Samsung, LG to show off customized home appliances at CES

SEOUL, Jan. 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's two electronics giants, Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc., will highlight products with enhanced customized features at the world's largest tech expo next week, industry insiders said Tuesday, signaling they will have a fierce competition in the home appliance market this year.

Samsung announced Tuesday it will showcase its upgraded BESPOKE refrigerator and artificial intelligence-supported washers and dryers at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021, which is set to take place online from next Monday to Thursday.

BESPOKE refrigerator and AI-powered washers and dryers, branded Grande AI in South Korea, are all part of Samsung's Project Prism, which aims to reflect consumers' lifestyles and offer personalized products.

Samsung hopes those customizable home appliances can post brisk sales in North America following its exhibition at CES 2021.

The company said its washers and dryers with AI features will be launched in the United States next month, while its BESPOKE refrigerator will be available for American consumers in March.

Those products will also hit the shelves in Canada in the second half of the year, Samsung added.

The BESPOKE refrigerator accounted for 60 percent of Samsung's fridge sales in South Korea last year.

For U.S. consumers, the refrigerator will be released in four-door, two-door and one-door models, and will offer a total of eight door panel options. Its four-door BESPOKE 4D Flex will be a water dispenser-embedded refrigerator, according to the company.

LG said Monday it will introduce its new home appliance line, the LG Objet Collection, to foreign audiences at the CES 2021 before it officially sells products in overseas markets this year.

The LG Objet Collection allows consumers to select their own colors and materials for home appliances so that they can create harmony with interior design in their homes. The brand was first unveiled in South Korea in October 2020.

The company partnered with the U.S.-based Pantone Color Institute to offer more color options for LG Objet Collection appliances. For the material selections, LG included FENIX, a high-tech material developed by Italy's Arpa Industriale and known for its resistance to scratches and abrasions.

In South Korea, the company has already released 11 products under the LG Objet Collection brand, which includes refrigerators, a dish washer, a light wave oven, a washer-dryer combo and a clothing refresher.

kdon@yna.co.kr
(END)