Hisense Series 8i 10kg Heat Pump Dryer - Setting New Standards In Efficiency

Are you a dryer person or a clothesline person?

If you're a dryer person, you probably find it hard to believe there are people out there who are so philosophically opposed to the concept of using a dryer, they don't even own one.

I've met a few of these weirdos over the years.

And to be honest, they make some good arguments.

Number one; the cost. We all know electric dryers pretty much burn money in order to get your laundry dry, while all a clothesline costs is a bit of time and effort.

Number two; Condensation. This is just physics. Blow hot air out into a cold room and windows will fog up and eventually ceilings will start to drip.

Number three; (and this one's a bit more open to interpretation) Laundry dried "naturally" just feels better.

So this review is especially for them. Oh... and if you're not using a heat pump dryer, it's for you too.

Right from the outset, the Series 8i heat pump dryer from Hisense looks like a class product. In keeping with current trends, it's charcoal - not white - and compliments its stablemate, the Series 8i washer, perfectly.

I'll bring you my review of the washing machine in the weeks to come but I will say the minimalist design of both devices really suits my personal taste, with the only significant physical features being the identical, large, circular glass doors.

Well... not necessarily identical, as it turns out.

When you're dealing with an appliance you have to use multiple times every week, it's the little things that make all the difference. Things like the reversible door on the Hisense dryer. This not only gives you more flexibility when installing but it means if you're setting it up side-by-side with your washer, you can have the two doors opening out in opposite directions, a godsend when it comes to transferring your laundry from washer to dryer. 

My laundry is also my garage, and even though I have marine carpet, I'd rather not drop any of my wet gear on the floor, as I reach around the open door to get it into the dryer. Previously, this meant pulling it all out into a washing basket, only to take it all out again a few seconds later. Well, no more - my review Hisense heat pump dryer came with the door installed on the opposite side to the washer but even if it hadn't, it's only a matter of a few screws to swap it over.

As you will see me point out in the video below, the 8i Series dryer carriers an incredible energy efficiency rating - 10-stars in fact. As of February this year, that made it New Zealand's most energy efficient 10kg dryer - so that cost-benefit equation the clothesline people always bring up starts to look a little shaky.

I've also been impressed with how quiet it is when it runs - and that's not even using the Night Drying mode, which drops the sound down a few more decibels further. That's got to be good news for anyone living in a smaller home, perhaps with a bedroom or living room unavoidably close to where the drying happens.

But let's tackle that other big issue homeowners have been contending with, pretty much since the electric dryer was first invented; condensation. I know some people have gone to the trouble to have their laundries flued, (vented) so the moist, warm air can be expelled outside. But let's be honest, most of us just open a window.

The result; a cold house and possibly a very real security threat.

The Hisense 8i heat pump dryer has a much better solution. Any condensation created during the drying process is separated out and drained into the Condensate Box - a long, narrow drawer on the upper left-hand side of the machine. This can be easily pulled out and drained every couple of drying sessions and definitely beats leaving a window open all night long.

Alternatively, the Series 8i dryer ships with a separate drainage hose you can attach to the outlet at the back of the machine instead, syphoning off any moisture directly to the drain in your laundry tub, just like the drainage hose does on a washing machine. I fully intended to use this method but when I came to install the dryer, I realised a) my laundry tub drainpipe only has a single spigot to attach a drainage hose to (which the washing machine was obviously already occupying) and b) the drainage pipe for the dryer is significantly more narrow.

Now, I'm not averse to a bit of medium-level DIY, so I wasn't too daunted by the prospect of replacing the S-bend drainpipe under the laundry sink with a dual-spigot version - but after a lot of Googling I soon discovered a part like that was surprisingly hard to source. Then, even if I could find and install one, I'd still have to adapt the end of the narrow drain hose from the dryer, to fit the wider spigot underneath the tub.

I decided not to force the issue and just left the original Condensate Box system as it was.

Powering on and setting up the Series 8i dryer is pretty foolproof, thanks to the iPlay intuitive touch panel and the ConnectLife app - your one-stop-shop for all things Hisense. From the app you can connect the dryer to your Wi-Fi and install any firmware updates.

Now, I realise many of you reading this will be questioning why on earth your dryer needs to be online - and indeed, you can run it perfectly well from the easy to read, 3.55-inch full-colour control panel. The large, central jog wheel clicks through a list of 17 preset routines - from cotton to baby care to towels. And more likely than not, you (like me) will just select Auto and let the dryer decide how long and how hot to run, depending on the weight and type of laundry it senses you've chucked in.

But there are some significant benefits to having a fully connected dryer like this. Firstly, it means it can talk to your matching Hisense washing machine (which I'll be reviewing for you in the coming days). This saves time because via Smart Link, the washer can tell the dryer what sort of a load is coming its way, so it's all ready to crack on, the moment you transfer your wet stuff across.

It's also very handy being notified when the dryer has finished, when the lint filter needs cleaning and when the condensate tank needs emptying. These are all messages that'll flash up on your phone and guarantee you won't just leave that load, forgotten, sitting there, until you happen to walk past it the next day.

You even have the option of steam-drying, something Hisense calls iCare. Adding water to the drying process may seem counter-intuitive, but I have a friend who swears by dampening her dresses then popping them in the dryer to shake out any wrinkles and generally freshen them up. This is what Hisense's iCare does for you. It doesn't get much cleverer than that.

Oh - except for the drying rack. That's also pretty clever. Ever wanted to chuck your sneakers in after a rainy walk but you don't love the idea of your $400 kicks tumbling over each other like an avalanche of boulders down a hillside? Just insert the rack. It suspends your less tumble-proof items in the middle of the dryer so you get all the benefits of the heat-pumped air and none of the knocking about.

There are so many more little features that all add up to a genuinely impressive device. A light inside the drum that means you'll never leave a stray sock behind again. Even the capacity - 10kg - that really makes a difference, reducing the number of drying cycles you need over time.

It's faster, it's quieter and it doesn't fog up my garage. It lets me know when it's done, when to clean it and when it needs emptying. And operating in excess of its ten-star efficiency rating means it's a laundry upgrade you'll never regret. Even if you're a clothesline person.

Click here for more information and pricing on the Hisense Series 8i 10kg Heat Pump Dryer.