Beko 9kg BDPB904HW

Nightmare Disguised as a Beko Washing Dryer – In December 2023, I made the regrettable decision to purchase the Beko 9kg BDPB904HW washing dryer, seduced by the promise of convenience and efficiency. This decision quickly devolved into one of my most aggravating experiences to date, characterized by a defective product and an abysmal display of customer service that would make Kafka blush. The dryer's collapse after a mere two weeks was the first slap in the face, signaling the start of an ordeal that would test the limits of my patience. Expecting a straightforward repair process, I instead embarked on a Kafkaesque journey through the bowels of Beko's customer service labyrinth.

The saga began with a call to Beko, where I naively handed over every piece of information they requested, from serial numbers to my firstborn's potential names. My reward? A referral to Optimum Electronic Solutions Pty Ltd, an entity that seemed to exist for the sole purpose of adding another layer of frustration to an already maddening situation. Here, I was subjected to the indignity of repeating my tale of woe, as if reciting some tragic epic to uninterested ears, only to be graced with an appointment that was as fleeting as my hopes for resolution.

The climax of this farce came the day before the scheduled appointment when I was casually informed that my failure to confirm via email—a step in the process as invisible as it was illogical—meant no technician would grace my doorstep. My protests were met with bureaucratic shrugs, leaving me stranded with a glorified paperweight instead of a dryer.

This experience has been a masterclass in disappointment, underscoring the stark reality that Beko's warranty service is a mirage in a desert of incompetence. It's a tale of unmet promises, where customer service dies in the echo chamber of outsourced indifference.

To those considering a Beko appliance, consider this review a warning. The Beko 9kg BDPB904HW washing dryer is a monument to the art of disappointment, supported by a customer service so detached it borders on the surreal. Your money and sanity deserve better.

Avoid Beko and their 9kg BDPB904HW washing dryer like a plague. This isn't just a review; it's a plea to save yourself from the abyss of despair that awaits beneath the veneer of Beko's glossy advertisements. In a market flush with alternatives, choosing Beko is akin to choosing disappointment as a houseguest—one that refuses to leave, no matter how unwelcome it has become.

Excellent dryer, lots of features, great value – In short this is an excellent dryer. I did a lot of research and feature comparison and eventually decided to get this machine. I wanted a heat pump condenser to replace our 13 year old condenser (not heat pump) dryer. It needed to be efficient, well built, have a true reverse tumble action. I also had a number of other 'nice to have' things and this unit ticked almost all of the boxes. Great value, lots of features, easily matches far more expensive machines out there. It includes an extended warranty for no additional cost (just need to register the machine on their website after purchase). There are some very minor annoyances and missed opportunities to make this dryer even better than it is now, but overall I'm very happy with it and would not hesitate in recommending people check it out themselves. That pretty much covers it at the high level, but if you want more detail here goes:

Let's start with the positives: * 10 year warranty on motor * 5 year warranty on everything else - just need to record purchase details online * "ProSmart™ Inverter Motor" - means the inverter motor is brushless. Compared to a motor with brushes this means less friction, cooler, more power efficient, quieter, longer life - reflected by the 10 year warranty on the motor. * Build quality - appears to be very good. It is still early days yet, but so far so good. Only minor negative is the plastic feel of the door (see the notes in the 'negative' section). * Price - very competitive * Multiple standard programs, as well as ability to upload an extra. These can be further modified by changing various settings to suit your specific requirements. * Sensor drying to stop the machine based on dryness rather than simply time * Able to select multiple levels of dryness - from L1=slightly damp (when you want to iron things afterwards) to L2="cupboard dry" which leaves a little bit of moisture in, to L3="cupboard dry+" (my preference - I'd call it standard dry after hanging up outside on a warm day), to L4="cupboard dry++) - haven't tried it but suspect it would be like hanging it outside on a very hot day ie crispy dry. * Remote app - can be a pain to setup (see 'negatives'), but allows you to be alerted on the mobile when a drying cycle is finished. There are four extra programs available that you can choose from to upload one to the dryer. * 9kg capacity - this is massive compared to our older dryer. Note the actual capacity varies depending on the type of clothes but that is true of all dryers. The bonus here is that it physically is usually not full which means clothes are at a lower risk of being crumpled. * Reverse tumble drying by default to reduce risk of sheets 'balling'. Have not had any issues with that on the default settings, but there is also an optional setting to increase the amount of reverse action if you do have issues with specific sheets. * Amount of lint collected in both main filters and condenser is *much* less than our old dryer which was itself pretty gentle - so this indicates to me that this dryer is very gentle on clothes. * Hybrid capability - what this means is it (optionally) can use a combination of condenser *and* old school heat. Uses more power, but dries faster if you need it. * Steam feature - claims to reduce the amount of wrinkles in clothes. Is enabled in some programs, including the "mix". * Reversing door - a little fiddly, but possible. Comes with instructions but I recommend searching youtube for the video on how to do it. * If you want to mount the dryer on a front loading washer, Beko have kits including a 'universal kit' if you don't have a Beko washer. This securely straps a bracket to the washer, and the dryer sits on the bracket. Most other brands tend to only provide kits that will mount their dryer on their own washer.

