Oh yeah, you can definitely do them separately. That's how I do my massive wash load, then only machine dry half. I just do a wash load, pull half out to hang, and then set the rest to dry.

From memory, many reviewers I read were the sort of people who mostly hung their clothes to dry, so couldn't really justify having a separate dryer, but wanted to have one for those super rainy weeks or when they need to catch up on washing.