The HOH dryers did what they claimed; they dried loads gently, effectively, usually underdrying to avoid textile damage. And they looked nice when matched to a Maytag washer which, when it comes right down to it, was the only valid reason to buy one. They just didn't compare as favorably to their mates or to most of the dryers of their competition.

They were large bulky machines with stingy capacity, had lint filters that were very effective but inconvenient to deal with, had almost no cycle or temperature flexibility and required the user to stoop very low to move loads in and out of a small porthole with barely enough clearance for an average laundry basket to stop dropping clothes onto the floor. GE and Whirlpool dryers clearly led the pack back then.

I occasionally would see one of these dryers come in as a trade where the cycling  and high-limit thermostats failed and the dryer got super hot. The electric element would burn a big ring into the enamel paint around the door. It must have been a shock to the owner. 

Bruce, I have probably seen every kind of major appliance fire imaginable. The most bizarre being The Frigidaire bottom-freezer models from the 1960's that caught fire inside the food compartment. The fan/light switch (or one or the other) shorted out and caused the wiring to heat up like the element in your toaster. In turn, the fiberglass insulation caught fire along with the plastic molding around the door. The compartment liner was spared since it was porcelain on steel. What a mess it was. These were all fairly new appliances so the warranty covered the repair. Even after all of the parts were replaced it was almost impossible to get that burning-plastic smell to disappear...and they tried everything. This was the age when things like this could be hushed-up. There was no way to spread information like you can with today's Internet. Frigidaire kept this defect confidential. They were fortunate that the fire was kept confined to the inside of the box. 

I remember the Frigidaire rep telling the service people to never admit to having seen this happen before and never to say things like "oh, another one of those!" If I helped with the pick-up or delivery with one of these "fire jobs" I was instructed to keep my mouth closed...pretty much the rule whenever I was in a customer's home.