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  • Introduction

  • Design & Usability

  • Performance & Features

  • Conclusion

  • Science Introduction

  • Cleaning Performance

  • Efficiency

  • Introduction
  • Design & Usability
  • Performance & Features
  • Conclusion
  • Science Introduction
  • Cleaning Performance
  • Efficiency

Introduction

Then there's the Maytag MHW6000AG (MSRP $1,299). Sure, it's all dressed up and boasts an impressive resume, but as soon as it opens its mouth, you're suddenly searching for an excuse to refill your glass.

Yeah, it's got good cleaning performance, but its cycles take forever. The exterior is lovely, but it gets dirty faster than a white tiger in a chocolate factory. And so it goes: this Maxima gives us a con for every pro.

Design & Usability

Not as good under the hood

The MHW6000AG is a good looking machine, but things aren't always as they appear to be. It's kind of like when you open a jar at your Grandma's house expecting to find chocolate covered peanuts only find that she reused the can for her prunes. First, the timer on the MHW6000AG seems to be able to bend time to its will. For example, the Normal cycle is stated as 59 minutes, but took an hour and seven, and I demand honesty from my appliance. For instance, my fridge lets me know I need a healthier diet every time I look inside it and see half-eaten blocks of cheese.

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All-in-all, the Maytag MHW6000AG has more style than substance. The controls are a classy silver on black, but they're not very responsive. The door looks like it came off a radar-absorbing stealth yacht (yea, that's a thing), but is squeaky and will likely be covered in fingerprints inside of ten minutes.

Performance & Features

The PowerWash cycle makes this machine

The Maytag MHW6000AG is supposed to be the volume seller in the Maxima XL series of gargantuan front-loaders. We were excited to test it because its bright red predecessor, the MHW6000XR, was better suited for Rodeo Drive than your laundry room. With the new model, Maytag seems to have added some substance to the style.

The PowerWash cycle was best by far. It blasted through everything from carbon to chocolate. Nothing could stand in its way. However, it came with several trade-offs. It took two and half hours, and was very rough on our test loads. Add steam and an optional extra rinse, and it'll take over three.

The rest of the MHW6000AG's cycles are on par with other washers in its price range. The Delicates cycle was the worst of them. It had a somewhat below average stain removal ability and left our test laundry sopping wet. Sure, that's to be expected, but it wasn't even that gentle with clothing. That's like casting James Earl Jones in a silent film.

Overall, the MHW6000AG is a scoop of adequate, with above-average sprinkles.

Conclusion

From a purely objective point-of-view, the MHW6000AG gets a thumbs up. A washing machine is supposed to wash your clothes and this Maytag has that locked down like a padlock secured by other padlocks.

In terms of pure power, the aptly-named PowerWash dominated the cycle selection, carrying this machine like Michael Jordan and the '86 Bulls. Everything else? Adequate. Nothing about efficiency or effectiveness really stood out. For an MSRP of $1,299, this Maytag is good, but not great. It's definitely a wait-for-sale-before-purchase kind of appliance.

Science Introduction

Congratulations! You've made it to the science page! You're part of an elite minority that seeks the objective truth, and you're better looking than everyone else. Actually, I don't know if any of that's true, but I do know that every appliance that comes through our doors undergoes a set of repeatable and standardized tests. It is from these results that we decide if a machine good or bad. For washing machines, it really comes down to cleaning performance and efficiency. So let's get started shall we? Please have your pencils and notebooks ready. There will be a quiz at the end of this lecture.

Cleaning Performance

To test cleaning performance, we placed standardized test strips into the Maytag MHW6000AG during each of its core cycles. These strips are equally coated with common household substances like carbon (what humans are made of) and red wine (what my mother-in-law is made of). When cycle is finished, we take these test strips and place them under our light spectrometer to see how much each stain has been removed. The MHW6000AG had the best go at cocoa and sweat stains. This shows a good range since each of these substances are on opposing side of the pH scale.

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Efficiency

For us, efficiency takes into account what goes into a washer and what comes out. The most efficient washers use little water and when laundry comes out it's nearly dry, allowing for a shorter trip in the energy-hungry dryer. Compared to other high-volume sellers, the Maytag MHW6000AG is an average consumer. Based on national average cost for water and electricity, we estimate the yearly running cost to be around $33.40. That's within about $5 of the best machines out there.

As to what came out of the washer, it was a mixed bag. The Delicates cycle was the worst offender. Test loads that came out after this cycle retained 100 percent of their weight in water. However, the PowerWash and Normal cycle kept it to around 47 percent, and anything below 50 is considered a good deal.

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Meet the tester

Jonathan Chan

Jonathan Chan

Senior Manager of Lab Operations

@Jonfromthelab1

Jonathan Chan currently serves as the Lab Manager at Reviewed. If you clean with it, it's likely that Jon oversees its testing. Since joining the Reviewed in 2012, Jon has helped launch the company's efforts in reviewing laptops, vacuums, and outdoor gear. He thinks he's a pretty big deal. In the pursuit of data, he's plunged his hands into freezing cold water, consented to be literally dragged through the mud, and watched paint dry. Jon demands you have a nice day.

See all of Jonathan Chan's reviews

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