The Problem with Reviews
- Thread starter Dr. Keith
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quadraginta
Becoming Beth
Yes. It tells us that merely looking at the average rating number isn't good enough to make a judgement.
It is still a staring point. If used correctly it can be helpful.
Like I said up-thread. I always look at the lowest rated reviews first. This is one reason why.
Spindrift
Time Person of the Year, 2006
I ran into a similar issue trying to buy a toaster oven a few years ago. Apparently not a single toaster oven on the planet is any good. I think one complaint was that the guy couldn't fit a 20 lb. turkey in the oven. It ruined Thanksgiving.
So I just bought one that seemed to do what I wanted for the price I wanted to pay and didn't have overwhelming bad reviews. Still have the toaster oven. It heats things up satisfactorily. The old days were much simpler when I didn't know how horrible every appliance I've ever bought was.
So I just bought one that seemed to do what I wanted for the price I wanted to pay and didn't have overwhelming bad reviews. Still have the toaster oven. It heats things up satisfactorily. The old days were much simpler when I didn't know how horrible every appliance I've ever bought was.
The Central Scrutinizer
Penultimate Amazing
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Ignore user written reviews. I work under the premise that most people are stupid, and if their coffeemaker blew up, it was because they screwed something up.
I look for "professional" reviews (but dear god, NEVER from Consumer Reports), people who are paid to review things. Like for technology, CNET and sites like that. Or just pick items up in the store - see which are heavier/more solidly built, etc.
The Central Scrutinizer
Penultimate Amazing
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I use advice that was given to me many years ago (I don't recall what I was buying) - pick out the best one you think you can afford, then buy the next model up.
Joe Random
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What I tend to do when looking at reviews is to focus mainly on factual information. "this model of the Playstation 3 does not play Playstation 2 discs", "this monitor does not have HDMI input, only DVI/VGA", "the LCD backlight is blue, and not green as shown in the pics". I'll also disregard all of the 1- and 5-star reviews, unless there's nothing else. Even ignoring paid shills for a moment, there are far too many cases where people rate things for the 'wrong' reasons. The most common I've seen are 1-star reviews where the reviewer is pissed that UPS took so long to deliver, telling you nothing about how good or bad the actual product was.
Then there are the people who ask questions about the product which show a level of cluefulness which shouldn't be let anywhere near the ability to give opinions. When you see things like a tablet charging dock for $40 having people ask "does this come with the iPad as well, or is it just the dock" - well, those people are able to post reviews too.
When I've posted reviews, especially on Amazon, I've tried to detail what went into my rating. If my 'negative' for something wouldn't be universal, I'll state that. In a review of particular phone case I noted that I took a star off because the design was such that some models of headphone jack credit card readers won't be able to attach properly. I knocked off a star for that, and said explicitly that those not caring about credit card readers should add one star. That sort of thing.
Where possible focus on objective fact, and any objective facts which inform the reviewer's subjective opinions.
Then there are the people who ask questions about the product which show a level of cluefulness which shouldn't be let anywhere near the ability to give opinions. When you see things like a tablet charging dock for $40 having people ask "does this come with the iPad as well, or is it just the dock" - well, those people are able to post reviews too.
When I've posted reviews, especially on Amazon, I've tried to detail what went into my rating. If my 'negative' for something wouldn't be universal, I'll state that. In a review of particular phone case I noted that I took a star off because the design was such that some models of headphone jack credit card readers won't be able to attach properly. I knocked off a star for that, and said explicitly that those not caring about credit card readers should add one star. That sort of thing.
Where possible focus on objective fact, and any objective facts which inform the reviewer's subjective opinions.
The Central Scrutinizer
Penultimate Amazing
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I recall looking at an issue 20 or so years ago, when they downgraded a sports car because the suspension was "stiff" and didn't give a "comfortable" ride. Ummm...yeah, that sort of the whole idea of a sports car - performance over comfort.
quadraginta
Becoming Beth
It does seem that appliances are the worst in this regard. I wonder if people tend to expect more out of them than is actually offered.
Having said that, in a rare moment of weakness (Okay, maybe not all that rare.) I bought a Farberware toaster oven that was on sale at WallyWorld. I wish I had gone online and read the Amazon reviews first. Even the better ones mentioned that it wouldn't get as hot as advertised. Does great as long as you don't want to get much hotter than 350°F.
At least the door hasn't exploded.
Yet.
(It does have a really neat rotisserie attachment. That seemed like a big deal at the time. Maybe I'll actually use it someday.
Hopefully before the door explodes.)
quadraginta
Becoming Beth
These are the sorts of reasons I do read the one star ratings. So I can see how goofy they are, or how many of them (if any) have merit.
We just had a Cuisinart coffee maker break down after 5 years. My wife thought it should last forever but I figure an $80 appliance that's already heated up water to 180 degrees around two thousand times had a good run.
quadraginta
Becoming Beth
I feel exactly the same way, only in my case it's Black & Decker @ $20 for 2 years or more. (Knock on wood, more like 3 years. We're on the second one since 2007.)
I figure it works out to well under a penny a pot.
bruto
Penultimate Amazing
Drifting a bit on coffeemakers and other appliances, I should note that many of these have one-shot thermal fuses and non-resetting overheat thermostats (sometimes both) that can fail, and can be replaced.
We had a favorite Krups panini machine, rather pricey, which died. I opened it up and found a thermal fuse had blown, perhaps because it had been left closed to cool off. A couple of bucks at Radio Shack, and it's been fine for years.
Almost all coffee pots have one of those thermal fuses, and you can buy them from stock at a Radio Shack store, with a choice of cutoff temperatures.
I ran across a similar issue with a Krups coffee maker I got at a thrift store that did not work. In it are two thermal fuses that did not blow, and a thermal relay that does not reset. I poked the bimetal disk on the relay with a little pick to reset it. Fixed.
