Refrigerators in their current state can possess some smart features in the highest models, but nothing near what Haier is planning to manufacture and release within the near future. Haier plans to really take the concept of the internet of things to its fullest extent. While smart refrigerators from companies like Samsung give users the capability to browse the web and access apps from the main screen, refrigerators like these are usually running a very limited proprietary operating system. With the smart refrigerators from Haier the company plans to ship their new refrigerators running Google’s Android Operating System.
Currently, it is unknown what version of Android will be powering the smart refrigerator, but it will most likely be one of the more recent versions of Android possessing lower system requirements. What makes this design of refrigerator from Haier so magnificent, however, is the fact that both doors of the refrigerator are to be covered in massive 32 inch 1080p displays. That’s right, rather than a small panel for interfacing with a few tasks, enormously gorgeous displays will allow users to perhaps even consume content. I believe it would be useful for the screens to display the contents of the refrigerator with a built in camera. This way one could spend minutes or even hours trying to decide what to eat without “letting the cold out.”
While the complete specifications of the hardware that would power the installed Android operating system are not yet confirmed, we at least know the refrigerator will feature Wi-Fi connectivity as well. It is not clear as of yet what sort of additional features Haier intends to include with the refrigerator, but it has been confirmed that users will be able to install third party applications alongside the included factory applications. If specifications such as processor and memory are not confirmed before the refrigerator’s launch, then we will have to wait for a user to install an application such as CPU-Z to ascertain whether or not it is capable of running Angry Birds. It will be interesting to see how a smart refrigerator with dual 32-inch full HD screens fares with the masses.