10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!

• MSRP listed is actually 80% lower than what is found in stores and on-line

• Mississippi Hams make up 9 out of 10 reviews, all using same sentences

• Magazine calls product “a bit cranky” yet rates it as wonderful and dynamic

• Product has 20 power adjectives in 30 word review ending in “I'm blessed!”

• “TM” is listed after every sentence

• Review states “my amp cruises past legal limit all day and night”

• 12 foot wonder vertical for 80M without need for radials outperforms 4 SQR

• I swear! Honest! Gosh darn!

• My new DSP speaker hears the sounds from WW II reflected back from Neptune

• Our lab proves it………next to ad that shows it……

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10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by G3LBS on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
I did a statistical analysis of ham phraseology used on the air. By far the most common phrase was - 'I am very pleased with it'

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WW5AA on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
...and then we have the technical reviews: "Its really cool" "Wow, this thing rocks" (:-) 73 de Lindy

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by W1HFF on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
My favorite and most irritating is "best bang for the buck!"

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by ZENKI on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
My favorites Its so good I worked 200 countries It feels louder Its much much better than my last antenna that I sold It has a "hot" receiver My elmer recommended it to me It hears things that my other receiver does not, which I sold. So I cant say for sure. A famous 43 vertical,,, It worked so well I took my beam down. A DX station told me I was the loudest station out of the States, I am impressed. Why spend money on a ham antenna when my Antron 99 works just as well on all ham bands. The US Military uses it, or NASA uses it. Its a bad boy amplifier My new amplifier looks so good on the scope My buddy checked my amp on the air and he said it puts out less crud than my last amp. It has "Kenwood" audio My Galaxy Ranger has a better receiver It kicks my wattmeter needle higher on average I am a Icom man, and its a Icom, nufff said It has the "mojo" Gordon West said it was the best I will be taking this to the grave with me

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by ZENKI on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
My 5watt QRP works so well I get 20 db over S9 reports, who needs QRO and big antennas?

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KB2NAT on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
...and it will operate @ 20 watts for two and a half days in emergency use on two hearing aid batteries.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KW4CQ on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Mine is this radio is in "mint" condition. Do they really mean peppermint or spearmint?

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by AC5UP on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Speaking of... Last week I picked up some VHS tapes at a local thrift shop and among them were two Vintage Vehicle Videos. Basic concept is taking a camcorder for a walk at a car show or museum. One episode featured a promotional film of Tom McCahill road testing the new cars for 1958. In every test, by every objective measure, the Chrysler models proved superior to the competition. Dude was seriously in the tank for Walter P. and I have a hunch that as long as Chrysler kept buying full pages in Mechanix Illustrated the praise would be echoed in McCahill's magazine columns. Meanwhile, has anyone noticed how the guests on the Coast To Coast AM year end prediction shows are almost unanimous in their recommendation of buying gold... On a show heavily sponsored by folks who sell gold, silver, survival supplies, etc. You know the drill. Of all the sales pitches in the world, buying something because a psychic said it was a good idea....................

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by K7CB on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
I remember when Art was still doing the show he really pushed Human Growth Hormone...even claiming it helped him with his back...which is the same reason he supposedly stopped doing the show.

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by AI4WC on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Shucks! I had a QSO with Europe using a pair of zinc and copper strips stuck in a lemon as my power supply! :o)

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by W5DQ on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
This kit is so well designed I started getting QSLcards as soon as I opened the box of parts, even before the soldering iron got hot :)

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KY6R on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Its got more "talk power", it really gets out . . .

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WA2JJH on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Hmmmmmm.....It is a plant. The review is very "green". The positive reviews keep "growing" It "sprouts" up with new reviews with users do not use a call sign. Since the plant is fed with so much Bull-Sheet, one should not digest the "plant review". The review is filled wih empty "carbs of platitude". The 'plant" leaves a bad taste after consumed. In all respect, you do bring up a subject that should be ingested. mulled around, and exposed. Some "plants", need only one dude to start it. The rest of inflated reviews are done by those that just want to hop on the bandwagon of user euphoria. As said ny many before, why the heck would you believe someone who uses a non call sign to post review. They are freebanders. They simply are easy to please. Of course any Ham rig will perform better than the 10/11M rigs they use. I have heard of a few plants being supplied by an employee of the company of the radio reviewed. A plant will use bogus or non existant test proceedure.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by W3DCB on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
How's about: Almost as good as my Galaxy; Not quite as technically advanced as a DAK; My Magnum Force really gets out; Almost as much power as my WizardBuilt; the meter really moves just like my Dave Made; and let us not forget, it is destined to become a classic like the Browning Golden Eagle!!! Hee Hee.... :o) Daniel Baral

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WA7NCL on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
I can work anything I can hear.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by OZ6ABM on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
This thing is just fantastic ... just looking at the Service Manual shows what a good design it has and I couldn't improve by tweaking ... two weeks later ... for sale with the service manual...

