Door-in-door compartments let you open the front panel of your refrigerator door to access the in-door shelves without actually opening the door itself. LG was the first to popularize the feature, followed closely by Samsung. Whirlpool's in the mix, too, with a recently-announced door-in-a-door fridge of its own. Now, GE wants in, with a number of new "Door in Door" refrigerators in its roster, including the GFD28GELDS, which retails for $3,100.

Full disclosure: I think door-in-door compartments are largely a gimmick, but lots of shoppers seem to like them, so it's understandable that GE would jump in with the feature. And, to the team at GE's credit, they helped distinguish their Door in Door compartment from the competitors by giving it a specially designed shelf that rotates out of the fridge on a thick, sturdy metal hinge.

But like many of the door-in-door compartments that came before it, the one in this refrigerator causes those in-door shelves to run warmer than the rest of the fridge. That's a steep trade-off for a feature that doesn't offer much actual utility -- and it's really the only notable feature this fridge has to offer. 

If getting a door-in-door compartment into your kitchen is really your top priority, then I say go with a less expensive side-by-side fridge that has the same feature, like the Samsung RH25H5611SR (the performance won't be any better, but with a side-by-side, that door-in-door compartment will be twice as big). Otherwise, I think it's a feature that just isn't worth it on its own, and that makes the GFD28GELDS a tough fridge for me to recommend.

The GFD28GELDS sports GE's "black slate" finish, which, as the name suggests, is just a darker version of its standard slate finish. Like before, black slate is a little less shiny than traditional stainless steel finishes, and it's also a little better at repelling fingerprints.

Aside from that (and aside from the Door in Door compartment), this is a pretty typical French door fridge, and not one that's loaded with many extra features. Unlike other GE models, there's no auto-filling water dispenser or auto-fill pitcher, no Keurig coffee-brewing accessory, no temperature-adjustable drawer and not even any shelves in the fridge that slide in or fold up and out of the way. That Door in Door compartment is really the only thing elevating this fridge above entry level, at least as far as features are concerned.

Enlarge Image

The one notable thing about that Door in Door compartment, at least as far as door-in-door compartments are concerned, is that the middle shelf sits on a thick, sturdy slab of metal that rotates out of the fridge for easy access. That metal is actually a pretty thoughtful part of the shelf's build -- it's meant to keep your kid safe should he or she ever try to pull it out of the fridge and climb on it.

Still, I'm not sure that I see the point. Is being able to rotate a shelf a few inches out of the fridge really such a convenience? Is it even worth it if it's going to invite your kid to do pull-ups in the first place? I applaud GE for the creativity and the thoughtful execution, but the appeal of that shelf eludes me.

Sizewise, this is a fairly roomy refrigerator. Inside, you'll find a total of 27.8 cubic feet of storage space, 18.6 of which are allocated to the fridge. Similar-size French door models with ice dispensers from brands like Whirlpool, LG, and Samsung all retail for at least $2,700 or so even before you start adding in door-in-door compartments, so at $3,100, I wouldn't say that the GFD28GELDS is unfairly priced for what it offers.