4 ms·

Maybe I'm just doing it wrong, but I've never really found Consumer Reports to be that informative when I'm looking to buy something. Often they rate things bas

Maybe I'm just doing it wrong, but I've never really found Consumer Reports to be that informative when I'm looking to buy something. Often they rate things based on features I don't even care about.

bt848 7y ago
For decades the most prominent CR criterion for car reviews was whether a folded wheelchair would fit in the trunk.
- justin66 7y ago
  The trunk space measure for Car and Driver and other assorted car magazines, at least when it came to sports cars and compacts, was always golf clubs. I've never played and, as a reader, I always wondered what the hell the significance of golf clubs was. The wheelchair metric seems a little more practical. My mother will soon have bought three cars using that as a filter. Or perhaps there's a built in assumption that any car capable of carrying a wheelchair can also carry golf clubs, I don't know.
- Paperweight 7y ago
  CR and the BBB are cancer. They're worse than irrelevant - they are products of the bygone age of post-war high-trust production. The field is very very ripe for disruption, but bias and conflicting interests are a tough nut to crack.
  - dehrmann 7y ago
    Look at The Wirecutter as an example of some amount of disruption in that space. And they're almost up-front about how they keep the gray lady happy.
    - Paperweight 7y ago
      Interesting. I had assumed they were one of the 1000s of other fake review websites. Another good one I found is carsurvey.org, but I'm not sure how it'll hold up when (if not already) the marketing departments of car manufacturers swarm it.
- dahinds 7y ago
  which decades were those, specifically?
justin66 7y ago
They will typically offer a numeric overall rating but also breakdown a review with a number of sub-ratings. For example, if you look at the list of tires in any given category, you'll get a numeric list sorted by number, but each tire is rated poor/fair/good/very good/excellent across categories like dry braking, wet braking, handling, hydroplaning, snow traction, ice braking, ride comfort, noise, rolling resistance, and tread life. They break things down similarly with other products. You can even sort the list they provide on any of the various categories to get a feel for how the products perform in the areas you care about. (yes, you're doing it wrong)
- war1025 7y ago
  Maybe it's just that I don't trust them, then. I was already aware of all of those factors, they just don't ever seem like in-depth enough info to actually influence my decision.

Maybe I'm just doing it wrong, but I've never really found Consumer Reports to be that informative when I'm looking to buy something. Often they rate things based on features I don't even care about.

bt848 7y ago

For decades the most prominent CR criterion for car reviews was whether a folded wheelchair would fit in the trunk.

justin66 7y ago
The trunk space measure for Car and Driver and other assorted car magazines, at least when it came to sports cars and compacts, was always golf clubs. I've never played and, as a reader, I always wondered what the hell the significance of golf clubs was. The wheelchair metric seems a little more practical. My mother will soon have bought three cars using that as a filter. Or perhaps there's a built in assumption that any car capable of carrying a wheelchair can also carry golf clubs, I don't know.
Paperweight 7y ago
CR and the BBB are cancer. They're worse than irrelevant - they are products of the bygone age of post-war high-trust production. The field is very very ripe for disruption, but bias and conflicting interests are a tough nut to crack.
- dehrmann 7y ago
  Look at The Wirecutter as an example of some amount of disruption in that space. And they're almost up-front about how they keep the gray lady happy.
  - Paperweight 7y ago
    Interesting. I had assumed they were one of the 1000s of other fake review websites. Another good one I found is carsurvey.org, but I'm not sure how it'll hold up when (if not already) the marketing departments of car manufacturers swarm it.
dahinds 7y ago
which decades were those, specifically?

justin66 7y ago

They will typically offer a numeric overall rating but also breakdown a review with a number of sub-ratings. For example, if you look at the list of tires in any given category, you'll get a numeric list sorted by number, but each tire is rated poor/fair/good/very good/excellent across categories like dry braking, wet braking, handling, hydroplaning, snow traction, ice braking, ride comfort, noise, rolling resistance, and tread life. They break things down similarly with other products. You can even sort the list they provide on any of the various categories to get a feel for how the products perform in the areas you care about. (yes, you're doing it wrong)

war1025 7y ago
Maybe it's just that I don't trust them, then. I was already aware of all of those factors, they just don't ever seem like in-depth enough info to actually influence my decision.