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  • Design and Usability

  • Cooling and Freezing Performance

  • Storage and Space

  • What's the Warranty Like?

  • Key Takeaway

  • The Cold Hard Facts

  • Design and Usability
  • Cooling and Freezing Performance
  • Storage and Space
  • What's the Warranty Like?
  • Key Takeaway
  • The Cold Hard Facts

Pros

  • Unique four-door design

  • Flexible temperature area

Cons

  • Limited freezer space

The RF23J9011SR is just 24 inches deep, minus doors and handles. It’s just under 36 inches wide, and a hair under 72 inches tall. The space saving design leaves more room inside of the refrigerator with 23 cubic feet of storage capacity in total. Despite its smaller size, this fridge also features a high-end design, top notch performance, and adjustable FlexZone compartment.

Available in both conventional stainless steel or Samsung's new black stainless finish, retail prices land just over $3,500, meaning they're not cheap any way you slice it. But that's true for almost all counter depth models—and most don't offer the same level of cooling or control settings that you'd find here.

The Samsung RF23J9011SR is one of the most attractive counter depth fridges on the market.
Credit: Reviewed.com / Matthew Zahnzinger

One of the most attractive counter depth fridges on the market.

Design and Usability

While the crispers themselves weren’t as snug in their moorings as we’d like for such an expensive fridge, they nonetheless did a great job retaining moisture. Over the course of three days, we determined that test materials placed inside each drawer lost about 0.1 grams of moisture each hour.

The exterior of these fridges are right on track with Samsung’s original four door model: Recessed handles give it a trim look, while the smudge-proof finish will class up any kitchen.

A tall and deep ice and water dispenser can more than accommodate a standard drinking glass, as well as pitchers and other large containers. We’d have preferred it if the dispenser’s light were brighter, as even when it’s on there’s not much illumination.

The Samsung RF23J9011SR's stylish dispenser can easily accommodate a standard drinking glass.
Credit: Reviewed.com / Matthew Zahnzinger

The stylish dispenser can easily accommodate a standard drinking glass.

The control panel itself uses blue lighting that fades away when not in use, as well as black text that doesn’t. We found that the text actually didn’t distract from the overall design, but rather complemented the straight lines formed by breaks between doors.

Inside, you’re met with high efficiency LED lighting that casts a bright glow over every nook and cranny, while silver highlights add some pizzazz to the white plastic shelves.

The crisper drawers designed for maximizing fresh food storage space were a bit loose in their moorings, but nonetheless did a great job retaining moisture. Over the course of three days, we determined that test materials placed inside each drawer lost about 0.1 grams of moisture each hour. That’s as good as it gets—any more moisture and mold might grow. It’s still a bit disappointing to find an internal ice maker as opposed to a door-mounted model, but those are small quibbles.

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Cooling and Freezing Performance

There’s very little this Samsung doesn’t do well.

We’ve noticed that many counter depth models struggle keeping even temperatures, but most so here. The main fridge section averaged just a hair over the 37°F we set it to, with a little extra warmth around the crispers. That’s the exact temperature profile we like to see for optimal food preservation. Temperatures did fluctuate a tiny bit over time, but not enough to cause any concern.

On the other hand, the freezer's temperature was far below the 0ºF we set it to—but that's not a bad thing. The lower the freezer goes, the less chance of freezer burn. The average temperature was noticeably below the 0°F mark, which should keep your frozen veggies in decent shape.

We put room-temperature test materials in a fully chilled freezer and left them to cool. It took about 1 hour and 35 minutes for our sensors to hit 32°F, which is somewhat on the slow end of average.

The Samsung RF23J9011SR's responsive control panel blends in well with the stainless finish.
Credit: Reviewed.com / Matthew Zahnzinger

The responsive control panel blends in well with the stainless finish.

The feature set is pretty standard: an energy saver setting, control lock, and power freeze are all pretty standard for high-end models. What really sets this unit apart, though, is its Cool Select Plus zone.

Like all of Samsung’s four door models, the lower right compartment can be adjusted to one of four different settings: Freezer (pretty self-explanatory), Soft Freezing (23°F), Chill (30°F), and Cool (41°F). You can use it to expand your frozen food storage, turn it into a wine cooler, or keep hors d’oeuvres fresh before a party without having to shift everything around in the main fridge section.

The only drawback is that the divided freezer's individual compartments are only 15 inches wide. If you frequently freeze massive pizzas, you may have issues.

The Samsung RF23J9011SR's two adjustable crispers are more than up to task of preserving fresh produce. The fridge's water filter is located between them.
Credit: Reviewed.com / Matthew Zahnzinger

The two adjustable crispers are more than up to task of preserving fresh produce. The fridge's water filter is located between them.

Storage and Space

Like all counter depth models, storage is somewhat shallower than folks who own full-sized fridges might be used to. That said, this Samsung makes excellent use of what it’s got. Some adjustable fridge shelves have retractable fronts to help store tall items, while door storage is plenty deep enough to accommodate gallon-sized containers. All told, the main fresh food section can hold about 10.15 cubic feet worth of groceries.

For the sake of our measurements, we considered the adjustable zone as part of the freezer. Both sections mirror each other, with a sliding shelf on top, large drawer in the middle, and shallower drawer on the bottom. They also feature three shallow door shelves that are great for loose or small items. In total, this Samsung can accommodate about 6.34 cubic feet of frozen food.

Most modern fridges released after the latest EPA update have been highly efficient, and this Samsung is no exception. It only needs about 0.07 kWh to cool each usable cubic foot, which means it’s using energy very effectively. It also means that, based on our estimates, you’ll only have to pay about $36.18 each year to power it. That’s based on a fixed rate of $0.09 per kWh; adjust accordingly based on local rates.

Despite being a counter depth model, the Samsung RF23J9011SR still has plenty of well-lit storage space.
Credit: Reviewed.com / Matthew Zahnzinger

Despite being a counter depth model, this fridge still has plenty of well-lit storage space.

What's the Warranty Like?

Befitting such a fancy fridge, Samsung has an equally fancy warranty. For the first year from date of purchase, the manufacturer will cover all defective or failed parts that stop working through no fault of consumer misuse. That's pretty standard.

For five years, Samsung also covers parts and labor relating to the sealed refrigeration system. That includes compressor, evaporator, condenser, drier, and connecting tube.

On top of that, the Digital Inverter Compressor gets its own coverage: All parts and labor relating to this part of the fridge is covered for five years, with five more years of parts-only coverage.

Key Takeaway

If you’re looking for a high-end counter depth fridge and like models that think outside the box, look no further than one of Samsung's four-door counter depth models. The convertible compartment is an impressive feature on its own, but strong overall cooling and low energy consumption make it even more attractive. Plus, there's that gorgeous fit and finish, as well as Family Hub and Food Showcase options for consumers who are attracted to those features and don't mind spending a bit more.

High-end fridges like these can sometimes feel prohibitively expensive, but they're actually pretty good buys—but at just over $3,500, make sure you really want those extra features before you shell out the cash.

The Cold Hard Facts

The Samsung RF23J9011SR (MSRP $3,599-$3,799) is an excellent counter depth fridge that offers accurate temperature output bolstered by top-notch crispers and low energy consumption.

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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