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Financing Your Home Appliances When Tobi Moriarty first sat with her architect to begin planning the renovation of the kitchen in her 100-year-old home in Round Hill, VA, she could hardly believe the variety of refrigerators, cook-tops, and dishwashers from which she could choose.

Maytag’s line of energy-efficient Neptune washer-and-dryer combos are also popular with consumers, say officials with both Lowe’s and Home Depot. These products, which feature stainless-steel wash baskets, boast touch screen controls that consumers can tap to call up laundry tips and hints. The controls also let you create and save up to 24 preferred washing and drying cycles. The Neptune washer, in fact, comes with two popular washing cycles already stored: blue jeans and towels. The Neptune, like the Duet, is an energy-efficient product, with Maytag officials estimating that consumers who use the products will save an average of $150 a year in water and energy.

And while this range meant that Ms. Moriarty could, in theory, select the perfect appliances to fill her new kitchen—appliances tailored specifically to the needs of a family featuring three young children all under the age of 6—it also meant that she had to wade through a seemingly endless number of choices to do so.

And Ms. Moriarty isn’t alone. An overabundance of choices is a problem many consumers face, whether they are renovating their kitchens, adding home-entertainment centers to their residences or just looking for the perfect washer and dryer combinations for their basement laundry rooms.

To help select the right appliances for her kitchen, Ms. Moriarty focused on the basic requirements she needed for each. For instance, she wanted a dishwasher that contained three racks, a requirement that vastly cut down the number of choices available. Through this process, Ms. Moriarty was finally able to pinpoint the exact appliances she wanted. She is now eagerly awaiting her finished kitchen—which workers started remodeling in late January—and her three-rack dishwasher.

The good news for consumers like Ms. Moriarty is that manufacturers today make home appliances for any lifestyle: Homeowners pressed for space can choose from washing machines and dryers designed to fit into the tiniest of spaces.

Those interested in low water bills can purchase energy-efficient dishwashers. Those looking for beauty can nab a refrigerator that looks like it was made out of authentic stainless-steel.

The bad news? This abundance also means that you must do more homework than ever to choose the appliances that are perfect for you.

Fortunately, manufacturers have some advice for those struggling with this abundance. Their biggest tip? Consumers should take long looks at their own lifestyles and residences before purchasing any major appliances.

The Integra dishwasher from Bosch, in addition to being known as one of the quietest dishwashers on the market, is also one of the most stylish. The dishwasher features Apexx™ wash technology that ensures an ideal wash every time utilizing Sensotronic 2™’s two soil sensors to adjust wash cycle time, and an exclusive flow-control technology to adjust water temperature and consumption for top performance with maximum water and energy savings. The dishwasher comes in a range of designer colors.

Bringing new life to old standbys

Certain appliances have always made life easier for homeowners, standbys such as washing machines and dryers, dishwashers and refrigerators. That hasn’t changed. But the actual products have, reflecting in many ways the changing lifestyles of consumers. Many products, for example, now contain touch-pad screens that allow for precision washing. Others boast energy-efficient features, saving homeowners money. Still others feature sleek designs and come in a rainbow of colors.

No one disputes that all these options are a positive for consumers. After all, you can now pick and choose appliances that provide the perfect fit for you and your family. But, again, the variety of basic appliances out there means it’s up to you to study the newest refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines, dryers, and microwave ovens to find out which ones are best for you.

Some things, though, never change: Consumers today are just as interested as ever in saving money. That’s why many of you are buying energy-efficient dishwashers, washer-dryer combos, and refrigerators. Again, research is the key to finding the right energy-efficient product. But salespeople at the major home retailers—places such as Sears, Lowe’s, Home Depot, Best Buy, Circuit City and others—can help guide you to the latest efficient products.

At Lowe’s, for instance, salespeople will undoubtedly lead you to the Duet washer-and-dryer combos manufactured by Whirlpool. These energy-efficient machines have attracted a lot of attention from consumers eager for both performance and savings. The front-loading appliances feature some nifty features, the most important of which is the fact that the Duet washing machine uses 67-percent less electricity and 68-percent less water than do traditional front-load varieties. Whirlpool officials estimate that the average consumer will use 12,000-fewer gallons of water a year by switching to a Duet. Also, drying time with a Duet takes the same amount of time as it does to run a load of wash, meaning that you don’t have to spend a full hour waiting for your towels, blue jeans, and sweatshirts to dry.

Style-conscious homeowners can choose from a variety of tall tub dishwashers from Bosch that not only look stylish in any kitchen but are also regarded as some of the quietest dishwashers on the market. Consumers choosing the company’s Integra line, for instance, can choose dishwashers that come in shades of black, white, or biscuit. Those looking for the sleekest dishwasher can choose a Bosch model in stainless-steel. These washers have also gained notice as the first to offer concealed controls.

