This is a great washer dryer combo! I'm not sure how long they've been around, but what a great idea!  I'm sorry I waited so long to buy it - but I'm happy I finally did!  I read a LOT of reviews from many different companies before making a decision on which brand to go with. This GE has all the features of stand alone units, but what a space saver!  It's in my kitchen so it was important that it didn't take up too much space or look like an ugly out of place appliance, and it doesn't. It's very easy to use... I typically wash only, then add a fabric softener sheet and set it for a timed dry. I tumble a lot of my stuff and hang to dry - no problem with this. I've also stopped it to add a garment and used the spin only feature on something I've hand washed.  Performance has been awesome and unless something goes terribly wrong, I will never buy separate units again! Thanks GE!