I kept seeing the vented version of the Samsung all in one washer dryer combo, but there was never any way to purchase it on their website. And it says sold out everywhere else I've seen it. But I noticed today it says I can order and have it by May 1st. Is the vented version the way to go? It's about $400 more than the non-vented version. Just wondering if it would be more reliable in the long run? Plus it seems like it would dry faster.

Model WD90F53AVB from Costco

$2099 with delivery, installation, and haul-away; after discount & before taxes

Background: Our ~19-year-old LG front-load pair was on its last legs (very noisy washer bearing) after lots of DIY TLC over the years. Finally finding a vented combo unit tipped us over the edge.

Things we like so far:

(+) Put in a load, come back a few hours later and it’s all done.

(+) Wash + dry time is about 2-3 hours depending on load and settings, which is comparable to our old pair if we stayed on top of the transition from washer to dryer.

(+) The single unit fits much better in our laundry room, finally giving us some elbow room. I ended up angling it in the corner and think it looks nice. 1-month update: This has become a bigger "pro" for us over the past month.

(+) Auto-dispensing detergent. 1-month update: Watch-out, the default settings dispensed way too much detergent for the concentrate we use.

(+) Quieter than our old units, not just the bearing which had gone bad on the washer and the rattle in the dryer element, but even the water inlet valves are much quieter.

(+) Schedule for when to finish rather than just setting a delayed start

(+) Scraper removes lint from the filter screen instead of having to do it by hand

(0) I was worried what to do with our wool dryer balls (we are not dryer sheet people but are in SoCal where it get dry and we get static) but I just threw them in with the wash and they seem to be fine. It would be a problem if we used dryer sheets, because then we’d have to use the “Dry prep” mode and add a dryer sheet before drying, defeating a big selling point for a combo unit. Or else we’d have to switch to fabric softener. 1-month update: The dryer balls have shrunk dramatically, and we are questioning if they are still working.

(+) Notifications when cycles are done

(0) Setup with the app wasn’t bad.

Issues/Questions:

(-) I don’t think I can make custom presets or save changes to a preset. I can only see how to remove/restore presets from the list. There’s something about “AI pattern” remembering cycles and settings. 1-month update: This is my #1 complaint. I have to override the dry setting every time. We only really use the normal preset and then make adjustments; the others are a waste. 2-month update: Still a pain

(-) The built-in presets/cycles limit which settings can be used. Some make sense, e.g. extra-hot temperature and extra-high high spin can’t be used for delicates. But it feels like they overthought the 4 tables of allowed parameters while neglecting custom presets. 2-month update: This got me the other day when I wanted to wash my work pants on warm with high spin then do a low dry.

(-) There are settings for an extra rinse and “Bubble soak” but not a pre-wash? Had I downloaded the manual and combed through it before purchasing, I might have uncovered these three issues/questions earlier.

(-) New issue at 1-month update: Initially I said, "It dries just fine, as one would expect from a vented unit." However, the normal dry setting still left some things a bit damp despite it being a vented dryer. We switched to the more-dry setting, and it has been fine (see above). This reminds me a bit of our old dryer needing the more-dry setting.

(-) New issues at 2-month update: The super speed setting left 1 out of 3 towels stuck to the drum and unclean with the other 2 towels still very damp. I remember this mode leaving things damp when I tried it soon after installation.

(-) New at 1-month update: Related to my complaints about presets and the missing transport screws, I contacted Samsung via the SmartThings app and also via their web site. Neither was particularly helpful, both with an initial barrier to even understand my problem. I still don't have a crisp answer on the presets, and apparently I'm supposed to contact Costco or order transport screws myself. I haven't followed up on either.

(-) The combo shipped with a simple / all-model, multi-language manual for a washer and for a dryer. I ultimately had to download the model-specific manual from Samsung. They shouldn’t even waste the paper.

(-) There’s no insert to allow drying things like shoes. Our old LG dryer had one. Maybe the washer precludes this.

