Sounds like an airplane is taking off

The fridge was working just fine for the first twelve months that we had it - very quiet, and kept the wine at the appropriate temperature. Two weeks after the warranty ran out, the fridge now sounds like an airplane is taking off in our basement. I've reached out to customer service twice now regarding the issue and have not been contacted since. I'm hopeful that Newair chooses to stand behind their products, but at this point I cannot recommend.

On the Wayfair site it specifically states: Door Orientation: Reversible. No, the door is not reversible as per NewAir. No hardware is included, no female inlets on the frame's right side. The door cannot be rotated 180 degrees as there is a lock on the bottom and the logo would end up upside fown.

Plan on replacing this every 2 years: energy-hungry!

Initially, this wine fridge seemed to perform fairly well installed in my kitchen. It achieved seemingly accurate temperatures in the two zones and made little noise. Then, maybe 2 years into my ownership of this fridge, I noticed the energy usage on my electricity bills rising, and yet little had changed in the stuff I had plugged in around the house. With the help of an electricity usage monitor, I isolated this wine fridge as the energy hog. The compressor almost never shuts off anymore and, to top it off, it jumps between using about 110 watts and using 180+ watts during my observations. (It's rated at 90 watts, by the way.) That's an extra 75-100 kWh per month (or $270+/year *extra*) on my electricity bill, making it about ten times as energy-hungry as Newair claims. On my chat with Newair support, they insisted that this was not likely, rather than offering any real help. And yes, I've maintained it well, kept it clean, and done the usual periodic blowing of air over the coils to keep them clear. Be ready to buy a replacement in 2 years.

[Rewarded Review] Poor cooler design. Bogus 29-bottle capacity.

Poor shelving design since it is impossible to get 29 bottles in, maybe 20. The wood racks are too bulky. They should use a metal wire rack instead. Very poor door hinge design because door cannot open a full 90° if your cabinet opening is 15" unless you place your cooler further out. If you push the cooler all the way in under the counter so the front lines up with the rest of the cabinets, you can only open the door part way. On top of that the massive door handle sticks out about 1.5" which really gets in the way especially if you cannot slide the cooler in. There is absolutely no need for such a massive door handle on such a compact cooler ... Totally out of place. The two zones cooling systems are very quiet and keep temperatures constant. However, it is an odd design they put the cooler temperature zone for white wines on the top racks and warmer temperature zone for red wines in the lower shelves. Typically it is the other way around where the warmer reds are on top shelves and the cooler whites on the bottom ... plain physics where heat rises to the top even with two zones cooling. They have it backwards.

New Review

So I left a few reviews concerning the issues I had with my wine fridge of just 1 year. I had an issue and I was told to purchase another and 20 percent off to fix a 5 dollars issue. I finally got in contact with the right person and the part was sent out to me and all was well. I was truly upset in the beginning because I felt like I could have been helped. When you spend this kind of money on an item and it breaks when it should not I expect a resolve: so they came through my wine fridge can close without the rubber hanging from it. I'm happy and so grateful that they came through for me when I needed. Thanks New Air.

Newair stands behind its quality products.

I purchased three Newair products: two under-counter wine coolers and one under-counter beverage cooler. One of the wine coolers had an issue, and Newair is replacing the unit via a very easy process. In my experience, the best manufacturers are the ones that take care of the inevitable issues that arise without any hassle. That's how Newair has handled the replacement process. With respect to the two other units they are perfect. They look great. They keep the wine and beverages at the perfect temperature. The wine cooler, specifically, is holding two different temperatures (a lower one for white and the higher one for red) dead on. I would definitely purchase another Newair product.

I would never buy this product again

So I purchased this product in October last year and received it in November. I noticed that the rubber was a little loose throughout the time owning it. Then the rubber came off and I thought I could put it back on like I would a rubber around a refrigerator like normal. Not only was I not able to replace it but it had to be defective. The rubber from opening and close must have been to weak and now it is completely hanging. I sent an email asking for a replacement part even if I had to pay for it. But to my avail I was told that they cannot do anything about this part. So I said I will leave a review everyday because it's not fair to spend this amount of money and cannot get a replacement part that probably cost les than 10 dollars to make. Also they reached back out to offer me 40% off of a new one...why would I spend another 8 to 9 hundred dollars on the same product to get the same outcome?? And yet have my post made it to the site.

[Rewarded Review] Well made but does not hold 29 mixed type bottles!

The fridge is built well. Solid. well made shelves. Those are the positives. On the negative side: WILL NOT HOLD more than 19-20 bottles if you use any combination of bottle other than bordeaux. If you use burgundy, chardonnay, champagne, or any other type of bottle only 19-20 bottles will fit. The description is deceptive.

