Approx 14 years ago, we bought a pair of scratch and dent top loading washer and matching dryer. We were quite happy geese, with what we thought were clean clothes. The pair started aging (gracefully, we might add...) and other appliances in the house started to go bad so we thought ""Let's go for the new-fangled front loader washer!"" At the same time, our electric bill had nearly doubled (not because of our usage, but because of the cost of electricity...but that's another story). So we figured, the front loader would require less water, and therefore less electricity to heat the water. We had also hoped that a higher spin cycle would reduce the dry time. (fyi - our nest is very small, we do not have natural gas)

So, we went to our favorite appliance store and they recommended the GE front loader pair. We figure, ah ha, we'll go for it, it's a bit cheaper than the Whirlpool Duet Sport and was supposedly better quality. We have not determined whether the Duet is any better than the GE.

We bought a 1 mo subscription to Consumer Reports, but didn't find any revealing info. Yes, it was only $5 but frankly, we think it was a waste (unlike before when we used to LIVE by Consumer Reports...not sure what happened to them, but they lost their opinion and 100's of evaluation criteria and just say ""Yup, the machine is ok"").

We also googled about front loaders in general and learned the following:

• Moldy Gasket  - The round door has a rubber gasket to prevent the water from coming out the door.  After the water drains, there are a few drips of water remaining.  Apparently, this remaining water can cause mold.   We geese have been very lucky and mold has not formed.  However, we leave the door open until all of the water evaporates.  Alternately, we would recommend that you just wipe it off.  It'll be faster than cleaning mold. 
   
• Vibration - front loaders vibrate, unless they have good shocks.  Why is this?  Think about it...the axis of spin is horizontal.  That makes it want to vibrate up and down rather than side to side, like a top loader.  This vibration transfers to the floor.  If you don't have a solid concrete floor, you're likely to have a vibration in the floor during the spin cycle.   We geese have seen our floor under the carpet, we thought it was concrete.  Indeed it was...it was a lightweight concrete poured over a wooden framed floor topped with plywood.  ARGH! 
   
• Vibration reduction pads help some, but don't eliminate the wiggle.  We've tried them all and so did many others.  The horse mat - nice and dense, but didn't do anything for the vibration transfer.  The exercise machine mat...helped lots, until the foam compressed 6-8 mos later.

 Due to the vibration, we can't use the high spin cycles - though they do eliminate most of the water and should reduce dry time.   Next time, we'd think twice about buying a front loader for the second floor.   But for now, we must admit, we've never had cleaner, less damaged clothes than with the front loader (as compared to the top loader).