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Samsung upgrades Flex Duo's door at CES

Thanks to a hinged door, Samsung's newest Flex Duo range is the most flexible yet.

Ry Crist Senior Editor / Reviews - Labs
Originally hailing from Troy, Ohio, Ry Crist is a writer, a text-based adventure connoisseur, a lover of terrible movies and an enthusiastic yet mediocre cook. A CNET editor since 2013, Ry's beats include smart home tech, lighting, appliances, broadband and home networking.
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Ry Crist
2 min read

LAS VEGAS -- Samsung's Flex Duo Range is getting a flexibility upgrade for 2015, with a new, hinged door that'll let users open just the top half of the oven. Samsung calls the feature "Dual Door," and it'll make its retail debut this year, along with the rest of the new appliances the Korean manufacturer announced at the Consumer Electronics Showcase in Las Vegas.

Flex Duo ranges come with a divider accessory that slides in horizontally, splitting the oven cavity in half. Essentially, this creates two mini-ovens that users can heat and control independent of one another. With Dual Door, they'll be able to open the top half without bothering the bottom, which should allow for even greater flexibility while cooking two things at once.

The new door is also designed for users who find themselves leaving the divider in place and using the top half of the oven almost exclusively, save for large-sized holiday roasts. Samsung executives tell us that their market research indicates that a surprisingly high number of Flex Duo owners use their ovens in this way, citing faster pre-heat times and better energy efficiency.

Tyler Lizenby/CNET

The Flex Duo's new Dual Door Range boasts an oven capacity of 5.9 cubic feet, along with convection fans for both the top and bottom halves of the oven. Up top, you'll find a smooth, electric cooking surface with five burners, including a bridge burner and a burner you can adjust between three different sizes.

The new Dual Door Flex Duo Range comes with a new price, too. At $1,900 (about £1,220 or AU$2,330, converted roughly) it sits right in between last year's models , which initially retailed for $2,500 (£1,610, AU$3,070), and new lower cost Flex Duo ranges also making their debut at CES. Those include the most affordable Flex Duo range to date, which will retail for $1,500 (£970, AU$1,840).

There's no gas version of the Dual Door Flex Duo range, at least not yet, although Samsung is announcing a new Flex Duo gas range for 2015 that'll come with a regular door and retail for $1,800 (£1,160, AU$2,210).