Powder or tablets? Is it worth spending five to seven times as much for the new tablets instead of powder?(User trial: dishwasher detergent)(Product/Service Evaluation)

Publication: Choice (Chippendale, Australia)

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COPYRIGHT 2004 Australian Consumers' Association

IN A NUT SHELL

* On trial: 10 dishwasher detergent powders and four tablets, including two with built-in rinse aid.

* The four tablet detergents left most of the conventional powders behind for performance and popularity. But convenience and quality come at a price.

All the dishwasher detergents in our trial will clean your dishes pretty well. Even the lowest-ranking and cheapest of the bunch scored more than 70% overall and will give you a reasonable wash. However, our trialists overwhelmingly thought dishwasher detergent tablets worked better than conventional powders.

I've wondered about the tablets and now I think I might buy them," commented one trialist on the FINISH Powerball. "It cleaned much better than any I've tried before." "Easy to use in the tablet form--an accurate dosage, no spillage," commented another. Only two powders but all the four brands of tablet in our trial made it into the What to buy list.

On the downside, detergent tablets generally cost at least twice as much per load as powder detergents. And you can't adjust the dosage. As one trialist remarked: "You probably overdose some loads unwillingly where you could use much less detergent."

CAUTION: STRONG CHEMICALS

Alkaline salts make up the bulk of a typical...

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