is a senior reviewer with over twenty years of experience. She covers smart home, IoT, and connected tech, and has written previously for Wirecutter, Wired, Dwell, BBC, and US News.
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Have you always wanted to scan your groceries at home? If so, the newest smart fridge from GE Appliances is for you. There’s a barcode scanner built into the water dispenser that works along with an interior camera and an 8-inch tablet to help you keep track of what food you need and add it to your digital shopping list.
The GE Profile Smart 4-Door French-Door Refrigerator with Kitchen Assistant is being announced at CES 2026, which kicks off next week, and is slated to launch in April for $4,899 — $500 more than a comparable non-Kitchen Assistant model.
This is GE’s first fridge with a full tablet built in, but not its first appliance with one — that accolade goes to GE’s Kitchen Hub, which was a giant 27-inch tablet attached to an over-the-range microwave.
The company says this time they are looking to use the technology to address specific pain points, such as maintaining your shopping list, meal planning, and managing food waste. “We’re integrating very purposeful technology into the product,” Amy Hite, product manager with GE Appliances, told The Verge. “We didn’t just put an iPad on the front of the door.”
The novel feature here is the built-in scanner, situated below the tablet and above the water dispenser. The idea is that you scan your empty packages as you take them out of the fridge or pantry. This adds them to your shopping list in GE’s SmartHQ App — complete with brand, flavor, and size — ideally making it easier to build your shopping list.
Along with a tablet and scanner, the refrigerator’s water dispenser features hands-free autofill and precise fill. Image: GE Appliances
You can also manually add items via the 8-inch touch screen, which, by being integrated into the water dispenser area, looks less obvious than those on other brands. Another option is the new built-in voice assistant, “Hey, HQ.” The screen also provides access to recipes from Taste of Home and a meal-planning feature, and you can add ingredients you need from a recipe to your list with a few taps.
A camera inside the fridge monitors your crisper drawer, letting you check from the store via the app if you’re running low on spinach. It’s integrated into a flush-mount LED bar above the doors and has a physical shutter.
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