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DEAL WATCH: Keurig K-Express | 22% off $69.99

Keurig has changed the face of coffee, and snagging one of these for less than $70 is a solid deal. Read Review

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  • Introduction

  • Front

  • Controls

  • Interior

  • Sides

  • Back

  • Speed & Performance Overview

  • Normal Cycle Performance

  • Delicates Cycle Performance

  • Bulky Cycle Performance

  • Quick Dry Cycle Performance

  • Dry Cycles

  • Customization

  • Additional Drying Options

  • Controls

  • Door

  • Lint Trap

  • Conclusion

  • Introduction
  • Front
  • Controls
  • Interior
  • Sides
  • Back
  • Speed & Performance Overview
  • Normal Cycle Performance
  • Delicates Cycle Performance
  • Bulky Cycle Performance
  • Quick Dry Cycle Performance
  • Dry Cycles
  • Customization
  • Additional Drying Options
  • Controls
  • Door
  • Lint Trap
  • Conclusion

Introduction

For everyone else, say "beam me up, Scotty" to the {{product.name}}. This machine showcases an impressive 8" LCD touchscreen with Smart Control, allowing users to partially pilot their dryer remotely with a smartphone and simultaneously complain on Facebook about how they just coughed up a honking $1,799.00 (MSRP) for a dryer with an app that lends no particular advantage.

The trouble here is that we still must use our body parts to gather our smelly socks and throw them into the dryer to begin with. Plus, we must touch a button on the dryer to get the app to connect in the first place (and the app doesn't remember the dryer upon relaunch). The point here? At frequent, unavoidable points, we must stand next to the dryer, so we may as well push its start button while we're at it. I know - so old fashioned! This app is no robot, and we are not impressed, but at least you can check the time remaining from your phone downstairs instead of tromping over to the laundry room.

Happily, this dryer embodies more than just Derek Zoolander-like qualities, because although its app may have come from the Center for Things that Don't Work Good, its laundering skills are the tops. Find it on sale (we did, for about $1530) and enjoy the fact that the cycles do a superb job, including the Quick cycle for once. The design and usability are mostly top notch too (even if you never connect it to your iPhone), with easy navigation and cheery musical interludes to lift the spirits of even the surliest launderer.

Front

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The {{product.name}} is a handsome machine with a dark, sleek exterior and a glowing 8" LCD touchscreen control panel. It wears only two real buttons - Power and Start - which are situated on the top right side.

Controls

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Interior

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The interior of the CDWT980VSS.

The lint trap folds in half with a snap and slides into a slot in the door well. We hate it. To clean the trap, one must remove it and unfold it, which requires digging a thumb nail into a narrow groove to try to unsnap the thing. During testing, our fingers took a bit of a beating, as the trap often stubbornly stuck together and refused to open without greater exertion.

Sides

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Olympus SZ-31MR iHS side views

Back

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Speed & Performance Overview

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This Samsung did very well on practically all of our water removal tests, frequently evaporating 100% of the moisture and occasionally using truly optimal temperatures in the process. The real downer here is the team of slugs that evidently powers the Delicate and Bedding PLUS cycles, taking their merry, slug time of well over an hour.

Normal Cycle Performance

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Apart from a slightly hotter temperature than need be, 148 degrees, the Normal cycle did a fine job. It finishes its work in a reasonable 42 minutes and removes every drop of water.

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Delicates Cycle Performance

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As the time worn saying goes, never believe a Delicate cycle when it says it will finish drying your panties for you in thirty minutes. Like all the rest, this machine's Delicate cycle means 97 minutes when it says 34 - just lies through its teeth! We won't complain too much though, because the temperature is truly optimal at a gentle 112.6 degrees, and it removes 100% of the water.

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Bulky Cycle Performance

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The bulky cycle on this machine, which Samsung calls Bedding PLUS, removes an uninspiring 74% of water from a load, which is basically on par with most other machines. The PLUS apparently hints at how users must load the laundry and hit start, "PLUS" run back to the machine and untwist the comforter midway through the cycle in order to dry it completely. "PLUS" it takes 82 minutes. "PLUS" if you opt not to fluff the comforter halfway through the cycle, it twists up like a little white mummy with soggy insides. Gross. No one wants their comforter to look like Frodo Baggins after his untimely spider attack.

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Quick Dry Cycle Performance

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This Quick cycle quickened our pulse, outperforming Quick cycles in general by a leap and a bound. The cycle reached an impressive 139.7 degrees, expelling 100% of the water from the laundry - a very uncommon feat for Quick cycles, even on many high-end models. We applaud you, {{product.model}}.

