This feels a little smaller than our last (Beko) appliance, and I didn’t realise I’d miss not having the controls on the top edge of the door - on this model they’re on the front. That said, 6 years on from our last purchase and it’s clear technology has moved on: this is quicker, quieter, and so far cleans better than our last did. The instruction booklet has a good guide showing how to set water hardness levels and how to adjust the rinse aid levels. I’d probably go for an integrated one next time, as, like me, it’s not the prettiest thing to look at!!

Our previous dishwasher was also an Indesit (DFP27T94A_WH), and a very comparable model. It lasted five years and twelve days, which isn't too bad as it sees pretty high usage. We were very satisfied with it - hence the choice for more or less the same again. So what changed, and how do we rate the changes? - An operating panel redesign means there is now no longer a rotating knob: everything's done with button presses. And it's quite a few more button presses, because it does not remember which washing program was chosen previously. Pity. The buttons themselves feel considerably less sturdy, and there is quite a bit of delay between, for instance, pressing power on and getting a reaction from the machine. That takes some getting used to. Not convinced it'll last as long, but we hope to be surprised. - The racks have a changed design which also needs getting used to. The pins are more upright, and the spacing is decreased. On the plus side: more items can be fitted in (hurray), but on the down side, we do not get the same level of cleanness. We used to be able to consistently choose the half-load option and get a sparkling result, but that doesn't work as well now. And although the energy rating is a bit better, this means we'll be useg a whole lot more electricity and water. - A new feature is that after washing, the door is opened automatically to let out the steam and help the drying process. That is a sight to behold. Achingly slowly, a plastic piece protrudes from the machine at the top, in the middle, forcing the door open slightly. It looks taken straight from 'Thunderbirds'. - The cutlery basket, a strange box design with loads of openings, is unchanged. It's still not to our taste, as it takes much too much time to load and unload, and many kitchen utensils are simply too large for it, meaning you have to fiddle around to open some of the little boxes its divided into. We kept our old one, which was a third-party basket we liked better. - The sound level is even lower than the previous one, with which we were already very happy, and which was a major factor in deciding to stick with Indesit. All in all: not, we think, an improvement over the previous incarnation for reasons of energy use, practicality and expected durability. The price seems to have risen a bit more than inflation. We'd give it an 8/10, as opposed to its predecessor's 9.5/10.

I did not realise the machine internals were quite so similar as our old Hotpoint, if I had, I would have kept the old top tray. The old one felt more robust and was better laid out. The stupid clips for adjusting the height of the top shelf are just as bad and you can't rely on it not to slip down on one side or the other. Our previous 2 machines have had very similar design with most parts interchangeable It seems every time we buy a new one its a little worse design. The best one we had was the first one we had many years ago with a choice of two tracks to adjust the height of the top tray with no need for stupid plastic clips. I suppose somebody discovered it was 2 or 3 pence cheaper per machine to make them worse.

This dishwasher cleans well. I have some issues with the rack arrangements, my plates don't fit as well as they did in my old Indesit, and the flaps break easily and cannot be put on the highest position. I like the fold down spikes in the bottom rack, which makes fitting larger items easier.

This was advertised as A++ rated and on arrival was an E , the dishwasher was choosen for the rating and washed ok, except some on our existing plates no longer fit as they have made the spacings tighter to squeeze 2 extra place settings in and increased length of arms. The cutlery tray is also smaller. Works ok

Disappointed with this model. We bought it for its large capacity but if you load it fully it does not clean dishes properly. We have to leave gaps between plates which defeats the purpose. Also, our dinner plates are too large, the turning water dispenser hits them. These plates are standard sizes so we now have to shop around for smaller plates. A badly designed dishwasher.