About a decade ago they had laundry sheets that held both the detergent and softener. I got a free sample and ended up sending them with my daughter to a summer program (after 8th grade). I loved them for travel, since we try not to avoid checked bags. They never caught on, so can’t find in supermarkets, but Amazon and a few other places still carry them. Washeze brand - goes in the washer and moves with the clothes to the dryer, and disposable so no worry about multiple loads or losing it by forgetting it in the washer. More expensive than liquid or pods, but a good solution for the laundry challenged.
The pods are so portable - no need to lug the big bottle down flights of stairs and no matter how careful you are, there are drips on the outside. That’s not a problem at home, where I have a cabinet to store my liquid detergent, but in a small space like a dorm room, it’s a pain to have a bottle of something that you don’t want to accidentally sit next to clothes are get them soapy etc. The pod container can go anywhere.
I also think it is easy to use too much liquid so the pod is good “portion control”
I got Tide pods yesterday, and it said “with color protector” on it.
The pods dissolve fine, I think this is an issue with my machine, they get caught in the “lip” and then don’t dissolve.
Yea, portability is a big advantage of pods at the dorm. But I find them handy at home too. In middle school I taught my kids how to separate colors and do laundry. They later taught me that it usually works fine to do combo loads. Colors don’t run like they used to when I was a kid.
It only takes one rogue colored sock or tee your kid acquired during their study abroad. 
Update on the laundry Eco Egg on Amazon- It’s wonderful. Easy. Clothes are clean. We loved it so much after the trial period at home, D18 requested one for use in college :-bd
I sent these (https://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/tide-reg-3-count-travel-liquid-detergent-sink-packets/1014376747) with my son when he traveled overseas. They could also be used in the dorm if you have a nearby sink and just need a few items washed, like workout clothes.
This brings back a memory from my own freshman year. My mom had written a comprehensive laundry guide for me. Lots of kids in my dorm, both boys and girls, ended up coming by my room to borrow it when they went to do their first laundry load!
For my son, we gave him a container of free-and-clear Tide pods and a spiky drier ball to soften clothes in the drier. We ‘practiced’ during the summer, and we previewed the machines the day we dropped him off and talked about good settings to use. To avoid his having to divide his washes, my husband, who did all the clothes shopping, simply eliminated whites from his wardrobe!
I think it is amazing that there is now a website to see when machines are in use or empty and when your wash has been completed. Go, modern technology!
Am I the only one who has a front-loader that does not accept pods? I wouldn’t use them anyway, because they cost money, but my machine doesn’t work with them.
I’ve never tried pods because I like to control the amount of detergent used (less than the “recommended” amount per washer repair folks). Ian’s my family also have allergies and we know the regular All free & clear works just fine alone so we stick with that. There have been rashes and allergy symptoms when we’ve tried other things.
Heck, Woolite gives me hives and fabric softener gives H hives. We react to scents from many things.
@HImom - We always use only Free and Clear, too— we have used a variety of brands, depending which is the least expensive free and clear version on that particular shopping day, but never a scented detergent. And we use a drier ball to soften our clothes physically instead of using chemicals via a drier sheet or fabric softener.
They do sell pods in Free and Clear, though. But my husband corrects my earlier post: the brand of free and clear pod we bought for S is All.
We too only use fragrance free detergent and it says the Eco egg was developed in partnership with the National Eczema Society. Who even knew there was such a thing?! I bought the 54 washes egg because I thought that was even an ambitious goal for a first year college student! :))
@HImom I was told the same thing. When we purchased a new front-loading washer, a repairman had to come out and make some sort of adjustment. He said 2 things were important for keeping the washer in good condition: use half the amount of recommended laundry detergent (same advice for the dishwasher), and always wipe dry the clear window and inside of the washer’s rubber seal.
I did send pods with my son but have never used them myself. He leaves the box of pods in the bottom of the laundry basket so all he has to do is pick up the basket and go. I have no idea how this is working out, though!
@Meddy The Eco egg looks interesting - I will check it out.
My washer repair guy told me the same thing for my front loader: use a tiny amount of detergent. Sure enough, the tiny amount works fine.
My washer repair guy could tell we were using too much detergent in our front loader because there was a “trail of shame” or whatever he called it coming down right in the middle of the machine (visible on the outside of the washer - below the door). I think he told us to use a tablespoon of detergent. We think we have not had any issues with the moldy smell many people complain about due to doing 1-2 white loads/week with bleach.
While S has done his own laundry for years we don’t have a drier - not really big in the UK. I said that he must get his roomie to show him how to use a dryer - not so much put it in and turn the button but the temperature settings. After the first week and on the Skype I ask how the laundry is going - he says he shrank some jeans and a shirt in the dryer because it was too hot!!! Well I think that was his first lesson learnt at college :))
Although my kid knows how to do laundry the college washers are incomprehensible. Turns out only one of 6 settings uses cold water. So the rule is use that for everything except sheets and towels, put delicates in a mesh bag, and reds stand alone.
My kids learned how to do laundry without much difficulty, but I think my husband is hopeless! When we were early married, we did laundry together; at some point I took it over, I think we we no longer had to go to a laundromat 
I am standing in the laundry room last night and he comes in with a white t-shirt that has some red and blue print on it. While opening the drawer for the darks and a big smile on his face, he said, “This shirt had blue on it, so it goes with the darks!” He was so proud of himself, I hated to tell him a white shirt that was at least 10 years old, goes in the whites. He is so hung up with just a bit of color being on a item, that he hasn’t figured out the base color usually will determine which load. Items like his lighter boxers that have a navy band always seem to find their way into the darks.
I can only blame myself for doing his laundry for 36+ years. I will leave the yard work to him and continue to do the laundry alone! :))
The summer after he graduated high school my son and his friends staged what they called a laundry intervention when they learned that one of their gang had never done laundry herself. So we had the weird spectacle of four guys showing a girl how to do laundry. My son actually thanked me afterwards for making sure he had these skills.