4 ms·

How do you guys find the "best" stuff? I find it impossible to use product reviews on places like Amazon. Otherwise I rely on familiarity with the category, bu

How do you guys find the "best" stuff? I find it impossible to use product reviews on places like Amazon. Otherwise I rely on familiarity with the category, but am unfamiliar with more product categories than I am familiar.

snowwrestler 3y ago
If I’m not familiar enough with a category to evaluate it, I figure I don’t actually need “the best.” If my demands on a product will be average, I figure “good enough” is a good enough level of quality for me. And if it is not, my direct experience of what I didn’t like about the first product will make me more informed and opinionated about buying the next one.
rrrrrrrrrrrryan 3y ago
I usually start with Looria, which I discovered here on HN. It does a decent job of summarizing the Reddit consensus picks, which was how I used to start my search before discovering the site.
q7xvh97o2pDhNrh 3y ago
I start by opening a few tabs with various search queries, some of which are usually scoped to Reddit or HN. That usually kicks open a few more tabs, and maybe some dedicated forums or Shopify stores. Then the hyperfocus takes me, and I stray out of thought and time, and I wander far through hundreds of tabs. I become an expert on the multi-decade rivalries between vacuum cleaner manufacturers, the nuanced multi-dimensional calculus of coffee grinders, and the intricate supply chain dynamics of family-owned towel-makers. And then I throw down my credit card, the stars wheel overhead, and every day feels as long as a life age of the Earth... until the UPS driver arrives. At last, I have my hard-earned morsel of capitalism.
fmajid 3y ago
You look at the shape of the review star distribution histogram, and you read the 1- and 2-star reviews. But yes, Amazon reviews are so games and rife with fraud as to be unusable. Influencers on Reddit or YouTube are on the take for payola. I suspect what most people do is ask their nerdy friend who seems to be oddly passionate about scissors or cameras (guilty as charged).

snowwrestler 3y ago

If I’m not familiar enough with a category to evaluate it, I figure I don’t actually need “the best.” If my demands on a product will be average, I figure “good enough” is a good enough level of quality for me. And if it is not, my direct experience of what I didn’t like about the first product will make me more informed and opinionated about buying the next one.

rrrrrrrrrrrryan 3y ago

I usually start with Looria, which I discovered here on HN. It does a decent job of summarizing the Reddit consensus picks, which was how I used to start my search before discovering the site.

q7xvh97o2pDhNrh 3y ago

I start by opening a few tabs with various search queries, some of which are usually scoped to Reddit or HN. That usually kicks open a few more tabs, and maybe some dedicated forums or Shopify stores. Then the hyperfocus takes me, and I stray out of thought and time, and I wander far through hundreds of tabs. I become an expert on the multi-decade rivalries between vacuum cleaner manufacturers, the nuanced multi-dimensional calculus of coffee grinders, and the intricate supply chain dynamics of family-owned towel-makers. And then I throw down my credit card, the stars wheel overhead, and every day feels as long as a life age of the Earth... until the UPS driver arrives. At last, I have my hard-earned morsel of capitalism.

fmajid 3y ago

You look at the shape of the review star distribution histogram, and you read the 1- and 2-star reviews. But yes, Amazon reviews are so games and rife with fraud as to be unusable. Influencers on Reddit or YouTube are on the take for payola. I suspect what most people do is ask their nerdy friend who seems to be oddly passionate about scissors or cameras (guilty as charged).