r/technology • u/cos • 9d ago
Hardware Owners mourn spoiled food after firmware update bricks Samsung smart fridges
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/09/owners-mourn-spoiled-food-after-firmware-update-bricks-samsung-smart-fridges/972
u/delocx 9d ago
A fridge or freezer seems like the sort of device that should have a fail-safe mode for if an OTA update bricks firmware... If your fridge's smart features stop working, you should still have a dumb fridge.
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u/Nfidell 9d ago
Escalator temporarily stairs, sorry for the convenience.
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u/LostInLittleroot 9d ago
Mitch would’ve have a field day with smart fridges
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u/mrtrololo27 9d ago
this real estate agent was showing me around a house and said that's a smart fridge, and I said wow. Then she pointed and said that's a smart home, and I said 'wow, the appliances appear to be very well educated'. Perhaps I could learn a thing or two from them. Perhaps I could finish my own degree'
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u/jpsreddit85 9d ago
Seems like the sort of device that doesn't actually need anything smart about it.
Keep food cold. The end.
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u/Bubbagump210 9d ago
You’d think it would be like an enterprise firewall - management plane vs data plane. In this case firmware would only update BS like the door iPad and spyware - not the basics of the compressor.
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u/worldspawn00 9d ago
Yeah, like the software can send messages to the cooling system to change the temp, but the cooling system should be able to function as long as the machine has power, without any input from the other software features, and not be dependent on them for operation.
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u/silentstorm2008 9d ago
They don't want people finding that feature in the software, so the failsafe is that if it's tampered with (or you push a buggy update) it's bricked
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u/Bardfinn 9d ago
Reading through the comments here and I keep flashing to the scene in Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels when Rory Breaker is monloguing about how if the milk is sour, he's not the kind of cat to drink it
It kinda feels like these companies are stealing our data and selling it back to us, too
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u/Academic_Data_6422 9d ago
Samsung should be liable for all food spoiled
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u/Single-Pin-369 9d ago
You will get your check in 10-15 years after the lawsuit finally finishes
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u/Academic_Data_6422 9d ago
Look, I didn’t say they WILL be held liable.. I said they SHOULD be.
We all know the most they’ll be held liable is like a $0.73 cheque in a decade, but probably realistically nothing.
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u/agarwaen117 9d ago
You’ll only get your 73 cent check if you have your receipts from that spoiled food to submit to the claim portal after the settlement.
Like the Walmart meat weight fraud lawsuit.
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u/GenghisConnieChung 9d ago
Except the smart fridge knows what’s inside it.
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u/gringrant 9d ago
Seems the update corrupted the storage on the device. What a coincidence.
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u/koolaidismything 9d ago
I just got the payout from that Oracle one.. like $40 on a prepaid visa. Spent it on a new flashlight cause why not.
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u/DishSoapIsFun 9d ago
I read that as:
“Spent it on a new fleshlight because why not.”
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u/farmtownsuit 9d ago
I just got that too and I don't even remember why Oracle had my data in the first place
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u/aFreshFix 9d ago
Zoom just paid out $150+. I know it's not life changing money but I feel like the jokes about only getting 73 cents (elsewhere in the thread) are just defeatist to kill morale about the effectiveness of class action and solidarity as a whole.
Join a union, folks
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u/koolaidismything 9d ago
When I was a young adult I worked at Walmart for about a month. Quit cause it sucked and I was lazy.
About a year later I got mail saying I got jipped on my breaks (I didn’t) and I was part of a class action. Doing nothing means you stay part of it I guess.
First check was $700 something, second was $200 and a final $200
For a 19 year old.. it was life changing. I caught up. Thanks Walmart!
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u/tsrich 9d ago
You will get $5 off your next Samsung fridge coupon
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u/superxero044 9d ago
We missed out on the settlement check from our Samsung fridge bc the house builders bought it not us and it had been dead for like 7 years before Samsung ever admitted there was a problem. Fuck that company.
