How much faith do you put in Consumer Reports?

[Janeway]

Most of the washing machines we have selected rate poorly. And it was our Samsung that completely failed us, so dh says no more Samsung. The Samsungs are at the top. Please tell me how much faith you would put in to Consumer Reports? Because I am bothered that every machine we narrowed down to ranks so low.

[SparklyUnicorn]

I've had the opposite.  I've had products that were great that were listed in CR as great.  That said, I don't subscribe anymore because I find they list a lot of products and stores we don't have around here. 

 

Although sometimes I think their rating system is a bit too convoluted.  What they consider a feature, I might not.  Or only overall does a product rate high, but there are aspects of it that rate low and they are the sort of things I'd care about.

[SparklyUnicorn]

You might have just gotten very unlucky or possibly you are doing something that isn't so great for washing machines.  One thing my mother repeated to me 1000 times growing up was if you want your washer to last longer don't ever overload it.  She had an average washer that lasted 25 years.  The current washer we have has lasted 8 years so far.

 

Of course maybe none of that is true at all for you. 

[Janeway]

You might have just gotten very unlucky or possibly you are doing something that isn't so great for washing machines.  One thing my mother repeated to me 1000 times growing up was if you want your washer to last longer don't ever overload it.  She had an average washer that lasted 25 years.  The current washer we have has lasted 8 years so far.

 

Of course maybe none of that is true at all for you. 

Our others lasted a long time. It is just this one. So it is not a string of things that did not work out, it is just this one. But my husband is pretty upset by it and as a result, does not want to consider the Samsung again. But the rest that is available here ranks poorly in Consumer Reports.

[SparklyUnicorn]

I have an Amana which is actually Whirlpool.  Growing up the long lasting washer was Whirlpool. 

[catz]

We've bought top selected things on CR several times and have had BAD luck with all of them.   And no we don't abuse our electronics/appliances.  In particular 2 different vaccums we selected of their lists have been complete pieces of junk.  So I don't trust them at all anymore at this point.  I'd rather go and read reviews from many sources (and I know some reviews are generated).  I intentionally go out and find bad reviews on products we're interested in to see what happened. 

[KatieJ]

Top rated camera was a lemon. Top rated dishwasher, not worth the gas it took to buy it and get it home.

This dishwasher was chosen by salesman.

[amsunshine]

I think CR does an "ok" job of evaluating most products.  Usually, for washing machines, their top rated machines are out of our price range.   However, our first washer was one of CR's budget buys, and it never failed us in the 15 years we had it.  It was still going strong when we upgraded to a Samsung front loader a few years back to take advantage of the awesome rebates available.  The Samsung was a similar model to one of the CR's budget picks, but not the exact one.  We initially purchased the exact model CR recommended -- didn't like it -- and exchanged it for the one we have now.  The one CR recommended did not have an on-board heater, so the so-called "hot" wash was still technically a "cold" wash.  This is not something CR cares about.  Their ratings are heavily based on energy savings.  I'm all for energy savings, but when I need a hot wash, I want a true hot wash.  The next model up had an on-board heater, and is the model we have now.  It is not one of  fancy top Samsung models, but we have been very happy with it.

 

So, I think CR ratings are helpful but are still just a starting point for evaluating products.  I find that I may personally place more or less importance on things CR seems to value.

Edited May 27, 2016 by amsunshinetemp

[Janeway]

Here is the washer we have..only this is not my complaint filed online. It is the exact same model number and even manufacture date.http://www.saferproducts.gov/ViewIncident/1399901

[amsunshine]

Yikes!  That doesn't sound good.  

[SparklyUnicorn]

Oh well that's crappy.  Sounds like they knew very well that something was wrong with those things.

 

 

[Janeway]

Another another reference to this issue... http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-WA422PRHDWR-White-Load-Washer/product-reviews/B0084IY1ZU

[Janeway]

So my husband says no more Samsung.

[Carol in Cal.]

I use CR as one piece of data, but IMO appliance designs are very dynamic right now so CR reports are yesterday's news and don't map into today's purchases as they once did.  For cars, it's different--CR is my crucial go to source of long term reliability information and hasn't failed me yet.  And I really appreciate their 'for beginners' information about things my Luddite period did not encourage me to keep up with--like streaming TV 101, since I have never been able to get anyone to explain it to me.  I think asking people about this is like asking about the atmosphere--they take so much information for granted that I don't have that listening to them doesn't tell me anything at all.  And CR kindly has been filling in those gaps with tight, succinct summaries that don't leave any of the basics out.

[JoJosMom]

Honestly, none.  My family had a perfect record from Consumer Reports recommendations - perfectly wrong.  :glare:

[SparklyUnicorn]

You could try writing to the company.  My DH has done this and often times they give us something or agree to fix stuff.

 

 

[plansrme]

In a prior life, my husband worked for a major paint company, and he swears that CR was on the take from one or more paint companies because of the different test results and rankings they would give from one year to the next on the exact same paint. Consequently, we have never used them at all.

[Katy]

I don't trust them either.  I do trust the board.  Which ones are you looking at?

 

I highly recommend a sanitize feature and a LOUD alarm, and a large capacity top loader is what we'll buy next.  No more front loaders for me.

 

Samsung is considered easy to repair, or so I heard from the last time we called a repairman.

