Kenwood KDW12ST3A Reviews: Freestanding, 60cm wide, Silver Dishwasher

+ It looks good.

- You can stand plates in the rack. An economy wash takes 1 hour 37 minutes!

+ lovely design no buttons for small children to press as they go inside, an alarm sounds when it has finished so you can turn it off and be eco friendly, top wash for half load, cleans like a dream out side easily inside too. special cycle for tablets or just glass wear. very modern. sleak runs along with fitted cupboards.

- STUPID DESIGN INSIDE THAT DOESNT ALLOW ME TO USE MY LARGE DINNER PLATES AND SAUCE PANS WHICH IS WHEN I REALLY NEED TO USE THE DISH WASHER AS I USE MY BEST STUFF WHEN WE HAVE GUESTS AND THERE IS MORE WASHING UP. I DONT MEAN HUGE, JUST A LARGER SIZE DINNER PLATE EVEN IS YOU TURN THEM TO FACE THE BACK, FRONT, SIDEWAYS, ITS THE SAME, THE ARMS THAT SPIN WITH WATER GET STUCK YET MY REALLY CHEAP ONE I HAD FOR 81/2 YRS AND HAD NO PROBLEMS AND EVERYTHING FITTED. IRONIC REALLY I CAN FINALLY AFFORD WHAT I THOUGHT WOULD BE BETTER AS IT LOOKED NICER BUT IT LEAVES ME THINKING I WILL OPT FOR CHEAP NEXT TIME.

+ light weight

- lights stay on when its on pause and flash when its on.Would make more sense to be the other way round

+ It looks good... but that's where it ends!!

- Initially being a kenwood i would have thought it to be the bees knees, as I have brought kenwood goods in the past. The look is great.. but the design inside is apsolutely awful. Mugs fall over, so do glasses and it will only take my dinner plastes if i adjust the top rack which will then not accomodate my utensils and wine glasses!. I wish i'd have never brought it! Oh, and it does not completely dry the things either.

+ good quality product and good controls

- bad cleaning and bad drying

+ easy to use - looks good

- some programs can take along time

+ Simple to open, close and start

- If you want to put anything bigger than a kiddys tea set in it you'll have great difficulty

+ Good digital display with time left, salt refill, etc.

- Bit plasticky inside, top tray hard to push in, awkward for larger bowls

+ Looks sleek is big lay out good

- Shortest cycle is over 2 hrs long- there is a quicker cycle but it is for the top rack only which was not made clear in the advertising of the Dishwasher

+ once you get used to it,easy to use.Half cycle good.

- instructions very poor.

+ looks good- simple and sleak

- cycles are far too long over 2 hours for the standard cycle

+ Excellent cleaning performance. Works very well using liquid cleaner. Looks great!

- The top rack is very stiff to slide in and out and the racks feel generally quite flimsy. It is much noisier and more difficult to load than our old Bosch. The cycle is very lengthy when using 3 in 1 tablets. The information label on the front door was almost impossible to remove without damaging the finish - it took us ages! On balance, although it cleans well and was well-priced, we wish we'd spent a bit more and bought another Bosch.

+ Looks good - large capacity

- Takes 3 hours for a wash and you can only use 3-1 tablets in one cycle.

+ easy to install and use. No problems so far!

- Large dinner plates/baking trays forces you to raise the upper basket meaning taller glasses do not fit in the side racks of the upper basket. Some water left on plastic items

+ Looks
Ease of use

- Wash times are excessive

+ Nice to look at and the controls are hidden inside the door top.

- The door is stiff to open and the handle protrudes significantly, so much that it restricts a drawer if the drawer open 90 degrees to the dishwasher door, e.g. the drawer will strike the protruding handle end. The dimension details don't include the distance the steel opening handle protrudes. It is also much noisier than my previous Hotpoint whirlpool machine. We had problems during installation with the machine flooding until we found the 'bung' inserted in the drainage pipe, & nowhere in the instruction booklet does it mention this. The machine cannot drain with this bung stuck well down inside the tube where it is difficult to see!

