Not all fridges are the same - things to consider before buying a new one

Is my fridge costing me money?

Irish households throw out an estimated €700 worth of food every year. For a nation of food lovers in a country that puts a premium on fresh produce, that makes no sense.

The solution isn’t buying less food or making more frequent shopping trips. It’s choosing a fridge freezer that helps the food you do buy stays fresher for longer.

Bosch VitaFresh will keep fruit and vegetables fresh for up to three times longer than a standard fridge freezer

Bosch’s VitaFresh technology is designed to maximise food-freshness. Lettuce lasts four days in a standard fridge freezer. It lasts up to 20 days with Bosch’s VitaFresh Pro storage option. Carrots last up to 40 days in a standard fridge freezer. With Bosch’s VitaFresh Pro storage option, they stay fresh for up to 150 days.

Meat and poultry - often the most expensive ingredients in any fridge freezer - last twice as long.

What options are available?

Bosch fridge freezers run from Series 2, its entry-level appliance, to Series 4, 6 and 8, with eight being its most advanced fridge freezer yet.

All offer new and improved ways to reduce food waste. This can include completely separate, hermetically sealed drawers for fruit and vegetables, and for meat the sensor technology ensures each compartment is optimised for both temperature and humidity.

To preserve its goodness for longer, meat should be stored at zero degrees in an environment that offers dry humidity. Fruit and vegetables do better when kept a few degrees warmer, while cheese and butter do best slightly warmer still. You need a fridge freezer that can accommodate this.

Thanks to Bosch’s intelligent sensors, temperatures remain consistently optimised despite opening and closing doors, or putting in warmer foods such as leftover casseroles or cooked chicken into the fridge freezer. Such changes are taken into account and automatically adjusted for, with a multi-air flow system that ensures temperature is constantly regulated, doing away with hot or cold spots.

Bosch's state-of-the-art fridge freezers take a snap shot of their interior every time the fridge freezer door closes, so you can check your phone to see exactly what you need

How high-tech does it get?

Top-spec models include WiFi, with a dongle at the back that enables you to link with Bosch’s Home Connect app using your smart phone or tablet.

This allows you to set temperatures remotely. You can clear out your fridge freezer before going on holiday for example, and set it to Vacation Mode, leaving your freezer to work as normal.

When you land back at the airport, stopping off for milk and butter on the way home, you can use your phone to cool your fridge freezer once more before you get home.

For day-to-day shopping it takes the guessing game out of remembering whether you need milk. Bosch’s state-of-the-art fridge freezers take a snap shot of their interior every time the fridge freezer door closes, so you can check your phone to see exactly what you need.

Thanks to Internet of Things sensor technology, having your fridge freezer do your shopping for you is just around the corner. In Germany, Bosch is already providing such a service online via Amazon. It won’t be long before a service like this is available here too, so you need a fridge freezer that’s ready for it.

What about energy efficiency?

All Bosch models are highly energy efficient, from A+ to A+++ rated. They offer greater capacity than ever too, thanks to a new design that sees the evaporators - which sit at the back of a traditional fridge freezer - built into the sides instead. This gives much more internal capacity, up to 50 litres more in some cases. It also ensures your fridge freezer is incredibly quiet.

Choose from super energy efficient low-frost options – which need defrosting just once every two years – or a labour-saving frost-free option.

Internal lighting displays are brilliant too, in every sense. Interiors are fully illuminated using super energy-efficient LED lighting systems.

How do they perform?

Always aesthetically pleasing, Bosch fridge freezers are functionally designed too. A new hinge system reduces the risk of the fridge freezer door being left ajar. If it is, an acoustic alarm reminds the user to close it, saving energy.

Built-in filters ensure there is no odour contamination between, say, smelly cheese and whipped cream.

With Series 4, 6 and 8 models, you’ll find all the electronic controls fitted on the outside, so you can change any settings you require without even opening the door.

Bosch’s new fridge freezers are designed to look sleek in any kitchen, with Perfect Fit technology ensuring you can have side-by-side fridge freezer-freezers to make one mega unit, providing capacity for even the largest family.

Every machine is designed so that you can get full access to all drawers when doors are open at just a 90-degree angle, perfect for even the smallest kitchens.

To put it another way, by keeping your food fresher for longer, a Bosch fridge freezer is keeping you healthier, your meals tastier, and saving you money. How cool is that?