The junkification of Amazon

05 February 2023, 08:17 PM

The last year I tried to order an electric blanket, I ended up trying three, then giving up. One caught fire; two failed rapidly (certainly after the warrantee expired), the last one barely got lukewarm. None that initially worked lasted the season (I used to be able to count on at least one Winter. Note, this includes a "name brand" like Sunbeam.).

When you read the comments, quite a number complain their blankets caught fire!

The one I got that caught fire (which I complained about) led to an - intended to be - pitiful plea from the seller to delete my published comment. They said they were a small family-owned business struggling to make a go of it and offering me a full refund, plus a working replacement.

I wonder how many would-be honest feedbacks are deleted in response to such attempts to cheat consumers out of real comments.

05 February 2023, 08:23 PM

Amanda

What do you think of weird name products such as this one with thousands of alleged comments? Does Amazon allow such fake claims of numerous comments to stand?

Is there any attempt at quality control at all?

quote:
Wchiuoe Heated Blanket, 62"x84" 10 Heating Levels & 2-10H Auto Off Electric Blanket, Machine Washable Soft Flannel Fast Heating Throw Blanket for Bedroom Office Couch…
4.44.4 out of 5 stars (1,233)
5 Highlights
‹
Limited time deal
$46.99 $59.99

05 February 2023, 08:25 PM

Amanda

What does "Amazon Choice" mean?

05 February 2023, 08:27 PM

ShiroKuro

quote:
Does Amazon allow such fake claims of numerous comments to stand?

My impression is yes, most of the time.

05 February 2023, 08:39 PM

Amanda

What does "Amazon Choice" mean?

What about these alleged "badges"? Does Amazon really have anything to do with them??

quote:
A badge is a symbol that tells other Amazon customers something interesting about you.

Something "interesting"???

quote:
You can earn badges by creating useful content on Amazon. Some badges may be temporary, and some badges may look different, depending on where you see them.

If you write a review, you might see badges under your name, and before the review.

Some places on Amazon might not display all of your badges at the same time. We try to choose the most appropriate badges for each page. To see all of your badges, go to Your Profile.

Types of Badges
There are many different badges. Here is a brief list of our badges and what they mean.

AMAZON VERIFIED PROFILE
This badge indicates that the identity of this contributor has been verified by Amazon.

THE
This badge indicates that the person to whom it was granted is "the" celebrity most people associate with that Real Name. For example, when you see "the" below Jeff Bezos's Real Name on one of his reviews, you know that the celebrity founder of Amazon wrote that review. This is a permanent badge.

AMAZON OFFICIAL
This is an official Amazon representative. This is a permanent badge.

AUTHOR, ARTIST, MANUFACTURER
These badges are given to verified representatives of items listed on Amazon, such as the author, artist, or manufacturer of a product. This is a permanent badge.
Vine Voice
This customer is a member of Amazon VineTM Voice, an invitation only program that gives Amazon reviewers advance access to not-yet-released products for the purpose of writing reviews. A review written as part of the Vine™ Voice program always includes this label: "Amazon Vine™ Review" on the initial product detail page and "Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program" when viewing the entire review. This is a permanent badge.

Note: If you don't see your badge in Your Profile it was likely a temporary badge. If you think there is an error, and you had a permanent badge that disappeared, contact Customer Service.

What th-??
Anyone ever heard of "Amazon Vine reviews"??

05 February 2023, 08:44 PM

Amanda

What is written on Amazon about it:

https://www.amazon.com/vine/about?ie=UTF8

quote:
All About Amazon Vine
Make your voice count by evaluating and reviewing FREE items

What is Amazon Vine?
Amazon Vine is an invitation-only program which selects the most insightful reviewers in the Amazon store to serve as Vine Voices. Vine Voices have the unique opportunity to order items free of charge and share their product experiences with Amazon customers to help them make informed buying decisions.

How does it work?
Once enrolled in Vine, Voices may request products from thousands of brands selling in the Amazon store which are shipped to their doorsteps at no cost. They then use the products and provide insightful reviews that reflect their honest and unbiased opinions - positive, neutral, or negative. Reviews of a product ordered through Vine appear in the same location as other reviews. Amazon Vine reviews are distinguished with this special badge "Vine Customer Review of Free Product" for full transparency.

Thousands of products from all types of categories are added daily, ensuring that Voices always have something new to try!

How can I join?...

Is this an invitation to fraud or is Amazon really trying to create a meaningful, helpful workaround to the rampant dishonesty in manufacturers' reviews?

I gather numerous consumers are getting free products in return for positive reviews. What does this mean? That consumers themselves are invited to participate to the fraud others are subjected to?

