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Originally Posted by bhartman36
First, the Amazon review system isn't any more free and open than any other system I've seen online. Basically, the only requirement is that you be a registered Amazon user. This seems par for the course to me. And in fact, I have seen censored reviews on Amazon. They'll censor a review, as someone else said, if you mention a price, and they'll also censor it if you mention somewhere else to get the product.
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Yes, it is. I've submitted reviews elsewhere (product reviews) that net me a form letter saying I didn't meet their standards, leaving me to wonder exactly what I said that offended them. Go over to one of the shopping channel forums and read the comments about inconsistent application of the guidelines for product reviews.
I imagine Amazon censors certain language, but little else.
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The proof that a person has read the book is at least some reference to the book's content. If you want to get really picky, I'd concede that a review by someone who didn't read the entire book (e.g., "I read the first chapter, but it sucked so badly I had to put it in a trash can and ritually burn it."), but they should at least reference the content in some way.
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And you only know this if you actually READ the review. You have no assurance whatsover that the star ratings are legit, even if there's no protest movement involved. The star ratings are always, always to be taken with a grain of salt.
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Because people who haven't read the book are spoiling the system for the rest of us, that's why. Letting only verified buyers post reviews post reviews isn't a perfect system (because, as you said, that eliminates people who bought the book from other sources) but at least it puts some credibility back into the reviews.
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Again, all you need to do is READ the review. Problem solved. What it all comes down to is that you don't want to actually read the comments.
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Granted, pre-reviews for DVDs can be valuable, but it's a lot less valid for electronics. Over the years, I've seen a lot of reviews for PDAs, smartphones, etc., that haven't been released yet, but because a review is posted on a tech site (e.g., they get a pre-release version that's going to be coming out in a few months) people pile on with "reviews" about how "this thing sucks" or "this thing is the best thing since sliced bread".
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If the company making the device is one that has made schlock in the past, it's legit to say that even in a pre-review. If it's a great company, I want to know that too.
I'm outa here. The reviews are subjective, and that means they can use any criteria they want, whether you think those criteria are legitimate or not. If people want to use them as a form of protest, more power to them. Frankly, I'm glad to know they're annoying people and possibly hindering purchases, because that could perhaps get publishers to pay attention.
Hasta la vista.