Happy with product and company tech support/service

I purchased two units at the same time for a beverage center. One was the mixed beverage/wine (works fine) and the other was a dual zone wine only. The dual zone fridge unfortunately experienced a problem with the cooling. Tech support through the chat diagnosed the problem and it was determined the unit needed to be replaced. It helps to have photos of the serial number and the display screen to help the techs troubleshoot and get to a resolution. If you have a thermometer to verify the temperature versus the internal sensor that also helps. As a former VP of Service for a medical laser manufacturer I appreciate the straight forward process and prompt commitment to replace the unit. I recommend NEWAIR versus others.

Good Marketing, Poor Function

I've owned it for 8 months and have repressed a review until now on the theory that I wanted to live with it in order to offer a fair review. It's got good and poor qualities, but for me the overall impact has been frustration. I've owned other very nice, quality wine fridges in the past which gives me the ability to compare. This unit has good style, reliable operation, nice features, quiet operation and cools two zones as advertised. But its bottle capacity is misleading and is the primary source of my frustration. Bordeaux bottles are not the primary standard in the wine world. Anyone who drinks chardonnay, pinot noir, pino gris, Rhone wines, Shiraz, or any other non-bordeaux wine will be deeply disappointed. Those wines don't fit between the shelves and very significantly reduce the capacity of this unit. The marketing dept.has out slugged the engineering department for control over this unit and the customer suffers. Advertising a big capacity may bring in sales, but when the vast majority of owners cannot attain that capacity, then customer satisfaction disappears. I cannot recommend this unit. Beware.

Dual Zone 15 Inch Black SST Wine Cooler

These comments are for dual zone SST black wine cooler. Looks really good, as advertised. Packaging was excellent, likely an industry best! Shipping was fast and on schedule, with good communication as to status! As said elsewhere it's a tight squeeze to get the 29 bottles in there, and if any slightly over sized bottles the count will be lower. It's very quiet which was critical for our free standing location. Everything works well with exception of precise temp control in top section - I have to put setpoint roughly 5 degrees lower than desired temp to get what I want. The bottom section seems to be spot on, though. I used multiple thermometers for the checks. There is no way to calibrate the cooler control so it'll always display the wrong temp for the top. That's only reason for deducting a star in rating. It's a nice addition to our home! Highly recommend!

Malfunctioning after 2 Star Review.5 Star Review years

This worked great at first. The different zones let me chill white wine to a lower temperature. However, about 2.5 years after it was purchased, it began beeping continuously and the temperature control began flashing at 32 degrees F. We immediately opened up the fridge thinking it may could have frozen/cracked/exploded the bottles. We found the white wine compartment had stopped cooling. No idea how to troubleshoot this as it's not a "standard problem", but we did try keeping it unplugged overnight and try plugging it into other outlets with the same result. If the longevity is only 2 years, it's ridiculous considering how much it cost up front. Also, unless you're storing 29 bottles of dessert wine, this fridge in no way is equipped to store 29 bottles as advertised. I tried a variety of configurations and only came up with 23-26 bottles depending on stacking ability. Without stacking, it can only hold 15 bottles.

Unusable

The second fridge they sent us is now sitting unplugged in our kitchen, basically being used as a shelf for our wine. We did A LOT of research on wine fridges and settled on the Newair after reading reviews. Our primary requirement was having a low noise level. We selected this fridge and designed our new kitchen island to fit it. Upon receiving it we plugged it in and had it running for a week before we had to unplug it because we couldn't stand the noise. We contacted Newair and they sent a replacement fridge. The new one sounded exactly like the original, so now we have an unplugged wine fridge sitting in our kitchen. Meaning we basically paid a lot of money for a shelf to keep our wine at room temperature. We are so, so disappointed after the amount of planning that went into designing the kitchen with this particular fridge in mind, and now we can't even use it. I would not recommend this fridge. We are out a bunch of money and our wine is sitting there not temperature controlled.

Outstanding Value and Great Performer

I got my NewAir 15" wine fridge less than two weeks ago. I was pleased from the moment it came out of the box. I have two other wine fridges, but they are thermoelectric and their cooling power, especially for white wine, is limited based on the ambient temperature. The wine fridge is packed securely, so it arrived with no issues. Using the quickstart guide, I was able to set this up within a few minutes. Assembly is easy: sliding in the wooden shelves and attaching the stainless steel door handle.