And the best news is that these dishwashers, though stylish, are also energy-efficient. Bosch dishwashers each include what company officials call the Sensotronic sensor. This feature senses soil levels as a means of adjusting the amount of water and the length of cycles the dishwasher needs to clean each load. This system, Bosch officials say, saves the average user up to 30 percent in water and energy use every year. Company officials boast that Bosch dishwashers can clean a full load of messy dinner dishes using as little as 3.1 gallons of water.

The Sensotronic sensor leads to the third feature retailers say consumers are looking for in appliances: cutting-edge technology. Many, for instance, want to find those appliances that feature the latest in touch-screen technology, something that can be found on everything from dishwashers to refrigerators. Others seek “smart” appliances, those, like the Bosch Integra dishwashers, that can sense exactly how much water or energy to use to complete a given task.

As proof of the impact technology is having on appliances, consider that even the oft-neglected microwave oven has gotten into the act. Those homeowners hooked on finding the latest technology now have a microwave oven they can embrace. The g2microven SpeedCook Appliance from Whirlpool features a 1,100-watt halogen bulb and uses the latest in technology to allow consumers to provide as little heat as needed to soften a stick of butter or as much as they’d need to cook an entire meal.

Thin is in

Everyone knows that consumers love plasma televisions. And why not? These cool gadgets deliver amazing picture quality and are so thin they hang from your walls, meaning they take up as little space as possible.

Problem is, these space-saving devices are still incredibly expensive. Fortunately for you, there is another option: slim-line televisions. These products, which are known as either microprojection or DLP televisions depending on the manufacturer, are available from manufacturers such as Sony, Samsung, and Panasonic, and are thicker than plasma TVs but far thinner than are traditional television sets. Slim line TVs generally range from 12- to 14-inches deep, far less obtrusive than traditional projection TVs that can be as much as 4-feet deep.

Steve Mullen, senior public relations representative for Circuit City, says that consumers during the holiday season snapped up a large number of slim-line TVs from the retailer.

“The wonderful thing about these televisions is that their picture rivals plasma,” Mr. Mullen says. “You can get a television that has a great picture but doesn’t take up a lot of room. What we found was that as plasma TVs have gotten more popular, their prices have fallen a bit. This has encouraged more people to take a look at them. A lot of these people are then finding that though the prices have lowered, they are still a little too high for them. These people then turn to slim-line TVs.”

The best part about slim-line TVs? They cost far less than do plasma sets. For example, Circuit City’s slim-line TVs run from about $3,500 to $4,999.

The only negative with slim-line TVs? Well, the negative is actually a bit of a positive: There are a lot of them on the market, some with screens as large as 61 inches, others with screens as small as 43 inches.

Of course, all this focus on slim sets doesn’t mean that consumers are neglecting full-size TV sets. Many consumers are looking for the biggest sets they can find. These consumers are flocking to what are called rear-projection TVs, sets that can feature screens as large as 65 inches.

Where to research?

Now that you’re convinced you must do your homework before buying that dishwasher or big-screen TV, you probably have one question: Where can you do the research you need to make an informed purchase? Fortunately, that’s an easy one to answer: Turn to the Internet.

The Internet is filled with amazing resources for consumers seeking home appliances. You can find a wealth of information at our web site, www.appliance.com. The major retailers’ Web sites are also great places to start. Sites such as www.circuitcity.com, www.sears.com, www.bestbuy.com, www.lowes.com, and www.homedepot.com allow consumers to search for specific products. You can then research all these products with the click of a mouse. The sites also include information on current prices and warranties associated with products.

Another good option? Manufacturer Web sites. Sites such as www.whirlpool.com, www.maytag.com, www.sony.com, or www.samsung.com provide detailed information about any type of home appliance available.

Of course, the Internet isn’t the only place to find information. You may want to take the old-fashioned route: Stop in a store and either look around on your own or talk to the shop’s salespeople. It may take longer than surfing the Internet, but at least you can get some fresh air as you do your research.

The Price You’ll Pay

Here is just a small sample of the price ranges of some of the hottest home appliances available today:

1. Neptune washing machines from Maytag:
Prices run from $1,139 to $2,029 depending
on model.

2. Neptune dryers from Maytag:
Prices range from $699 to $1,519.

3. Slim-line televisions:
The prices of these sets vary, but generally range
from $3,000 to $5,000 depending on the size
of their screens.

4. Duet washer-and-dryer combinations from
Whirlpool:
These products cost about $1,000 at most
retailers.

5. Bosch Integra dishwashers:
These products range from about $730 to $950
at area retailers.

6. g2microven SpeedCook from Whirlpool:
This supercharged microwave oven retails from
about $570 to $720. More Editorials