+ It looks nice and controls are easy to use

- It takes forever to do the 3in1 tablet wash, which is the only detergent I can buy locally. It takes over 180 minutes for that programme, meaning the machine must be swithed on by 8.30 pm so as not to disturb us at night.
Results are often poor with things needing a 2nd or 3rd wash. Overall a really bad buy and I wish I hadn't botheres

+ Reviewer left no comment

- its the worst performing dishwasher of the four i have had in the last twenty years, it doesnt clean well at all i am extremely disappointed in it. I know it was cheap but i dont think i would ever buy anything of their make again after this

+ Easy to use, not too loud, clear instructions..... washes dishes!!

- Not as much hight available on lower shelf as expected... lots of plates dont fit without obstructing jets

+ Well designed, good performance, good qulity feel

- racking could have been slightly better designed to hold bulky items

+ Fantastic machine, great options.

- may melt plastic if you put on the pan option,

+ Good looking, value for money at the time. Easy to use.

- Normal sized plates stacked as design suggests in the bottom tray stop the spray arm spinning, and thus the top layer does not get washed. Trays are non removable so I cannot run it without the top tray in. I can only fit a max of 4 plates in, facing back to front which is uneconomical and unenvironmentally friendly to say the least. Hopeless design!!

+ its very noisy. i dont think it cleans very well. the cycles all take so long. the arms knock against regular sized plates when they go round.

- sorry they are all the things above. the only good thing was it was cheap and now i know why.

+ Looks good for price

- Normal size plates don't fit in - they are too tall and therefore the arm doesn't spin!!

+ Easy to load
Easy to use

- The standard washing cycle is very long (2 hrs 31 mins) compared to our previous dishwasher so we use the Economy cycle (1 hr 37 minutes) which doesn't always get the plates clean.

+ Nice neat looking dishwasher

- Once you raise the rack to fit plates at the bottom- the top shelf becomes more useless. You cannot put tall glasses or wine glasses in easily as they get knocked over

+ Good price, size and ease of use.

- Macine will not accept any more than 3 dinner plates.
Glasses emerge from the machine very cloudy.

+ There is nothing good about this dishwasher

- This is the worse ever dishwasher I would love to return it. No dishes fit only one meal and then with great difficulty the cleaning is poor would not recommend at all

+ Price

- Cannot get average sized plates in the cleaning tray without them stopping the upper cleaning arm from rotating. We have to put the plate at either side and check the upper cleaning arm will rota before we start the dish washer going.

+ cleans things 1st time...the 4th dishwasher I've owned , the cheapest yet and by far the best

- none so far

+ Stylish, I was worried that the stainless steel would be difficult to clean and would show fingerprints - dishwasher is still looking good and requires minimal attention.

- Reviewer left no comment

+ Looks good and has a wide range of programmes

- top tray runners stick and there is a strong heat smell during the drying stage for the first 6 weeks

+ Great looks and great value.

- My dishes just don't fit as easily as they did in my old dishwasher - can't seem to fit as much in. Programs are very long (3 in 1 takes over 2 hours!)and to use the shorter and eco progammes (1 hour 20) I have to use old fashioned powder and rinse aid instead of tablets

+ standard enough

- does not take large plates which our last dishwasher did
also very noisy

+ Simplicity, value for money.

- There were some dents on the inside of the door.

+ WORKS WELL AND GOOD RESULTS.PLEASANT TO LOOK AT

- THE START BUTTON SOMETIMES TAKES UP THREE TRIES BEFORE IT WORKS.VERY FRUSTRATING,IT SEEMS TO GET STUCK UNDER THE MAIN BODY OF THE APPLIANCE.

+ Looks nice from the front Sleek design.

- Takes nearly three hours to complete a cycle. Cant use three in one tablets inside the comartment. Have to put them in a basket. Bottom tray is not safe.....rolls back into dishwasher on its own.....sometimes smashing things. Leaves smears on stuff.

+ Clean lines. No external knobs and buttons

- We have to be carfull position large platesor the sometimes catch the water rotational feeds

+ Looks good, dishes come out feeling clean and non streaky

- Quickest cycle is 1 hour 39 mins 3 in 1 cycle takes over 2 and a half hours

+ It looks good and it is cheap. It has a setting for three-in-one tablets which means you don't need to add salt and rinse-aid.

- It is very difficult to load because the layout of trays and baskets means wine glasses won't stand up, the height of the baskets doesn't give enough room for dinner plates, and chopping boards jam the runners. It also takes a long time to wash and doesn't dry properly. It is delivered with a big sticker on the front which is very difficult to remove and leaves a mark.

