That CD Electrolux FD model that akchicago linked to --- I think that is the one for which holiday weekend discounts or rebates took the price at or below $2k a few months ago. On akachicago's suggestion to look at Samsung CD fridges: Consumer Reports gives Samsung fridges high marks for quietness, temperature performance, etc. Samsung's fridges seem to have average reliablity in the membership surveys. Note that the LED interior lighting is not to everybody's taste. Good idea to get a look at it. (LEDs are theoretically more energy efficient than other appliance bulbs, but the actual improvement in efficiency of the fridge is going to be negligible unless you have teenagers who hold the doors open for use as kitchen lighting.) AFAIK, the biggest benefit to LED lighting is that the "bulbs" do not get hot. No chance of a broken door switch leaving the light on and heating up your fridge or freezer compartment. (I forget whether it was LG or Samsung, but two or three years ago one of them had a spate a problems with defective swtiches and a lot of very irate owners of SxS fridges. A few of the units reportedly overheated and caused fires. A lot of irate postings about that problem, as you might imagine.) I do not know anybody with a Samsung SxS model, let alone a CD version, but several friends do have CD Samsung FD models and have been very pleased with them. Pretty much everybody who buys a Samsung fridge likes it unless and until they happen to need service. Samsung's warranty service and support practices have been uneven and have sometimes generated a lot of ire. Check them out on www.consumerafairs.com. Check for regional patterns, too, because service and support might be better in NYC than, say, my neighborhood in rural Montana. One of the attraction of the Samsung fridges is having dual evaporators and separate fans. Not quite the same as dual compressors but theoretically the dual-set-up lessens the chances of freeze-ups in the venting system and theoretically makes for better temperature regulation. I say "theoretically" only because I haven't seen any testing or data that shows that they are noticably "real-world" better than the current good WP/KA and Frigidaire/Electrolux models. AFAIK, all of the SxS Samsung CD models have through-the-door ice and water dispensers (TTDDs) which may be an issue given your preferences. This is definitely a YMMV thing, however. As I have said before, TTDDs are so important to some of my friends that, for them, fridge storage is merely a nice accessory to the TTDD. As for akchicago's points favoring FD over SxS, I pretty much agree that FD models have more usuable space and give more flexibility in the use of space. Of course, if those were the sole criteria, we'd be buying top-freezer models. :-) A couple of places that I sorta differ. First, while I can see gary dodge's point -- cited by akchicago --- about some of us older folks maybe having trouble pulling on a bottom-freezer drawer and therefore preferring a SxS model, that point strikes me as a six of one and half dozen of the other kind of thing. I says this as a certified chronic old fart. Us oldsters are as apt to have bending problems as problems pulling on a freezer drawer. My personal preference is for FDs in order to have the crispers and deli-drawers up closer to waist level because those are the things I will use the most frequently. Also, my perception from fridge shopping last fall was that bottom freezer models (including FD fridges) seemed to have a bit more crisper space than the drawers in SxS models. WIth the freezer drawer in my KA FD fridge having a couple of sliding compartments inside the drawer, I haven't had any trouble finding and retrieving frozen goods. Although the capacity is slightly less than the freezer compartment of the top-freezer fridge it replaced, I actually find it easier to sort through and find things. OTOH, freezer capacity in FD models will be reduced -- at least compared to a top freezer model --- by the space needed for the compressor and other sealed cooling system components at the bottom rear of the fridge. In top freezer and SxS fridges, that space reduces the space for the bottom mounted crisper drawers. If you go by specs, the specs for SxS freezer compartments may seem a little bit larger than the specified capacities of FD models. But, when you talke usable freezer capacity, I think FDs are a better buy. (Mind, we are talking about 36" wide units here. It hink it is a completely different story when you get to 48" built-in SxS models and the "twin tower" combos.) For me, the problem with freezers in 36" wide SxS fridges is that they have a series of narrow, small compartments. I call it the "card catalog" effect. Handy for folks who like that arrangement but, for me, however, the full width freezer drawer in an FD model results in more spacious, flexible and useable capacity. All the more so because I don't use the ice maker. This post was edited by JWVideo on Sun, Jun 16, 13 at 16:03

