Samsung wants to monetize your midnight snack runs

Nowadays, you’re probably used to seeing ads everywhere. Whether it’s on your smartphone, tablet, laptop, or TV. One place you might not be used to seeing ads is in your kitchen, but it seems Samsung has decided it wants to change that.

Samsung is rolling out a software update to its Family Hub smart refrigerators, which will bring ads to its display screen for customers in the US. The addition of ads was first spotted by a user on Reddit, who noticed in the change log for a recent update for their fridge that it says “advertisements will be displayed on the Cover Screen for Weather, Color, and Daily Board themes.” Samsung states that the ads are intended to “enhance our service and offer additional content.”

In a statement to Android Authority, Samsung confirmed that ads are coming to its Family Hub refrigerators in the US as part of a pilot program and that the ads will only appear when the display on the door of the fridge (the cover screen) is idle. The icing on the cake is that Samsung claims this is part of its efforts to “enhance everyday value for our home appliance customers” and that it will somehow “strengthen that value.” How putting ads on a fridge “strengthens” its value is beyond me.

There are two ways to avoid the ads

Samsung’s Family Hub smart refrigerators start at $1,800 in the US

While ads are coming to Samsung’s Family Hub refrigerators in the US, there is a way to avoid them. According to Samsung, the ads as part of this pilot program won’t appear when the cover screen on the fridge is set to display picture albums or when its Art Mode is enabled.

So, if you happen to have a Family Hub refrigerator and want to avoid ads, displaying pictures or turning on Art Mode is the way to go. If you’re using the Weather, Color, or Daily Board themes and an ad pops up, Samsung says you can dismiss it and that same ad won’t appear again.

It’s worth noting that Samsung’s Family Hub refrigerator lineup starts at $1,800 in the US, with some models ranging up to $3,500, so the fact that it’s putting ads on some of these high-end fridges is nothing short of mind-boggling. Imagine paying over $2,000 for a fridge and seeing an ad while getting a midnight snack. Truly dystopian.

Unfortunately, there is no way to turn the ads off on the fridge either, so you’re stuck seeing them. You could disconnect it from the internet if you really wanted to, but that really defeats the whole purpose of a smart refrigerator. Usually, it’s streaming services finding new ways to show you ads, but it seems Samsung has decided refrigerators are next in line.