Nearly silent, stylish design, flexible storage

The wine fridge arrived well packaged, with plenty of Styrofoam and crush space to protect it from shipping damage. As a result, the unit was perfect when unpacked! The only assembly required was attaching the front door handle. This was simple to accomplish: just use the two provided screws and the fridge was ready to use. The unit has leveling feet, but no adjustment was required for us. The wine fridge features two temperature zones, one for reds and one for whites. Once I set the temperatures, the desired temperatures were reached within about 15 minutes. I was struck by how quietly the refrigerator ran while it was cooling as quickly as it could. We have owned several other wine fridges and the noise associated with most of them was a real concern. This unit was placed immediately beside the primary TV-watching couch and the silence will really be appreciated. Another plus: the heat from the cooling unit is vented out the front, so it can be built in under a counter or tucked into a corner like we did. The slide-out shelves are arranged to accommodate differing bottle styles and sizes. One shortcoming of many wine refrigerators is their inability to handle champagne, pinot noir, or exotic bottle shapes. With this unit, though, there is a shelf pretty much for every size and shape. Frequently overlooked before purchase, but this is a huge plus for this fridge! After living with this wine fridge for a week, I am very pleased. Best features: nearly silent, attractive styling (the deep blue interior lighting is fun) and flexible wine storage options. I absolutely recommend this unit!

Excellent Product Horrible Service from Newair!

5 stars for the Product only. Cools quickly to desired temperature and motor is quite so you don't hear it. Beautiful design and you can tell by look and feel that it's well made. Little required as far as putting it together. Comes with 2 plastic containers which instructions are COMPLETELY void of. The largest plastic container sits in the inside of cooler at the very bottom when you pull out the bottom shelf however the location for the smaller contain alludes me. A few other reviews mention this and to my knowledge know one knows the reason for this smaller container. So far I am pleased with my purchase and would recommend the product. NewAir service is COMPLETELY another story as I had a horrible experience with the company and likely will not purchase anything from them again.

DO NOT BUY FROM NEWAIR

I bought this unit from Amazon and the first unit I received had a broken shelf inside the unit (somehow). The top would not cool down within 10 degrees of the setting and the bottom would be (for example) set at 60 degrees, the unit would say it is 65 degrees, but it would actually be 70 degrees. I called NewAir and asked for a refund, they said they could not do that since it's been more than 30 days (it took more than 30 days for the first unit to arrive). They offered a replacement. Pictured is the cooling temperatures of the first replacement which also could not cool to within 5-10 degrees of the setting. I then called NewAir again asking for a refund, they refused so I let them send me a single zone unit (same size). GUESS WHAT!!!! It was broken! Pictured if the control module ripped off upon arrival. Guess what else? If you set the unit to 55 degrees, the top of the unit is 55 degrees, great it's working! WRONG - the bottom of the unit is 65 degrees. The bottom of the single zone wouldn't cool within 10 degrees of the setting and the top of the unit. This company is garbage, none of their equipment works. I've had 3 units now and every single one has the same problem, none of them properly cool and they won't give a refund. Good luck with your really large, heavy paper weight if you buy from this company.

Great wine fridge for the casual collector/consumer

I had a previous NewAir wine fridge (21 bottle) that I was using for a while before I received this one. The AWR-290DB is a BIG step up from my previous wine fridge. PROS: The overall build quality is fantastic! The cedar shelves are far superior to the aluminum wire shelves in my previous model and it is much easier to fit bottles of different sizes next to each other. The humidity well is nice and both zones hold the temperature with no fluctuations. The unit is much quieter than my previous model AND, the best part, it locks so I can ensure that my small kids (or wife) can't get into my collection. Finally, from an aesthetics standpoint, it looks really nice! CONS: I saw that the zones were restricted in temperature range when I initially looked at this model online and didn't think much of it, but it did make a little difference when I was looking at which wines I was going to cellar in which zones. I ended up maxing out the temp in the top zone to get it closer to what I would normally cellar at, but it's not too far off and I would rather it be cooler than be warmer if I can't match the zones. Also, the instructions that came with the wine fridge really didn't describe how to assemble the parts that were inside. It would have been nice to have some more guidance but I was able to figure it out. CONCLUSION: This is a great little fridge! If you have a medium to large-sized collection, then you will probably need to buy a larger capacity model. However, if you have a small collection and want a space to chill the wine prior to consumption, then the NewAir AWR-290DB is a solid purchase.

Well built and attractive

We have wanted a wine cooler for some time, but after receiving the NewAir AWR-290DB 29 Bottle Compressor Wine Cooler as a review sample and using it for almost two months we realize we had needed a wine cooler. The wine cooler is solidly built using an attractive combination of stainless steel, glass and black metal. The styling is clean and the blue lighting (which can be turned off) lends a nice accent. We have it in our combined living/dining room and we can only hear the compressor when we aren't listening to music or the television. It isn't noticeable at all over normal conversation. The wine cooler holds 29 bottles if all are standard or Bordeaux-style bottles. If the bottles have wide shoulders, heavy glass, or sloping shoulders, like Burgundy bottles, you will be able to store fewer bottles. I find I get around 20 - 25 depending on the bottle mix. That includes a couple of small dessert wine bottles. Currently we have 25 bottles in a mix of bottle styles in it. To fit magnum or larger-sized bottles you would need to leave out a shelf. Initially the wooden shelves seemed a little lightweight but they hold wine bottles well and slide easily if you place the bottles so they do not rub against the rack above.