Wirecutter asks users to sit out black Friday
wirecutterunion.com
wirecutterunion.com
They try to update reviews periodically, but they're often missing the most recent products on the market. From their comparisons. Many of their conclusions seem to draw from testing performed many years ago.
Some of the best advice from Wirecutter comes, ironically, from the comment sections, where upset Wirecutter fans seem more interested in tracking down the best products than the site itself. Lately if I visit Wirecutter I scroll to the bottom and see if there are a lot of comments asking why a better product isn't included in the comparison.
I suppose it's not surprising to hear that NYTimes isn't putting much money into the company any more. Though I have to admit I was a bit shocked to see such a relatively large staff involved in this union given the state of their reviews.
Regardless, having the staff go on record that they don't like the Wirecutter and specifically asking the site's fanbase to not use the site feels like the death knell for the site, at least in its current incarnation.
They're saying "please don't use Wirecutter this BF".
I already don't, but I'll do my part and continue not to.
Edit: I read some of the testimony and I'm confused. For instance:
"I was excited to join Wirecutter as the Times announced a major DEI report and plan as central to its mission. The most powerful thing the Times and Wirecutter can do in the name of diversity and equity is to pay more and do away with NDAs."
Why is it "powerful", in the name of DEI, to pay this person more and help their future job prospects?
They already work for a massive and powerful corporation - it hardly helps DEI to give their well-paid workers another pay rise and revoke NDAs.
A couple things: we don't know how much they're paid, so it's not really possible to pass judgment on what they're asking for in terms of comp. Secondly, it's pretty well documented that the racial inequality in America also applies to familial wealth and income, which further exacerbates inequality. There's a pretty good argument to be made IMO that more needs to be done to bridge the racial income disparity gap.
https://www.cjr.org/cjr_outbox/google-doc-journalism-media-p...
The expensive house fan I bought (and exchanged for a new one with the same issue) made a constant rumble noise that made it difficult to fall asleep to - my $15 Honeywell had no issues.
The router I bought started dropping connections within a year.
The wireless extender I tried was terrible and also constantly dropped connections and was overall poorly made (Wirecutter made no mention of the loud coil whine).
The air purifier I bought on their recommendation makes a loud noise any time the house gets below a certain temperature.
The surge protector I bought reeked of that cheap chemically plastic smell that was especially common about 10 years ago but still apparently exists today. No mention on WC.
All of these issues, by the way, are corroborated by various Amazon reviewers, as much as I hate to give them much credence.
After that I stopped visiting the site. If you look at any review category it’s glaringly obvious they appear to either be receiving kickbacks or are just entirely ignoring extremely common products for whatever reason (Armandhammer detergent not tested? P&G/Tide is thrilled at not having to have the extra competition, I’m sure)
So yeah, they have a very hip presentation geared towards a very particular demo, but everything is not as it seems.
So I encourage this boycott as well. Both for Wirecutter and Amazon.
It sounds like a lot, but for a big purchase this might take me all of half an hour.
I’ll take this any day over blindly taking Wirecutter’s word for it, then having to return/exchange/put up with/research an alternative when I find out the recommendation was not really any better, in fact probably worse than random choice of a highly customer reviewed item within a price range, while they take a cut for my inconvenience. Which I’ve done more times than I should’ve, really.
If you must, consider using Wirecutter as a “going in blind” option to find a rough price class for the item in question. E.g., if you know nothing about routers, see what the price is of the one(s) they recommend. If it’s say an average of $100, stick to something along those lines (or more).
I realize this is probably all quite obvious but… sometimes there’s no substitute for traditional search-engining.
Well said. The entire business model is in conflict interest with the best interest of the user. And if a product does not exist on Amazon they don't review it all.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/03/business/media/new-york-t...
(Just swap www for old in the url)
But yes, reddit is incredibly user hostile
Google: https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:5SQssf...
Archive: https://web.archive.org/web/20211109163041/https://www.wirec...
Possibly related? Ask Wirecutter: How Do I Stop Wasting Money on Unnecessary Tech Upgrades? https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/ask-wirecutter-early...
You know the drill. The people who started it and cashed out will wait a couple years to ride out some kind of non compete, and then start a new site that’ll solve all the problems wirecutter had.
There's no excuse for this, NYT. Do better.
Although I personally don’t support this, it’s interesting and I’m surprised this hasn’t been posted to HN yet.