Ones who produce so-called "insightful reviews", by being basically guaranteed to get high quality products in return for writing positive reviews. Moreover, ones with the caveat attached, that this reviewer has actually purchased the product.

Are savvy manufacturers who want to get numerous positive reviews, availing themselves of this service to get many positive reviews? N.b. Positive ones which are written in grammatical English. It's certainly a red flag when reviews - and all the more so - product descriptions, are written with usage errors suggestive of non-native English speakers.

Is there really any chance that honest consumers would get a randomly chosen product from manufacturers participating in yet another way of scamming other consumers?

Is there ANY services sponsored by Amazon really available to help would-be purchasers to avoid defective, shoddy products? Or is this itself just another fraudulent product sold on Amazon?

The rabbit hole of Amazon's knowing participation in the scams being perpetrated on their site knows no end.

05 February 2023, 10:46 PM

Steve Miller

I daresay we buy more from Amazon than anyone. 2-3 packages a day - sometimes more. We’ve learned how to use it but it took some time.

The best bet is to only buy real brand names unless quality doesn’t matter. Only buy Prime so it can go back without fees. Don’t look at the 5 star reviews - they’re bogus. The 2 and 1 star reviews tell you what to expect. Everyone has a 4.5 rating - the lower ratings tell the tale.

Some of the knockoffs are really good - my $9 KIZEN instant read thermometer is the equal of my $70 Thermopen in every respect. I daresay they’re made on the same line.

06 February 2023, 05:42 PM

Amanda

quote:
Originally posted by Steve Miller:
I daresay we buy more from Amazon than anyone. 2-3 packages a day - sometimes more. We’ve learned how to use it but it took some time.

The best bet is to only buy real brand names unless quality doesn’t matter. Only buy Prime so it can go back without fees. Don’t look at the 5 star reviews - they’re bogus. The 2 and 1 star reviews tell you what to expect. Everyone has a 4.5 rating - the lower ratings tell the tale.

Some of the knockoffs are really good - my $9 KIZEN instant read thermometer is the equal of my $70 Thermopen in every respect. I daresay they’re made on the same line.

Hmm. Certainly are taking a chance with your assumptions about the meaning of the star reviews.

I think there are equally a fair number of counterfeit low star reviews to dissuade rival product purchasers.

Your observations about the value of knock-off products are interesting.

I'm starting to think one month is an inadequate return period to test the reliability of a product. I always appreciate the lengthened period around the holidays. So many products take longer to fail.

I kind of resent reviewers who send in their judgments right after they start to use a product. Do NOT think most bother to correct their review down the road when it proves defective.

06 February 2023, 05:53 PM

wtg

quote:
Originally posted by Amanda:
The last year I tried to order an electric blanket, I ended up trying three, then giving up. One caught fire; two failed rapidly (certainly after the warrantee expired), the last one barely got lukewarm. None that initially worked lasted the season (I used to be able to count on at least one Winter. Note, this includes a "name brand" like Sunbeam.).

When you read the comments, quite a number complain their blankets caught fire!

The one I got that caught fire (which I complained about) led to an - intended to be - pitiful plea from the seller to delete my published comment. They said they were a small family-owned business struggling to make a go of it and offering me a full refund, plus a working replacement.

I wonder how many would-be honest feedbacks are deleted in response to such attempts to cheat consumers out of real comments.

I don't know if you reported the blanket that caught on fire to the CPSC, but it probably would be a good idea.

https://www.usa.gov/federal-ag...ct-safety-commission

07 February 2023, 09:48 AM

Steve Miller

Are these blankets UL listed?

I wouldn’t use one that wasn’t.

08 February 2023, 03:57 PM

Amazon is full of junk, but so are most shops, usually dubious quality chinese/asian made stuff. I won't use ebay except as a last resort for used items, but Amazon can be amazing, but yes I do check on the seller being Amazon.

This week I wanted a second sharpening stone and also a honing guide. Gone are the days when I'd travel into a city and wander around the best hardware store.
I read up and decided not on a traditional stone but on a second ceramic Spyderco benchstone (made in USA) of a grain to complement my first. Now these Spyderco are rather rare in the UK, yet Amazon UK had the one I wanted and cheaper than other shops. Free delivery in 4 days, actually turned up in two.

Even more impressive was the result of my search for a honing guide. Found two reviewed that satisfied me, decided I liked a Japanese 'Kakuri' one which will take plane as well as chisel blades. Where then to buy this Japanese rarity?
Amazon US, taking ten days with free UK delivery.

Job creation? Tax avoidance? Huge ugly distribution centres? All I can say for sure is Amazon currently gives us wide product choice and saves us money.