In September, Samsung announced that it would be bringing ads to some of its most expensive smart fridges. The announcement came out as part of a changelog, with the company later confirming that the patch notes weren’t fake, as some users hoped. While Samsung doesn’t initially plan on bringing ads to all of the smart fridge’s different themes, those who use the Weather or Color themes will start to see ads now along the lower-third of the screen (via The Verge). Those using the Gallery and Art themes won’t have to contend with ads at all, so not everyone will be affected.
If you somehow missed the news before and you suddenly see ads on your fridge, don’t worry — Samsung won’t force you to see ads every time you start preparing dinner. There’s actually a surprisingly easy way to disable the ads and return your Samsung smart fridge back to its useful, smart, and ad-free ways.
How to disable ads on Samsung smart fridges
Unlike the ads that Microsoft now bakes into Windows 11, Samsung has actually given users a way to disable the ads they’re being shown. As outlined in an announcement sharing more details about the launch of the “pilot program,” Samsung says that users can visit the Advertisements tab in their Settings menu at any point to disable the advertisements. The ad will also appear on the new Daily Board theme that’s arriving as part of this latest update, though it won’t take up as much room, instead appearing as a single tile on the board. Even if you don’t disable them altogether, you can always close out an ad and it won’t appear again for the rest of the campaign run, Samsung notes.
Like many things, the fact that Samsung is adding this to fridges that cost around $2,000 or more is the biggest sticking point, as people already have these smart appliances in their homes and are using them without having agreed to be served ads when purchasing them. Additionally, while the service will only show Samsung ads for now, some are concerned that it’s only a matter of time before the company begins courting other companies and allowing third parties to purchase ads to show on its refrigerators.
