New Appliances to Look Out for in 2023

New Appliances to Look out for in 2023!

MoodUP Refrigerators will be coming to Home Depot and other stores in 2023. These new refrigerators were designed to compete with Samsung Bespoke models, which have been on the market for a couple years now. I’m sure LG has done their marketing research on Bespoke and saw an opportunity to compete in the market as well as offer more features unique to MoodUP.

Their competition, Bespoke refrigerators, has removable front door panels in a variety of colored glass and other metal finishes. Millennials love the Bespoke. It’s not boring to look at and with the inventive doors, water pitcher and storage flexibility (4-door Flex drawer), it has gained the attention of many customers, even if they don’t buy it.

LG’s response is The MoodUP refrigerator, which debuted at the consumer technologies show in Berlin. LG showed off its LED door panels that change color with its ThinQ app, exclusive to LG products. A whopping 1800 different panel combinations are available to accentuate the aesthetic or “mood” with choices called “healing” or “season”. Since Millennials are the first generation to grow up with smartphones in their hands, this is an obvious target market for the MoodUP refrigerator. Music is also a built-in feature through Bluetooth to connect with Alexa or Google. If not listening to your favorite podcast, set your panels to change colors with the beat of your music. Yes, this fridge dances. “Beware” epileptics.

Now LG refrigerators have a rocky past. LG’s compressor settlement in 2020 for its alleged defect in fridges did hurt the brand’s previous high consumer ratings. Their settlement was comprehensive: training technicians to make repairs, installing specific phone lines for assistance, longer and improved warranty and invested in upgrades to prevent further issues. There are still pockets of the country where technicians are lacking and I’m sure there are some consumers who slipped through the cracks; they might not be the return customer LG is hoping to attract. The new 10 year warranty assures customers the issue will be addressed should it happen in the improved inverter/compressor. According to an Allstate Homeowners survey, $68 billion dollars was spent on appliance repair and replacement in 2021. It’s unclear what percent of appliance repairs and replacements were from LG, but I bet it was a small percentage.

Looking to boost their ratings, this addition to the more modern LG lineup of integrated appliances using their ThinQ app, is speaking to a new generation of tech savvy consumers. If the new refrigerator does well, it could boost LG consumer reviews and create a loyal customer base that will last a generation. However, the current economy is still a challenge to everyone. According to Forbes, Millennials, who is the obvious target market, are facing financial challenges not seen before with previous generations. The oldest Millennials are now turning 40 and they are still paying towards their student debt, facing high inflation, in and out of the workforce as layoffs and pandemic created scars to their careers. It’s clear the LG appliances are targeting Millennial home buyers, but their numbers of homeownership is 20% below that of Gen X. Millennials are ,however, proving resilient and show high purchase power in the market. The only question is will they be able to afford it? What will the price point be? 4K, 5K, 6K? That’s the question.

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