Introduction

The {{product.name}}'s accompanying washer is the Whirlpool WFW94HEX.

Front

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Controls

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Interior

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Sides

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The sides of the {{product.name}} are featureless.

Back

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Speed & Performance Overview

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The {{product.name}} had some mixed results on our drying tests. It looks like it handles the basic cycles well, if slowly, but we weren't impressed with the specialty cycles like Quick Dry and Bulky Items. Neither was able to dry up much water, and the latter took a half hour more than the stated time to complete the cycle. Even though the Normal and Delicate cycle did a good job drying the load, they took significantly more than their stated times to do so.

Normal Cycle Performance

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The {{product.name}}'s Normal cycle managed to evaporate 98.54% of the water in our test load. To give this percentage a bit more context, we added a little over 5 lbs of water to our dry test load and the {{product.model}} was able to get rid of all but 0.1 lbs of it. That would normally be quite the remarkable performance, but the {{product.model}} took almost twice the estimated time to complete the cycle.

Below is a chart comparing the {{product.name}} to some competing models.

Delicates Cycle Performance

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The Delicates cycle was another functional win for the {{product.name}}, which was able to get out about 93% of the water. Again, however the {{product.model}} took a really, really long time to get there.

Bulky Cycle Performance

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Our bulky cycle test is a bit tough. A comforter is just about the largest, thickest item you would realistically put in a dryer. It balls up as it tumbles around, creating a damp center that's shielded from the dryer's heat. While the {{product.name}} was able to get out over half of the water, we found the comforter was still somewhat damp in places. Combine the lackluster drying with the drawn-out cycle time, and you're looking at a fairly mediocre performance.

Quick Dry Cycle Performance

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You probably shouldn't use the {{product.name}}'s Quick Dry cycle for anything but a few items at a time. The 13 minute cycle stuck to its stated time, but only removed about 38% of the water from the load. The wet weight of our test load is a little over 7 lbs, of which the {{product.model}} removed about 1 of that. After the cycle, the laundry felt very wet to the touch, about what you'd expect from a very high spin cycle on a washer.

Below you can compare the {{product.name}}'s Quick Dry cycle to similar cycles on competing models.

Dry Cycles

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You can select a dry cycle preset with the {{product.name}}'s control dial. The presets are split up into two groups. The Eco Auto Cycles are along the top of the dial, and include the Delicate, Casual, Normal, Bulky Items, and Heavy Duty cycles. The Manual Cycle are underneath the dial, and include Timed Dry, Quick Dry, and the Quick Refresh steam cycle.

Below we've made a list of all the dry cycles available on the {{product.name}}, along with the description offered in its manual.

Customization

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The {{product.name}} has a large display to the right of its control dial, which you can use to customize you own dry cycle. Here you can customize your wash cycle by adjusting the delay, temperature (for manual cycles) and dryness level (for auto cycles). You can also set the volume of the damp dry and end cycle alerts. Below the display are controls for EcoBoost, wrinkle shield, drum light, and a control lock.

Below we've listed all the customization options available, along with a description of what they do.

Additional Drying Options

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There are no additional drying options available.

Controls

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The {{product.name}}'s control dial is one of the more easy to use ones we've seen. There is a thick line on the dial that clearly indicates where it's pointing. Each preset is marked with a blue LED that will blink when selected, so it's very easy to tell which setting you're about to use. Selecting a preset will elicit a tone, and the display to the right will show that preset's stats: time, temperature, dryness level, and chimes. If you want to alter these options, just press the button to scroll through its settings. As you do, the unit will play descending tones as you browse from the most intense setting to the least.

Overall, the controls are intuitive, but the customization tools are a bit busy; they could potentially overwhelm those who aren't used to so many options.

Door

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The {{product.name}}'s door opens easily and shuts solidly. It has a large handle that's easy to grab, but will require a free hand to do so. Like most other dryers, the {{product.model}} has a see-through door so you can monitor your laundry as it dries.

Lint Trap

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The lint trap is located towards the front of the {{product.name}}'s interior, and lifts out for easy cleaning.

Comparison Overview

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This comparison is a bit of a blow-out: the {{product.name}} features almost better performance, a slightly better interface, and costs about $300 less. We'd typically elaborate on the pros and cons of each device, but this match-up is fairly cut and dry.

Performance

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The {{product.name}} outperformed the {{product.name}} on every one of our tests. Almost across the board the {{product.name}} took more time to do less drying.

Customization & Features

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The {{product.name}} and {{product.name}} offer about the same number of customization options, dry cycles, and features. Neither one was particularly impressive in this regard.

Design

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Both units feature good designs in terms of aesthetics, but we thought the {{product.name}} had a slightly less confusing interface. Our main gripe with the {{product.name}} is that its display looks really cluttered with all its customization options listed. The {{product.name}} features a much cleaner layout that's less likely to overwhelm.

Comparison Overview

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The {{product.name}} is cheaper, dries its loads fairly well, but it takes a lot longer to complete its cycles. If you're looking for efficiency, the {{product.name}} is probably worth the extra money.

Performance

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Customization & Features

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Both units have about the same customization options and feature sets. The {{product.name}} has a single steam setting, but that's about it.

Design

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Both units had some failings in terms of design. The {{product.name}} had a somewhat cluttered display, which could be confusing or overwhelming. The {{product.name}} had a clean, intuitive interface, but the dryer door wouldn't stay closed half the time we shut it. We had no such problems with the {{product.name}}'s door.

Comparison Overview

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Both units have some design issues, and similar performances. The area where the {{product.name}} shines and the {{product.name}} doesn't, however, is features. If you want hands-free ironing, or wrinkle guard features, you'll have to go with the {{product.name}}.

Performance

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Customization & Features

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The {{product.name}} has significantly more features than the {{product.name}}. The {{product.name}} also has several steam options, like a pre-ironing setting, an advanced wrinkle guard, and a static reducing option; the {{product.name}} doesn't have any steam features.

Design

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Neither unit has a perfect interface. We thought the {{product.name}}'s display was cluttered, which made it appear overly complicated. The {{product.name}}'s control dial sometimes didn't clearly indicate which cycle you had selected.

Conclusion

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We were a bit disappointed with the {{product.name}}. It didn't excel in any of our tests and in a lot of cases took more time to evaporate less water. The unit also doesn't feature many advanced options or any steam cleaning settings. Additionally, we really weren't a fan of its display, which crammed a lot of information into a small area, posing more distraction than functionality. At a retail price of roughly $1044, the {{product.name}} certainly isn't going to be the budget option, and without solid performance it finds itself outclassed against many competing models.