Samsung RF30BB6600QL French-door Refrigerator Review

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About the Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL French-door Refrigerator

• Year released: 2022
• Style: French-door
• Dimensions: 70" x 35.75" x 34.25"(H x W x D)
• Depth: Standard depth (also available in counter-depth)
• Measured capacity: 13.53-cubic-foot refrigerator, 3.77-cubic-foot freezer
• Finishes: White glass, charcoal glass, matte gray glass, Morning Blue glass, clementine glass, pink glass, Sunrise Yellow glass, stainless steel, matte black steel, navy steel, Tuscan steel, emerald green steel
• Special features:
• Dispensers: Internal ice and water
• ADA compliant: Yes
• Energy Star rated: Yes
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Samsung SmartThings App; allows for remote control and monitoring of temperature settings
• Future compatibility: The SmartThings app and the functions the app supports are subject to application update policies
• Years of expected life: ~15 years
• Parts availability: Good
• Repairability: Eligible for on-site repair service during the warranty period
• User manual: Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL French-door Refrigerator manual
• Product page: Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL French-door refrigerator

The Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL refrigerator features the traditional three-door French-door design. It also boasts Samsung’s door-in-door design, which gives you easy access to items via a smaller outer door without needing to open the full main refrigerator door.

Opening the top two doors fully reveals a standard yet spacious interior with a few extra drawers below the crispers.

The freezer has four compartments split between two drawers, one of which is completely dedicated to two ice buckets.

How we test refrigerators

We have been testing appliances, including refrigerators, for over a decade. We had hundreds of refrigerators come through our former testing lab in Cambridge, MA: Top-freezers, bottom-freezers, side-by-sides, and French-doors.

The RF30BB6600QL underwent a standardized testing process that examined each element of its performance and feature set, from using sensors to ensure its temperature consistency to manually measuring all the available storage space. Read more about how we test refrigerators.

What we like

Solid refrigerator temperatures maximize shelf-life

Surprisingly, maintaining just the right temperature can occasionally challenge a fridge. If temperatures fall below 32°F some items will freeze, and anything warmer than 40°F will allow food to spoil quickly. That gives fridges only 8°F of wiggle room, while simultaneously managing defrost cycles and compensating for a loss of cold air every time the door opens.

The Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL does an excellent job keeping temperatures exactly where they need to be. For starters, the default settings are perfect, so no calibration is necessary (and for context, this is extremely rare straight out of the box).

Over time, these temperatures only wavered by a few degrees, staying well within the Goldilocks zone for perfect food preservation.

Temperatures were also remarkably consistent throughout the body of the fridge, varying by less than a degree from top to bottom.

The door-in-door design helps maintain steady temperatures

If you haven’t seen this design before, essentially the contents of the door bins on the left-hand door can be accessed through a mini door that opens without opening the entire fridge door.

This design is one of the contributing factors to the fridge’s steady temperatures, as it allows you to access certain items without opening the door fully, preventing cold air from escaping.

Its large fridge compartment has extra drawers to keep everything organized

If you tend to buy a lot of perishables, you probably want a fridge that devotes more of its storage space to the fridge compartment. And this is exactly what the Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL does.

While its freezer is a bit small (we’ll get to that later), the Samsung RF30BB6600QL refrigerator compartment boasts an impressive 13.54 cubic feet of storage.

To help visualize volume, a gallon jug takes up about 0.13 cubic feet of space, so a full cubic foot is a lot of real estate. The Samsung RF30BB6600QL is a good pick for those with larger families who find themselves scrounging for space in their current fridge.

Changeable panels offer a customizable aesthetic for every kitchen

One of the main draws of the Bespoke line is the ability to fully customize the look of your appliance by mixing and matching differently colored panels. Currently the line-up offers a mix of glass and stainless steel in a selection of bespoke colors.

Select panels are sold separately, and you can change them at any time with a specialized suction cup. Just be sure you reserve some space for safe storage so panels don’t get damaged when not in use.

What we don’t like

The freezer is on the small side

The average French-door’s freezer is 4.69 cubic feet, which makes the Samsung RF30BB6600QL’s 3.77 cubic feet of storage small by comparison. Part of this smaller size is a trade-off for a larger refrigerator compartment, but a significant portion of one freezer drawer is actually dedicated to two large ice buckets.

If freezer storage space is a priority, you’d be better suited looking elsewhere, like the GE Café CVE28DM5NS5, which has a flex drawer for even more freezer storage.

The freezer temperatures can be inconsistent

While the initial freezer temperature was spot-on and didn’t need any further calibration, it did not remain consistent over time. We saw several large spikes in temperature at 24-hour intervals that were several degrees each, which is indicative of the freezer running a defrost cycle.

While this is a normal freezer function, the temperature swing was larger than we like to see. Temperatures rose above 0°F in some spots, meaning items stored there have an opportunity to defrost slightly, although we don't think it will cause serious freezer burn and isn't a major cause for concern.

