Which? reviews

I stopped subscribing to Which? a few years ago, partly based on their rubbish website (still is) and wasn't convinced about some of their technical knowledge and detail with some products. I did get the opportunity to read the K3 review recently which it pretty much slated. Without agreeing or not about where the Pentax ranks some of the stuff just baffles me. It says things like - there's a disturbing grinding noise when you change the lens, while the lid on the SD memory card compartment is badly labelled and hard to open.
What do they want - a big sticker that says put the SD card in here?!!

The K-3 is water-resistant, although not waterproof, dustproof or shockproof like some models in Pentax's range.

What like the underwater ones for example!

It also says it lacks many advanced features that the other cameras in the group have, without saying what these fictional features are.

Glad I stopped subscribing although none of this can help Pentax sales.

Sounds like a complete load of old tosh to me. I avoid 'which' like the plague.

Cheers
David

Funnily enough, after subscribing for about a year I stopped my subscription for exactly the same reasons mentioned by the OP. They seemed to ignore some makes or models that i would have expected to have been reviewed across entirely different product ranges and type of goods. When it came to cameras, optical equipment, household batteries and various other products I knew something about, I could see how useless their reviews actually were...Anyway i'm a £110 p.a. better off and no less informed..that's a win-win.

karlo

Having been a Which subscriber for over 30yrs, I have to both agree AND disagree!

Their 'hi-tech' kit reviews of all sorts of stuff are pretty poor - but they are aimed at Joe public who has very little knowledge of those types of products and would get very confused with very much critical analysis or "obscure" things (and Pentax is pretty obscure to most people!) recommendations. Anyway, people who do want hi-tech kit look at specialist info sources elsewhere.

However, for more day-to-day stuff, their reviews are more relevant and useful - I've bought quite a few recommended appliances and things like holiday insurance, etc., and rarely been disappointed with those purchases.

Horses for courses - and photo/audio/computer kit etc., aren't their best horses but for a lot of other things they are pretty damned good!

They should have stuck to reviewing washing and coffee machines.

Some of the so called 'gadget' press aren't much better.

I gave up on Which several decades ago, for exactly the same reasons.
As it happens, I can remember the Which of the 1950s, when it's reviews were anything but trivial. Then they became a fair guide on what NOT to buy, and when I stopped my subscription they were a sort of consumer comic.

The original idea behind the CA was excellent. Subsequently they gave the impression that they had no-one who actually understood technology beyond the ON-OFF switch, and a Which review came down from several pages to a few short paragraphs.

I do not miss Which at all.

Geoff

The best concise camera reviews are in the UK mag 'Computer Shopper'.

I've never known them to be wrong with any camera and in one A4 size article reveal a lot about what a camera is like to use. Pentax cameras do well because they use them thoroughly going by the comments and recognise what you get for your money compared to other DSLRs.

Yes I agree with sbrads concerning Computer Shopper reviews. Over a period of some years I have purchased two cameras, two very expensive bespoke desktop computers and various other items on the strength of their reviews, and been impressed by their accuracy.

(Usual disclaimers!)

Roger

Their website is bonkers..... I sent them an email in which
I threatened to unsubscribe and it was scanned straight away
and a message popped up saying that at my request my subscription
had been cancelled I wonder how many customers they
have lost through that! Most of their reports are rubbish.

This site has the daftest Pentax reviews I've ever seen...
http://photocritic.org/getting-value-for-money-when-buying-a-camera/

Interchangeable lenses on the Q series are seen as a negative!
"a camera that small, having interchangeable lenses might
overwhelm the benefits of its smaller body anyway—and go
for a compact."

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I'm glad you agree about the website. It was bad so they 'improved' it and made it worse. It is so unstructured and the search engine is pathetic.

It's not just cameras. I've found Which? reviews on domestic appliances, which is where I'd expect them to be reasonably good, not particularly informed or helpful.

The latest issue of Which? (Oct 2014) has a brief summary of Digital SLR cameras on p.79. I was sorry to see that the only Pentax mentioned was the K-500, which was condemned as "worst on test". The main complaint seems to be that it does not have the weather-proofing of the K-50. Then why didn't the CA test the K-50?

The K-500 is generally marketed as an "entry level" DSLR. The target price in Which? is given as £327. It is compared with 9 other DSLRs from the two big brands, whose prices range from £329 to £2349.

I am baffled why the CA did not choose a more comparable Pentax camera, such as the popular (in this forum) K3 and K5 variants.

Like some others, I have been a subscriber to Which? off-and-on for several decades. It used to be a very useful review. It perhaps still is for run-of-the-mill domestic items (kitchen equipment, car tyres) but when I read reviews of things that I believe I know something about, I find that I cannot trust the Which? conclusions. They are too simplistic when testing very technical matters. That even includes their financial advice, I'm sorry to say.

Will probably end my subscription when the current year expires.

Martin

They are rubbish. Just send them a message from their webpage
saying something like..... Tell me how to cancel my membership?

I just got a reply saying it had been cancelled. They
must just scan messages for the word "cancel"

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