oldhens, I too had heard from a lot of people that the high end front loaders did not clean well. I've been using front loaders for years, and loved them because they washed cleaner than the top loaders. When I went to get my new front loader, I was replacing a GE that not only washed good, but would hold my king sized comforters, and quilts without a problem.
When I began researching them, the one thing everyone liked about the less expensive model GE front loader, was that it washed clothes really clean. That's what I got. I have not been disappointed. It has fewer settings, which doesn't matter to me, since it has the ones I normally use. It doesn't steam the clothes, but I didn't really want that feature anyway. Dh can go change oil in the vehicles, or in the tractor, spill a good bit of it on himself, and this thing gets his clothes totally clean.
The one major difference I noticed was the fill level. It does have plenty of water, but you can't SEE it, like in the older models. The water doesn't go half way up the door, which is really good. That way, if something does happen when it gets older, like the pump not working to drain the water out, you can open the door without water gushing all over. Mine has an extra opening, so I can check to make sure the pump is not obstructed too, and I can manually drain it, if need be. Those are good improvements.