Some elements of its design make this fridge harder to use

In order to achieve its seamless look, the Samsung RF30BB6600QL’s handle is located underneath its French doors. That means in order to open either one, or access door-in-door storage, you need to fit your fingers in the gap between the fridge and freezer panels and grip their underside to get them open.

The doors also require a decent amount of force to open, so that combined with a more precarious handhold could make this fridge more difficult to open than other models.

Additionally, we had some issues with this fridge’s shelves. Not only were they much more difficult to remove and reposition than what we typically see, the top shelf only has spill-capture edges on its front and back, allowing potential spills to cascade down the sides of the fridge, creating an even bigger mess. Fortunately, the lower shelves do feature all-around spill capture.

Carbon footprint for the Samsung RF30BB6600QL Bespoke refrigerator

Energy efficiency

The Samsung RF30BB6600QL has an annual energy consumption rating of ~695 kWh/year (~$90/year based on U.S. average rates), placing it on the upper-mid spectrum of French-door refrigerators in terms of annual energy use.

It is Energy-Star certified as meeting (or exceeding) the energy-efficiency requirements for its category.

Materials used

The RF30BB6600QL is manufactured with the R-600a low-GWP (global-warming-potential) hydrocarbon refrigerant—which lowers direct refrigerant-emission impact compared to older high-GWP systems with CFC/HCFC/HFC refrigerants. Samsung reports use of recycled plastics (ABS with ~10% recycled), and FSC-certified packaging—all positive signals for environmental impact.

Samsung states that its “Bespoke” line incorporates modular design (customizable door panels) to extend product life and reduce waste. The company has extensive sustainability initiatives and goals regarding production, distribution, use, and recycling of its appliances.

Data and privacy

If your appliance has a smart component, connects to the internet, or features a companion app, chances are it's collecting a wide range of information about you, including your habits and lifestyle. If your gadget has a camera—a robot vacuum, for instance—it may even be mapping your home. Scary, huh? Different companies have varying privacy policies and handle the data they collect in different ways.

This fridge is equipped with Wi-Fi and connects to the Samsung SmartThings app. SmartThings’ U.S. Privacy Notice states that connected devices, including appliances, “may obtain information about you … through SmartThings products and services” such as “connected devices, apps and software that you connect to SmartThings.”

The general Samsung Privacy Policy indicates that personal data is collected, used, shared, and stored for various purposes including service provision, analytics, marketing and legal compliance. SmartThings documentation also notes you can “erase your device’s data” in some instances.

Since this model is not equipped with a full Samsung Family Hub screen, it is not vulnerable to the greater security risks posed by a digital interface on appliances. Still, it is wise to review what data the SmartThings app is collecting and what permissions it asks for.

You can access the SmartThings Privacy Notice and Samsung’s full Privacy Policy.

Warranty

Samsung offers one of the better warranties in the appliance space. While one year is the industry-standard, Samsung’s warranty covers five years parts and labor on the sealed refrigeration system only (compressor, evaporator, condenser, drier, connecting tubing), and ten years parts and five years labor on Digital Inverter Compressor.

Samsung also offers Samsung Care+ extended warranty for those looking for extra coverage beyond the initial warranty.

Warranty

From the date of purchase, Samsung offers a one-year warranty on parts and labor, a five-year plan for the sealed refrigeration system, and 10-year plan for the digital inverter compressor.

Considering the industry standard warranty is just one year, Samsung really goes above and beyond to guarantee your investment in their appliances.

Samsung also offers Samsung Care+ extended warranty for those looking for extra coverage beyond the initial warranty.

Accessories and add-ons to consider

Complete the kitchen suite

What owners are saying about the Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL

Customers are generally satisfied with the quality, capacity, and quiet operation of the Samsung RF30BB6600QL, giving it 4.5 to 4.7 out of 5 stars across major appliance retailers.

However, some users have experienced issues with the door sealing, water dispenser, and ice maker, and have had difficulties with customer service when trying to resolve these problems.

Overall, the positive reviews outweigh the negative ones, and the product meets the needs of most customers.

Should you buy the Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL refrigerator?

Maybe—if Bespoke aesthetics pique your interest, it’s an excellent choice

The Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL isn’t perfect, but it does offer a lot for its purchase price. For starters, it seems to know its own strengths and weaknesses, because the fridge is both larger and over-performs compared to other fridges, while its freezer is smaller and under-performs.

If you want a fridge with customizable panels and you need a lot of fridge storage, but don’t tend to pack your freezer as full, the Samsung Bespoke RF30BB6600QL is a decent choice. As far as customizable fridge design goes, this is one of the best values available.

If you want a slightly better-performing Bespoke fridge for a bit more money, check out the Samsung Bespoke RF23DB9700QL.