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  • Introduction

  • Design & Usability

  • Features

  • Performance

  • Conclusion

  • Science Introduction

  • Temperature Performance

  • Moisture Retention

  • Freezing & Thawing

  • Storage Space & Energy Efficiency

  • Other Tests

  • Introduction
  • Design & Usability
  • Features
  • Performance
  • Conclusion
  • Science Introduction
  • Temperature Performance
  • Moisture Retention
  • Freezing & Thawing
  • Storage Space & Energy Efficiency
  • Other Tests

Introduction

In this case, though, excellent performance, sleek design, and high-end features make that higher cost totally worth it—as long as you're willing to sacrifice a little on space. What disappointed us, however, was the ineffectiveness of Fisher & Paykel's unique "solutions" to problems that other manufacturers eliminated years ago. A water filter and moisture drawer that look like they were jury-rigged by someone's handyman brother-in-law really do detract from this otherwise solid appliance.

Design & Usability

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A fridge that takes a traditional layout and modifies it into a sleek, exotic look

This 17.3 cubic foot bottom freezer has a stainless steel finish, unusually slim handles, and a control panel paired with a through-the-door water dispenser (a similar model is available without the dispenser). The surface isn't as bright as some stainless finishes we've seen, but it hides fingerprints well. Be sure you order it with the hinge and handles in the right place, as the door isn't reversible.

Unlike many bottom freezers, this product's lower section opens on a hinge just like the fridge.

The interior of the Fisher & Paykel’s fridge may not be as cavernous as a standard-depth fridge, but it's well proportioned. It's broken up into four full-width shelves, as well as a pull-out rack with two buckets in lieu of more standardized crisper drawers. As an additional perk, it also comes with a removable bottle rack, as well as some removable egg tray inserts for door storage. Unlike many bottom freezers that utilize a pull-out drawer, the Fisher & Paykel's lower section opens on a hinge just like the fridge. At the top is a very shallow tray that's just deep enough to hold an ice cube tray, which is included with the fridge.

The exterior control panel uses a series of buttons that correspond to odd icons on an illuminated panel. We found it less than intuitive, though once you remember which buttons cycle through the various functions and which ones actually change them, you should be fine. Be sure to read the user’s manual, though—some of the more unique features, such as the Bottle Chiller and the Super Freeze, may not be self-explanatory based on icons alone.

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Features

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The smooth, clean design makes for an accessible appliance, but a few small kinks keep this fridge from earning a perfect score.

The wide-open shelves offer ample storage space that's relatively easy to access, no matter where you put your food. The pull-out tray for the crisper drawer slides smoothly, though having to open the entire thing to get to just one compartment seems inefficient in regard to minimizing moisture loss. The freezer drawers aren’t quite as smooth-sliding as the crisper, while the ice tray comes out so easily you may accidentally pull it clear out of the freezer. Luckily, the large buckets and easy-to-grip handles make up for those small flaws.

The ice maker is controlled using the control panel, and it only dispenses bulk quantities of cubed ice.

The water dispenser is only a small indentation on the front of the fridge, and is operated using a paddle that feels cheap and unresponsive compared to the larger, sturdier designs found on dual water and ice dispensers. It also means you definitely won’t be able to rest your glass while filling it. As unusual as the dispenser is, the water filter is actually one of this refrigerator’s more bizarre design features: It hangs loose outside of the machine, in line with the hose.

This F&P does come with an ice maker, which is located in the rear upper-left corner of the freezer compartment. It’s hard to see, and even harder to get to. Fortunately, direct access isn't required—the ice maker is controlled using the control panel, and it only dispenses bulk quantities of cubed ice, which you've got to scoop out yourself.

Finally, some cool features: A "Bottle Chiller" button sets a timer to let you know when to take that beer out of the freezer before it explodes, and Super Freeze uses all the freezer's powers to bring down temperatures rapidly. Like many higher-end fridges, this one "learns" when you open and close the door, adjusting defrost and cooling cycles accordingly—a feature that Fisher & Paykel calls Active Smart.

Performance

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Despite some temperature discrepancies and mediocre crisper performance, the freezer really manages to shine.

The Fisher & Paykel's fridge cavity maintains a very consistent temperature over time, but suffers from minor temperature shift the lower you get. The middle was spot on at 37ºF, with the top running a bit cooler and the bottom running a bit warmer. With this in mind, you can make accommodations by storing food that’s more perishable at the top of the fridge, with fruits and veggies at the bottom.

The freezer also remained very consistent over time, and provided nearly perfect freezing temperatures.

The freezer also remained very consistent over time, and provided nearly perfect temperatures throughout the entire compartment. The internal defrost cycle did send the temperature up a few degrees, but not enough to make a huge difference.

