RE: Samsung Top-Loading Washer. The tub does rotate to fill the machine, but the water sprays around the edges, not toward the middle. I watched the entire cycle by shining a flashlight through the glass top. Water sprayed around the edges until the predestined amount was achieved. The pair of sweat pants in the middle floated, but never - throughout the entirety of the cycle - did the leg EVER submerge in the water. The gentle side-to-side swishing did, however, manage someway or another to tangle the sleeves and legs that WERE submerged to the point that it knotted them and threw the load off-balance. I’ve been doing laundry for quite a few decades now. My parents purchased a washer/dryer when i was about 4 years old and those appliances managed to wash clothes that looked and smelled clean and better yet - they did it for close to 40 years. I learned to do laundry with those appliances. My mother taught me how to place items in the machine to make sure the load was balanced and then choose the appropriate water level, temperature, and wash cycle. We didn’t struggle with unbalanced loads or tangled clothing. You set the machine, started the cycle, and walked away. When you came back, the load was done and ready for the dryer. I find it insulting that the companies engineering products now assume that I’m too freaking stupid to make my own decisions about the appropriate settings for something as simple as washing a load of laundry. I’m not so stupid as to stick my arm into a moving spin cycle and I actually parented my children to the point they knew that I would not allow them to climb into the appliances and/or drink bleach or eat detergent pods (so no need to lock the freaking lid of the washing machine). I managed to raise my children without child-proofing my house and treating cleaning products like we were housing plutonium. I taught them how to do age-appropriate chores and safely use household appliances. Fast-forward to now … Instead of cultivating an educated, self-reliant, intelligent society, we’re engineering with an attempt to make everything idiot-proof, consequently producing generations of idiots that can’t make reasonable decisions about their everyday existence. Good grief. And quite frankly I’m sick to death of hearing how environmentally friendly a company is that produces and “energy efficient” appliance that will need to be replaced every 8 years or so - the technology has existed since my childhood to produce a product that will last 20+ years. How environmentally sound is it to save a few gallons of water, yet send THREE machines to the landfill during the same time-frame that we used to send only ONE worn-out machine?!?! There is a serious disconnect with common sense going on here - I’m sick of things engineered for the lazy and the stupid. That washing machine sitting in my laundry room has delivered to me a resounding message from Samsung - and the message is … “We think you’re a blithering idiot who’s too stupid to operate a washing machine, so we’re taking the ability to make ANY decisions away from you.” We have computers in kindergarten classrooms, but society thinks adults are too stupid to learn to use a washing machine …

