Replies

Skepticism about a survey is one thing. Being deliberately insulting is something else, and just wrong to boot often goes hand in hand with being insulting.

The “paid social marketer tries to butt in to the conversation of others”...that’s all you have?

Really. You are going to make some kind of statement about the conversation protocols and abilities other people?

You come into a thread, not only do you have nothing to contribute to the conversation about the reliability of a product, what you attempt to “contribute” is nothing more than insulting the person and the subject as cultist, and then you complain about someone butting in on the conversation of others?

Here’s a suggestion: you can redeem yourself by admitting truthfully you don’t know anything about it at all, and were just being purely emotionally driven in your posting. We won’t even ask you why you felt like you had to post that nonsense.

Yes. Surveys are opinions. The “opinion” Swordmaker posted had a basis in factual techniques, right or wrong, and if you took the time to actually look at it, and you actually knew anything about the mechanics of surveys, you would likely be able to get an idea of how they acquired it and how valid it is.

But it sounds like you prefer to just stick with “opinions” because you don’t have to back up an opinion. That would require too much effort, and might expose you.

There is that old saying that opinions are like a certain bodily orifice, and just like that anatomy, they smell, and everyone has one. Your post verifies that.

Perhaps you missed the first post explaining the reliability question more? This is a second post after our resident social marrketer, Swordmaker, tried to inject himself. Given his obvious status a paid social marketer, I no longer respond to his attempts to sell me on Apple. No insult was intended toward you.

Further, if you doubt Swordmaker ‘ s status as a paid social marketer, I simply say, “If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck.” Review his history in depth and you will see the same.

Actually, I just thought of a better way to explain why the CR survey is just noise and should be taken with a grain of salt...

Coffee!

When people are surveyed about their coffee preferences, Starbucks always comes up as a winner. Consumers claim Starbucks coffee tastes great in almost every survey.

Buuuuuuut...

In blind taste tests, Starbucks almost always comes out at the very bottom. They’ve been beaten by everyone from McDonald’s to Dunkin Donuts to Folgers to the Walmart brand. Seriously.

This demonstrates the power of branding. Starbucks’ powerful brand makes people THINK their coffee is delicious when it is actually bitter swill. Not to mention the fact that the type of people who are willing to pay $7 for a Venti Mocha Latte Whatever need to *justify* to themselves that the expense is worth it. They are being fleeced for bean filtered water so they will TELL people in surveys that Starbucks is the best.

Now, does this apply to Apple in this survey? I don’t know. It may and it may not. But Apple has built their brand with the messaging of “it just works” and “better than Microsoft.” If that was the core reason you bought something, you may be more inclined to believe it’s true just like Starbucks’ drinkers believe their coffee is delicious. It’s not backed by facts - it’s backed by *messaging*.

This is how the AGW crowd convinces people. They have powerful messaging that many people WANT to buy into. Same thing with many electric car buyers. Reminds me of that South Park episode where all the electric car buyers thought their farts didn’t stink because they were so smug for having bought the “right car.”

So, this survey is noise without any actual data to back up what fails, when, and how that really compares in an Apples to apples sense. And, it can’t be what people TELL you fails, because people will also tell you that the Earth is getting warmer, but the thermometers tell us something very different.

This is the difference between facts/science and surveys/studies.