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DEAL WATCH: Keurig K-Express | 22% off $69.99

Keurig has changed the face of coffee, and snagging one of these for less than $70 is a solid deal. Read Review

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  • Introduction

  • Front

  • Interior

  • Back

  • Sides

  • Running Cost

  • Power Use Per Cu Ft

  • Fridge Temperature

  • Freezer Temperature

  • Vegetable Drawer

  • Power Loss

  • Freezing Performance

  • Usable Space

  • Ease of Access

  • Controls

  • Cleaning

  • Noise

  • Conclusion

  • Introduction
  • Front
  • Interior
  • Back
  • Sides
  • Running Cost
  • Power Use Per Cu Ft
  • Fridge Temperature
  • Freezer Temperature
  • Vegetable Drawer
  • Power Loss
  • Freezing Performance
  • Usable Space
  • Ease of Access
  • Controls
  • Cleaning
  • Noise
  • Conclusion

Introduction

Front

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The front of the unit has a stainless steel finish. The grain is so prominent, however, that it may not match other appliances with smoother finishes. In addition, weld spots and rough patches are visible upon a closer examination.

Unlike many stainless steel finishes, fingerprints are not easily visible on the {{product.name}} due to the stain-obscuring grain.

There are two temperature control knobs on the {{product.name}}: one at the front and top in the refrigerator portion, and one in the back center of the freezer.

The {{product.name}} uses stainless steel handles that have a vertical grain as opposed to the horizontal grain of the doors. This makes them pop out visually in contrast to the rest of the front of the unit.

Interior

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The inside of the fridge compartment, and the freezer above it, has about as straightforward a design as one can find on a refrigerator.

The interior of the CDWT980VSS.

The interior of the {{product.name}} has three full-width shelves, two of which are adjustable, a half-width deli drawer under the top shelf, and two identical crisper drawers. In an unusual move, the separate humidity controls for the crisper drawers are placed on the edge next to the wall of the fridge, instead of on the front of the drawer. This means that any food placed on the side of the bottom shelf may be in the way should you need to adjust the settings.

The door is made up of four fixed shelves, as well as a dairy tray. The middle shelf is split by a small plastic lip, dividing it into a slightly higher and slightly lower portion, allowing for storage of items of differing sizes. Of particular note is the fact that, with the exception of the topmost one, the shelf floors don’t quite extend out far enough to meet the front edge. This is fine for placement of larger items, such as juice containers, but smaller cans and bottles run the risk of sliding out through the gap.

The spartan freezer of the {{product.name}} is essentially an ice box with a single wire shelf dividing it into an upper and lower portion. There is one other hole available to place the shelf, allowing for slight customization.

Like the main section, the freezer door is very unassuming, boasting two standard shelves of a similar design found on the door in the fridge.

Back

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The back of the {{product.name}} has only the power cable, but there is a clearly marked panel in the upper right-hand corner for the installation of an ice maker for those who wish to buy one separately.

Sides

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The sides of the unit are a glossy textured black, striking in that it doesn’t match the steel style finish found on the front of the unit.

Olympus SZ-31MR iHS side views

Running Cost

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Using a standard rate of $0.09 kW-h, the {{product.name}} will cost $27.17 per year in running cost, a very low rate.

Power Use Per Cu Ft

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The {{product.name}} also uses a low amount of power, needing only 0.07 kW-h per cubic foot of usable space.

Fridge Temperature

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The temperatures remained consistent throughout the entire refrigerator portion, but also ran a few degrees warmer than is ideal. We set the controls to what is marked as the "normal" setting, so turn the controls to something a bit colder and you should be fine.

Freezer Temperature

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The freezer performed very poorly. We turned the controls down to the lowest setting, and even then, it never reached the ideal 0 degree temperature on the Fahrenheit scale. Additionally, the sensors we use to record temperature data revealed that, over the few days we use to gather our information, temperatures fluctuated significantly. Small amounts of freezing and thawing caused by that degree of fluctuation is what causes small ice crystals to form on food and results in freezer burn. Also, if food is frozen at temperatures higher than 0 degrees Fahrenheit, it can lose nutritional value and have an odd texture when thawed.

Vegetable Drawer

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The {{product.name}} had slightly better-than-average crisper drawers. The substance simulating artificial food that we use to test humidity retention registered a 0.19 grams per hour moisture loss at the highest humidity setting.

Power Loss

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After 36 hours, everything in the {{product.name}}'s freezer remained frozen. Keep in mind that this is based on data acquired without ever opening the freezer door during the testing period.

Freezing Performance

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Even though the specific temperature inside the {{product.name}}'s freezer varied over time, it only took 1 hour and 36 minutes for the items at room temperature to freeze, an acceptable amount of time.

Usable Space

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The main refrigerator cavity and door shelves combine to yield 9.02 cubic feet of storage space. Keep in mind that we measure space that can actually be used to store things, accounting for any space taken up by shelves, light bulbs, and any other obstructions. Fridge storage space is spread out over three full-width shelves, two crisper drawers, and a half-width deli drawer.

The door is made up of a dairy tray, two full-width shelves, and a third shelf broken up into a slightly higher and lower section.

The freezer is a bit small, but proportionally acceptable in relationship to the size of the refrigerator. The freezer clocked in at 3.35 cubic feet of space spread out over the two sections of the main cavity and the two shelves on the door.

Below are the manufacturers own figures for capacity, and our own measurements for usable capacity. The manufacturers figures do not take account of the shelves, drawers and other removable features, but our measurements do account for the space these take up.

Ease of Access

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The few number of drawers make any food item readily accessible. Like all top freezers, you have to bend down to get to anything in the crisper drawers, but that's nothing new, and anything that you use often can be placed on an upper shelf in the fridge for easier access.

Controls

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There are two temperature control knobs on the {{product.name}}: one at the front and top in the refrigerator portion, and one in the back center of the freezer.

The controls for the fridge and freezer are separate, a nice touch for this type of model. It only has a single compressor unit, though, so the temperature isn't as thoroughly effected as it would be if the controls were truly independent. The two identical dials turn left to right on a scale of "cold" to "colder", with a marked "normal" setting in the middle. There are no marks anywhere indicating what the actual temperature would be. The freezer control is located at the center of the back wall, where is of access is determined by how much food is placed in front of it.

Cleaning

Noise

Conclusion

Energy Efficiency

For a fridge this size, the energy efficiency is very good. A low yearly operating cost and efficient use of energy per cubic foot make this a very good investment if you're trying to keep the power cost low.

Performance

Though the temperature performance in the fridge could be fixed by turning the dial to a bit colder than normal, the inconsistencies in freezer temperature over time raises a bit of a red flag. Otherwise, humidity retention and freezing time performed solidly, average enough to be acceptable without tipping the scale one way or the other.

Storage Space

The {{product.name}} has fairly average storage space in both the fridge and freezer compartments. Larger families may find it a bit cramped, but single and couples shouldn't have any trouble finding space for their goods.

Usability

While the simple design makes and lack of extra functions make this a very user-friendly model, the lack of spill protection on shelves in either the main sections or on the doors means that any mess could be a potential nightmare to clean.

Meet the tester

Matthew Zahnzinger

Matthew Zahnzinger

Logistics Manager & Staff Writer

@ReviewedHome

Matthew is a native of Brockton, MA and a graduate of Northeastern, where he earned a degree in English and Theatre. He has also studied at the Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin and spends most of his free time pursuing a performance career in the greater Boston area.

See all of Matthew Zahnzinger's reviews

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