle of consumers for a truly connected experience in the home.

About Dacor

Founded in 1965, Dacor is a leading manufacturer of ultra-premium kitchen appliances. Designed and built in Southern California, Dacor’s cooking appliances integrate function, technology and design to create high-performing, intuitive products that reflect the lifestyle and needs of the passionate cook. Dacor’s full suite of award-winning appliances includes ranges, cooktops, wall ovens, refrigeration, ventilation and wine preservation. Family-owned for three generations, the company is responsible for many of the innovations that have improved the way people cook in the modern kitchen. www.dacor.com. For additional information, please visit LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter @dacorkitchen.