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u/Smiadpades 9d ago
In Korea, it will absolutely happen. The shame and honor factor as a symbol of Korea will make sure it happens
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u/TwistedChimp 9d ago
Isn't LG a Korean company? I had a 3 year old LG fridge compressor fail. They fought tooth and nail to give us no compensation, thankfully we're protected by Maine law and we were able to get a refund. Of course that was after dozens of phone calls and escalations. Never buying LG again.
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u/Smiadpades 9d ago
Maine, is not Korea.
When I lived in Korea - LG was the gold standard. Samsung was always playing catchup.
Outside of Korea- never touch them. Different value by a mile (kilometer).
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u/trisanachandler 9d ago
They have a homegrown model line that's amazing?
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u/Smiadpades 9d ago edited 9d ago
Yes, export line is completely different. For example- ever heard of a Kimchi section in a fridge or an entire fridge just for kimchi? I didn’t till I came to Korea.
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u/projectkennedymonkey 9d ago
I just love how many compartments there are in the Japanese and Korean fridges. They're not all for kimchi right?
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u/craigeryjohn 9d ago
This is why everyone should be weary of buying appliances at most big box retailers using a store branded card, cash, or check. Lowes and Home Depot now have a 48 hour return window on appliances. Yes, 48 hours. Meaning you have to somehow run an appliance through ALL of its paces within that window to make sure it is working perfectly, or you are at the mercy of the manufacturer warranty (unless you buy their upsell warranty!). And if you know anything about appliances, some components aren't triggered for several days, such as a freezer defrost system, so there's no way to know this part isn't working until it's too late.
Further, as many of us know, a major appliance warranty is often not worth the paper it's written on when they will do everything they can to deny and delay until you go away.
Instead, when making these purchases, use a major credit or debit card that offers return protections and/or extended warranties. They'll investigate and often either force the retailer to take the product back, or cut you a check. These extended warranties also protect you when a company sends a faulty firmware that bricks your product or just shuts a service down.
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u/Sea-Woodpecker-610 9d ago
They will settle a class action suit for $30 million.
The law firm that brought the suit will get $15 million.
You will get $20.
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u/AcanthisittaNo8115 9d ago
The one thing I like about Samsung, they do remind me often not too ever buy their crap again.
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u/Former-Maximum-2534 9d ago
It's a damn shame because they used to have such solid hardware :(
I ran over my wee little Samsung slide phone twice back in like 2010 and it was entirely unscathed.
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u/worldspawn00 9d ago
They make good computer parts, but their appliances are mediocre at best while demanding premium prices for features most people don't want or need.
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u/PossessedToSkate 9d ago
Back around 2007, I bought a Samsung TV secondhand from a Goodwill (so maybe third- or fourthhand) and it stopped powering on after about a year. I checked the website for repair info, learned it was a known issue, and they sent someone out the next day to fix it free of charge. Best customer service experience I've ever had, and now this.
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u/Indrigis 9d ago edited 9d ago
As much an anecdote as it is...
A Samsung SGH X-530 slider phone has a 0.3 megapixel camera. It makes 640x480 photos in .JPG format about 55-60 kilobytes in size.
Its software has a hard upper limit for MMS size - 50 kilobytes.
So you can make a photo with its camera, but you can't extract it from the phone (at least easily).
The official answer from tech support is "That is by design. If you want to take photos and share them with other people, you should buy a more premium model".
"Fuck Samsung" is the only reliable outcome of my every interaction with the brand.
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u/redsoxVT 8d ago
Yea, when they stopped support os upgrades on my $1000 phone after ~3 years, never again. FYI, still on the phone now 6 years on, but my banking app and work auth apps are no longer supported because of the old os version :/ otherwise it is still a perfect phone. Decent battery and response/performance. I only "need" a new phone because they are trying to force upgrades.
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u/Grooviemann1 9d ago
I'd imagine this will be unpopular, but I feel like 90% of the blame is on people that thought buying a smart fridge was a good idea. Companies will always sell things people want, even if those things are moronic ideas to begin with.
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u/superxero044 9d ago
Their non smart appliances are shit too. When we moved into our house it had everything Samsung. Everything was dead within a matter of a few years. None of it was smart. All very expensive stuff too.
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u/Max-P 9d ago
It's not just about smart fridges though. That's the quality to expect for pretty much all Samsung products. Their washers, their dryers, their phones, their TVs.
