Product Description
If you are in the market for just about anything, from a new coffeemaker to a new computer to a new car – The Consumer Reports Buying Guide 2008 is your one-stop portable reference source for making intelligent, money saving purchases for all home buying needs. Consumer Reports has done the homework for you by testing hundreds of brand-name products to come up with the Best Buys for 2008, along with the best buying advice on the market. If you have asked yourself -- “Is this the right product for me? Will I get my money’s worth in this product? Which brand is the best for me?” -- let Consumer Reports expert buying advice and Ratings steer you in the right direction.
Consumer Reports Buying Guide 2008 tells you what manufacturers can’t tell you – based on a full year’s worth of Consumer Reports testing. This compact reference guide contains over 900 brand-name product ratings along with invaluable information on what products are available, important features, latest trends and expert advice on:
Home office equipment Digital cameras and camcorders Home entertainment Cellular Phones Home and yard products Gas grills Air conditioners Kitchen appliances Bath and Laundry products Vacuum cleaners and washing machines Cars, minivans, pickups and SUV’s …And so much more!
From refrigerators to home theater systems, mattresses to microwave ovens, Consumer Reports Buying Guide 2008 will make you a smarter shopper, and will ultimately pay off in valuable product knowledge, time saved, and perhaps money saved too!
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 saved me hundreds on a vacuum cleaner
I'm so glad I bought this before spending $450 on a vacuum that sounded good. I got one for $70 that does everything the expensive one does, and is lighter weight. It doesn't look as stylish, but I wasn't going to leave it out anyway. If you are buying anything in the book, chances are you will make back the price of the book with one purchase.
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 Well-organized reference book you can use constantly.
This book is well-organized and you can use it constantly.
It's a handy reference book that you can easily slip in your purse while shopping for things like washers and dryers and so on. It is also a great summary of the magazine reviews.
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Consumer Reports review ( rosamarie )
Great resource for products. We used the 2008 guide to purchase a new dvd video camera. Good information found no where else
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 Consumer Reports NOT reliable ( tojkr )
I had firm belief on CR but I observed that MOST of their recommendations among my purchase from their recommendations are wrong, misleading and not scientifically done.
The problem boils down to EXPERTISE and DATA collection.
what CR is expert with?
Automobiles? NO, edmunds, auto car,... are better.
Medicines? NO, you know what TV you need, you know if you need a Sedan or SUV, but it is your doctor who knows what you really need. meet your doctor. Your body is not same as others.
Cameras? Absolutely zero knowledge. dpreview, dcresource are 10 times better
Electronics? NO, cnet can help you.
When there are FREE Websites with expertise, why pay and get cheap recommendations?
WRONG DATA collection and RATINGS AND FLAWS IN REPORTS:
When consumer reports sent me mail on December 2006 to rate the laptop I bought (Sony Vaio FGN 830W), It asked me following questions (my feedback in brackets) :
1) where you bought ? ( CompUSA)
2) How you paid? (debit card)
3) Are you satisfied with the waiting time before the sales person met you? ( 5 star)
4) was the sales person knowlegeable? ( 5 star )
5) was the sales person polite and friendly? ( 5 star)
6) Were you overall happy with purchase ? ( 5 star )
THE SHOCK CAME TO ME WHEN :
I was hoping that CR would stop asking about compUSA and start questions about sony laptop, but it suddenly displayed 'Thanks for rating 5 stars on Sony VAIO FG 830'. I tried to go back and recover, but that did not work.
I mailed support, manager of CR explaining I DO NOT RATE 5 stars, it was wrong, the quesitons were not contextually appropriate etc etc... But they did not care getting back to me till now. However they sent mails for renewing subscription.
Let us see their recommendations :
1) I bought the above said sony laptop ( Vaio FGN FS830W ) follwoing consumer reports recommendation. Unfortunately It was too slow (even after I upgraded to 1 GB RAM), never completed backup of installed system ( Sony did not provide system DVD!! and support asked me to buy from them for $34.99 , which eventually I did). The CD player broke in 3 months and battery lasts hardly 25 minutes. AND FOR THIS LAPTOP CONSUMER REPORTS FORCED( OR assumed my rating OR decieved) ME TO GIVE 5 STAR RATING!!!
2) THEY SUGGESTED 'LEAST FAILURES' ON A TV THAT HAD I HAD TO RETURN TWICE AFTER OF FAILURES:
I purchased Sanyo TV twice after consumer reports recommended 'Least failures' and most reliable (along with Sony TVs). I returned both because both had gaussing problems and created green patches in the screen.
So my conclusion, experience with CR is they are not reliable.
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As always, a welcome publication each year
This is another of those annual publications that is always rewarding to latch on to. Part of the book reads as "greatest hits of Consumer Reports."
The first part provides the reader with advice about what to look for in products, although not rating individual products (that comes later). For instance, on page 83, a discussion of what to look for in gas grills begins. Among the features to look for, according to CR: nature of the grates, what you want in carts, exterior shelves, interior warming racks, number of burners, whether or not you would want a side burner, and so on. Good guidelines to look at when viewing a grill. Later, this volume actually rates gas grills (pages 249 and afterwards). They rate midsized models, large models, small models, and portable ones. Thus, between the advice early on and the ratings later on, the consumer has a chance at making an educated purchase.
Always special is the long section on autos--evaluation of new cars, rating of used cars (including which ones to look for and which ones to avoid [e.g., 2000-2002 Pontiac Bonnevilles]), a listing of the reliability of each make, and so on. When going out to buy a car, I normally take my Buying Guide with me and use it to help frame the quest for a new (or used) vehicle.
The final segment of the book includes a listing of product recalls, web sites and phone numbers of manufacturers, an index (covering the prior 4 years) of different products evaluated in Consumer Reports, and the issue, year, and pages that they appeared.
All in all, a satisfying volume that keeps consumers up-to-date.
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