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  • Design & Usability

  • Performance & Features

  • High-End, Low Learning Curve

  • The Cold Hard Facts

  • Temperature Performance

  • Moisture Retention

  • Freezing

  • Storage Space & Energy Efficiency

  • Design & Usability
  • Performance & Features
  • High-End, Low Learning Curve
  • The Cold Hard Facts
  • Temperature Performance
  • Moisture Retention
  • Freezing
  • Storage Space & Energy Efficiency

It displayed the same highly commendable performance in our rigorous tests, sports Frigidaire’s special smudge-resistant stainless steel finish, and includes LED lights in both the fridge and freezer compartments. If you’re in the market for a straightforward top freezer but want something more attractive than what you’d find in your kid's dorm room, give this one a closer look.

Design & Usability

Functional, but stylish

First off, this fridge deserves some points for a family-friendly finish. As any consumer with kids and stainless steel appliances knows, fingerprints and smudging can be the bane of a spotless kitchen.

Fortunately, Frigidaire uses a smudge-resistant finish on the 2046. It's a little darker, so the color might not match non-Frigidaire stainless appliances in your kitchen, but it’ll be a whole lot easier to keep clean.

On the inside, things are a bit more straightforward. Full-width shelves don’t offer a whole lot of flexible customization, but one shelf does come with a retractable front half to accommodate the occasional bottle of wine or other tall items.

The door storage is an interesting blend of traditional bucket shelves and the sliding design of Frigidaire’s Custom Flex system found in the pricier 2164 model. Four smaller door shelves—including the dairy bin—can be mounted on one of four plastic runners. These runners allow you to slide shelves left and right to customize the arrangement and allow for improved access.

LEDs in both compartments cast a pale blue glow over the white plastic edges, giving the interior a clean look. Most top freezers don’t have any illumination in the frozen food area, but everything in this Frigidaire is quite well lit.

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Performance & Features

These are the tops for top freezers

Both sections in this Frigidaire were incredibly consistent over time in terms of temperature output. If you can get this fridge to produce suitably cool temperatures, your food will be in great hands. The trick there is, don’t believe what you see on the thermostat.

As was the case with the 2164, both the fresh and frozen food areas ran warm when the controls were at the default setting. Simply move the slider closer to Coldest, and you should be fine.

Freezing times were adequate and the crispers were acceptable when it came to retaining moisture. More moisture for your produce means crisp greens and flavorful fruits. What really impressed, though, was this model’s exceptional energy efficiency. Taking its cue from recently updated EPA energy standards, this top freezer is one of the most efficient models we’ve ever tested, along with another icemaker-free top freezer, the Frigidaire FFHT2131QP.

For in-depth performance information, please visit the Science Page.

The Frigidaire Gallery FGHT2046QF's twin crispers were just adequate.
Credit: Reviewed.com / Matthew Zahnzinger

The twin crispers were just adequate.

High-End, Low Learning Curve

Why mess with a good thing?

The Frigidaire Gallery FGHT2046QF takes the basic top freezer layout, adds high-end fit and finish, and throws in superior performance with excellent efficiency to round out the package. Most retailers are offering it for around $950, and you can also get it in black or white for about $100 less.

The Cold Hard Facts

The new Frigidaire Gallery FGHT2046QF (MSRP $1,199) offers commendable performance in almost every way: consistent temperatures, low energy consumption, and acceptable freezing times. Just make sure turn the thermostat down further than you might think necessary.

Temperature Performance

Both the fridge and freezer sections of this Frigidaire were highly consistent. The main section displayed an average shift of ±0.12°F, while the freezer held steady with a shift of ±0.66°F—excellent results for their respective areas.

The trouble we noticed was with getting average temperatures down to an appropriate level. When we conduct tests in our environmentally controlled labs, we always default to manufacturer-recommended settings. In this case, that produced average temperatures in the main fridge section of 37.74°F at the top, 38.81°F in the middle, and 42.65°F near the bottom. The freezer had average outputs of 0.49°F at the top and 3.85°F at the bottom.

On the whole, this is way too warm. It’s an easy fix, though—simply move the thermostat closer to the Coldest setting; that quick adjustment should lower the temperatures and bring your appliance to heel.

Moisture Retention

The twin crispers were only adequate when it came to moisture retention. Our test materials were weighed repeatedly over the course of three days, and lost about 0.19 grams of moisture each hour. It’s not bad, but sensitive produce should probably be eaten sooner rather than later.

The Frigidaire Gallery FGHT2046QF's twin crispers were just adequate.
Credit: Reviewed.com / Matthew Zahnzinger

The twin crispers were just adequate.

Freezing

Our test materials are all kept at an even temperature in our climate-controlled testing facility. This way, we can ensure that our freezing test—which measures how quickly a freezer can chill something that’s “room temperature” down to 32°F—is consistent. The new Frigidaire’s freezer was able to make this transition in one hour and 31 minutes.

Storage Space & Energy Efficiency

Between the lack of extra features and the use of recessed LED lighting, this Frigidaire makes excellent use of its available storage. The main section has a combination of full-width shelves and drawers—as well as twin crispers—that are supplemented by adjustable door shelves. In total, you get 11.77 usable cubic feet of storage space.

The freezer is divided by one adjustable width shelf, and also comes with fixed door storage. This very basic compartment serves up 4.6 usable cubic feet of frozen food storage.

One of the most impressive aspects of this new top freezer’s performance is its energy efficiency. Assuming the average U.S. electricity cost of $0.09 per kWh, we determined that this appliance should only cost you about $29.16 each year to run. It comes out to just about 0.05 kWh needed to cool each usable cubic foot of space, making this one of the most efficient fridges currently on the market.

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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