Unfortunately, the crisper drawers in the fridge don't retain as much moisture as we would have liked. Many standard fridges have two drawers, independent of each other, that can be opened or closed individually. While the two nonidentical buckets in this fridge have their own unusual humidity controls—a floating plastic "flap" on top that angles upwards to let moisture out—they rest in a full-width pull-out drawer. This means every time you want to get into one, you have to get into both. While this rolling tray allows for easy access and even easier cleaning, it doesn’t result in fantastic moisture retention.

Conclusion

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A counter-depth fridge with performance on par with full-sized models.

For a counter-depth fridge, the Fisher & Paykel E522BRX is a great performer with an even better price. Though its $1,609 MSRP is still significantly higher than a standard-depth bottom freezer, other counter-depths can cost thousands more. We did manage to find some on sale for $1,400—not a huge price break—but it's one of the lowest prices out there for a fridge that sits flush to cabinetry.

Our complaints have to do with Fisher & Paykel's insistence on using proprietary designs that don't work as well as industry standards. For instance, the sliding shelf with plastic-topped buckets, which is supposedly a crisper drawer, or the in-line water filter that hangs lifelessly behind the machine.

The E522BRX is a unique fridge that's great for smaller, high-end kitchens. We're glad that Fisher & Paykel brought it to the US, as there aren't any other appliances like it here. We only wish they'd made it a bit more conventional.

Science Introduction

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Science doesn't lie! The numbers show us that the Fisher & Paykel E522BRX is a decent-quality fridge that's reliable and effective... but not quite perfect.

Temperature Performance

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A decent fridge, but the fantastic freezer is what really deserves notice.

The middle of the fridge proper clocked in an average temperature of about 37 degrees, the perfect goal for refrigeration. The top ran about two degrees colder, while the bottom went two degrees warmer. A four degree spread isn't great, especially for a fridge this small where there's less to be chilled. It's not bad, but we had hoped for more given the price tag. Luckily, there was very little fluctuation over time, so as long as you keep the same items on the same shelf, you'll be okay.

The freezer was exceptionally consistent, more so than we usually see. Temperatures from top to bottom varied only one-tenth of a degree—which is great—and only shifted about half a degree over time—which is even better! The average temperature was about one and a half degrees, though, which is warmer than the zero degree target. It's not terribly far off, but a quick tap on the control panel should take care of it regardless.

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Moisture Retention

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Not the best moisture retention, but at least it's on par with other mid-range fridges.

We've discussed the unusual crisper design already, so we'll just get to the point. In terms of moisture retention, the Fisher & Paykel's vegetable drawers lost an average of 0.21 grams per hour, an average amount for many mid-range fridges, but a bit under average for one in this price range. If your dietary emphasis is on fresh fruits and vegetables, this fridge isn’t going to be friendly on bulk purchases. If you eat your produce not long after you buy it, though, you should be fine.

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Freezing & Thawing

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Super-fast freezing ensures that food keeps its texture and freshness.

One of the main goals for any freezer is to cool items off as quickly as possible in order to lock in and preserve the greatest amount of freshness and nutritional value. Even without the Super Freeze feature turned on the Fisher & Paykel managed to bring our test materials to freezing after only 1 hour and 6 minutes—a fantastically short amount of time! It may not be flash freezing, but this unit dropped the temperature so quickly that your food should taste fantastic when thawed… as long as it was in good condition when you froze it, of course.

The icing on this frozen cake is the presence of the “Super Freeze” setting, which makes your appliance extra cold for 12 hours when activated, resulting in even faster freezing. The manual recommends this for freezing larger amounts of food, perfect for when you shop for meat at the wholesale store. One final perk? After 36 hours without power, our materials were still thoroughly frozen, hovering around 28 degrees at the end of our test.

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Storage Space & Energy Efficiency

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Though it's a counter-depth unit, it still offers enough space to get the job done for apartments or houses with smaller families.

The Fisher & Paykel manages to offer 8.72 cubic feet of usable space in the fridge and 2.69 cubic feet in the freezer. For the record, we removed the bottle rack and ice tray to reach those numbers, only accounting for space taken up by things that aren't optional... like shelves.

It certainly isn’t the largest model on the market, landing somewhere between truly compact fridges and larger, full-sized models. Appropriately, its energy cost falls somewhere between very cheap and more expensive, costing about $35.65 per year to operate using our standardized pricing scale of $0.09 per kWh. Stretching that amount of energy across the usable space, it turns out that this appliance requires just 0.09 kWh of electricity per cubic foot, making it both an economically and environmentally friendly fridge.

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Other Tests

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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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