Who knows why the thing blew in the first place. Perhaps a previous owner left an empty pot on the burner all day. But the design of many of these things is to fail unless you send them back for service. They're put together with safety screws that require a special screwdriver, too. But if you're adventurous and have the right set of trick screwdrivers, you can save a lot of money.
We had a favorite Krups panini machine, rather pricey, which died. I opened it up and found a thermal fuse had blown, perhaps because it had been left closed to cool off. A couple of bucks at Radio Shack, and it's been fine for years.
Almost all coffee pots have one of those thermal fuses, and you can buy them from stock at a Radio Shack store, with a choice of cutoff temperatures.
I ran across a similar issue with a Krups coffee maker I got at a thrift store that did not work. In it are two thermal fuses that did not blow, and a thermal relay that does not reset. I poked the bimetal disk on the relay with a little pick to reset it. Fixed.
Who knows why the thing blew in the first place. Perhaps a previous owner left an empty pot on the burner all day. But the design of many of these things is to fail unless you send them back for service. They're put together with safety screws that require a special screwdriver, too. But if you're adventurous and have the right set of trick screwdrivers, you can save a lot of money.
Joe Random
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Oh, I'll still /read/ them. I just won't factor them in my decision making. Like you, I get a good laugh out of people negging a product for just about any reason other than the product doesn't do what it's supposed to. There's also the chance that I might get to read something by Bob Odenkirk : http://www.newyorker.com/humor/daily-shouts/one-star-amazon-reviews-make-me-feel-better
As MuDPhuD mentions I don't think they really put common stuff like this to any sort of real world testing. Mainly just a feature comparison and then they think more highly of features I don't care about (like timers and such) and less about does it work 999 times out of 1000.
Yeah, I agree. What concerned me here was the abundance of catastrophic outcomes that were worse than my current coffee pot. I mean shards of glass exploding all over the kitchen can be ignored if it one or two people, but there were dozens of them. Really eerie.
Agreed. I am not very tech savvy and I rely largely on such sites for consumer electronics. But who do you turn to for coffeemaker advice?
And that's the pot we have!
My only issue is that if the basket isn't seated just so it will overflow coffee all over the place. Which happens most when I feel bad or if my wife is making the coffee; in other words, when I least need it to happen. And, I sometimes like a cup late morning and by then any leftovers are burnt and nasty. Hence the desire for a thermal carafe.
I'm just going to make a smaller pot for just three mugs worth of coffee and then if I want another cup later I'll use my AeroPress, the best coffeemaker available, just a bit fussy to use before my first cup in the morning.
But really, is it too hard to make a coffee pot that just works?
Wudang
BOFH
Slight thread drift but I have a Zyliss cafetiere mug at work - pretty good if you start with reasonable expectations of a cafetiere.
at Amazon UK
at Amazon UK
bruto
Penultimate Amazing
A couple of things.
First of all, CR used, at least, actually to run appliances through their paces and try them out, as well as disassembling them. I don't know whether they do so now, but they used to be pretty thorough. Unfortunately, not everything is an appliance, but they think that way.
Paper filter coffee pots, and especially the kind that use the "Mr. Coffee" style filters, will spill if the filter folds over on one edge. It's easy to miss a slumping edge, and some tend to push it over when you push the basket in. I think also that that type pot tends to brew too quickly and gives weak coffee. I prefer the cone (Melitta) style. For coffee pots that just plain work, try Braun. They make, or used to make, a basic 10 cup cone machine with no fancy timers or stuff, which makes a decent pot of coffee.
First of all, CR used, at least, actually to run appliances through their paces and try them out, as well as disassembling them. I don't know whether they do so now, but they used to be pretty thorough. Unfortunately, not everything is an appliance, but they think that way.
Paper filter coffee pots, and especially the kind that use the "Mr. Coffee" style filters, will spill if the filter folds over on one edge. It's easy to miss a slumping edge, and some tend to push it over when you push the basket in. I think also that that type pot tends to brew too quickly and gives weak coffee. I prefer the cone (Melitta) style. For coffee pots that just plain work, try Braun. They make, or used to make, a basic 10 cup cone machine with no fancy timers or stuff, which makes a decent pot of coffee.
That looks cooler than my AeroPress. Must avoid buying gadgets I don't need . . . .
Yeah, in this case it is the spring for the valve at the bottom of the basket that is the issue. Now that I write that out I may just remove that valve since we never pour coffee mid-brew anyway. Hmm.
As for cone v basket I just use more coffee until I get the flavor I want. I can't really tell the difference between the two as I've never done side by side testing, but I can see that the cone may work better.
Howie Felterbush
Bow Tie Daddy
Coffee makers, toaster ovens, waffle irons and other counter top appliances are best purchased at thrift stores.
Look for one that looks just like the one your grandma had. It will weigh roughly seven times what a new one does and will probably outlive you. As a bonus, if you are dimwitted enough to break it by using it to change the oil in your car or something, it can also be repaired. New stuff's like a Bic lighter for the most part (see Bruto's post for exceptions); when it quits working you get a new one.
Look for one that looks just like the one your grandma had. It will weigh roughly seven times what a new one does and will probably outlive you. As a bonus, if you are dimwitted enough to break it by using it to change the oil in your car or something, it can also be repaired. New stuff's like a Bic lighter for the most part (see Bruto's post for exceptions); when it quits working you get a new one.
Interestingly, Had he been able to have fit the turkey into a toaster oven a bit would have burned badly and the rest would be raw. I think that WOULD HAVE BEEN WORSE......
bruto
Penultimate Amazing
Yes, next year he should buy one of those tabloid newspapers and follow their recommendation to do it in the dishwasher.