cotehele - I only use the Zo for mixing/kneading - it replaces what my hands used to do. I used to slowly add the flour into the liquid ingredients, and beat the mixture by-hand using a Danish Dough Whisk, and using as many as 500-700 strokes to develop as much gluten as possible while the dough was in the bowl. This cut down on kneading time and made a finer bread. When making dough by hand, properly mixing the ingredients is an important step people tend to rush through and not do a good job. If a shaggy lump of dough is tossed on the counter for kneading, then there wasn't enough time spent incorporating the flour into the liquid ingredients, and not enough gluten was developed before beginning the kneading. When it comes to using the bread machine, I rarely allow the dough to rise in the bread machine, preferring to use a dough-rising bucket so I can make sure the dough doesn't over-proof. Dough doesn't tell time, and all the rises are according to time on the machines. Dough ACTUALLY rises based on the ambient temperature, humidity, amount of sugar/sweetener in the dough, and the strength of the yeast. A timed rise is just a good (or bad) guess. It's especially important when using 100% whole wheat flour to keep the dough to just UNDER "double" for the rise. Whole wheat doesn't have the extensibility bleached and unbleached flour does, so allowing the dough to rise to double is actually over-proofing it. If I'm not getting a good oven-spring, that means the dough was over-proofed during one or both of the rises and the yeast was spent before it hit the oven - which seems to happen when I leave the dough in the bread machine to rise. When I use the QUICK DOUGH cycle, I can have dough in about 30 minutes. This includes pre-heating, mixing and kneading. There is also an add-in beep (about 25-minutes into the cycle) so you can add raisins, multi-grain cereal, etc. Placing dough in a dough-rising bucket is a perfect little environment for it, normally taking anywhere from 20-45 minutes to rise (depending on the ambient temperature and the type of dough). I may decide to toss it in the refrigerator for a nice long, slow, cool rise to really develop the flavors. It's nice to have options. If using the BASIC DOUGH SETTING, it takes 67-minutes for 2 rises (45-minutes for the first, stir down, and 22-minutes for the second) for a total of 1:50 for the entire cycle. So I save a lot of time there. I can cut that time by 45-minutes to an hour. Not that speed is everything, it's not, unless you are trying to get out several recipes in a 5-hour bake-a-thon. I also never make less than 2 to 2-1/2+ pounds of dough at a time. I can make 2-3 small loaves, or divide the dough for 1 loaf, 6 sticky pecan rolls, and a pan of dinner rolls (or 6 hamburger buns, or 6 hot dog buns) - all from one recipe of dough. I can program my Zo, but I never have (I hate messing with electronics). I generally use the QUICK DOUGH setting - no rising in the bread machine. That's the nice thing about a Zo, you can use it however you like, personalize the cycles to suit your recipes, and use whatever cycle works out best for you. I have a friend who programs hers for specific breads she makes. She sells her breads, so she has using the Zo down to a fine art. Choose to use the dough cycles or bake the loaf in it. Different strokes, different folks. I do an overnight sponge for our "Everyday Bread", so the Quick Dough Cycle is perfect because most of the work was done overnight in the sponge. The flavors developed, the acidic kefir (or buttermilk) provide lactic acid to break down complex starches and irritating tannins in the wholegrain flour, and make the finished loaf easier to digest. Soaking also increases vitamin content and makes all the nutrients in grains more available. The sponge also makes the bread lighter in texture and color and I get a nice high rise not typical to loaves of 100% whole wheat bread when made with a fast mixing method associated with most of today's recipes and methods incorporated when using a bread machine. The Zo X-20 has a Sourdough cycle, but once again, it's timed and I'd never use it for rising the dough. All starters are different. Some are stronger than others, so 120-minutes for a rise may be too long, or not long enough. So for naturally-leavened breads, I use the bread machine for mixing and kneading, but never for the rise. -Grainlady

Bosch, hands down. It's the only one in your list that uses its heater in every cycle to maintain optimal temperature. The others only use their heaters on 2 - 3 select cycles. In a front loader, since they use so little water, even if you put hot water in, it will end up tepid after the heat is dissipated warming up the cold machine and the cold clothes. Plus profile wash (starts out cold and slowly heats the water to remove stains that are best dealt with at a variety of temperatures), which I use quite a bit - my son creates unbelievable stains and they always come out.

I had kitchen aids (when they were made by Kitchen Aid) for over 20 years. They were a workhorse and cleaned well. I have had a few years experience recently with Bosch and would never go back to Kitchen Aid - Bosch cleans and dries better. Like Dan I went with Miele with my new build (now 2 years) and Miele cleans great and dries better than Bosch I think due to the open door air drying. LG is not a brand I associate with making a great dishwasher. Bosch has a recessed handle that is pretty generic if the handle issue is a big deal for you. Not having a heating element is a huge advantage as now you can put what you want where you want.