Things to be aware of: * When the dryer starts a program, the initial time shown is a wild estimate - actual drying time is usually much shorter. * As it is a condenser dryer, it works by moving the hot air through a cooling unit that allows the water to condense and drain away. If the ambient air is warm & humid this impacts on the efficiency and will increase the amount of time it takes to dry clothes. In short, keep the door to the laundry open if you find it is taking too long to dry. * When you turn the dryer on, the default program is cotton with a dryness level of 2. The clothes do come out with some moisture remaining. Unless you plan to iron clothes (when moisture is a good thing), my standard program is usually the "mix" with L3 drying. I have also uploaded the "towel" program to the dryer and use that when it's just a load of towels. * You do need to clean the condenser filter every now and then (the frequency will depend on how much fluff your clothes generate) - it's a nice touch that the dryer comes with a brush to help you do this and that there is a spot to clip that brush in on the drop down panel below the door - but it would be nice if it was able to flush the condenser with the water being collected as some machines can. Be aware that the fins are sharp and *very* delicate - brush them clean gently vertically up/down (not horizontally left/right) to avoid damaging them or yourself. * It has a light inside you can turn on/off if you are bored

The negatives/things that could be improved (and this is being picky): * If you want to reverse the door opening direction, the handle recess is now bottom right (see the photo) rather than top left - so if the dryer is floor standing you need to bend down further to use it *or* grab the side of the door frame which feels wrong. It would have made more sense if the handle recess was in the middle of the door side. * The door is plastic so does not have the solid feel other manufacturers do - so pulling the door and feeling it flex before it pops open is a little unsettling and gives the machine a 'cheap' feel. It could benefit with bracing of some form. Rest of machine feels solid, though. * Condenser drainage - If you don't want to have to keep emptying the container the manual states you need to make sure the hose is less than 80cm from the base of the dryer. The drain hose is connected to the bottom of the dryer with no way of manually blocking the water from entering the container as some dryers have. Keep in mind that the dryer is 84cm high - this means that even if the drainage hose is a few cm below the height of the dryer it will not drain. Even at 75cm I found that water still collected in the container. I had to arrange for the plumbing to be changed to provide a lower waste fitting so the max height was 65cm. This would of course not be an issue if you mount the dryer on a bench or on top of your (front loading) washing machine. * Wifi is a total pain to setup. The steps are: Turn off. Open door. Scan code with app. Close door. Hold down remote and then power buttons on the front panel and wait until it goes into pairing mode. If nothing happens on dryer then repeat the whole process from the very beginning. I had to go through this process multiple times over the course of an hour before it worked. I suspect sometimes the capacitive touch screen does not detect touch and trying to touch two buttons at the same time increases the risk of issues. Maybe a hidden physical button would be better, or perhaps holding down just one button for a longer period such as 20 seconds. * The dryer does not remember previous settings so - if you prefer to always use a specific program or drying setting - you need to change that every time. If you have managed to get the app to work you can save favourite programs but that means you need to use the app to start the cycle which means turning the dryer on, then pressing the remote button on the dryer, then opening the app, then selecting the favourite program and starting it. Far too many steps. Should be able to just turn the dryer on, then press go. * If you use the app a lot to control the dryer, you need to manually enable that every time you turn the dryer on. * You can upload from the app one extra program, but you can only select from specific set programs. It would be great if you could save a favourite program (with different dryness levels etc) and upload that but no. This is possibly something that could be enabled in the future via a firmware or software update. At least then you could turn the dryer on, change to the uploaded program, and press go.... * Although the app has the ability to display power usage - sadly the dryer itself does not support monitoring power usage. Would be nice if it could! Could setup alerts if power usage increases - indicating that perhaps the condenser filter is blocked or that there is some other issue. Given that a dryer and a fridge are two of the household appliances that tend to use the most power it would make sense to have that as a feature.... FWIW I hooked up a separate meter and it used 0.72kWh running the standard 'mix' setting on the higher L3 drying setting, with a fairly full load of towels and other clothes taking just over 2 hours to finish on a humid (91%) day. The next run on the same setting, but this time with only about half a load, used 0.43kWh. So pretty decent.

** Update ** Two years down the track - well, technically 25 months - and the dryer started acting up. Would complain that the water tank needed to be emptied, but the dryer was actually plumbed in to the drain and the tank was bone dry. Made sure all the filters were clear, and tried running it with the drain pipe going into a bucket - not a drop came out, but still complained. Contacted Beko support via their web form and raised a service request as it seemed to me that the water pump had failed. Next day was contacted by them, and they arranged for a tech to come the next business day. He checked the dryer, and it turned out that there was lint stopping the water pump from starting. This is not really a user serviceable part, although it didn't look too hard to get at - if it happens again after the warranty expires I'd probably do it myself. Anyhow, the main thing is the dryer still works perfectly other than this one minor issue that was quickly resolved by Beko. So happy both with the product and also the after care support.