If you're in a desert type climate I'd go with Andersen. When you go with dark colors on vinyl and are in a hot climate there is a higher likely hood of having some warping and paint failure. They can say lifetime warranty but they determine what lifetime is. They could say the lifetime warranty of the product is 10 years. So you and your husband's concerns I think are correct. That and I think the Andersen window looks better...

We have quite a selection of vinyl or aluminum windows. Our Tuscany and Montecito are well made and high quality and all our windows come with the full lifetime warranty. Come check out our website for more information on what windows would be the best for you! Tuscany Series Montecito Series Aluminum

@Windows on Washington Ltd and @quasiexpert Sorry if my last message came through in a different tone, I'd been up for awhile and was just stream of consciousness posting. From my research here on this forum, it just seems that invariably quite a few posts discount the entry level windows and recommend the Anderson 400 or Marvin Integrity ++ type windows. Hoping that I can learn from you all. Our situation is a new construction in the deep South (Birmingham AL). About 60 windows on the house. Front facing windows I believe have to be aluminum clad, the rear might be able to get way with a vinyl window. Rear will be facing the South West, but looks like there will be some tree coverage as well as decks/roofing for the majority of the windows. The builder has spec'd Piva Group vinyl windows. They are Argon filled, double glazed, Low E 366. U-factor 0.26, SHGC 0.21, Visible Transmittance 0.49 and air leakage < 0.3. He mentioned that the Anderson 100's might be within the same price range, and we would be interested in the Smart Sun if it's available with the low E4 coating to help protect the wood floors. While I can appreciate the beauty of the wood interiors, our preference is for something low maintenance and can handle sun without fading. We've never had a double hung window before and a single hung is fine. We open the windows in our current house maybe 8-10 times a year to air the house out, otherwise they stay shut. Sadly, we wash our windows even less times /duck Given the above criteria, might you have some thoughts or recommendations, or are there any additional questions I might answer?

Thanks for the response @WIndows on Washington and @Beth H. I guess my real question is, if money is not a factor between Tuscany and Trinsic and if i choose trinsic for the looks, is there a quality compromise? In other words, Tuscany is more expensive and has more vinyl. does this also mean its more durable or higher quality product? Also a sales man was trying to convince that Milgard is a bad choice since the company is up for sale and they wont respect the warrently. is there any truth to it? thanks!