A firmware update pushed out on Tuesday caused Samsung’s Bespoke AI line of fridges to stop working, and now some owners are discarding spoiled food as a result. The issues were first reported by Korean outlets.
The Update That Stopped Fridges
Most of the affected devices were four-door fridges from 2024 or later, according to Star News Korea. The fridges “suddenly lost power and stopped functioning immediately after” trying to issue a firmware update through SmartThings, Samsung’s smart home platform. The SmartThings app then showed the devices as offline.
Some users said that their fridge’s internal display was stuck showing the message “Checking SmartThings app during update.” There are numerous reports on Samsung’s Korean community forum detailing the problem. Some users claim that they have owned their affected fridge for just a year or less.
What Happened to the Food
The fridge’s core functions stopped working properly. A user reported that both the refrigeration and cooling functions failed to operate normally, forcing the disposal of all the food inside the appliance.
Samsung’s Response So Far
Ars reached out to Samsung with questions about what it intends to do to stop this from happening again and how many units are affected and in which countries, but the company declined to answer. According to a report by SBS Korea, customers have filed hundreds of cases.
The Holiday Factor
Only Korea appears to be the source of these complaints, and the situation has grown worse because it coincides with Chuseok, a major Korean holiday celebrating the autumn harvest that begins Thursday. A post on a forum argues that customers trusted Samsung Electronics and took part in an official update, yet the absurdity is embarrassing since they can’t even use refrigeration and refrigeration functions before Chuseok.
What We Know
- Most affected fridges were four-door models from 2024 or later
- The malfunction happened while trying to install a firmware update through SmartThings
- The display showed “Checking SmartThings app during update”
- Hundreds of customer cases have been filed in Korea
- The problem appears limited to Korea so far
The Scale of the Failure
Samsung has not revealed the number of fridges involved or the countries where they were sold. When Ars asked directly how to stop this from happening again, Samsung has not responded.
Our View
This firmware update was supposed to make a product better. It did the opposite, leaving it unable to function, and now people are throwing away spoiled food because of it. The timing of this failure during Chuseok means the shame is shared by all who see it.
Samsung has not answered questions about how many fridges are involved, where they are located, or what plans it has for fixing the problem and stopping this from happening again. Customers are cleaning out ruined pantries while the company withholds answers.
Keeping food cold is the simplest rule for a fridge, and Samsung has broken it.
Source material: “Owners mourn spoiled food after firmware update bricks Samsung smart fridges,” Ars Technica.
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