[pimlottc]

It’s a decent start, but without testing, there’s no evidence that these icons are any better than the originals.

I’m not sure that they even meets the authors own objectives — there are more small details that are harder to resolve at small sizes and likely would be harder to print clearly. They also aren’t any more “googleable” than the originals.

Lastly, they also assume that users are familiar with front loading washing machines, which may not be common in some places. It could easily be interpreted as a tumble dryer.

[blowski]

Agreed. I wonder whether something like a QR code that takes you to a page with instructions is more simple as a solution. Hook that up to a smart washing machine, and it will set the appropriate instructions, or tell you if you have an incompatible load.

All that said, I've been ignoring the labels for years, and never had a problem.

[Izkata]

A better solution apparently already exists: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31824399