Mollie, I have the KA KBLS20ETSS and like it alot. It has a bottom freezer and the fridge opens to the side instead of the french door type. After having the side opening door, I can't imagine the inconvenience of having to open two doors. I love opening it with one hand and everything is right there at eye level. The only drawback is there is no ice through the door- which I thought I would really miss but the water that comes from the inside dispenser is icy cold and tastes great. The ice maker makes tons of ice but it takes up alot of freezer space. We do have a small refrigerator in the basement, so I haven't had a problem with the limited freezer space. The bottom freezer does force you to be very organized and clean it out regularly. I hope this helps.

My situation is somewhat unusual. This is my home, yes. I personally don't need a built-in fridge. I could care less for myself, although the Maytag I bought when I bought the house is a POS total waste of money. The reason for this reno, though, is that the bulk of my income comes from renting my house to vacationers, primarily in the summer. I am not on or near the saltwater beaches, so I have to rent on the strength of the house. This summer, I had an invasion ants (it's an old house, as well, 1880, the part where the kitchen is). As well, mice have constantly come into the kitchen via the crawlspace below because no one really sealed the kitchen off from the crawlspace when they built the kitchen. I've plugged everything with steel wool, though, and that has taken care of the mice, although they're still able to get in behind the cabinets, just not into the kitchen proper any longer. But with the ant invasion this summer, I had to refund some rent money as an act of goodwill and apology to a few of my guests. I don't want my guests to have these kinds of problems, obviously, and I don't want to have to reimburse rent (my income/livelihood). I had sealed the window on the outer wall and never had a problem with ants, until this year. They are now coming in from behind the dishwasher...long story . My cabinets are horrible. Two drawers have completely fallen apart, and one door split, which I glued back together. They are scratched up, sagging shelving and backing, particle board stapled cheap you-know-what. So, to get the kitchen fully sealed off so critters can't get in there, I have to pull everything out to get to the walls and underfloor. If I'm doing that, I will replace the cabinets, floor and counter (which is now a laminate). My kitchen is a very small, u-shaped kitchen. I can't open the fridge door all the way because it hits the oven door, so cleaning the vegetable bins is very hard because it's very hard to get them out and back in since I can't open the door all the way. But my house has two wings to it, which makes it very appealing for two families who want to vacation together and split rental rent. Each family has a lot of privacy since there is a queen bedroom in each wing, each with its own bath. But with two families, a tiny kitchen is problematic. With the fridge jutting out into the floor, as it does now, two people cannot work in the kitchen. Hence my need for a 24-in. depth fridge. And then you get into, if you're going to spend that kind of money for a refrigerator, get the right one, even if it costs a bit more. You're already spending a *^*(&)ing fortune. I'm getting the paneling for three reasons: I really dislike stainless steel; I am terrified of tenants scratching SS; a SS fridge would look gargantuan in my tiny kitchen. I move out when my house is rented.

Why Hamma? Because most Americans say they need humongous refrigerators/freezers. I hear people say they need to store the meat they killed on a hunt. They have very large parties every weekend. They cater large parties. They have many children who need many snacks all day long. Maybe they live many miles away from the nearest grocery store or supermarket. One of the posters above mentioned pizza boxes and soda/beer can boxes. (Not sure why you'd need to put a whole pizza or beverage box in the fridge.) Personally I have none of those issues. I do not like nor need a large hulking refrigerator. Counter depth is a cost-effective way to avoid the behemoth fridge look in the kitchen. Yes, they do protrude a few inches, but not as much as a conventional depth one. I have the same KA counter depth fridge (cost $2,000) as Anglophilia in my vacation rental home, and after 7 years it's still working fine, and looks great. In my primary residence we went for a 42" side by side built in Subzero, which protrudes only about 2", but is much more expensive ($9,000 retail). Fully integrated Subzeros are totally flush with the cabinets, and require expert installers.

We've been pleased ( hoping I don't jinx it now) with GE Profile PWE23KYNFS IT will be 2 years in June. It also has the internal water dispenser and ice in the freezer, french doors. bottom freezer. I know inflation has happened, but we paid just about $2000 for it. I think it's supposedly 23 cubit feet and we have found with a bit of creativity, we are not pressed for space. We do not have any additional fridge/or freezer space. Re Fisher and Paykel.. I know they were highly regarded. My sister got one about 3 years ago and in the height of the pandemic it died. I don't recall the details, but it was covered under warranty. However, .there was quite a lot of trouble and confusion since there are very few authorized repair people, and getting parts was a real pain. Ultimately they did get it replaced, but it took more than a month, maybe 6 weeks. Communicating with the company ( I think in New Zealand was also a treat between the time difference and believe it or not, the English language usage (with no fridge. luckily they have some great neighbors).