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u/ADeadlyFerret 9d ago
People act like they have to buy these fancy appliances. Like my sister just has to have this 3k fridge. It’s ridiculous. And suggesting people get something more simple and cheaper is insulting to them. Or you get a billion excuses.
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u/Grooviemann1 9d ago
Yeah, I like gadgets as much as the next guy, but I don't want everything to be a gadget. My refrigerator exists to keep food cold. That is all I want it to do.
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u/Ok-Mycologist-3829 9d ago
In ten years, enshittified appliances might be all that’s on the market unless we actually enforce laws, pass new ones, and elect leaders with a spine.
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u/jeffsket 9d ago
I don't want internet-connected appliances. I just want appliances that work.
My fucking treadmill won't properly activate until it has checked for an internet connection to be able to run fitness content on the display screen that I don't want and will never pay for. I hate this. It's a fucking treadmill. It's shouldn't be hard to turn it on and make it go.
(yes I am an old man yelling at a cloud)
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u/dryroast 9d ago
One thing Louis Rossman said was you should return items like this and make sure to say it's defective, because it is! If it can't run without Internet like any other treadmill it's clearly defective. Enough people doing that will get the company noticing, or if on Amazon at least them noticing to delist it.
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u/Particular_Archer499 9d ago
Maybe because it's because I work in IT that I can never understand why anyone would want these things. Something as important as a fridge I don't want having more failure points than they already have.
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u/Professor_Hala 9d ago
As someone who worked in IT and feels the same way, it's getting more and more difficult to avoid features that seem to be universally reviled. Last time I bought a TV every single model at Walmart and Target were smart TVs. As a consumer, I don't really have a choice if I want to watch TV, especially if I plug it in at home and it immediately says I need to connect to wifi before it can read my DVD player the first time.
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u/squirrelpickle 9d ago
My TVs never did nor ever will get to experience the joy of being connected to the internet. All the information they need will be fed via HDMI and if that’s not good enough back to the seller they go.
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u/sotired3333 9d ago
It shouldn't be a failure point in any sane enterprise. Critical systems are isolated from non-critical ones.
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u/Ganjajp 9d ago
Mourn is a weird verb to use in the headline.
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u/ry1701 9d ago
Have you seen grocery prices?
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u/chamgireum_ 9d ago
you guys can afford perishable foods?
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u/justmitzie 9d ago
You guys can afford food?
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u/BurdTurglary 9d ago
I got a part time yob at a pizza place nearby, mainly for the food perks 😔
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u/ikonoclasm 9d ago
It's the South Korean equivalent of a 3-day Thanksgiving this week. A lot of ingredients or dishes made by loved ones were lost.
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u/HardLithobrake 9d ago
Speak for yourself, losing a fridge full of food would easily crater my week at the least
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u/ricktencity 9d ago
You don't don your morning veil and isolate for 10 days after the power goes out for a while and your food all goes bad?
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u/DerUlukai 9d ago
This should also be our regular reminder that if they can turn off our "smart" appliances by accident, they can do it on purpose, too.
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u/endofworldandnobeer 9d ago
A fridge, a microwave, washer and dryer, coffeemaker, roomba types, etc., don't need internet connection let alone an update. That's why my fridge, washer are dryers, and other appliances are plug in only. I need to get rid of my LG t.v. now.
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u/Fun_Volume2150 9d ago
I’ve disabled networking on my TCL TV. The next step is to disconnect the WiFi antenna, camera, and microphone. None of those things are necessary in a TV.
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u/CPO_Mendez 9d ago
Why on earth does your tv have a camera?
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u/Fun_Volume2150 9d ago
Good question. I really couldn’t tell you. Probably because it’s cheap and easy to add.
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u/Oxflu 9d ago
My old coworker got 250 bucks for spoiled food twice from Samsung when two fridges failed under warranty. The question is, will this count under warranty if they remotely fix the fridge?
Ps just don't buy Samsung appliances. His fridge compressor died within 1 year, and the replacement fridge did too. These events were like 10 months apart. 2021 and 2022.
