November Consumer Reports rates pan, knives, ranges and more

[sueatmo]

There are several articles that might interest Hounds in the current issue of Consumer Reports. I have questions about some of this, and I think other information is interesting. If you are thinking of buying products that they rate, it might be informative to check out what the magazine says.

There is a rating for best cookware sets, which rates what seem to me to be mid-line cookware. If you need a second set, or you are buying for a college student, these might be interesting.

They rate knife sets. A lot of people buy knives this way. Zwilling and Wusthof scored well. A Ginsu set was labeled Best Buy. The article doesn't go into detail about what makes a good knife. Many people want knife sets when they set up housekeeping. So, these relatively inexpensive sets might be good choices.

At any rate, this is information that is out there, so if you are planning a buy along these lines the publication is worth a look.

[ratgirlagogo]

In general Consumer Reports is not intended to be helpful for people interested in buying the product with the highest performance level. They are going to tell you what is the most reliable, best performing one for the least amount of money. For most people these criteria will be useful given their budget at least some of the time. Who can afford the cars on Top Gear no matter how accurate their reviews may be?

[Shann]

I have found that CR is very helpful when I'm looking at something that is new to me. If it s something that I know a lot about I tend not to use it because it is more of a "generalist" review. I do find it interesting to use their car reviews compared to auto magazine car reviews because auto mag writers tend to go for the fastest car in the segment and don't care too much about the cost (I read a recent article where they'd optioned up a Honda Accord to 32K) while CR seems to be all about cost and reliability.

[mcf]

I would never look at CR for car reviews as long as Edmunds is around. CR never reviewed a single car I've loved and gotten gadzillion reliably trouble free miles out of highly. Their criteria often overlooked what was important to me, too, both in safety ratings and features Edmunds is much better, and the consumer forums help to inform much more, too.

For free.

[mcf]

If they mostly review non stick AND in sets, the worst way to buy cookware, that's a really good illustration of why they're not the authority you'd want to trust.

[janniecooks]

It's important to distinguish between ratings produced as a result of the Consumer Reports annual survey of their subscribers, and ratings produced as a result of actual testing in the Consumer Reports laboratory. I pay little attention to the ratings from reader surveys, where the emphasis does seem to favor low price and middlebrow products. I do find the ratings and results meaningful, however, when they put products to the test in their laboratories.

[sueatmo]

I actually think that survey results give important information. Reliability is important for me, especially for something like a dishwasher or fridge. However I also admit that I don't always use CU. I think their ratings for cookware are interesting, and really they rated very moderately priced stuff. Many of us have invested serious dollars in cookware, but others of us have not. I don't own expensive cookware myself. But I was surprised not to see Cuisinart or Tramontina rated. And, they rated far more non-stick sets than regular. This might mean that more people are buying non-stick sets?

[EWSflash]

Having been an online subscriber for years, and a magazine subscriber for many years before that, I would have to say that CR gives an unusual amount of weight to price. I would say absurd amount, but I'm not that much of a bargain seeker,and I realize that a lot of people are. It almost seems sometimes like they give most of the weight in ratings to price, except for vacuum cleaners. And Chevrolets.

[acgold7]

I used to be loyal subscriber and I want to love CR, but I've grown highly skeptical of their ratings and am now sort of fed up with them. A while ago we were shopping for some major appliances and after hours of scouring their ratings pages, we still could not figure out which dishwashers and washing machines actually cleaned best. These weren't actually part of the ratings -- only things like energy efficiency, water consumption and noise and the like. While these are important, I really want to know how the devices perform their primary function.

Frequency of Repair is important but it's not the only thing. So they're the now the last people I'd go to for this advice.

[sueatmo]

OK, this may be a silly question, but don't modern dishwashers all do a good job? I mean they used to be dicey, but they've improved, right?

CU would be one place I'd check. But where would you check is you needed to buy a new dishwasher?

[acgold7]

You make a good point. If they all do an equally good job at their primary function, cleaning, then they should probably say so at the outset and save me the five bucks for the issue or the access to the charts. But my point is that I don't know for sure whether they do. Different dishwashers could have differing rack or sprayer arm designs, for example, which could make one better for pots and pans, while making another one better for glassware.

And you're right, there aren't a whole lot of other resources.

[johnb]

I seem to recall from somewhere in the distant past that CR once said in a dishwasher article that they all do a good job of cleaning dishes, so they based the ratings on other factors.

[Bada Bing]

You're right. For some time now, dishwashers are pretty close in cleaning, so factors such as noise and reliability and adjustability of interior racks are where it's at.

[BobB]

I spent many years in the high-end home audio business a while back (before the advent of MP3 and similar atrocities), catering to a discerning clientele, and whenever Consumer Reports would review audio equipment they would almost invariably recommend stuff that I knew to be mediocre at best. So it makes sense that they mostly review so-so cookware as well. Frankly I wouldn't trust them to know what makes a good spoon, let alone a good knife.

[sueatmo]

Don't know about spoons! I don't think their recs are targeted to people who make food their avocation. But sometimes we get questions here from people who just want to know what set of cookware or what set of knives are 'best.' I think the articles are probably good guidelines for this sort of query. I actually pay more attention to the frequency of repair ratings they do, than anything else. And if I were in the market for a new dishwasher, I'd consult CU. Gotta start somewhere.

[mcf]

I completely agree; their criteria and their judgment have never matched mine and their recommendations are often for products I know to be inferior, from experience or wider research.

Another thing; buying cookware in sets is a bad investment; you pay to get a lot of pieces you'll never use that take up room you may not have to spare. Better to buy 1-3 excellent knives or pans individually, prioritizing dollars for the biggest work horses.