Is there only a handful of appliance mfgrs?

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  • JettaKnight

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    I'm looking for a chest freezer and I noticed that the Fridigaire, the GE, the Insignia and others are all almost alike except for minor cosmetics.

    My old GE Profile dryer - built just like a Frigidaire.


    What gives? Why should I pay more for a GE when the Insignia is cheaper and the same?
     

    eldirector

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    You are pretty much correct. My BIL is in the repair business. Like almost every other manufactured good, there are really only a few top-level manufacturers, and the difference is really about features, not core construction.

    The difference between a Kenmore and a Frigidaire is cosmetic and features.

    A quick googling finds this list:
    Appliance411 The Purchase: Who Makes What?
     

    JettaKnight

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    The only difference I could tell from photos, was the GE had an indicator light, the Insignia had a plastic filler in the same spot.

    Edit:
    These companies all sell the same (as best as I can tell) 7.0 cu ft freezer:
    Frigidaire
    GE (different lid)
    Insignia
    Continental Electric
    Premium
    Koolatron
    Equator
    Criterion (different lid)
     
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    eldirector

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    Should you buy one over the other? Good question. It really is mostly about features. Do you need the plastic filler, or the indicator light?

    The other difference is usually the warranty. The "high end" version of the same appliance usually has the better/longer warranty over their "bargain" version. But, you pay for it.

    Side note on warranty: my BIL often laughs that manufacturers know EXACTLY how long their products will last. Warranties expire RIGHT when things start to fail. That, and the more whiz-bang features, the more likely something will die early, and the more expensive it is to fix.
     

    eric001

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    I'd noticed very little difference in chest freezers in particular several years ago, when I was looking around everywhere for one. I ended up just getting a cheap one from Sams Club that is a manual defrost and never looked back or felt I could've/should've done better.

    I'd recommend going with what's convenient and conveniently priced.

    In contrast, my mom had a huge chest freezer made by GE in the early '50's that ran wonderfully for 40+ years before her basement flooded and the motor burned itself out. The odds of finding one made that well today??? ZERO percent chance.
     

    HoughMade

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    amboy49

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    I'd noticed very little difference in chest freezers in particular several years ago, when I was looking around everywhere for one. I ended up just getting a cheap one from Sams Club that is a manual defrost and never looked back or felt I could've/should've done better.

    I'd recommend going with what's convenient and conveniently priced.

    In contrast, my mom had a huge chest freezer made by GE in the early '50's that ran wonderfully for 40+ years before her basement flooded and the motor burned itself out. The odds of finding one made that well today??? ZERO percent chance.



    I was told the reason refrigerators and freezers made in the 40’s and 50’s last(ed) a lot longer is because they only ran 1/3 as much. Think about, frig/freezers built back then weren’t self defrosting. Therefore, both now run three times as much as those made many decades ago.

    Take your choice - longer life and defrost it yourself every3 months or plug it in and forget about it until it quits running.
     

    Hoosierdood

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    I've been selling appliances for a couple years. GE, Frigidaire, and Whirlpool all have their own manufacturing, and are different. Insignia is the Best Buy brand. Kenmore is the Sears brand. Insignia and Kenmore just bid out to one of the Big 3 to build their appliances and put their name on them. Other companies like Lowe's and Home Depot do this with their house brands as well. Most appliances are made by those 3 manufacturers. Then you have Samsung and LG that don't really build for other brands. You can buy an Insignia, and it will be built by a major manufacturer for less money. Don't know if I could recommend Kenmore with all the Sears stores closing recently.
     

    HoughMade

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    I was told the reason refrigerators and freezers made in the 40’s and 50’s last(ed) a lot longer is because they only ran 1/3 as much. Think about, frig/freezers built back then weren’t self defrosting. Therefore, both now run three times as much as those made many decades ago.

    Take your choice - longer life and defrost it yourself every3 months or plug it in and forget about it until it quits running.

    My Mom had a refrigerator in her basement from the mid-'50s that was running right up until the time she moved out of the house earlier this year and had to get rid of it.
     

    JettaKnight

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    My Mom had a refrigerator in her basement from the mid-'50s that was running right up until the time she moved out of the house earlier this year and had to get rid of it.

    That doesn't explain why a chest freezer that 5-10 years old and covered in dirt and stickers list for $100 on Craigslist. :n00b:
     
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