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Samsung Bespoke AirDresser hands-on review: Interesting concept with strong execution
After a night of testing the AirDresser, we definitely were left wanting more. It delivers on its promise of freshening clothes, leaving them softer and with a nicer aroma. Until we can test the appliance more extensively, we won’t give the AirDresser a review score.
Samsung told me that it was not just another laundry day when it invited me to spend the night at a Bondi apartment to check out its new Bespoke range of appliances.
Despite that claim, my wife and I spent an evening washing and drying our clothes and bedsheets using the new Bespoke AI washer and dryer, while keeping our jackets fresh and fragrant using the Bespoke AirDresser.
I will give my (or more importantly, my wife’s) thoughts on the washer and dryer combo in another piece. For now, I wanted to spend a bit of time talking about how the massively superfluous Bespoke AirDresser was actually really one of the most novel appliances I’ve seen in a while.
The AirDresser is far from a necessity, instead clearly marketing itself as a luxury appliance for the household.
Its size and bulk (and price) means it’s not really a solution for everybody. But if you can afford it and your home has enough space, there’s actually a lot to like about this high-tech wardrobe.
It’s important to note that this isn’t a full review. I only had a single night to test out the AirDresser, and the way it works meant I could only test it on a handful of pieces of clothing. If I get the chance, I’ll look to test it more thoroughly in the future, though, because I liked what I experienced on that first day.
Samsung Bespoke Airdresser review: Design
When I was a kid, my parents had a set of wardrobes that had mirrored fronts that came apart and could be put pack together. The AirDresser instantly reminded me of those wardrobes.
Standing just shy of 2 metres high, and with a muted mirror finish that remarkably avoided greasy fingerprints, the AirDresser looks like a fairly thin wardrobe.
On the outside. In fact, the only indication it is more than a shiny wardrobe is a discreet panel of buttons on the right-hand side of the door.
Open up the AirDresser, though, and you’ll see that this is not my parents’ daggy old wardrobe. Instead, it’s a high-tech appliance designed to keep your clothing fresh and cleaned with minimal impact.
Across the top of the AirDresser sit 5 custom hangers, with a bar and pegs to attach pants. The leftmost hanger is designed for longer dresses, with a longer drop area.
Because this is a form of wardrobe, the bulk of the AirDresser is empty space until you hang your clothes. About halfway down the space, there is a removable shelf that is conveniently stored on the door, which you can use to steam clean or sanitise your kids’ stuffed toys.
At the bottom of the appliance there is a shelf and within that, a spot to fill with filtered water to create the steam. According to Samsung, that water tank is good for 30 days of use, though I needed to top it up after a night (Samsung said they had filled it for us that day, but I didn’t check to confirm that).
Why would you want an AirDresser?
Apparently, the whole idea behind the AirDresser came from Korean barbecue, where businessmen would wear their suits to restaurants clean, yet walk out pungent with the delicious aroma of fried Korean food.
The AirDresser offers a way to refresh and sanitise clothes without fully cleaning them.
It can deal with odours, wrinkles and certain types of bacteria from not just your jackets and pants, but also cleans other fabric items like stuffed toys.
By using a combination of steam, UV and air, the AirDresser will give promises to give your clothing that extra bit of freshness without the need for a full wash or dry-clean.
Samsung Bespoke Airdresser review: Performance
The new Bespoke Mirror AirDresser offers 14 different cycles for a variety of fabrics, including pretty much everything except faux-leather.
While Samsung promised me it was good for pretty much everything – even items that said, “Dry clean only”, I was still slightly apprehensive to put my casual jacket in there. I was a bit worried that the Polyester/Viscose blend would react poorly to the steam.
So my first attempt with the AirDresser was a Quick steam to freshen up my jacket.
20 minutes of anxious waiting, and I removed my jacket none the worse for wear.
It was still quite creased, but I felt that the quick cycle probably limited the appliance’s ability to remove wrinkles.
When it comes to wrinkle removal anyway, Samsung only promises “up to 80% for non-woollen materials.
Attempt 2: Delicates
After the first attempt didn’t result in shrinking my clothes to Oompa-Loompa size, I decided to try again. I grabbed my wife’s Polyester/Viscose cardigan and put it on a hanger, and popped my jacket in for another round, this time on the delicate cycle.
Instead of 20 minutes, this time the AirDresser was going to spend about 40 minutes intimately steaming our delicate clothing items.
Fortunately, again, the clothing came out feeling fresh, and maybe even a tad dryer than when it went in.
My jacket, having been through two cycles in the AirDresser, was still showing plenty of signs of creasing on the back. It was visibly better after the longer cycle, though.
Attempt 3: Jeans
To give the AirDresser something meaty to do, I decided to pop our jeans in there and put it on the Denim setting.
It’s definitely one of the longer cycles on the appliance, so we ran it overnight to get an idea for how it would work in a more time-sensitive setting.
I have to say, sliding into my jeans early the next morning was nice. They were softer, somehow. They weren’t cold, either – not warm, but just a pleasant temperature to put on. My wife commented that her jeans just felt nicer to put on as well.
It’s hard to put a finger on exactly what was different after a session in the AirDresser, but it was noticeable. Probably a combination of softness, freshness of smell and feel and a more comfortable temperature?
Connectivity
Samsung spent a lot of money acquiring SmartThings back in 2014, and it’s now a pivotal part of the entire home appliance experience. That includes the entire new Bespoke AI range.
One of the key features of the range is Auto Connect, which automatically shares information between devices to make selecting the best mode easy.
For example, if you pop your bedsheets on the bedding setting on the Bespoke AI Washer, when you transfer the sheets to the Bespoke AI dryer, it will automatically suggest the bedsheets drying setting for you.
This functionality also appears in the AirDresser, and while at some times it could be slightly useful, in my limited hands on it did leave me a little confused for a while.
You see, the washer had finished, but before we put the items in the dryer, we wanted to get the AirDresser started on steaming our jeans.
But when we turned the appliance on, it insisted that we were going to do something with the items in the washer. The regular menu of options had disappeared, and in its place a series of drying options had appeared.
I’m sure there’s probably a way around that kind of automated confusion. But in my limited hands-on time, the only way around it, I could find was to put the washing in the dryer, get that started, and then go back to the AirDresser.
Samsung Bespoke Airdresser review: Early verdict
There’s no question that after a night playing around with the Bespoke AirDresser, I definitely wanted to spend more time exploring its features and functions.
It visibly and physically made a difference to the freshness of the clothes we put in there. My jeans felt softer, my jackets fresher.
With a longer experience, I feel it would be great to be able to run my son’s school blazer through there, and freshen my daughter’s collection of stuffed toys.
I also wanted to try out the Auto Connect functionality properly, using the AirDresser to dry certain items of clothing, like school shirts and pants. I’d also love to test the appliance out as a room dehumidifier if given the chance.
But there’s simply no escaping the fact that the AirDresser is not something you need. At an RRP of $2,899, it is not a cheap addition to your home.
And its bulkiness means that you really need to spend time considering where you should put it. While it wasn’t loud, it was definitely loud enough to distract when placed right next to our bed.
But you know what? For its target audience, I don’t think the size or bulk really matters. This is an appliance geared towards professionals who can comfortably afford the price and have large enough homes that installing it wouldn’t pose too much of a problem.
Buy the Samsung Bespoke AirDresser online
Samsung provided an overnight experience in Bondi to test the Bespoke AirDresser.
