Does bias bother you in reviews?

[Derf]

So I was showing my Kobo Clara to my sister, and she said it was 'neat', but asked me why I didn't get a Kindle. I tried explaining to her all the benefits I saw, but she just shrugged and said 'yeah, but I mean, I would probably just have gotten a Kindle.'

Then I came came across this review from PCMag back in June of "The Best eReaders of 2018", where they rank the 2015 Amazon Paperwhite gen 3 as 4.5 stars, and the new 2018 Kobo Clara HD as 4 stars.


They cited the Kindle paper white as an Editor's choice award winner, with only 'no adaptive lighting, waterproofing, or Audiobook support'.


They said less good things about the Kobo, although it satisfied all the 'Pro' factors of the Kindle Paperwhite, and dinged it for not being waterproof and having an 'awkward' Overdrive interface.


OK, Kobo only JUST released a firmware update to allow Overdrive support on the Clara HD. So I wasn't sure if the reviewer meant that it was difficult to check out library books on the computer and then transfer them over to the Clara, or if they were confused about the capabilities of the Clara, because at the time it did not really 'support' overdrive on the device.

So I dug into the actual review of the Clara HD. And it begins with :

Kobo's new $129.99 Clara HD is the slimmest, lightest, and most peaceful way to read your e-books this summer. It's the e-reader boiled down to the essentials: a sharp screen in an easy-to-hold body with long battery life. Unfortunately, the Clara HD isn't waterproof. None of the e-readers available at this price point are, but given that Kobo pioneered water-resistant e-readers with its H2O models, it would have been nice to see. You'll have to jump up to the $179.99 Kobo Aura H2O for that.

The Clara HD also doesn't support audiobooks, but neither do its competitors in this price range. For audiobooks on an e-reader, once again, we suggest the Kindle Oasis. It would be our Editor's Choice for midrange ebook readers, except for one thing: Amazon's crushing dominance of e-book sales in the US, and its increasing role in publishing new books. This means for most people, Amazon's is a more convenient option.

They are basically saying that Amazon is the best, and anything that isn't Amazon or can't access Amazon is therefore not capable of being the best. Like if someone said "A Chevy is a good car, but it isn't a Ford, therefore the Chevy is not as good as the Ford." To me this logic does not compute.

They go on to say

Kobo is a big deal in several countries outside the US, most notably Canada. It runs its own e-book store, which recently had everything we looked for that isn't published by Amazon.

So.... if it can access all the books that are on Amazon, not specifically published by Amazon, you're rating the quality of the eReader (the topic of this article) based off the fact that the eReader can't access Amazon only self-published content.

And so it seems like PCMag is shilling for Amazon. Pushing more people who might be interested in getting a eReader to go for Amazon's Kindle based off the fact that you can read more fringe content on the Kindle than you can on a Kobo... ignoring ALLLLLLL the other salient good things about the Clara as a reading device.

It just made me frustrated.

What do they say about actually using the device? How about the newest technology to hit eReaders, color shifting night lighting, to hit the scene since 2015?

The Clara HD's color-changing front light is a great strength. The Barnes & Noble Nook Glowlight 3 does the same thing, but Amazon's still committed to serving you blue light only.

That's it. A sentence! You dinged the Kindle for NOT having it, but barely glanced over it on the Clara, like an afterthought. No mention of how it affects your reading at night, just a mention that it does it, like the B&N nG3. Tell me you actually used this device to test some reading on?....

Kobo's user interface feels like the Ubuntu of ebook readers. It's very basic.

So apparently ubuntu (the operating system, not Gnome, or KDE the GUI interface) is very basic. Interesting. In also news, all the font adjustment, line spacing, highlighting / note taking, lighting adjustment, reading stats, pocket integration, or ad-free experience of the Clara HD interface is basic. Very basic.

Did the author accidentally copy and paste her notes from the Nook review?

She concludes :

Amazon and Apple own 92 percent of the e-book market in the US, and Amazon has also become one of America's largest publishers. You can't read Amazon or Apple e-books on this e-reader. That makes Kobo more of a niche choice for people who want to avoid the Amazon ecosystem. That said, the Kobo Clara HD illuminates your reading with a warm, color-changing light, but can't get past Amazon's superior ebook selection.

And that is her takeaway. Its a niche product for people who don't want to drink the kool-aid of everyone else, so drink up...

I know this is a rant, but seriously, the bias is just a little over the top, no?

[DNSB]

Much like one review I read of the Kobo Aura One. The reviewer's only issue was that it would not connect to his Amazon account. After spending 4 paragraphs talking about the beautiful screen, colour changing front light, ability to see series information and being able to borrow library books directly on the device, he then did a "I don't recommend" based on not being able to download his Amazon books.

[Tarana]

The only thing I care about in reviews of gadgets are what are the features and how well does it hold up getting dropped? Everybody has different needs. I have zero need for a waterproof ereader. To someone else, that is the most important feature. Someone who doesn't know how to remove DRM from their books or can't (see Itunes), may consider the availability of books that THEY read to be more important than all the bells and whistles on the top gadget.

You have to wonder about the reviewer though. The basic Kindle ($79.99) supports audiobooks, so I don't know what his 'price range' argument is about.

