I have read several Miele owner's manuals, but I don't own a Miele dryer. I don't have hands-on experience with what is normal for them. Take my suggestions with a grain of salt. That said, from what I have read it seems to me that the moisture sensors in Miele dryers probably measure the electric conductivity in damp clothing by sending an electric current on one end, and then measuring how much current reaches at the other end. (The technician or Miele-USA should be able to confirm if this is correct or not.) As the clothing gradually loses moisture it becomes harder for electricity to go through it, and the moisture sensor concludes that the clothing has reached a particular level of dryness, and as a result the dryer reduces the heat, or cuts its out altogether. According to several Miele manuals I have read, residue from fabric softener sheets can build up on the inside surfaces of the dryer, including the metal sensor probes, which I suppose will interfere with the ability of electricity to go through. When this happens the moisture sensor concludes that the laundry is closer to being dry that it really is, and it shuts off the heat prematurely. When drying very small loads (i.e. a couple of loads), the laundry load may not span the distance between the moisture sensor probes often enough (or never). In this situation there is none or almost no electricity going through (even if the surface of the sensor probes is clean), and again, the machine turns off the heat before the clothing is dry. This is why Miele recommends using the timed drying options for small loads and doing manual monitoring of the dryness level. In the timed modes the dryer bypasses the moisture sensor, so that heat is always applied for the specified time (with a cool down at the end). On a more practical side, you can try running the machine with one of the heated/warm timed drying cycles and see what it does. If you consistently get heat every time it will raise the suspicion that there are problems with the moisture sensor (or the size of the load). A more remote possibility is that the dryer could have a back up high temperature sensor that kicks in to shut off the heating elements if too much heat builds up inside the machine (which could happen if the air exhaust path gets blocked either inside or outside the machine, or if a garment catches fire). If the dryer does have a temperature sensor it could be another thing to look at. Again observe if the machine is generating normal drying heat at various stages of the timed hot/warm drying cycle. On the electrical utility side, some areas of the US use 208 Volts AC for power intensive appliances instead of 220V or 240V. I could see where a normal-low voltage on a 208V line could possibly go below the minimum tolerable voltage level of a 220V/220V appliance. You can get a voltmeter from the hardware store to measure the voltage at the outlet when you are having problems, or you can wait for the technician to chime in when he visits if you are not comfortable doing this. You could also try calling your utility to see if they will tell you if they are experiencing unusually high loads from customers next time that the machine is acting up.

For the washer, no, as long as you have a good quality surge surpresser on it to protect the electronics. Having an in-house handyman who can handle the mechanics of a simple repair can also be a consideration. Parts for the washer aren't overly expensive from an online source if one can DIY to eliminate service-tech labor costs. For the dryer, possibly, it's more mechanically complex.

If you get a decent Samsung, you are probably fine. If you don't, their customer service is horrible. A friend of mine has one, she hates it, it doesn't clean her clothes well, it plays this horrible little song at the end of the cycle which now makes her cringe & she runs to the laundry room to shut it off. Also, I bought a Samsung fridge, which I like, but there are a couple of features on it that bug me. When I registered my warranty Samsung wanted me to review it, which I did. I said that overall I really like it but these were 2 small things that people may not have thought about. They refused to print my review even though it was very positive. So there you go, only positive reviews, I know why. Good luck in your choice.

Depedning on how much you use the machines it may pay off. Heavily used korean built/designed laundry products don't have a track record of good durability. Meaning if you do 10 loads of laundry a week you WILL need the warranty if you want to make it even to five years. If you do two loads a week I would just stick with the base warranty plus the CC extended warranty. The credit card warranty typically is MUCH better than third parties. Less haggling and they know when you bought it and where. They will typically tell you to get a replair estimate. Once you have that they will either pay for the repair or give you your money back in the event the repair would cost more than the purchase price of the machine. Square trade is similar, but more hoops and arguing with someone about fixing it. I, personally, only buy extended warranties directly from the manufacturer. If they don't offer them, then that tells you what they think about the longevity of their products. I buy all major appliances on a credit card that offers cash back PLUS the extended warranty. Thats what I recommend to others as well.