LG SteamWasher WM2688H Front Load

We've had our LG Tromm Steamwasher (midnight blue) and matching dryer, inclusive of pedestals and remote laundry monitor, for a couple of months now. Got them on special (in fact, online and then arranged delivery) at a major US electronics store, which is why my best bit of advice is to keep an eye on various places if you want this washer/dryer combo and strike when LG offers one of its numerous 10-to-15-percent-off dealies. :)

I can't really add much to reviews like cathyjones', except to say that even after a year-plus it's still largely on point in our experience-- the Steamwasher is an amazing piece of machinery, and it pleasantly surprised us (the eternal skeptics re: thinking our clothes would seem cleaner, particularly coming from a more economical top-loader) by getting its loads seemingly WORLDS cleaner-- and fresher-smelling-- and more pleasant-- from the first use. The "steam" and "extra water" features are handy, in particular, as are the numerous modes (sanitary, bulky/large, freshen up, etc.) on both the washer and dryer. If LG's reliability pans out to be above-average or better over the next few years (as some consumer mags speculate it will), this will have turned out to be clearly one of the best (albeit priciest) purchases we made for the home... EVER.

My only quick additions to the plethora of other things that have been said about these machines in other reviews:

* the dryer is the only thing that took a little getting used to from the word "go." The first few loads it seemed to UNDERDRY with its onboard sensor, but we've just tinkered with time and heat settings, and all is a-OK now. Otherwise, if you read the directions, these things are remarkably easy to use.

* if you get the remote laundry monitor (an extra 99 bucks, so why not, if you're paying 3 grand or so for the washer/dryer and pedestals ANYWAY?!!), be advised that you MAY (depending on your house and placement of the monitor) need to buy a phase bridge (SmartHome makes one, available online from a home improvement store for about 25 bucks) for your home to allow the remote washer/dryer modems to transmit signals across the two 110 V "phases" with which most newer homes are wired these days. They're not clear about this in the store, and I haven't met the salesperson yet who knows what the heck this is or why it's required... but the laundry monitor's instructions themselves tell you about it. We suffered for about a week of intermittent monitor function... 'til we got the phase bridge and plugged it into the 220 V dryer plug (and then the dryer plugs into it, easy-squeezy). The monitor has worked flawlessly ever since, and it's useful (and kinda cool, too!).

* i think WHATEVER color you get, you're going to be happy with this unit and its sister dryer... but keep in mind it currently comes in white, blue and red (and rumor has it in some sort of grey now or in the near future). We have the blue ones, which look really stunning (as much as laundry appliances can, at least...chuckle). But there are OTHER important differences as well-- for example, the red and at least some white ones use a smaller-windowed LED as their readout, while all of the blue ones we've seen use a really slick LCD display that offers more info. If you're in the market, please consider not only COLOR of your machines, but also DISPLAY configuration. You need to be happy with BOTH. :)

* last but not least, I had to comment on how stable the washer is (and how bloody quiet compared to our old top-loader!), even mounted on its storage pedestal, at full-rotation spin. I was expecting a potential nightmare... I got a stable, quiet and easy-to-deal-with machine with no problems whatsoever. Having said that, the washer is also on a linoleum floor in a first-floor laundry room, so thinking about where YOUR laundry room is may be worthwhile.

Generally, two thumbs up. And if I were Martian, I'd give it three thumbs up. Wonderful machines. :)