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Dry Cycles

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This Samsung features a whopping 14 cycles: Eco Normal, Normal, Heavy Duty, Perm Press, Delicates, Active wear, Bedding PLUS, Sanitize, Wool, Time Dry, Quick Dry, Air Fluff, Refresh, and Wrinkle Away.

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Customization

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The Samsung {{product.model}} not only allows us to choose between five levels of both temperature and dryness, but it also allows us to tailor, name, and save up to three custom cycles of our own. Samsung only gives you nine characters for your title though, so if you just snorted and slapped your knee at the thought of naming one, "Grime and Punishment," or "The Wool We Wore," restrain yourself. There are three extras too, which are Rack Dry, Wrinkle Prevent, and a Mixed Load bell. Finally, launderers will find a delayed start option, as well as controls to turn the LCD brightness and notification volume up or down (depending on how much they loathe or love the many musical sound effects).

Additional Drying Options

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For items like washable sweaters or no-tumble garments, this dryer has a Rack Dry option on the Timed cycle, which uses an extra low temperature. Launderers can also try the Wrinkle prevent mode to tumble clothes intermittently for 180 minutes and the Mixed Load Bell, which signals when it is time to remove quick-drying items from a mixed load. Finally, turn the musical signals up, down, or off. Some of you will feel a sense of expensive bliss wash over you as recorded guitar notes emanate from your brand new machine; others will get the uncomfortable sense that they've fallen into a commercial involving hot meatloaf, a list of side-effects, and a weird, happy family (everyone is blonde).

And yes, if you are connected to the machine with Smart Control you can check the time remaining on a cycle from your phone instead of running down to the laundry room, which is mildly helpful.

Controls

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Unless the units are stacked, which makes the screen difficult to read due to height and angle, these controls are quite simple to use. With a press of the power button on the right, an 8" LCD touchscreen will light up. On the left side of the screen, there is a vertical list of 14 cycles. To browse, lightly use your finger to scroll up and down the list. Highlight a cycle by touching it directly and a big box will appear in the center of the screen, displaying the customizable options for that particular cycle. This is nice, because whereas machines with physical buttons are often trial and error when it comes to finding out what customizable option is compatible with what cycle, this LCD setup shows you every option plainly each time you highlight a cycle.

On the right side of the screen, users will see the estimated time left, an Eco bar to track energy, a Smart Control button to press when connecting to a phone, a Save My Cycle button, a Delay Start option, a Child Lock, a drum light, and a settings button (wherein one may change the time, language, volume, brightness, and network connection).

Door

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The tinted, transparent, reversible door does not "click" when shut and requires a marked amount of force to close.

The interior of the CDWT980VSS.

Lint Trap

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The lint trap folds in half with a snap and slides into a slot in the door well. We hate it. To clean the trap, one must remove it and unfold it, which requires digging a thumb nail into a narrow groove to try to unsnap the thing. During testing, our fingers took a bit of a beating, as the trap often stubbornly stuck together and refused to open without greater exertion.

Conclusion

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For many of us, purchasing a MSRP $1,799 dryer is as realistic as riding rocket ships to our neo-depression era jobs. Even the sale price of about $1,530 is too tall a tag for some of us. Yet if by some chance coughing up a teetering stack of money is not a hurdle, be really sure not to purchase this machine in hopes of finding yourself at a trendy bar with friends, three cocktails in, having the time of your life and thinking, "I forgot the laundry -- but luckily I spent all my money on this Samsung! All I have to do is click a button on my smartphone and my damp socks will levitate into the dryer and begin their journey towards snuggly dry while I get drunk across town!" This will not happen for many reasons, but the most prominent issue is the necessity of pushing a button on the dryer to connect every time you launch your app, thus preventing true remote control. The benefit of Smart Control remains in the future for now.

Bottom line - if you buy this Samsung, buy it because it's beautiful and strong on the inside. Sure, its geeky app is unattractive, but it's the insides of your amazingly clean underpants that count. Regarding effectiveness, for Quick cycle enthusiasts especially, this may be the big purchase you've waited for. The 30 minute Quick cycle banishes 100% of the water from a load, unbelievably. Other high-end models cannot boast the same. In fact, practically every load we tested saw 100% water removal. We aren't impressed with the temperamental lint trap and the Delicate and Bedding PLUS cycle run times (which each took well over an hour), but in terms of dryness and overall usability, this machine gets the job done and lends an ease of use that many dryers just can't match.

Meet the tester

Virginia Barry

Virginia Barry

Former Managing Editor

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Virginia is a former Managing Editor at Reviewed.com. She has a background in English and journalism. Away from the office, Virginia passes time with dusty books & house cats.

See all of Virginia Barry's reviews

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