I’m trying to find a good microwave oven (micro onde), and I’m looking for websites that might have impartial reviews of appliances. When I lived in the states we had something called Consumer Reports which I appreciated using. However, it’s not available here in France, and anyway I think it’d be much better to find a France-based organization.
Has anyone used this website and if so, did you think the reviews were accurate? I’ve looked for any indication of the reviews being skewed due to sponsorship, but they claim not to have any sponsors: “Vos tests et comparatifs 0% pub, 100% indépendants !”
Appreciate any thoughts, or recommendations for other websites instead, that I should check out?
A month’s subscription costs around the same as buying a magazine, and some libraries have it too. We “share” a subscription with two friends… But they provide quite a bit of info free.
Thanks. I’m looking at the site, and it looks great. A subscription seems to suggest a good way for a site like that to operate independently. I saw no subscription (abonnement) requirement for meilleurtest. I liked the Que Choisir motto “Expert • Indépendant • Militant.” I think that last word translates to ‘activist’ or ‘campaigner’ or, maybe lobbyist for ethical manufacture, perhaps eco-products… or something like that? Hoping so, anyway!
I took a sub to 60Millions which IMV is not as good. I’m waiting to find an offer for Que Choisir sometime in the next few months then will sign up with them instead.
Meilleur test did appear to have useful info on some topics I came across them on but relatively superficial. I felt there was influence from advertisers.
I think there’s also a magazine called Vos Questions and saw some good stuff there. But they don’t have the breadth of Que Choisir it seems.
Me, I like to walk around an electrical shop (shops) and check the appliance I am seeking… all the models … and all the makes.
Then I take a look through Google and see what info is available on my shortlisted products…
Quite often there are comparison sites which show points I had not noticed in the shop … and that can sway my final decision… one way or the other.
Also cdiscount is a good place to check out the best prices… and consumer comments
The problem with comparison sites, and things like Trust Pilot, is that they are not independent. Great to get an idea of features available and comparative prices, but anything else is not reliable. Money talks… I was horrified to find that companies can effectively pay Trust Pilot to remove bad reviews (they pay to be a “partner”). So the independent sites do have a valuable role for safety, reliability etc of products.
Frankly, once I’ve looked at a product or two in the shops … I’m looking for more details about warranty/after sales… and it’s useful to have the comparison checklist of all the quirks of one machine against the other…
does it come with this… YES or NO
as against the 3 other similar products…
Trip advisor changed a review of mine once. I unfortunately stayed in the shittiest hotel in Dreux once, I left a review and one of the questions was “What was the best thing about the hotel”? I wrote " leaving at the earliest opportunity " but it was changed to something like “a great breakfast”, and there was bugger all I could do about it
I was offered 30€ by the seller of this gizmo to delete my neg review of it on AMZ.fr
For some items, customer reviews reveal exactly the benefits or shortcomings of ‘the technical stuff’. There are users who know more about the item than any floor staff in shops - if you can find one.
For example, these diagnostic gizmos can be very picky about which make of car they will work with, despite being touted as working with everything. Peugeots are notorious for failing to work with some OBDs. There is no way someone in a shop will tell you this because, for some models, it might.
My review “Il n’est pas compatible avec ma Peugeot 307 SW 1.6 HDi. 2007. C’est tout ce que vous devez savoir. Peugeot a la réputation de ne pas fonctionner avec ces appareils tiers.”
This reviewer actually contacted the seller who declared that it would work with his car. "Pour ceux qui ont une Peugeot Renault fuyez en faite c un gadget … " Ask in the shop …
And again, “Failed to connect to a 2007 Peugeot boxer so it is of no use to me. Very disappointed.”
These are reviews that mean something.
User reviews on YT are the ones I trust the most. The item shown in use by someone who has paid their money for it. I found a YT vid of a guy using an OBD on the same car as mine. That did not g’tee that it would work on mine - that’s Peugeot for you - but I bought one and it does.
I’m not talking about anything as complicated as a car… although, for that, the customer reviews would still not sway me.
I am quite satisfied with the decisions/purchases I’ve made… although, must admit I tend to buy through reputable sources once I’ve made my choice… buying locally does have advantages.
