Hello- I am new to these forums, but am looking for feedback on sliding glass doors. We are looking to replace an Andersen 400 series standard sliding glass door with a larger, 8 foot wide door with a transom above bringing the height to 8 feet also (standard height door with window to add height). The decisions feel overwhelming!

We love the performance of the 400 series door. It glides smoothly, and the pull out locking mechanism feels nice and secure. In fact, I'm getting lots of flack from siblings who recently came to visit who can't believe I would take out a perfectly good, expensive sliding glass door and replace it with a lower-rated door just to add 2 feet of glass. But, I love windows and am pretty sure this is the route I want to take.

I am not a fan of the wide frame of the 400 series and want more actual glass, which basically takes me to the 100 or 200 series (or E series, but that is out of my price range). The 100 series is almost half the price of the 200 series. I am trying to decide between the two.

I know I will be giving up the nice hardware and the wood frame if I go with the 100 series, and the track is not raised. What I can't tell is if the 100 series has the same nice ball bearings to make the door glide smoothly.

Does anyone know if there is a significant difference in feel of how easy the door is to open between the 100 and 200 series? I am planning to have white on the interior and exterior either way, so I guess I'm wondering if anyone can give me a sense of whether the 200 series door is worth twice as much as the 100, and if both are going to feel like a major step down from our current 400.

Thanks in advance to anyone who can offer insight into these questions!!