I have a five year old under counter drawer fridge, from which any comparisons would be futile. I'd guess that the first purchasers of this new line will be designers who want a certain look, and use their rich customers as guinea pigs. :)

Refrigerators are pretty basic. If you want the looks, go for it. Other than some of the Vikings of recent years, which just kind of fell apart, I haven't heard a lot of complaints about fridges. You plug them in, they keep food cold. Sometimes the ice/water systems are delicate and need tinkering and/or replacement over time. The works collect dust and need cleaning. I overused a supercooling setting on my (Miele) freezer and the whole works froze up and needed to be defrosted.

Some fridges are loud (including my five year old Marvel undercounter refrigerator drawers, which have little in common with the fridge you're looking at). Some make a not loud, but annoying whumpawhumpa thrumming. Some fridges have cold spots where the milk and lettuce freeze. Some have warm spots where it's good to keep the butter so it's more spreadable.

Glass front fridges are only for those who want the look. They have fewer ease of storage features (my Miele has drawers with independent temperture/humidity settings which keep certain foods at optimum better, and a deli drawer for flat packages), and force you to "stage" your fridge so it looks nice inside or have a cluttered mess showing always. I arrange my fridge for ease of use, which means it looks pretty decent when I open it, but I still keep the greens on top of the tall bottles because they seem to like it there. That wouldn't look pretty on display.

If you're satisfied that the Marvel would fit your needs, lifestyle and design aesthetic, go for it. It'll keep your food cold. So will an import from the big box store, of course...

thanks plllog. yes, it is about the looks. have been fascinated with glass front fridges since I saw one in a distant cousin's house thirty years ago. I'm going for a high end fridge with the remodel/new addition......would hate to think of leaving the bulk of the savings plan to the nephew who will go through it in a few years. after posting I searched for marvel (should have done that first) and found some information.

Hey, nothing wrong with keeping it out of his grubby hands and getting what you want. :) Keep in mind that there are a lot of SubZero built-ins that have full glass fronts too, and a longer track record. You can have the surrounds stylized to a commercial look if that's what you're going for. The whole trend started with cash strapped artist types in non-trendy lofts (the lots of space for cheap because manufacturing is dying type, not the chichi condo type). They'd buy used storefront commercial fridges for cheap and didn't care about the noise or anything.

Glad you found your information. If the Marvel does what you want and doesn't do anything annoying, it might be worth the gamble. Maybe make sure that there's a good customer service environment in case you need repairs (i.e., local servicemen and available parts, plus an easy contact point for the company).

I have a Marvel bar fridge with a glass door and a Marvel wine storage cabinet with a glass door. They stack one on top of the other. They are designed for the space challenged. They work. They aren't especially noisy. They in no way resemble what you are considering except for the name and the glass.

I often wonder why Traulsen is considered more often. I have seen them installed in a few homes. One was a chef who did catering on the side and the other was in a home owned by someone who had more money than sense.

Following! Considering a Marvel 48" SxS....