bellavita2, I bought a Maytag Bravos MTW6700 in May of 2008. (That model has been superseded by the models now available.) As you may already know, it's an Energy Star HE top loader - no agitator, huge capacity (mine is 4.6 cu ft), very efficient when it comes to water and electricity. I've not had any problem at all with mold, mildew, odor, or vibration. I do leave the top open after I've put wet laundry into the dryer; it's only shut when laundry is in it. Because my washer is a top loader, it can go on either side of the dryer with no problem. It is unbelievably quiet; the only sound I ever hear is water going in or draining out. I like it that there is a chime (not a buzzer) which alerts me when the washer is finished. The chime can be set on LO, HI, or OFF. ALL my experiences thus far with this washer have been excellent - far beyond good. There haven't been any cons to this point. The settings are very easy to use. I like it that I can choose water temp (hot/cold - warm/warm - warm/cold - cool/cold - cold/cold), spin speed (HI, MED, or LO), stain (pre-wash) cycle, extra rinse if needed, fabric softener if desired. I also really the selection of wash cycles -- Bulky for comforters, Sheets for sheets, Whites (the only cycle which uses the bleach dispenser), Normal (I use it for everyday clothes), Jeans/T-shirts, Wrinkle Guard (my favorite for our really nice church/office clothes), Delicates (for fine washables), Hand Wash (I use it for sweaters and some "extra"-fine washables). I really like the Soak cycle; I always use it on my guys' really dirty whites. I also like having a Rinse/Spin cycle and Spin cycle only. I use them more than I thought I would. I like the detergent, bleach, and fabric softener dispensers. I use vinegar in the f/s dispenser when I wash towels, which helps to keep them soft and fluffy, as it strips all detergent out. (Fabric softener coats towels, which greatly reduces their absorbency.) I also often combine vinegar w/liquid fabric softener (about half and half) when washing clothes, sheets, and comforters. I can wash many more laundry items per load in this washer (at least twice as many, sometimes 3x as many) than in the traditional top loader I had, which had the largest capacity on the market at the time I bought it. I can wash a king-size comforter in my washer with no problem. Whereas I used to wash at least 7-10+ loads per week, now I wash 3-5 loads each week because I can wash so many things at once. This washer gets my laundry much cleaner than any other washer I've ever owned, and it is gentle, even with the fast spin. I do use lower spin speeds on fine washables. When I wash sheets, they do not tangle as they used to do in my old washer w/agitator, and they dry much smoother, too. I haven't had any problem with my clothes wrinkling -- I do shake out clothes as I put them in the dryer, something I've always done. I usually get them out of the dryer when the chime sounds (it has a LO or HI or OFF setting) and immediately fold or hang them. If I can't get to the dryer immediately for some reason, I love the optional "Extra Time" setting (can't remember its exact name) which keeps tossing the clothes in cool air for up to 90 minutes. I don't use regular laundry detergent, for I've read over-sudsing can cause damage to HE machines, as well as invalidate a warranty. An online article compared using regular laundry detergent in an HE washer to using regular dish detergent in a dishwasher. I'm sorry I don't have that link for you; perhaps someone else will. I have a Maytag Bravos washer; my DIL has a Sears Oasis Canyon Capacity washer. Most people think they are identical, as they are both HE TL's built by Whirlpool (as is the Cabrio). However, she had odor problems with her washer when using liquid detergent -- a problem I've never had. She switched to using powder only and says that solved the problem. I use HE powder and liquid detergents, depending on what type laundry I'm washing, and I've never had a problem of any kind. I don't know anyone personally who owns a Cabrio. People have posted here (and elsewhere) about it in the past, both positive and negative. I've seen ads which say the newest Cabrio model has the largest capacity of any washer on the market -- 5 cu ft. Since my 4.6 cu ft washer holds our king-size comforter and huge loads of laundry, I'm satisfied with it. I'm not convinced that Cabrio/Oasis/Bravos washers (often identified as "COB" here) are totally identical, though they are similar and are based on the same principle. Several sources, both online and IRL, have told me Bravos washers are built with commercial parts, are the top of the line for that type washer. If I were buying a Bravos washer today, I would probably buy the one with the internal heater (which was not available when I bought mine) because I really like that feature on my dishwasher. However, I haven't had a problem with water not being hot enough, as some people here have had with other washers. Our hot water is good and hot, even more so in the summertime. We keep our hot water heater set at 140 degrees. I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any questions.

I am fairly sure that crooks101 didn't mean it that way. It is not about selling a broken washer, but about selling a washer that doesn't work in a specific setting or doesn't fullfill somebody's specific expectations without being broken. Something like a vibration problem doesn't mean that the same washer won't work on a concrete floor. In crooks101's case, the Miele didn't use the heater on the normal cycle and Miele won't "fix" it. There are many Miele owners who don't care about that issue though. I agree, however, that a good return policy is always better than having to sell an appliance that is almost new. After several years of using a washer, I wouldn't be too concerned about its resale value anymore. And you can still sell something that is broken if you disclose the problem and somebody wants it anyway for spare parts or so...

@ annie1971 I don't mean any offense, but why did you have such a reaction to dianne47's comments? Look at what you said in your original post... "My Kenmore Elite FL washer (about 7 years old) is scaring me." "it sounds like it's going to spin through the roof, leaving all kinds of metal pieces behind." "I'm a laundry room snob and must have matching W/D, even though the drier is doing well." Given the alarming, dramatic statements you made originally, and assuming they are true, I would have to concur with dianne47. If the machine is in such bad shape, you are taking extraordinary risks with your family's safety by continuing to use such a machine. Also, the reason dianne47 told you to put your current dryer on Craigslist was because you were the one who stated that you were a laundry snob and must have a matching washer/dryer pair. But when someone says something you don't agree with, you get snippy. I think everyone is here trying to offer helpful suggestions, even dianne47. If the situation isn't as dire as it would appear, maybe next time you can choose your adjectives more wisely and use less colorful language to describe your situation more accurately.