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  • Design

  • Cleaning

  • Why We Like It

  • By The Numbers

  • Performance

  • Efficiency

  • Capacity

  • Design
  • Cleaning
  • Why We Like It
  • By The Numbers
  • Performance
  • Efficiency
  • Capacity

Pros

  • Gets dishes very clean, very quickly

  • A great-looking design

  • A host of features

Cons

  • None that we could find

A step above the $1,499 Topaz DWHD640JPR, the pricier DWHD650JPR is mechanically identical—but truly shines with its highly flexible interior, super-fast heavy duty cycle, 42 dBa sound rating, and incredibly low water and power consumption. It has a two year warranty on all parts and labor, and a five year warranty on other components.

If you want a dishwasher that looks beautiful, cleans well, and saves the environment, this Thermador might be exactly what you’re looking for. And if you're already buying a suite of Thermador appliances, the company's One, Two Free promotion means that you could get the DWHD650JPR for between $0 and $500.

Design

Adjust to your heart’s content

As part of the Sapphire series, the DWHD650JPR consistently adheres to its color scheme. Blue interior lights make all of your dishes sparkle brilliantly. Similarly, the control panel has buttons and a timer display that also light up in blue. While not necessary for the task of washing dishes, it’s a nice aesthetic touch.

Speaking of aesthetics, the Sapphire we tested—the DWHD650JPR—is ready to accept a custom panel. While many say that beauty comes from what's inside, it sure helps when a dishwasher's door matches the cabinetry surrounding it. And its 22 7/16-inch depth means it can be mounted flush with cabinetry, or not. A clever design means that its shallow tub doesn't sacrifice capacity.

Not all dish loads are created equal, but the DWHD650JPR is ready to fit a wide variety of them. All of the plate supports on the lower rack can be folded down to make room for pots and pans, and the cutlery basket combined with the third rack lets you load a huge amount of silverware and serving utensils.

Dishes also come in all shapes and sizes, and once again, the DWHD650JPR is ready. The upper rack can be raised or lowered to account for baking sheets and other tall items. The tines on the lower rack are cleverly arranged such that you can fold down every other one, widening the gaps between them to fit bowls rather than plates.

If you're interested in a stainless exterior, the DWHD650JFM has a contemporary Masterpiece handle, and the DWHD650JFP has a pro-style Professional handle. All three dishwashers have the same MSRP.

Cleaning

Lightning-fast results

You can expect most high-end dishwashers to get your dishes clean, but the DWHD650JPR gets bonus points for doing it quickly. Its Pots & Pans cycle, which is used for the nastiest, greasiest, toughest stains found on cookware and serving bowls, finishes in an hour and a half. Unfortunately, the Quick cycle isn't fast enough to get a load of stemware clean between courses at a dinner party.

The controls are very simple to use, with one-button selection for all cycles and options, and attractive clear indicator lights. Once you pick a cycle, you can even modify how it washes: Half Load tells the dishwasher to use less water and power, while Powerboost uses extra water pressure to blast stains off.

This level of control is great for some buyers, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing here for those who’d rather not micromanage their appliances. Our tests found that the DWHD650JPR delivers wonderful cleaning results on just default settings. Feel free to select a sensor-based cycle and walk away.

For in-depth performance information, please visit the Science Page.

Why We Like It

Something to show off

With its fast heavy duty cycle, strong cleaning power, beautiful and flexible interior, and simple controls, the DWHD650JPR proves to be a solid dishwasher. The blue color scheme really makes this dishwasher stand out. It's a machine that does its job and looks good while doing it.

A luxury dishwasher isn’t just about cleaning. High-end features like a third rack, interior lights, and a blue light that shines on the floor when a cycle is running turn a device that performs a boring chore into a kitchen centerpiece.

By The Numbers

Thermador Sapphire DWHD650JPR glow in the dark
Credit: Reviewed.com / Kyle Looney

You could do dishes in the dark, if you wanted to.

The Thermador DWHD650JPR doesn’t just look good; Our tests found that it cleans quickly, thoroughly, and efficiently. What more could you want out of a dishwasher?

Performance

Most dishwasher cycles sacrifice cleaning power for speed or vice-versa, but the DWHD650JPR seems to have found some kind of perfect balance. With a lightning-fast Pots & Pans cycle and a Quick cycle that can handle more than just light stains, it’s like nothing was sacrificed at all.

The Sapphire seems to have found a perfect balance between cleaning power and speed.

The only complaint we have cleaning-wise is that the Pots & Pans cycle scored rather poorly with our burnt cheese stain test. This looks like something that can be solved using Powerboost, but default settings alone simply couldn’t cut it. It's likely because burnt cheese needs a significant amount of heat, soaking, and water pressure to remove.

Otherwise, each cycle we tested did an admirable job with removing food particles from dishes. This even included the Quick cycle, which took out tough, sticky stains like baked-on oatmeal and egg in the span of one hour.

Those who are looking for a cycle that runs under an hour won’t find one on the DWHD650JPR. Instead, this dishwasher is fast in other areas: The Pots & Pans cycle only took 1 hour and 33 minutes to complete, and many of the dishes came out sparkling.

Efficiency

For those who are trying to get a little greener, the DWHD650JPR proves to be a worthy choice. Its most commonly used cycles used very little water and power on default settings, leading to an estimated annual utility cost of just $23.91 a year. Most other dishwashers cost around $29-30 a year.

Some of the numbers were truly surprising. The Normal cycle used only 1.77 gallons of hot water, whereas most other machines need between 2 and 3 gallons. Pots & Pans used 4.46 gallons—Most other machines are lucky if they can keep it under 6 gallons.

Energy consumption was also exceedingly low. The Quick, Normal, and Pots & Pans cycles used 0.71 kWh, 0.64 kWh, and 1.01 kWh per run, respectively.

Capacity

The DWHD650JPR had enough space to hold eleven of our standardized place settings and a serving setting. Every row of tines on the lower rack could be folded down, which is always a plus—After all, not every load is going to be as carefully curated as ours. Both the bottom and top racks each have fold-down shelves to provide more loading space, and the third rack combined with the cutlery basket makes plenty of room for silverware.

Meet the tester

Johnny Yu

Johnny Yu

Staff Writer

@ReviewedHome

Johnny Yu writes news, features, and reviews for Reviewed.com. He graduated from U-Mass Boston with a Bachelor's in Social Psychology and spends much of his free time expanding his gaming horizons. Sometimes, he does his laundry at work.

See all of Johnny Yu's reviews

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