Shoddy Goods

Good Value Products

I am constantly reminded of the throw away culture we live in. My Son recently fetched me some shopping , which included a new washing up bowl. The bowl he purchased is so flimsy it is actually impossible to pick it up , full of water, without it cracking round the rim at the top! Ok it was less expensive than the trip to the Supermarket but it isn’t fit for its purpose…

One of the reasons for my blog was to show up these poor value ‘bargains’ . Now I know that with technology moving at the pace it does, no seller can afford to have old stock , as new models with more functions and usually a cheaper price will come along and make that old stock worthless.  However, my reviews take into account the experiences of many online buyers who having purchased the products, have bothered to post comments good or bad. It is that valuable information that I wish I had , when I made my own purchases.  Although I don’t expect anything in the kitchen to last forever, I do expect it to pass the 12 months guarantee period, without the handles falling off or the on/off switch failing.

Beware of Imitations or Counterfeit Goods

I made a comment elsewhere on the blog that “you would be forgiven for thinking that a lot of the ovens on sale by the different names were all made in the same factory, they are so similar“, please be careful when purchasing your goods, if its not a well know brand being offered, do a little research, check on the manufacturers website, does the model exist or even does it look the same. There are unscrupulous individuals out there buying up really cheap goods and putting on fake branding. You only have to look at the recent fake apple products -( iphone charger explodes August 2013) , to see how dangerous it can be. I have a friend in the electronic spare parts business, more than once, when on business in China he has been offered suspiciously cheap products and even asked if he would like them in bags printed with the Panasonic genuine spares logo and part number!

Our Halogen Oven Review Ratings

I have just finished re evaluating all the Halogen Oven  reviews on our site, to take into account new comments and customer feedback. I am pleased to see that the original ratings were justified, as we only adjusted one  score, but disappointed in another way since none of the manufacturers with obviously flawed products ( having so many bad comments on one of its features) have changed or updated their offerings with the problems sorted.

Informed Buyers

So in conclusion,

• Don’t rely on the Manufacturers Hype
• Buy a Named Brand and one you have heard of
• Read the reviews before buying
• Don’t expect the chain stores to offer advice as they will  buy 100000 of model XYZ  and promote it as “better than sliced bread”.
• Keep the comments and emails coming and share your gripes or recommendations with our blog readers

Thanks to all our many  readers who contributed

Jennifer