How is it helpful to post an example of a buying guide for over the ear headphones? It solves the exact problem the OP pointed out: that they don't know what to buy and don't want to spend the time researching themselves. It gives you an answer right at the top of the page, from someone who did the research for you.
EDIT: would love to continue this conversation with those who replied to me but HN has decided I am "posting too fast" (my last post was an hour ago?) so... shrug.
There are many reasons why this doesn't work, at least sometimes.
First of all, you have to trust that the reviewer is truthful (this case, NY Times, might be given a pass).
So you either check a bunch of reviews and frequently come out more confused than going in, even as someone who's knowledgeable about the subject or you just buy something from a brand you already trust.
Secondly, the problem with reviews is that they're done by specialists. To give you an example for movies. I've watched some of the movies which are top rated by experts. Frequently I've found that I just don't like them. Too artsy. You know what they say about specialists: they know more and more about less and less until they know everything about nothing. At some point specialists basically turn into aliens. Their tastes stop intersecting with those of the average J. Doe.
In many cases you just want a brain-dead solution to a problem because you're using your neurons for something else. And one of the safest brain-dead solutions is to go with a brand you already trust. Another one is to go with the crowd. Apple is kind of both.
And I say this as someone that generally avoids Apple products :-)
>nor do I want to invest any time learning about headphones
That categorically sounds like not wanting to read any such articles. I highly doubt the barrier is to do with Google skills or finding them in the first place. GP just doesn’t want to. Not to mention most people will not feel they have sufficiently researched a topic by reading the first piece they see.
Thanks, I suspected as much. I'd contend that I've done neither of those things but will instead take it as an opportunity to re-evaluate my choice in even spending time here. Time to sign out, I think.
