shoplmart's Full Review: Consumer Reports Magazine
Buying a used or new product, whether it be a microwave or a new car can be quite the gamble, fortunately there are sources such as Consumer Reports magazine that are supposed to help us better our decisions. I have never subscribed to Consumer Reports magazine, but I have purchased many issues in the past, and still own many of these issues (for future product purchase reasons) to this day.
Consumer Reports is a magazine that is designed to help the consumer steer near, or clear of certain products. From Pizza, to Microwaves, Medicine, to Cars, Consumer reports attempts to keep the Consumer up-to-date on products being sold on the market. Consumer Reports doesn't just stop there, they also can get very personal, with personal experiences from people who love or hate the product in question. While that is one positive attribute of this magazine, this magazine unfortunately offers some very poor advice on how to choose products, i.e. cars. Though their intent is good, Consumer Reports have been completely off-beat with many of their car reviews. Sometimes I question whether or not this company really did test the car they reviewed. Consumer Reports Magazine is issued on a Monthly basis, and the regular issues are about 60-65 pages long. Consumer Reports can be purchased via a subscription or individually. Consumer Reports, in addition to the 11 regular issues, offers 1 April Auto issue, and 2 buying guides; 1 for the present year, and one for the following year.
When you first open Consumer Reports Magazine, you will be pleasantly surprised that only the first page or 2 is an advertisement(s). Flipping past the first 2 pages will instantly send you into information heaven, in the form of reader info, product info, personal experiences, reviews, articles, etc..
Reviews and articles: Consumer Reports offers excellent articles that usually focus on consumer advice. While most of the articles focus on advice for the consumer, many of the articles get very personal, such as people's own experiences with a certain product and how it has made them angry/satisfied. Consumer Reports does reviews on all sorts of products, such as cars, book stores, or even food. These reviews are rated using a somewhat confusing method. The product in question is rated by the consumers, Consumer Reports, and Consumer Reports subscribers. This is not the confusing part. The part that confuses me is the rating charts, the charts are very small and the scores are in the form of little circles that are empty, half filled with color, fully filled with color, etc.. these tiny circles indicate the quality of the product. This method for rating a product 'visually' almost reminds me of a slot machine at a Casino, only you don't win money here, you just get a headache from straining your eyes.
Photography: Consumer Reports does not dedicate its time nor attention to great pictures. Most pages are occupied with words and charts, although occasionally the reader will get to see a small picture of the product that is being reviewed.
Advertisements: Consumer Reports usually contains about 5-10 pages of ADs, many of these ADs are only 'half pages' so there can also be info about a product on the same page.
Pricing: For a 1 year subscription of Consumer Reports magazine, expect to shell out $26 dollars, this includes the 2 buying guides that retail at 9.95 each (you save $42.00 this way). Consumer Reports gives you the choice to pay when you order, or pay later. For an individual issue, it will set you back $3.99 plus tax, the April auto issue is $4.95. This magazine is available at almost any large grocery, book, or drug store.
Conclusion: Consumer Reports is a decent information source for the consumer, just not when it comes to car information. Although each issue could contain more product reviews, easier to read charts, and a lower price, I do recommend this magazine for those looking for advice on toasters etc. However, I do not recommend this magazine for those looking to buy a new car.
Testing products since 1936: Unbiased monthly reports on cars, home appliances, electronics, computers, food, health, finance, and more. No outside ad...More at Magazines.com
The indispensable guide for anyone who wants to comparison shop for the best quality and value of anything on the market, Consumer Reports Magazine is...More at Magazineline
Testing products since 1936: Unbiased monthly reports on cars, home appliances, electronics, computers, food, health, finance, and more. No outside ad...More at Magazine-Agent
PriceTool.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources,
so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