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WA4BRL on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
These remind me of the fake "testimonials" from the Gotham antenna ads in QST: "C0AX used his V80 to work the Sweet Carolines (op "Neil") on 20, then -- FLASH! -- switch to 15 and snagged RG8AU in the Belden Congo! Taking a break from watching the World Series, he switched on 40 meters and worked UP2BAT with 59 reports!" I always loved reading those goofy things. Boy, that sure dates me! ;-)

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by N6AJR on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Where is Wayne Green when you need him ( or even Red Green?)

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by W4VR on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
...and, I assume that picture is of the smart alec who tries to fool everyone?

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by K9CTB on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Heh - Good show, Paul!! Now I'm looking at the reviews looking for key-phrases! I was never much on spotting them, but I do know this: If anywhere in an e-bay ad you see the phrase, "I was told..." RUN! FAST!

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by G0GQK on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
A long time ago a certain Mr Barnum said that "a sucker is born every minute " He was right ! G0GQK

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by AK8V on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Let's not forget eBay's "Don't have an antenna to test this".................Hmmm. Or "Works perfectly, all lights come on..." Oh Well. Ray AK8V

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by K5END on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
"Worked great the last time I used it." (Now it's for sale.)

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KE5GK on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Somewhat Related True Story: Several years ago at a hamfest a close friend of mine had a table and was showing a prospective buyer a piece of gear and was explaining all of the wonderful features. I butted into the sale and asked my suprised friend, "What color was this gear before lightning struck it the second time?" The "almost" buyer hurriedly laid the gear back on the table and made a mad dash for the refreshment stand. I was immediately sorry I had ruined the sale and told my friend that to show my regret he could have anything on my table. Later he came and picked up an item. We both had a good laugh and remain friends to this day.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KM6CQ on January 4, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
A magazine that receives advertising dollars, and then reviews that manufactures product objectively. What? Best Regards, Dan KM6CQ

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by N2RRA on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Love reading these comments in reviews, The radio is great bang for the buck. Receiver is ok! Little problem with the proccessor. All though there's a design flaw in the roofing filter section! The 500Hz Filter on CW is not so good. Had to send the radio back for repairs twice, but now it's working. After all the firmware upgrades they finally got it four years later, but......! Hey! I'm a BETA tester for the company figureing out all the bugs out after I paid $2000. or $9000. for the radio, Great Deal! :O The radio looks great on my bench, I give it a 5/5 review! Whaaaaatttt????????? We must be on another planet!

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by AA8X on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
By reading the reviews, it’s obvious QST is in the tank for Icom. I have a real hard time believing any of their reviews. Also, MSRP is an inflated price and doesn’t reflect the true retail value. Used to make you think are getting a deal.

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by N4LI on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
On eBay: "This thing is MINT; works flawlessly. Sold as-is."

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WZ1P on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
"Will not be DOA" 'Nuff said. Dan.

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WA8MEA on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
A magazine that receives advertising dollars, and then reviews that manufactures product objectively. What? Best Regards, Dan KM6CQ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The SAME THING happens here! I've seen one particular antenna using a banner ad that states, to paraphrase: eHam rating 4.8 out of 5. I've watched over the years as others have posted their reviews of this product and have brought the rating down to a 4.7. (Still respectable.) HOWEVER, those reviews are mysteriously deleted so the 4.8 rating can be maintained for the banner ad!!!! 73, Bill

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by CBISBACK on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
And the 11th sign is: The product review was written by N0AH ;-)

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by N3WAK on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
"Mint, from my personal collection." Signed, Radioh-Mart 73, N3WAK

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by K1DA on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Always gets a "Five Nine" and sounds like a broadcast station. (Just as wide, too)

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KJ6AMF on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
...Works great without radials...

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by W3NRL on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
.... This 12 foot vertical is a marvel, works great on 160-2 meters with without radials and no tuner needed... .. The best antenna in my arsenal.... of 2!!!

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by PLANKEYE on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
What is a Plant? Please define. PLANKEYE

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KB0RDL on January 5, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
I've always wondered how objective reviews were. A couple of things I have noticed is that -- as noted elsewhere -- too many superlatives are suspicious and, on the other hand, some of the very negative ratings suggest that the guy either got the occasional lemon or he didn't know how to run the thing, plus he might not have understood that a lot of radio problems are really antenna problems. I usually pay more attention to the the "4" ratings as these will note the weak points of the product fairly accurately.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by N2DY on January 6, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Many reviews say, "Simply the Best!" Does that mean the reviewer has owned every piece of gear out there in order to be sure his latest is the "Best"?