[Lanny]

I subscribed to the Print edition of Consumer Reports Magazine for many many years. I cannot imagine how I would have found ratings on Insurance companies, or other products, that I could have trusted, elsewhere.  Occasionally now, I visit the Consumer Reports web site.  They purchase the things that they test.  Unless one gets the exact same model that they tested, the results one obtains might be the same or might be different.  In our case, my wife bought a high end Top Loading Samsung Washing Machine, last November, and she loves it.  Our experience with Samsung products and their service has been excellent (5 TVs, a Washing Machine and now a Microwave Oven, in addition to my cell phone) but their products are not perfect. They invest a ton of money in Research and Development, which their competitors (LG, Sony, etc.) can only dream of.  We believe Samsung Quality Control is very good.  The best TV repairman I have met in my life was sent to our house, after I called the national toll free phone number for Samsung in Colombia. That was about 10 years ago and I am still amazed, when I think of the skill/knowledge/experience he had.  The man who installed our Samsung Washing Machine in November 2015 also installs LG machines. When asked, he said that some people prefer Samsung and others prefer LG.  Our experiences with LG products were not good, and we avoid them, but you might want to look at LG Washing Machines.  My belief is that LG products are of lower quality than Samsung products, but that is based on the very limited experience of our family with LG products.   GL with whatever you buy.  

[bettyandbob]

My experience with CR has been very good. Every major appliance we have bought in 24 years of home ownership has been after consulting CR, except our current dishwasher which is crap that dh bought to surprise me.

 

We've never bought the best CR recommended, but chose the price range that was doable for us and used CR to figure what would be best for our use in that price range.

[Pawz4me]

My problem with CR -- or perhaps it's with manufacturers or appliance stores -- is that I can never find CR's recommended models in stores.  Sure if they recommend a Samsung range/washing machine/dishwasher/whatever you'll find some Samsungs in just about any appliance store.  But it seems I can never find the exact model recommended.

Edited May 27, 2016 by Pawz4me

[Katy]

My problem with CR -- or perhaps it's with manufacturers or appliance stores -- is that I can never find CR's recommended models in stores.  Sure if they recommend a Samsung range/washing machine/dishwasher/whatever you'll find some Samsungs in just about any appliance store.  But it seems I can never find the exact model recommended.

 

This is because they have different model numbers for each store.

[trulycrabby]

Consumer Reports is okay but the Hive recommendations are even better.

[ErinE]

I read the specific ratings, especially for washing machines and dishwashers. Consumer Reports seems to weight energy efficiency highly, sometimes over cleanliness. If I have to run it twice, it isn't very efficient.

 

So I look at cleanliness and reliabilty and worry less about energy efficiency for appliances.

Edited May 27, 2016 by ErinE

[ErinE]

So my husband says no more Samsung.

We thought about a Samsung but the repairman who looked at our Whirlpool (it required a few whacks with a mallet to work) said finding a Samsung repairman can be difficult and expensive. We chose Maytag, mainly because it had a quick wash cycle and large capacity.

[mamiof5]

Not a whole lot, since appliances are now a piece of junk. The good ole days when washers and vacuum cleaners lasted over 20 years are gone. Now it's just a rip off! Companies make low quality products and charge outrageous prices for them. It makes me mad 😠

[Guest]

I get the print magazine and I love that thing. I think the articles are great. My favorite feature of the mag is the Selling It page at the back where it shows ads or product jackets that are contradictory, erroneous, weird or idiotic. :D

 

My Bosch dishwasher was chosen because of CR and I love it so far. I had no luck choosing a new mattress, but mattress companies do an amazing amount of slick tricks to make it very hard to find/purchase THIS one. My mattress choice was terrible. It has dips in it that appeared almost instantly. My previous mattress was good for 17 years.

[gardenmom5]

not much.

 

years ago, i though they were great.  maybe/maybe not.  I was younger and the options to find ratings were much fewer.

 

I don't remember which brand washer it was that was so highly rated by CR. . . . . it was the only time we have ever purchased an extended warranty agreement.  we collected on it too. the bearings stripped out, there is nothing you can do to prevent it, or fix it.  I was using a laundromat before I got a new machine.  (an LG.)

 

 the year after CR rated it so highly - it was a do not buy.

 

​​it's been several years longer than I had that original  washer, and I've never had a problem (other than learning my VERY heavy bathroom rugs needed to be washed one at a time, and spun on a slow spin cycle)

 

I go other places now for ratings.   and the fact to go to CR online it's behind a paywall . . . .

 

 

Edited May 27, 2016 by gardenmom5

[KungFuPanda]

I think you get better information talking to repairmen than CR.

[Tsuga]

Great for cars and used cars. For appliances they rely on their own testing and now Amazon collates a lot more reviews so CR is unnecessary in my opinion. However I think their specific rankings--if not overall recommendations--are usually sound. Nobody hits it every time. I pay for the online subscription when buying a car or considering it, to prepare my "is it worth it" spreadsheet.

[lllll]

I use CR online.  Overall, it's been very helpful for us, especially the car ratings.  But I do search around on the net to find out what others have to say about a product before buying it.  I read the comments on CR, Amazon, and anywhere else I can find them.  Then, I take all that information and make a decision.  It's hard, sometimes.  When I went to buy a new vacuum cleaner, the comments on CR weren't so great.  But I looked at what they were saying, and a lot of them seemed to be based on things that didn't matter so much to me.  Same with the ratings.  So I wrote down a few model numbers and went and looked at them IRL and decided from there.

 

I scour each part of the ratings, too.  Some things are more important to me than others with each product I look at.  So I take that into account.

 

I do think, however, like someone else said - a lot of the appliances are made to last only a short time.  Definitely not like they made them when I was growing up.