Great purchase, though basket arrangement is odd
Purchased this two months ago and wanted to wait a couple of months before reviewing.
After my expensive Bosch went to heaven I vowed to never buy anything Bosch again, so I opted for a tried and trusted brand I've had good experiences with in the past - Westinghouse.
I read the reviews and was happy with what people had to say about it. I liked the price. I especially liked the look of it, as I don't like dials that most others seem to have. The black screen is pretty shmick in my opinion and as my kitchen is white, I prefer to keep the dishwasher in the same colour (I prefer not to make a feature of an appliance by having it in a different colour like stainless steel).
This dishwasher does a great job washing the dishes. I prefer to use the heavy cycle because it's a lot faster than the regular cycle (about half an hour faster), and the dishes come out beautifully clean. My tip: don't use the "recommended" X brand of dishwasher tablets in your dishwasher. It's all a con that they include freebies to start you off and label them as "recommended by the manufacturer" for pretty much most dishwashers you buy these days. I've got a big family and they leave dishes in a right state - buy a certain German supermarket chain's tablets and you will not be sorry. Cheap as chips and work SO MUCH BETTER than any of the expensive "recommended" (or similar) brands.
I digress. So, this dishwasher is great. I'm happy with it, it looks great, it's quiet, it's sleek and stylish and it does the job well. There are a couple of "hmmm"'s I have with it though, but nothing that would put me off buying it again if I needed to. I mention them only so anyone who reads this is prepared, not to put anyone off buying it because it's a gem.
Pros:
Washes well, is quiet, looks good with my white kitchen, has enough wash cycles for my needs and is able to wash well in a reasonable amount of time. It's a brilliant plus for me to be able to adjust the height of the top drawer so that I can fit tonnes of frying pans/saucepans/trays/bread boards etc that have long handles or are really tall on their own, without affecting the wash arm that hangs from the top basket. I'm very happy with the capacity of this machine. My kitchen can look like a bomb went off when it's school holidays, but I can always fit absolutely everything in one load of this dishwasher (family of five - three being teenagers and a husband who might as well be one). Dish capacity of this machine is brilliant.
Cons: Only two, and hardly worth mentioning (but I will anyway).
Firstly, the cycle select button takes a few good pushes to actually move between the cycles so you can select the one you want to use. I don't think this is going to actually be what ends the life of this machine, it's just a little lacking in quality there so often you spend a few extra seconds pushing the button to get the right cycle selected. Could just be my machine, or perhaps the way I press the button, but it's something I've noticed about it nonetheless.
Secondly, and the only other negative I can point out with this machine, is the top basket design. It is the weirdest thing I've seen in a dishwasher. I've pulled most of the extra bits and pieces out of the top basket because they prevented the basket being used to it's full capacity. There is absolutely no flat area for me to sit tall glasses in this machine without them falling over. All "surfaces" are sloped. Tall glasses on a 15 degree slope (probably much less than that, but for illustrative purposes just pretend it is that), will only tip either fully over or to the left or right. As a result, the only way I can wash my tumblers is by positioning them between multiple other things. Which brings me to the other design flaw - the plate/bowl stacking part of the top basket won't hold my bowls at all. I've got bowls that are more spherical than the old fashioned shape of a bowl (nothing flash, just what they sell in the shops everywhere now), and the stacking part for bowls is too upright and tall, so the bowls will only tip backwards and roll over completely when I try to use it as per design. As a result, just like the tumblers, they can only go on that section if I've got miles of things holding them in place tightly, and I can never use the plate/bowl section to it's full or intended capacity because the bowls require about a quarter of the length of the basket per one bowl. Anyway, hence why the top basket gets a thumbs down from me. It's a real headache trying to stack things in it, and if my kids or hubby try they really get quite frustrated and annoyed.
Despite the annoying design of the top basket, it's still perfectly useable once you figure out what works for you. If you don't have tall tumblers, and you have regular shaped cereal bowls, you won't have a problem with the top basket at all.
