Description
What the NTW4519JW is and where it fits
Amana sits at the value end of the Whirlpool family and this machine is exactly what that implies: a 3.8 cubic foot high efficiency top load washer in white, operated by a knob, measuring 27 inches deep, 27.5 wide and 44 high. There is no touchscreen, no app, no steam and no glass door. What there is, is the mechanical simplicity that makes a machine like this the standard choice for rental properties, first apartments and second laundry rooms. High efficiency in a top loader means an impeller or a low profile agitator with a water level that follows the load rather than filling the tub, which is where the water saving comes from.
Living with it day to day
The top loading format has real daily advantages that get overlooked in the rush toward front loaders. The lid can be opened mid cycle to add a forgotten item. There is no rubber door gasket to trap water, which removes the single biggest maintenance chore and the most common odor complaint attached to front loading machines such as the GE GFW550SSNWW. Loading does not require bending. And at 44 inches tall with a top opening, it cannot be stacked, which is the one thing it definitively cannot do.
Capacity of 3.8 cubic feet is modest by current standards, where mainstream front loaders run 4.5 to 5.2 cubic feet, and it means a king comforter is not going in this machine. For one or two people it is entirely adequate. The listing names four cycle options, standard, gentle, delicates and quick wash, and does not publish a total cycle count, so any larger number quoted for this machine is not traceable to the specification data here. Amana publishes no decibel rating. High efficiency top loaders are generally noisier at spin than front loaders because the tub is vertical and less well damped, and the published spin speed here makes that worth thinking about.
Controls and connected features
There are none, and that is the point of the machine. The control type is listed as a knob, which means a mechanical or electromechanical selector rather than a control board driven touch panel. In a rental property that is the correct specification: a tenant can operate it without instructions, there is no account to transfer between occupants, and a failed selector is a cheap part rather than a control board. Over a long service life a dial is also the interface least likely to be affected by anything: no firmware, no platform, no app that stops supporting the model.
What is lost is remote notification, cycle downloads and remote diagnostics. On a machine at this price those were never going to be present, and their absence is reflected in what it costs. Anyone who wants notifications should be comparing connected machines and accepting the higher purchase price and the additional electronics that come with them, rather than looking for a middle ground that does not really exist in this segment.
Running cost and upkeep
The voltage is published, recorded in the specification data as 1.2E plus 2 volts, which is 120 volts written in scientific notation. That is an ordinary North American household supply and this is a plug in appliance with no dedicated circuit indicated, no hardwiring, no gas and no venting, because it is a washer with no drying function. No amperage is published, so the installation manual remains the reference for the circuit. Water supply and drain requirements are not published either, and a washer needs hot and cold supply hoses and a standpipe or laundry tub for drainage.
One specification deserves scepticism. The maximum rotational speed is listed as 1200 rpm, and that is a front loader number. High efficiency top load washers of this class typically spin in the 600 to 850 rpm range, because a vertical tub at 1200 rpm imposes forces a value priced cabinet is not usually built to handle. The figure may be correct, and it would be a genuine advantage if it is, since a faster spin means drier laundry and a shorter dryer cycle. It should be confirmed against Amana’s own specification sheet rather than assumed. No annual energy or water consumption figure is published, so running cost cannot be calculated, though a high efficiency top loader with load sensing uses substantially less water than a traditional deep fill machine. Upkeep is minimal: keep the lid open to dry, clean the dispenser, and run a tub clean cycle occasionally. There is no gasket to wipe. One listing oddity: the product title repeats the model number three times in sequence, which is a data entry fault. Other options across formats sit in the washers section, from the portable COSTWAY automatic up to the LG WM3400CW.
Highlights
- Voltage is published at 120 volts, which most laundry listings in this catalog omit.
- No door gasket, so none of the mould and odor maintenance front loaders require.
- The lid opens mid cycle, so a forgotten item can be added.
- Knob control that anyone can operate without instructions, and no app or account.
- Stainless steel wash basket rather than porcelain or plastic.
- High efficiency water use with load sensing rather than a fixed fill.
Things To Consider
- The published 1200 rpm maximum spin speed is unusually high for a top loader and should be confirmed.
- 3.8 cubic feet is small by current standards and will not take a king comforter.
- Only four cycle options are named, with no total cycle count published.
- A top loading machine cannot be stacked with a dryer.
- No amperage, water pressure or drain requirement is published.
- The product title repeats the model number three times, which is a listing data fault.
Who it is not for
Anyone with a laundry closet who needs a stacked pair cannot use a top loader at all. Families washing bedding and bulky items will find 3.8 cubic feet limiting. Buyers who want app notifications, steam cycles or a long cycle list should be looking several price tiers higher. And anyone specifically choosing this for its high spin speed should verify that 1200 rpm figure first, because it is the one number in this listing that does not fit the category. Households that need portability rather than capacity are better served by the portable washers instead.
