That 4-star review with 600 words saved me from a bad $800 purchase

I was about to buy a used bandsaw off Craigslist from a guy in Tacoma. The listing looked fine, 5 photos, good price. But one reviewer on a tool forum wrote this long 4-star review about how the same model had a motor that overheated when you pushed it hard on thick stock. So I asked the seller about the motor and he got weird, said it was fine. I walked away. Two months later I saw the same saw listed again with a note about the motor needing work. That review probably saved me $800. My question is, how much weight do you put on those middle star reviews versus the 5 star ones? I tend to skip them but now I read every word of the 3 and 4 star ones first.

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patb8618d ago

Bought a used table saw once on a 5-star review alone. Turned out the guy had zero clue about the arbor being bent. Now I read the 3 and 4 stars like a manual, those are the ones where people actually used the damn thing. That one longer review with real details is worth more than ten gushing ones.