Japanese Washer Tutorial - 1 The difference between theirs and ours

It is well known over here that Japanese washers and driers suck in comparison to American brands, which except for on base, are not sold here in Japan. They suck because:

1. They hold about 2 complete adult-sized outfits as long as jeans aren't involved.
2. The washers don't clean as well due to the general mechanics which I will explain later
3. You can only use cold water
3. Its even worse if you use Japanese detergent. Detergents and shampoos are much weaker then the US counterparts.

In this first set of pictures I had a hard time getting the entire washer in the frame because of the skinny hallway going towards the bathroom but you can get a good idea of how big it is. It is as tall as an American machine but but isn't as wide. Even though we are in a hotel, this washer is the same size as the ones sold out in town. Washers and driers come in many colors - always pastel and pretty. White isn't the norm.

The top kinda lifts up and then folds back to display the tiny washing compartment and it's 3-4 inch long agitator - maybe one of the reasons the clothes don't come out as clean.