+ No buttons on outside to tempt little children to press. Machine itself looks very sleek in design and the stainless steel is very easy to clean. The half load function is fantastic as to the rinse aid and salt refill indicators.

- Have to refer to instructions for details of programs that do not use that often, as no details on machine. If upper rack is on lower setting I am unable to put certain dinner plates in, yet if it is highered to the upper setting to rectify this, I am unable to put taller glasses on the upper rack.

+ Looks Good

- Takes too long to wash the dishes and is not tall enough inside to accomodate dinner plates, plates catch on the spinny thing and stops the dish washer cleaning the dishes. And its VERY noisy!

+ The choice of half load programms for economy the finish and style very good as never had a dishwasher before very pleased with product.

- A little noisy in a small kitchen and it is sometimes difficult to fit large plates in

+ All controls on edge of door this give a very neat finish,and ease of use. Very quiet running. Excellent wash on main prog. Very flexible lower drawer. Filter easy to access and salt filler standard.

- 3 in 1 prog not sufficient to clean tea stains in cups

+ cost design ease of use

- no quick wash cycle

+ Sleek, fits in well with stainless steel kitchens

- Flimsy, unhelpful operating instructions

+ Ease of use,cleaning ability,looks,quietness

- Racking not as good as previous dishwasher,takes time to adjust it to your own needs.

+ Reviewer left no comment

- salt light comes on when salt is full?
Dishwasher smells bad all the time as if not emptying properly
Does not clean dishes properly even after 2 1/2 hours
This machine is only 2 months old!!!

+ great cleaning even oven trays with used for roast potatoes come out sparkling.

- Think the design of the bottom tray could be better, there is little capacity for large dinner plates, other than it is fine.

+ Cleans well.

- A big sticky label put on front by manufacturer has left a distinct unsightly mark since removing. Crockery doesn't stack well on racks, particularly top rack. Can't fit in as much as with our previous two dishwashers.

+ Cleans well even on the economy wash.

- It sometimes takes a bit of planning and organisation to get larger dinner plates in.

+ It's quiet when running.

- Difficult to stack,fits little in it,blocks all the time, beeps annoyingly when cycle finishes and all cycles take too long

+ None

- Cannot fit standard size dinner plates in dishwater, Not fit for purpose Top shelf too low. Noisy

+ Reviewer left no comment

- noisy and it is much slower than the bosch we had before

+ ease of use. no complicated buttons.

- the distance between the bottom rack and the top is not big enough to take a full dinner plate. the washing wheel hits the plates as it rotates.

+ Not bad value for money all round. Layout of trays well thought out.

- Silly jagged edge to dorr opening handle - uncomfortable to use. Noisier in operation than our previous Bosch.

+ Delay timer, quiet operation.

- Hopeless top tray for positioning tumblers, mugs, large and medium size cups.

+ Good cleaning power / Simple to use

- Washing cycle too long / basic design

+ appearance

- poor quality racks/runners
wine glasses do not stand safely
does not clean properly on standard setting
does not dry

+ Reviewer left no comment

- The door handle is rather fierce and the door springs back up and traps your hand

+ Looks nice. Salt, Rinse aid and detergent easy to fill. Good functions such as timer delay.

- Height of drawers is very low. Some plates and chopping boards will not fit even though they did in my previous dishwasher. The cutlery holder only has very small slots which my cutlery won't fit in. The handle to open the dishwasher is very sharp. It's very loud but the timer delay means I always put it on during the night.

+ Very easy to use

- although the door is stainless steel the kick plate is silver painted plastic and has already scratched.

+ It has a clock display so you know how much of the program is left.

- The economy load is only good for cleaning things which are already clean. We have to use it on the least ecological setting and even then some things have to go through three times. It's easier to wash up by hand and we are very disappointed. Considering it's not the cheapest dishwasher on the market we were hoping for something of higher quality.

+ design: simple, clean lines,stainless steel exterior

- cycles take too long

+ easy to read programs, like size of upper basket.

- dont like cutlery basket position, tried several. the filter sometimes can come out of place, and then the wash has not been done properly, always having to check it before every wash.

