Deals and Bargains forum: Poll: How much do you rely on user-submitted ratings?

as a starting point, Than I go on forums like here @ Cnet and open a real time conversation with people and I do rely on the moderators to give straight up opinions as well as the people that post opinions, than I act accordingly ....Digger

Any review can be faked, but you can spot most fakes if details don't make sense. If no details given, then the review is worthless to you anyway.

When someone says the product is "built cheaply," or "built sturdily," I look for the reasons they have for their conclusions. Compared to what? How is it being used?

I look for discussions of product in the reviews, not just a simple conclusion. Sure, we know that likes/dislikes are very subjective, but the most valuable reviews give reasons.

Simple one sentence reviews or just the number of stars, only tell us the reviewer's preference. Not much help to you or me, and may just exist to drive up rating averages. But I have found valuable products even in poorly rated reviews.

The most valuable reviews give reasons; during the review content you can get an idea if the user is similar to you or not, but the discussion helps you understand the product's performance and function for your purposes.

One outstanding example was a review of electric weed wackers. It was obvious that 25% of the reviewers complaining of premature motor burn out could have caused the problem themselves because they were using undersized extension cords, especially when 50% of the reviewers were showing good motor durability for weekly usage that I would likely be giving the product.

It helps to understand reviews and reviewers if you take time to learn how a product should perform and how it should be used. Read CNet performance testing reports, Consumer Reports, or other professional sources to understand what you want/need before reading reviews to help select the reviews which might make the most sense for what you want/need.

As often as posible I look for multiple reviews from professionals and users on various sources CNET, Amazon, etc. ususally via a Goggle search. The more the better as I always check the one star and the moderates to see what was the problem and is there a pattern in multiple reviews . If there are little or no reviews then depending upon how much the item cost, I follow my gut feels about the risk and possible loss (money, time, inconvenience and impact). The more you know about the manufacturer and sellers also helps. If the product is sold locally in a store, it's worth a visit and may be worth buying locally to reduce risk.

In the end, whether a review is fake or not it boils down to what or who you believe. It's your decision and your money.

When I decided I had to have a digital camera, I spent about six months reading reviews of digis (that's how I found c/net, incidentally) before deciding. I did this because I had minimal experience with cameras in general and none at all with digitals. Since I started the shopping process in near total ignorance, I relied completely on reviews, and I was satisfied with the camera I eventually bought.

If I'm buying something else, something I'm familiar with already, I rarely resort to reviews. Occasionally a book review, for example, will get me interested enough to get the book, but that just doesn't happen often at all.

So my reliance on reviews is directly related to my knowledge of and experience with what I'm interested in buying, though I'll admit to getting help for big-ticket purchases like cars. Then I think it would be crazy not to look for professional input at least, like Consumer Reports reviews.

I skip the 5 and 4-star reviews, especially the ones that start "I am pleased with..." I usually read the negative reviews and trust myself to ferret out the idiots and whiners.

I somewhat rely on them.
I avoid making an opinion on an item when there are no reviews, or when the only reviews are by people who "just bought" or "just installed" and then say the really like the item.
I also look for the negative review. These help more.