Electrolux EI24ID50QS review

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When it comes to washing dishes, why should you settle for the old sink and sponge? Electrolux aims to add a bit of luxury to one of the most tedious kitchen chores.

However, luxury wouldn’t mean anything if it wasn’t attached to a price tag. The EI24ID50QS carries a suggested retail price of $1,099.00 but can be found on sale at Best Buy for as low as $899. That’s not quite at the top of the dishwasher price scale but not exactly within the thriftiest of budgets, either.

With its array of interesting features, including the powerful spray system that reaches every corner of the appliance’s interior, is the Electrolux the machine to fill that dishwasher-sized hole under your kitchen counter?

A handsome face

As anyone who has made a trip to a big-box appliance store in the past few years can tell you, dishwashers have mostly settled into a single stylistic configuration: stainless steel cubes with their control interfaces growing ever more unobtrusive and minimal.

The EI24ID50QS doesn’t break with this trend, and why should it? The aesthetic appeal of stainless steel isn’t really up for debate. In a kitchen, it means style and indicates to visitors that its owner takes cooking seriously. In this case, the finish on the Electrolux seems to be a bit of a fingerprint magnet, but the hidden control panel and the bar-style handle should prevent this from becoming too much of an issue. If you share your kitchen space with aspiring young chefs, your mileage may, of course, vary.

In place of any sort of lock, Electrolux’s “Luxury-Hold” door prevents the washer from falling open, holding its position from a mere crack to anything shy of a fully ajar 90 degrees. A lock or latch might be a welcome feature, though, as the lack of one means that the door can be pulled completely open at any point mid-cycle, and doing so too quickly can cause water to splash everywhere.

The height is adjustable, and it should fit into most 24-inch dishwasher bays without issue.

Space and adaptability

The rack space is hugely adaptable and can accommodate up to 12 place settings or a wide variety of different cookware or bakeware. The racks boast sturdy construction, with the adjustable tines snapping pleasingly into place.

The tines themselves do feel a bit tighter than on some other dishwashers, but they do not hinder loading. The top “Luxury-Glide” rack does not slide as gracefully as its hifalutin name suggests; however, its adjustable nature — giving you a few extra inches on either rack — will be a welcome feature to those hoping to wash their extra-deep stock pots. The bottom rack rests on wheels on the floor of the tub, and as is common with this design, you can pull it out further than intended if it’s empty or partially loaded. However, it’s relatively simple to replace.

The detergent dispenser sports a sliding gate and works well with tablet-style detergents. However, when using a liquid soap, it can be a bit difficult to tell if you’ve filled the dispenser to capacity, since the gate opens away from the user.

One very cool but inconspicuous feature is the adaptable silverware basket, which can be separated into halves to fit on either half of the washer or folded in half to sit squarely in the middle of the rack. The third-level cutlery rack is also entirely removable for when it’s time to put away your bamboo spatulas and fancy fillet knives.

An understated interface

The hidden “IQ-Touch” control panel offers nine different cycle settings, with five separate options to accommodate various temperatures, dryness levels, or delay times. Each key offers a brief “beep” of audio feedback and has its own individual LED light to indicate your setting selection. There’s also a segmented LCD screen that counts down the wash cycle, but since it’s located on a hidden panel, you must crack the door (halting the cycle) to check the remaining time.

Generally, as the machines in our lives become more sophisticated, they become more complicated. We need them to communicate as clearly as possible. This has resulted in a bit of a design paradox where dishwashers are concerned, as a hidden panel and display has become popular among luxury models. Unfortunately, like many of its high-end peers, this causes a bit of a communication breakdown.

During operation, it is almost completely silent, with the exception of the occasional water travel. This in itself is a boon, but the fact that there is no visible indicator to distinguish that the device is in use can prove problematic. It does shine a blue light on the floor after the end of a cycle, but the light is extinguished after the first time the door is opened and closed. If you plan to use this as a bachelor-style reminder that the load in the washer is clean, you’re out of luck.

A powerful wash

Let it not be said that this machine can’t clean dishes. In fact, it washes admirably. Its automatic cycle, while fairly long at 135 minutes, gets dishes spotless and dry. The fast-wash function offers few frills — dishes come out dripping wet — but still performs very well for a 30-minute speed cycle. The less-soiled flatware and silverware were all very well cleaned, but the quicker cycle was unable to chip the last bits of crud off of the stoneware meatloaf pan or greasy stainless steel.

For those dirtier jobs, there’s the heavy wash, which clocks in at over 150 minutes. In that time, the machine was able to dispense with even the most stubborn sediments of baked-on cheese, especially when given special attention by the Target Wash Zones: a series of spigots on the top rack that can be tapped to shoot water directly onto tough messes.

But most of the heavy lifting should be attributed to Electrolux’s Satellite Spray system. Supposedly giving 400 percent better water coverage than average, the system consists of a unique orbital spray head that spins at one end of the more traditional propeller-shaped rotating spray arm. The end result is a veritable hurricane inside the machine, which does indeed seem to gain extraordinary coverage.

The machine was tested with a variety of detergents, ranging from a less expensive store brand to a top-shelf soap. None seemed to compromise the wash, though the cheaper soaps did seem to result in a somewhat more water-spotted finish.

Some compromises have to be met in order to make our appliances more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly, and in a dishwasher’s case, speed is certainly a concession. While the aforementioned fast cycle wraps up in a speedy 30 minutes, drying time can easily double that. The eco-wash cycle only beats the auto-wash cycle by a few minutes and doesn’t allow you to enable the maximum-dryness option. However, these times are all comparable to modern washers in a similar price range.

Warranty and support

Electrolux offers a one-year limited warranty for parts, and the racks and electronics are covered by a two-through-five year limited replacement warranty. The stainless tub and door liner are covered by a lifetime limited warranty. This is comparable to warranties offered by KitchenAid, LG, GE, and Samsung. Frigidaire, Maytag, and Whirlpool each only offer a one-year warranty for parts and labor.

Electrolux also offers support via phone, email, and live chat; however, customer reviews of their service are mixed.

Conclusion

It’s safe to say that Electrolux has succeeded in its goal to add some luxury to the dishwashing experience. Unfortunately, these amenities come at the cost of a few new annoyances.

The EI24ID50QS does a fine job washing, and its design is sleek and attractive, but its input oversights could prove frustrating in day-to-day use. Those purchasing new dishwashers now must often compromise between form and function, and Electrolux’s dishwasher may fall on the wrong side of that compromise. At this price point, there are machines (like the Bosch 500-Series or the KitchenAid Architect Series II) that can offer similar function, but with more informed usability.

Highs

• Powerful clean
• Whisper quiet
• Attractive look
• Feature-packed

Lows

• No locking mechanism for door
• Interface is hard to interact with
• Once door is opened, no reminder dishes are clean