(-) New at 2 months: If stopping the dryer early, it displays a warning for a hot door and keeps the door locked for a few minutes. Annoying.

(?) I don’t think I can customize which notifications are sent. I’m getting one when the washer finishes and then another when the dryer finishes. Maybe this is if I wanted to pull things out before drying, but I didn’t select the “Dry prep” option for a 10-minute delay before drying.

(?) After selecting a cycle, there are two icons at the bottom from which selections can be made. I’ve surmised these are for detergent and softener but couldn’t find them in the manual.

(?) I haven’t figured out how to disable just the key-click tone. There are settings for themes and even a Spotify app, but not this?

(?) I modeled cycles times, and a combo unit is going to take about an hour more than a washer & dryer pair on total time if one is doing a lot of loads in a day and really stays on top of the transitions. But we are tired of doing that.

(?) We’re going to have to get used to separating loads based on what can go directly from washer to dryer vs. what needs to hung to dry. 1-month update: This hasn't been a big deal. I went from 3 loads/week (darks, lights, workout) to 3 loads (washer-only to hang dry, darks + lights with dryer, workout). I'll need to be careful with new darks.

(?) If we find we need a 2nd unit to keep up with our laundry (hopefully not, empty nest next year) space will get tight again in our laundry room since this unit is deeper than our old ones. 1-month update: We feel no need for a 2nd unit. Even with our eldest daughter home from college for the summer and our youngest daughter notorious for hogging the washer, we've been fine.

(?) I noticed slight rattles from inside both sides of the unit during the spin. Usually things like this get worse. 1-month update: This hasn't bothered me or gotten worse; it might have gotten better.

(?) TBD reliability. It doesn’t have the drain tube in the door gasket that our old LG had which required disassembly and cleaning every few months. But it definitely seems more complex and combines stresses like washer spinning and wide variations in temperature & humidity into one unit.

(?) TBD on the SmartThings app (-) When I contacted support, the human after the chat bot didn’t see the question I asked to the chat bot, so I had to copy-paste it for a 2nd time. It just annoys me when the support system is poorly integrated.

(?) There’s a button to turn on the drum light, but doesn’t it just turn on automatically?

(?) New question/issue at 2 months: The touchscreen started acting sketchy, as if the firmware had been updated without a clean reboot. For example, clicking into the normal mode seemed sluggish and then all of a sudden it acted like multiple keys had been pressed.

Costco delivery:

(+) They used a nice vent hose and decent cable ties and power cord.

(-) The crew arrived around 20 minutes early despite having lots of precision on their tracking web site. This was just a minor annoyance given that I was working from home for the delivery.

(-) The lead delivery person initially voiced some skepticism about being able to take both of our old units (something about needing to check space in the truck) but I was ready to push back given that I’d already chatted with Costco to ensure they would haul off both units if we bought a combo. No problem after that exchange.

(-) I mentioned that I’d secured the washer drum on our old unit with the transport screws but forgot to ask the crew to leave the bolts for the new one. Apparently this isn’t standard operating procedure. So now, if I need to move the washer, I need to order a bolt kit. I tried contacting Samsung through the app, was redirected me to a web site, then I got a chat bot that was unhelpful, then I got a person who was also unhelpful.

(-) There was mention of selecting delivery time, but we just got assigned a time on the day we picked.

Edited for 1-month update, formatting, and typos then after about 2 months

I’ve been thinking about buying this all in one washer dryer but I haven’t been able to find a good review or YouTube video about this particular one I was wondering if anyone has had some experience using this washer dryer combo and if it’s even worth buying an all in one combo ?

I'm hoping to get a combo washer/dryer soon here and I'm wondering if anyone had experience with the new vented one from Samsung. What are the drawbacks? Is it way less energy efficient compared to the ventless? Are your clothes dry at the end of the cycle? It seems like it fixes the majority of the issues people have with a combo machine if it dries throughly and quickly.