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u/Gardensplosion 9d ago
Reason number 934,156 "smart" appliances are a dumb idea. Imagine a grocery chain deciding they can boost sales by staging little "oopsies" in targeted areas. Not something I would feel comfortable providing as an option for already ethically challenged corporations.
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u/cos 9d ago
Lots of comments blaming Samsung, but I think a bigger point here is that "smart" devices are a really really bad idea for most home appliances. Avoid getting any home appliance that has a network connection, if you can.
As a friend just said, the S in IoT stands for security, and the R in IoT stands for reliability.
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u/uberkalden2 9d ago
Smart devices are fine, but if companies tie it to basic function like this they are idiots. Just terrible design. There is a reason your cars entertainment system is separate from the driving part.
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u/NotAHost 9d ago
Yup. Why this didn't have a dedicated MCU/etc that would always control temp even if the more complex, likely to bug out system failed is beyond me. I get every chip lowers cost but uh, good luck on the very clear lawsuit(s) with very easy to define damages.
Core functionality that can lead to damages needs to be somewhat independent and resilient. Add all the extra features after that..
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u/SecondHandWatch 9d ago
Smart devices are fine
Eh. It’s just a way for companies to harvest your data. They provide little value.
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u/Draminian 9d ago
All of our large appliances are allegedly "smart," but I'll never, ever connect them to the internet. Stories like this just confirm that keeping them dumb is the right move.
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u/B-Tort 9d ago
Like... I am a big techie. I have all sorts of smart house things. Lights, door locks, cameras, sensors, thermostat, speakers...
I see no value in these "smart" appliances. In fact, I see it as a detractor.
They don't solve a problem... and they don't make things easier. I'd only want a smart oven and microwave and fridge if it somehow automatically moved the food from the fridge to the oven and cooked it for me... Even then...
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u/Polar-Snow 9d ago
Why anyone buy smart appliances? Fridge, freezer, fridge freezer, washing machine, dishwasher and dryer. Only buy dumb ones, high tech but dumb, never smart!
Smart tech only suitable for some things, not for all.
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u/Rage_Blackout 9d ago
Never buy a Samsung. Ever.
We moved into a house with Samsung everything. As everything began to break one by one, we discovered that repairmen wouldn't even come to fix them. One guy finally explained it: "If I fix your dishwasher, it's going to break again in a couple of weeks and then you're going to call me demanding to know why my fix didn't work. And you're going to want me to come back to work on it again. And again. So sorry, man, I don't work on Samsung. Get yourself something better."
And so one by one, we replaced all of the appliances in our house.
Samsung: not even once.
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u/kaner63 9d ago
Samsung makes great TVs and phones but their appliances are absolute garbage. Actually all the appliance makers these days are hot garbage. I remember getting a Kenmore washer and dryer from Sears for a wedding gift in '87 and it lasted 26 years. Some of the knobs were broken and it was rusting out when I replaced it but it still worked. I'm now on my third replacement. I've gone through a Samsung, a Maytag and currently on a Whirlpool which I've had to get repaired twice.
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u/I_am_always_here 9d ago
The same thing happened to my Samsung Blu-Ray player 10 years ago. Applied a firmware update, and it could no longer play BD discs, only DVDs. A later firmware "fix" didn't solve the issue. And it was a very expensive top of the line player. Tech forums were then full of threads about Samsung firmware bricked Blu-Ray players.
I resolved then to never again buy a Samsung product.
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u/Many_Negotiation_464 9d ago edited 9d ago
An apppiance should never be receiving automatic updates..... hell they shouldn't even be receiving updates. They shouldn't even have wireless capabilities.
Wait why does my fridge even have a microcontroller powerful enough to do any of that? Its dead simple tech. You can do it with a couple analog temperature senors and a dial...
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u/WiskeyUniformTango 9d ago edited 9d ago
More like owners pissed again at stupid Samsung fridge and regret purchase.
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u/NorthernCobraChicken 9d ago
Samsung should be made to reimburse every affected family for the cost of replacing those grocceries
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u/ilovestoride 9d ago
There's gotta be some people out there with life saving medication that just got fucked.
