The eyes have been called windows to the soul, but your next fridge just might be a window to your heart.
A new refrigerator, the Samsung Family Hub, includes a touchscreen interface, a shared family calendar, an “ingredient-tracking” camera, and other technology, but the standout feature just might be the integrated dating app known as “Refrigerdating,” CNET reports.
The app documents the contents of users’ refrigerators, sharing photos of your cold goods as a sort of dating profile, giving potential matches a weirdly intimate look into each other’s lives by way of their food choices. The goal of the gap is to provide an unfiltered look at who a person is based on what he or she eats, although somewhat sidestepping the obvious issue of a selfie-obsessed generation carefully curating their fridge contents for maximum dating impact.
“We hope people can meet under more honest or transparent circumstances with the help of the contents of the fridge, because that can tell you a lot about the personality,” said Samsung PR Manager Elin Axelsson, who is based in Sweden. The concept originated in Sweden, where a large adult single population is perpetually seeking ways to connect with potential partners. Like Ikea, although the concept is distinctly Swedish, the product is available worldwide.
The Refrigerdating app aims to help you find a date based on what’s in your fridge. https://t.co/O4uX4e6Cb8
— CNET News (@CNETNews) February 5, 2019
So could “refrigerdating” be the next Tinder?
Romance experts have weighed in, and many agree that the idea isn’t as far-fetched as it might at first seem.
“Food is really a part of our lifestyle these days, and there are so many nuances of diet — there are people who are gluten-free or vegan — and often they are most understood by someone who also has that diet,” said online dating coach Laurie Davis. Davis went on to point out that although common interest in food might be a starting point, those similarities might reveal deeper compatibility that goes beyond eating habits.
The app is available with or without the Samsung Family Hub Refrigerator, although with Family Hub you can have your photos taken automatically by the appliance. Owners of less technologically advanced refrigerators can still get in on the action, but they’ll have to take their own photos and upload them using either the app or the website, which is accessible via mobile or desktop.
The biggest challenge at the moment for would-be romantics is the relatively sparse user base of the fledgling platform. You may not find a lot of fridge-photographing singles in your immediate area, unless of course you happen to be reading this from Sweden.