I'm wondering if my take on this is in the minority, but I have the impression that none of my friends would be very good for suggesting things to buy. Sure, it

I'm wondering if my take on this is in the minority, but I have the impression that none of my friends would be very good for suggesting things to buy. Sure, it might work for "I want an okay table / silverware / cups" - to which the answer would be "I got this nice something at my local Target / Walmart / Ikea", but it breaks down for most things that I buy. For example - flashlights, knives, clothes, computers, pens, ink, watches, running shoes... For those, I visit the relevant forum (watchfreeks, fountainpennetwork, candlepowerforums, etc) and decide from there. Sure, on some occasions, a friend or two have already done the research, so I can get a jump-start that way - but it's an exception rather than the rule. I'm actually quite curious whether I'm living in a bubble with my shopping trends being abnormal and atypical, or whether it's a bigger pattern. Do most people shop differently (and would benefit a lot from friends' suggestions)?