[Barbara1955]

Sounds like the Chevy Ford & Dodge arguments...ugh Thankfully we are all different & Can have a Choice.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by Barbara1955

Sounds like the Chevy Ford & Dodge arguments...ugh Thankfully we are all different & Can have a Choice.

Hmmm... the "I'd rather push a Ford than drive a Chevy" or vice versa attitude?

[johnnyb]

I think the main problem is that the ecosystem “wars” have already been decided. And Kobo did not win a major place, at least not in the US. They have been lazy for years (quality, stability and availability) and not too long ago there were reports on this very board complaining about messy lighting and messy customer support.
So while review bias is not good at all, it does not come from nothing or Amazon’s reality distortion alone, but is the indirect result of Kobo having made themselves irrelevant. For years, Kindle definitely were the better choice for almost everyone.

[dakini]

Amazon's "crushing dominance" that the author talks about is kinda evident in their kindles. Now I say this as someone who has had three Kobos, loves them, and recently bought a cheap Kindle used until I figure out what to do for my next one ... Kobo's being asinine and unhelpful with a repair issue. I think the writer just didn't make that clear what they meant; it's not a matter of bias, as much as a matter of they wrote it without explaining it. Not bias, just not explained well.

The Kindle does make it so much easier to get books. So much easier. And I think that's what they mean. Not just the store. But even books from other sites are easy to show up. A friend sends me a book, it shows up. A family member lends one to me, it shows up. I check something out of libraries in more than one country ... they just show up. I use the Kindle Owners lending library, it shows up. I send something via email, it shows up. Kindle dominates in more than just the store ... in the free books each month, the kindle lending library, family sharing, friend sharing, emailing books to yourself instead of side loading through Calibre, library Overdrive integration. And mind you, I bought a 4-year-old kindle that does all this while I'm on the bus to work.

So what I'm trying to say is, there might be bias or preference. But I think part of what there is, also is just that the author didn't spell out what they mean by the dominance of Amazon. They just make it so simple, so much easier, so seamless.

[ I'm still hoping Kobo gets their sh&% together and can help with my reader issue or at least stops insisting in every help exchange that I need to buy a new Kobo model they're trying to get rid of rather than fix the kobo I currently have. I still like them. But I'm starting to feel like a dumped ex that just hasn't moved on.]

[Barbara1955]

Originally Posted by johnnyb

I think the main problem is that the ecosystem “wars” have already been decided. And Kobo did not win a major place, at least not in the US. They have been lazy for years (quality, stability and availability) and not too long ago there were reports on this very board complaining about messy lighting and messy customer support.
So while review bias is not good at all, it does not come from nothing or Amazon’s reality distortion alone, but is the indirect result of Kobo having made themselves irrelevant. For years, Kindle definitely were the better choice for almost everyone.

Sounds like You not visited the Amazon Forums!
I switched to Kobo 2 years ago.. Not one problem! After the K3 Nothing but problems! Poor Lighting too many with uneven distorted lighting bright spots freezing & the list goes on. Lying CS that says they replacing with new NOT...just crappy refurbished device with same old problems.

Kobo problem is kobo location & not having them in stores in the US...hopefully Walmart will fix that.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Derf

I know this is a rant, but seriously, the bias is just a little over the top, no?

I don't know if it's so much bias as it is ignorance. These reviewers have no clue how to use anything NOT Amazon so they assume Barnes & Noble and Kobo can't do what Amazon can do. When I read these reviews I just try to bypass the opinion and get to the device details -- sometimes that's nearly impossible as the review are heavy on opinion and light on substance.

[JohhnyMix]

This is why i never take any reviewers that serious just like a grain of salt. I can understand why a female like the kindle more because females are not really into technical features like most males so i cant really blame her.

I do think you got 2 types of people... 1 that go for looks and feel both hardware and software wise and the 2nd kind that goes for specs and technical features.

Its just like android vs apple or windows vs mac.....

[meeera]

Originally Posted by JohhnyMix

I can understand why a female like the kindle more because females are not really into technical features like most males so i cant really blame her.

... did you just say that out loud?

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by JohhnyMix

This is why i never take any reviewers that serious just like a grain of salt. I can understand why a female like the kindle more because females are not really into technical features like most males so i cant really blame her.

Pardon my language, but this is bullshit. It has nothing to do with male or female and "being into technical features". It simply has to with the ease with which you can put books on an ereader. Both male and females like something that is easier.

[John F]

Originally Posted by JohhnyMix

This is why i never take any reviewers that serious just like a grain of salt. I can understand why a female like the kindle more because females are not really into technical features like most males so i cant really blame her.

...

And why males like Kobos more, because males lack common sense.

[Mrs_Often]

Originally Posted by JohhnyMix

I can understand why a female like the kindle more because females are not really into technical features like most males so i cant really blame her.

Excuse me?
Interesting, in a thread about bias.

Originally Posted by meeera

... did you just say that out loud?

Right.

[issybird]

MobileRead does not tolerate the airing of prejudicial views of any kind. We would have thought that obvious, but since it's apparently not, I'm stating it right here.