+ looks very good

- cant put tall dishes in bottom rack

+ Good design; sparkling wash

- Long time for the 3in 1 wash (2.5hours)

+ looks more sturdy being stainless steel
controls being inside the doors are good

- stands look flimsy
parts inside look cheap

+ The controls are inside the door so leaving the outside streamline

- Need to put top basket on top runners to allow for dinner plates at bottom therefore only enabling one tier of cup in top basket.

+ Styling is great - no knobs/buttons on the outside - so nice clean lines.

- The only bad point was the great big stickly lable stuck on the front of the machine. It took great skill and care to remove the glue without scratching the finish!

+ clean finish. Looks very modern and sleek in the kitchen.
I like that the buttons are on the inside and the exterior is smooth.

- The door is slightly too sticky and hard to open. You have to give a seriously good tug to get it to open. Could be that the door handle is just a little too low so the angle isnt optimised for opening.

+ Controls easy to understand/operate

- All in one tablet wash - having to use a small basket to contain the tablet which is not built into the machine and having to find a place to hang the basket where is won't be damaged by the blades or cause damage to the blades

+ None. It takes over 2 and a half hours of electricity. Wish I had bought a Bosch

- Having to mess about with that ridiculous plastic cage for the Finish tablet.

+ Lovely design, matched the kitchen perfectly. Hidden controls - no bulky knobs on show.

- With the top tray in the upper position, you could not get tall glasses in. Lowering it allowed tall glasses, but the lower rack was compromised. Couldn't get large crockery or pans in.
The dishes did not dry properly even after checking things like the rotation of the spray arms incase they were sticking and rinse aid levels.
There was a specific basket for the tablet. This dissapeared into the machine on every wash. No use at all.
Generally, It looked good, but the design of the racks made the interior look a lot smaller than other dishwashers.

+ Looks good. Very easy to clean off fingerprints. Simple to use.

- Not really large enough for a medium sized family as it doesn't optomise space.

+ Looks fantastic, the buttons are inside the door so little fingers (ie my 3 year old) can't play with them, and last but not least the dishes come out really clean and dry!

- The only programme suitable for using with dishwasher tablets takes over two and a half hours. Dishes do come out sparkling though!

+ easy to install , easy to use , nice to look at , does a good job

- needs adjusting to take large plates

+ It is an attractive product

- I have been unable to use it as yet because the cold feed connector is not compatible with a standard valve. The female part is bigger than the male part with the external thread. It is therefore impossible to tighten sufficiently to make it water tight. I need a new hose. Very frustrating and not very satisfactory is it?

+ Price, looks

- Cleaning time, flimsy racks

+ this is a stylish looking easy to use dishwasher. It has a number of cycles to choose from and also the lcd screen lets you know how long is left to go until the end which is a great feature. the top rack has two height settings which we have found useful and it's very easy to switch between them. Overall we are very happy witht his purchase and we managed to get it at a great price as well.

- I'd say the downside is that you are advised if you want to use the all in one tablets you use the specific programme for them which is over 2 1/2hrs long. they also go in a hanging basket in the machine not in the usual dispenser. Other than that nothing. I haven't had to clean it yet so that is why i have put a general score.

+ looks good,minimilistic looking. solid quality product.

- doesn't fit larger plates easily, wash takes long (1h 35m short, 2h 45m long).Takes an almighty yank to open door. quite noisy

+ The Kenwood appears to have a larger capacity compared to our previous dishwasher (hotpoint Aquarius); this maybe because the tray designs suits our needs better (family of six) that use a lot of crockery! The dishwasher sits on a laminate floor but is re-assuringly quiet.

- The cutlery holder (if you use the clip in lids) can be both awkward to clean and does not suit small teaspoons or toddler cutlery.
The door is not Toddler friendly either; my two year old can open the dishwasher when it is in mid-cycle...but then again she can open tetra cartons which I struggle with.

+ Looks the part in my new stainless steel kitchen, In comparison to my old dishwasher is much quieter. Easy to empty filter out. Trays adjust to accomodate differant size dishes etc.

- programme seems to be a lot long but it could be that I need to read through the instructions properly.

+ Buttons in door, childproof. Looks good with stainless steel front.

- Difficult to stack dinner plates in top level, in the bottom level plates touch rotary blade.

+ Nice and simple programmes.

- Not as much space as there should be internally.