I have a front loader, HE, Samsung. about 3-4 years old. Love it. It sense the amount of water needed for the load. :Less detergent, too. It tumbles the clothes in both directions. I like that the friction of clothes against clothes is what's getting them clean (and soap, too, of course) rather than an agitator. But I have heard others say they hate front loaders. This one thing I do know, none of them are made like the ones we had 25 years ago! You might get 10 yrs out of new ones.