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A short time from now, on a CES show floor far, far away...

(Cue the fanfare.)

THE HAIER R2-D2 MOVING REFRIGERATOR

It is a period of calm before the madness of January's Consumer Electronics Showcase in Las Vegas. Haier Asia, striking from a public relations office in Miami, Florida, has won its first appliance-related headline of the season.

During the opening week of "Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens," it releases secret plans to the ultimate weapon -- THE R2-D2 MOVING REFRIGERATOR, a remote-controlled mini-fridge with enough cooling power to chill beverages for an entire binge-watch of the original trilogy.

Pursued by journalists eager to cover any and all things Star Wars, the full-size replica droid with authentic lighting, projection, and sound effects races towards Nevada at its top speed of 1 kilometer per hour, custodian of the geek appeal that can win its maker a fair share of fanboy love, and restore the refrigeration category's place in the blogosphere spotlight...

Oh, and it sells for just under a million yen in Japan. Haier Asia showed off a prototype of the droid back in June, though the built-in projector seems to be a new addition to its capabilities (but who knows if the 720p HD projector will be good enough to help a Princess save the universe).

International orders aren't being accepted at this time, but if you're curious, that price comes out to about $8,000 (or roughly £5,500/AU$11,500). We'll try and track it down next month in Las Vegas.