Image credit: GE

By Tina Trinh @TinaTrinhNYC

We all know we should drink more water.  While many people drink bottled water, we know it's not always the healthiest or most environmentally-friendly choice. Water straight from the tap costs almost nothing, but even tap water isn't trouble-free.

So what to do?  One option is to drink filtered tap water.  It costs less than buying bottled and is also more environmentally-friendly.  And appliance-makers are now starting to incorporate water-filtration technologies into their products.  Take GE's latest refrigerator, the Profile.  The slick, French door-fridge provides filtered water and also manages to incorporate some cool technology.

The Profile has an "advanced" filtration system which claims to remove 98 percent of five trace pharmaceuticals from water and ice.  The water filter is located inside a panel along the door's edge, making for quick and easy replacement.

Image credit: GE

Hands-free autofill is a neat feature that fills your glass automatically without your having to babysit it.  Two sensors bounce sound waves off the rim of the container, processing information about its height and size, and accordingly dispensing just the right amount of water.  You can stick almost any type of container underneath the dispenser, walk away, check your email, or tend to what's cooking on the stove, and return later to your automatically-filled container of filtered water.

The Profile goes on sale in June and retails for $2,999.  While it's definitely not cheap, it's nice to see appliance makers recognizing consumers' growing concern for safe drinking water.