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by MATHMAN on January 6, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
"The clip on the Vxxx is terrible. Have you tried the ones from Hxxx.com? They come in 2 types." This comment was on the Yahoo Forum. It was made by the site owner of Hxxx.com. Dennis, KC9PYD (not site owner)

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KK8ZZ on January 6, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
One that REALLY gets me -- "still has the plastic on the window!" ...as if you couldn't take the plastic cling OFF the window, use the rig for a year, and put it right back on?? Sheesh ! Let's get in the business of selling plastic cling strips !!!

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WA2JJH on January 6, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
I think Time owned is a huge factor. After the new box euporia is gone, then a review should be given. A plant or bogus review always come out as soon as the rig. The difference between an average of 5 with 3 reviewers means nothing. A rig with a 4.9 with over 100 reviews means something. The differnce between a 4 and a 4.9 is more of an exponant curve. Many crummy rigs make a 4. Very few meet 4.9 for example. A 5 with 3 reviews could be a plant and two morons.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WA2JJH on January 6, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
What I do look for is a review that is written by someone who probably has repaired a few radio's in his time. Sure any dipstick can say great RX. If I see somehing like how the front end works, along with terms proper specs the first mixer reacts. Why is does the tx AUDIO sound great. Is that wih the proc and eq??????? If the ham went the trouble of using real test equipment, it could be an EXTRA GOOD PLANT(BOGUS TEST) or a ham that is doing the right thing. Rating becomes ULTRA PROBLEMATIC, if the radio goes though many revisions. Many features added and price lowered before being replaced. Such an exampment is the FT-100D. Horror stories of multiple factory trips. Failing UHF finals. The list is long. Yeasu started to sell the rig cheap wih DSP and filters added. For $650, I got the 160M-70cm rig new. First few weeks on UHF/VHF, a decent rig. I WAS WARNED TO KEEP UHF POWER DOWN TO 15w. On HF, it had filter blow by. The front end was noisy and overloaded easy. The DSP was needed for decent RX. On TX is was comical. The 3 setting EQ sounded fake. 3 settings-no eq. Low boost and high boost sounded like a vocoder! My voice was shifted down by an octive. On high, I sounded like an xtal microphone. I gave the rig a generous 4. I know that getting every ham band and mode was cool. The price of $ 649 with 500hz cw filter was a steal. Performance was a 3. However value was a 5. CONSTRUCTION WAS A 2!!!.. Remember, I got the radio at the blow out price. Most of the big bugs were fixed. I got the optional DSP and 500hz filter tossed in. Perhaps reveiws should be weighted. If you own the rig for a year, it has not broke, and seems to do the job as good or better than a comparable rig.......You are not likely to be A plant!! GREAT PHOTO BTW

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by N6PYF on January 7, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
And what is "Minty Condition" anyway?

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KD8DEY on January 7, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Minty Condition means that they dropped the mint they were chewing on while soldering in the replacement parts. It went into some nook or cranny making the mint irretrievable.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WA2JJH on January 7, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
What is "minty cndx ". 1)Best case. A ham buys a rig new. He also purchased some high end rigs. To get "minty" IMHO......means the box was opened. The rig was used for a breif period. After testing, the rig is repacked with all original packing. Take a deep smell(like testing a cuban cigar) Ifnte rig smells like te first time opened.......'MINTY' In real fact....minty means nothing. You not dealing with Proof set coins. I assume some use/abuse. However the radio is not all scratched up. REMEMBER ONES MAN'S "MINTY" IS ANOTHER EBAY SELLERS P.O.S.! A PRO WILL TOSS IN A PACKAGE OF SPEARMENT LIFE SAVERS. THE SPEARMINT ATTENUATES THE SMELL OF BURNT CARBON AND FRIED ELECTROLYTIC CAPS. The rig works to meet minimum specs. Could be a few days or a year before you have to take a mint after barfing up dinner. You do not want to be accused of being a puke, if you sell the P.O.s. ;) Mints, Lysol, pine oil, or mint leaves will freshen the dog up!!!!!

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by G3LBS on January 8, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Non-smoking environment after we put the fire out.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KC8VWM on January 8, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Um.. yeah whatever..

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by CBISBACK on January 8, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
What is "minty cndx ". You missed one: An Extra-lite buys a new radio and can't figure out how to get it out of the box. Now "that's" minty cndx....

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by AD7DB on January 9, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
"This is the BEST RIG EVER!!!!!" This is the first rig the reviewer's ever had.

