The reason the fridge connects to the internet is to give the fridge manufacturers new income streams.
Stream 1- It will phone home to tell the manufacturer what products you use so they can profile you for targeted advertising on the inbuilt screen.
Stream 2- It will arrange for delivery of items that are running low or nearing "end of life" from the retailer who provides a percentage of all sales to the fridge manufacturer (of course it won't connect with your "preferred provider") and of course the provider will change their systems every 5 years or so such that you need to update your fridge software but
Stream 3- because the manufacturer doesn't provide software upgrades anymore... you will need to buy a new fridge. (see story on Sony Bravias and YouTube).
If you disconnect the fridge from the internet it won't be able to "phone home" so won't know what to do when the temperature changes. You can't have these smart devices operate autonomously.
IOT and Smart devices are not about making things better for the end user. They are about giving control back to the manufacturers and giving them additional ways to "milk" their customers.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