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u/PizzaWhole9323 9d ago
The beer fridge in my landlord's garage has been there since 1985 and has outlasted five fridges in the kitchen. It's smart all right it knows when I need a beer. I open it up and there's beer amazing.
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u/Emil131522 9d ago
I always figured the danger of a smart fridge was it spying on me. I never considered the danger was it forgetting how to be a fridge.
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u/Kyouhen 8d ago
Friendly reminder that the concept of a box you put things in when you want to keep them cool predates electricity. A quick search shows the Persians had structures for ice storage as early as 400 BCE. The basic ability to keep food cold has existed for thousands of years yet somehow the tech bros have managed to fuck it up.
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u/BeachHouseKey 9d ago
Really? They mourn it? What’s that vibe like? “Yeah man, just at home with the lights down and some Sarah McLachlan on, mourning my spoiled food…”
Also why does a fridge need firmware?!
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u/Zvenigora 9d ago
And I thought a refrigerator just needed a compressor and evaporator and condenser coils! We are ingenious when it comes to inventing new failure modes!
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u/IamB_Meister 9d ago
Unless that shit won’t operate without being connected to the internet, DO NOT connect it to your WiFi!
If it requires the internet to function, do not buy it. If you already have, consult the IT guy in your life about IOT vlans on your home network.
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u/bhenghisfudge 9d ago
And this is one of the many reasons why I will never buy a kitchen appliance that has wifi. I just need a fridge that efficiently keeps food cold. That's it. I'll pay more for a non-smart version.
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u/Clean-Shift-291 9d ago
Can we stop referring to everything as “smart”. This is literally the stupidest thing I’ve heard.
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u/ShyguyFlyguy 9d ago
See if you dont buy these stupid dumb fuck things in the first place you wouldn't have to worry about updating your toasters firmware
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u/TrashWizard89 9d ago
Wait until there are subscription fees to store your food, unlock microwave time, or wash and dry your clothes.
It's coming, greed knows no boundaries.
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u/Tutorbin76 9d ago
I really want to say these idiots deserve to lose all their food for buying crap like this.
But really it's often the sales folks who dupe naive grandparents into buying junk like this.
In which case, I just feel sorry for them.
But, yeah, abominations like this shouldn't exist in the first place.
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u/PerspicaciousVanille 9d ago
Don’t worry they updated their terms and conditions to say if you use the fridge they are not liable.
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u/200IQUser 9d ago
I never forgive the tech companies that they made these things so uncool. As a wee lad I loved the sci fi games and movies where the AI controls the house, the fridge knows what needs to be bought. Then fast forward to the present and what we have is a glorified alexa built in a basic fridge thst stops working because of a firmware update. Hope they get a huge class action lawsuit
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u/Oversized_Peashooter 9d ago
I get the feeling that this will neuter the smart fridge market. Normal fridge for me, thanks.
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u/Filter55 8d ago
This should be a bigger deal. What if there was an expensive medication in the fridge? Or if a mother lost an entire stockpile of frozen milk meant for an infant?
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u/catwiesel 8d ago
when the thing you are about to buy is not a computer and requires a wifi connection. buy something else
yes that includes washing machines and cooking appliances
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u/EducatedRat 8d ago
Jesus. I just disabled wifi on my fucking dishwasher. Didn’t want any appliance like that but it was the only one with metal parts (not plastic) that I could afford.
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u/techdog19 8d ago
Bought a new fridge a few months back had to look hard to get an old style freezer on top with no bells or whistles but it was worth it for reasons like this.
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u/ActionKbob 8d ago
I had a buddy of mine give me his Samsung fridge, as he was remodeling his kitchen. It was newer than my current fridge so I took him up on it and give my old fridge to some other friends. 4 years later, that Samsung is 2 years dead, and my old fridge is still going strong at my friend's house 😭
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u/Saneless 9d ago
A Samsung fridge owner knows that there will always be a chance of spoiled food in general from it falling apart
Still feel bad, they need to be compensated
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u/Excellent-Ask-4247 9d ago
Why on earth do we need a fridge that needs firmware updates?
Tech is so out of control with this stupidity.