That "degrees below ambient" spec means this is a Peltier fridge.
I love the Peltier effect, I really do, like from a physics perspective it's just fascinating. But because of how the materials work, Peltier coolers generate a ton of waste heat. They're appropriate in situations where you only need a little bit of cold like lasers, or where being vibration-free is absolutely required, like telescope CCDs. Places where the dismal efficiency is worth it.
A desk fridge is neither, and you're better off with a compressor-based fridge. Of course there's more up-front cost with that route, which suggests that it's only economical with a larger fridge in the first place, which is sensible enough given the data.
Peltier fridges are only popular in this market segment because they're cheap to make, and at purchase-time nobody considers the energy cost of running them continuously.
^ Agreed, not a good choice for normal refrigerator duty, though I could see someone who pays for electric heat, using it in winter...
If you're keeping your room at, say 70F and since it is no less efficient at converting electricity to heat than any other electric heater, I could live with 34F beverages, but it would take several hours to get that cold if you start with room temp beverages.
Comments & Reviews (2)
I love the Peltier effect, I really do, like from a physics perspective it's just fascinating. But because of how the materials work, Peltier coolers generate a ton of waste heat. They're appropriate in situations where you only need a little bit of cold like lasers, or where being vibration-free is absolutely required, like telescope CCDs. Places where the dismal efficiency is worth it.
A desk fridge is neither, and you're better off with a compressor-based fridge. Of course there's more up-front cost with that route, which suggests that it's only economical with a larger fridge in the first place, which is sensible enough given the data.
Peltier fridges are only popular in this market segment because they're cheap to make, and at purchase-time nobody considers the energy cost of running them continuously.
If you're keeping your room at, say 70F and since it is no less efficient at converting electricity to heat than any other electric heater, I could live with 34F beverages, but it would take several hours to get that cold if you start with room temp beverages.
Thank you!