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Briantun


Joined: Oct 13, 2010
Points: 14

Consumer reports and factual errors
Original Message   Dec 22, 2010 12:53 pm
Have any of you seen the December online issue of Consumer Reports?  Snowthrowers are reviewed.  Lots of facual errors.  The have the retail price for the 828 oxe at $1,700.  If you click on "shop for this item", more mistakes.  They also have all models, at least the 2 stage models, rated poorly for sound.  I'm wondering if this information was pulled from the days of when many of these brands used the Tecumseh L-head.  Further, they have falsely listed certain models as having freewheel steering.  Honestly, there are so many mistakes, that I wonder if they did any actual testing this year.  Is the magazine in trouble financially? 

I have used CR for may years and was disturbed to se this level of recklessness in reporting.

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borat


Joined: Nov 10, 2007
Points: 2692

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #1   Dec 22, 2010 1:18 pm
Your best consumer's reports for OPE are right here. 

Real people using real machines posting real experiences.  What more does one need?
Oneplay


Joined: Oct 11, 2010
Points: 11

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #2   Dec 22, 2010 1:30 pm
CR is great for many products but their reviews on snow throwers missed the mark.

When i last looked at their reviews it was still from last year.

I left feedback on their website regarding the manner in which they rated the tested machines, maybe if enough people do they will adjust those methods.
Briantun


Joined: Oct 13, 2010
Points: 14

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #3   Dec 22, 2010 2:02 pm
Their review is late this year compared to years past.  The review is for this year. They list current models; and from I can tell, in at least one occasion, they fit old model info, including price, with current model labels.  This involves the 828oxe.  This is only 1 example of the many errors I see in the Dec 2010 CR review.
aa335


Joined: Nov 29, 2008
Points: 2434

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #4   Dec 22, 2010 3:38 pm
I never find CR too useful for my taste.  They have a heavy weighing factor on price/value.  Targeted towards lowest common denominator, low priced commodity type products.  They rarely review highend products, and when they do, the high price goes against the rating, regardless of the performance of the product.  Tell it like it is, don't cloud the facts with pricing bias.  Not for me. 

They're more for speed reading to get familiar with competing products, not critical and indepth reviews final decisions.  With that said, I rarely look at the specs that they quote.
mml4


Snow is good,
Deep snow is better!


Joined: Dec 31, 2003
Points: 544

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #5   Dec 22, 2010 3:59 pm
I can't remember being  in agreement with CR on a reviewed item I owned. They are especially suspect. when it comes to Outdoor Power Equiptment. However there are those that accept their opinions as "Gospel" and will only purchase what they suggest.

With the advent of the "net" much more comprehensive information is available from a wider better informed source base than CR's "experts".

Marc

This message was modified Dec 22, 2010 by mml4


SnapperV210P,Toro22177,TroyBilt42010Snowthrower,Craftsman Shredder,American Turbo Pressure Washer HondaGX200,Stihl011Saw,EchoPas260Trimmer Edger,EchoPB602Blower,EchoHCR150Hedge Clipper
aa335


Joined: Nov 29, 2008
Points: 2434

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #6   Dec 22, 2010 4:05 pm
borat wrote:
Your best consumer's reports for OPE are right here. 

Real people using real machines posting real experiences.  What more does one need?

Yeah, it's definitely more interesting to read people's reviews here than staring at CR columns and rows of red dots and black dots.  :)
alty


Joined: Nov 1, 2010
Points: 38

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #7   Dec 22, 2010 5:56 pm
(Marc)  -  " With the advent of the "net" much more comprehensive information is available from a wider better informed source base than CR's "experts".

Good point  -  Very true

tkrotchko


Location: Maryland
Joined: Feb 9, 2010
Points: 143

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #8   Dec 22, 2010 6:09 pm
aa335 wrote:
I never find CR too useful for my taste.  They have a heavy weighing factor on price/value.  Targeted towards lowest common denominator, low priced commodity type products.  They rarely review highend products, and when they do, the high price goes against the rating, regardless of the performance of the product.  Tell it like it is, don't cloud the facts with pricing bias.  Not for me. 

They're more for speed reading to get familiar with competing products, not critical and indepth reviews final decisions.  With that said, I rarely look at the specs that they quote.


I find them useful to determine (a) what they think are critical items (b) to consider factors that I hadn't thought of (c) a general idea of what they consider "really good" or "really bad". They're really just another data point. For example, I was purchasing a toaster (yes, they still make those) and looked on CR's website, and looked up the CR top rated toasters on Amazon, and there was little correlation between the ratings by consumers on Amazon and CR's rating. The useful part of Amazon was people wrote 2-3 sentences detailing what they liked and didn't like, which you don't get in consumer reports. In the end, I picked on that was top rated on Amazon by 82 people, but was only mid-rated by CR. Again, CR is just a data point, and I enjoy the magazine and website and appreciate what they do.
Steve_Cebu


Joined: Dec 17, 2009
Points: 888

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #9   Dec 22, 2010 6:48 pm
I find Amazon.com reviews if there are a lot of them to be for more accurate than CR. Forums like this are considerably more helpful. I'll go to places like Cnet to get an overview of something I'd like to buy but there ratings are always based on something you can't actually buy. Edmunds.com works great for cars at least for me. CR is obsolete but it's still bought by libraries all over the USA. It's no longer as valid as it used to be 20 or more years back.

"If you have more miles on your snow blower than your car, you live in New England."  "If you can drive 75 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching, you live in New England."
stresst


Location: The Village in the Middle of New York
Joined: Dec 11, 2010
Points: 213

Re: Consumer reports and factual errors
Reply #10   Dec 22, 2010 7:43 pm
Consumer reports! What a joke.........I tend to buy top of the line items, and not once was the item I was buying rated in the top five on CR. I just looked at the snow blower reviews, how can the troy be better then the Toro828? Perfect example rite there........Like stated already its not like it used to be, its very subjective these days and sometime wonder what criteria they are actually looking for?????? 

TORO 826OXE
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