That's not my experience. I have a relatively new Energy Star-rated dishwasher (KitchenAid) and it works great. The trick, as re-discovered by Technology Connections, is to take advantage of the prewash cycle and use a bit of prewash detergent along with the main wash detergent, and not use too much.

Check out the discussion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHP942Livy0