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by N7UQA on January 9, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
W3DCB said: "How's about: Almost as good as my Galaxy; Not quite as technically advanced as a DAK; My Magnum Force really gets out; Almost as much power as my WizardBuilt; the meter really moves just like my Dave Made; and let us not forget, it is destined to become a classic like the Browning Golden Eagle!!! Hee Hee.... :o) Daniel Baral" That's a good one, I always like to give CBer's a good ribbing :)

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by K6RJC on January 10, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
If Billy Mays didn't bless it ... I'm not buying it! K6

OMG! There was a 3 posted! Quick post some 5's!
by HR2510 on January 10, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
I always get a kick out of the responses from the cult following of some rigs. Post a negative review of a rig and almost within the hour you will see numerous 5's to counter the 2 or 3 that was posted. If it's just a little bit negative like a 4, that tends to only ruffle the feathers but doesn't provoke a response to post 5's. Personally I look for the negatives to see what people really think of rigs. To find any issues etc.

RE: OMG! There was a 3 posted! Quick post some 5's!
by W6TMV on January 10, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
I really like the ones that go sorta like... Works way better than my (insert)(Dave Made, White Light'nin,Rebel Kilo, etc...) has "32 hot pills in a row" and runs over "5 Kilos at Dead Key" (is the Op really dead?) with a whole "buncha swing on the ol meter" (Does Tommy Dorsey know about this?) sorry, just gotta laugh at those...for a complete vocabulary of such terms, read eBay for fun and grins. 73 Richard

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by K1TN on January 12, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
"Sheesh ! Let's get in the business of selling plastic cling strips !!! " That's an excellent idea. You make 'em, I'll market 'em. Many years ago, when you could count on most hams being semi-intelligent and having a sense of humor, QST ran "ads" in their April issues for "original factory cartons," available from Larson E. Rapp Enterprises.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WA2JJH on January 12, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Wow.....works like a commercial rig that costs thousands! (the commerial rig was a Browing Gold eagle) The Photo "planted" in this fun, but needed thread. Vote. 1)Michael Jackson 2)A Ham that got eBAY scammed. 3)Same ham, plotting the "BIG BUX" he will make selling it back on ebay. 4)Ham just waiting with excitment for UPS to deliver his EBAY rig. It had a 5 review. 2 people voted. 5) Ham on XTC. Home made lab. 6)ELVIS leaving his accountants house. 7)The 'antichrist. Look at photo with great intensity, he could be any body. My money is on 3. Robert Plant has not seen this!

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by WA2JJH on January 12, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Wow.....works like a commercial rig that costs thousands! (the commerial rig was a Browing Gold eagle) The Photo "planted" in this fun, but needed thread. Vote. 1)Michael Jackson 2)A Ham that got eBAY scammed. 3)Same ham, plotting the "BIG BUX" he will make selling it back on ebay. 4)Ham just waiting with excitment for UPS to deliver his EBAY rig. It had a 5 review. 2 people voted. 5) Ham on XTC. Home made lab. 6)ELVIS leaving his accountants house. 7)The 'antichrist. Look at photo with great intensity, he could be any body. My money is on 3. Robert Plant has not seen this!

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by N5EP on January 13, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
Have you noticed the number of articles in ham magazines that give unnecessary product plugs in the article? (I'm not talking about review articles, just standard technical articles.) For example, in an article about antennas, at some point the author will write something like: "Now, hook up your XYZ-259B antenna analyzer and check the results." Right! I guess I'll have to borrow a friend's XYZ-259B analyzer, since my "off-brand" QP30 or whatever probably can't do the same job, right? [Model names changed to thinly disguise their makers.] Supposedly editors are paid to prevent things like that, but I see it all the time. I wonder if it's because the manufacturer of XYZ-259B happens to have 10 to 20 pages of ads in this month's issue??? N5EP

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by K6LK on January 14, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
I couldn't believe someone would write; This radio belonged to my uncle who always took good care of his radios. I checked it out and the numbers changed on the readout when I spun the knob so I am going to say that the radio is in good operating condition. How do you say; I'm out of here!

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by SP5XO on January 15, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
and how about this one : "It's a keeper!" said one who owns it for less than 3 months?

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by PG00023016 on January 17, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
I Had trouble getting my call back on e-ham after being away from the sight for a couple of years. I forgot mt password, so I re-entered the sight with my GROL/W radar callsign. I hope any or all reviews I may enter would not be sumarily ignored for that reason. I'll try to add my callsign to the review like this: 73's WW0JD Better? hi hi

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by KQ6XA on January 20, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
"This antenna is exceptionally quiet on receive!"

RE: 10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by K6PS on January 21, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
" This rig way outperforms my Eico 753 transceiver and Gotham Beam " hmmmmmmmmm ..that's ...that...that just does not narrow things down much. I think the carton the 753 came in outperforms the rig.

10 Signs a Product Review is a Plant!
by K6DZ on January 25, 2010	Mail this to a friend!
A few parenthetical tippoffs I have noticed: 1) The reviewer's favorite movie is _Little Shop of Horrors_. 2) Favorite singer is Carmen Miranda. 3) Favorite holiday is Arbor Day.