Why I don't trust positive app reviews.

NewYorkEagle · Sep 12, 2016

I never read reviews from the App Store, since I just want to download the app. It depends if I like it or not. If I like it, then I would keep it. If I don't like it, then I'll delete the app from my iPhone or iPad.

crf8 · Sep 12, 2016

I always read the reviews, especially if I am spending money on the ap. Sometimes you can sense a review is not legit.

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Skridger · Sep 28, 2016

Wow, puts things into perspective.

I know there's been a trend on amazon to solicit paid reviews, but they do it a bit more ethically. They send you the product for free and tell you to do an honest review in exchange, and also to put a disclaimer in your review that you received the product free in return for an unbiased review, or something along those lines. I see a lot of reviews on there with the same disclaimer. (And I have done one myself)

At least with these, the reviewer is free to put any comment in that they like, but I have a feeling that a lot of people put positive reviews in hopes that they'll get offered more free stuff.

Jenni122701 · Sep 30, 2016

Skridger said:
...but I have a feeling that a lot of people put positive reviews in hopes that they'll get offered more free stuff.

I've thought/wondered that too. I would still be honest about it. I have been offered items reduced greatly for my reviews, but nothing free yet. I haven't taken any up so far just because they haven't offered me anything I'm interested in as of yet.

Edited because I said "yet" like a million times.... Very annoying! Lol

~Jenni~
iPhone 6S Plus
Rose Gold 64GB

scifan57 · Sep 30, 2016

Some of these positive app reviews are from people or organizations that get paid directly for positive app reviews, with hundreds, if not thousands, done in a day.

carolineM · Sep 30, 2016

I do read as many reviews as I can about everything I am going to spend money on, but I ignore the ones clearly written by some angry person who hasn't bothered to read the instructions!

scifan57 · Sep 30, 2016

carolineM said:
I do read as many reviews as I can about everything I am going to spend money on, but I ignore the ones clearly written by some angry person who hasn't bothered to read the instructions!

Take a look at the photo in the first post in this thread, it shows the production of fake app reviews on an industrial scale.

carolineM · Sep 30, 2016

Yes, I did see it, but even if it were genuine, it wouldn't account for all the reviews out there.

Skridger · Sep 30, 2016

I like sites that offer "Verified" reviews. Where to be verified, you have to have purchased the product first. Usually these type of sites are pretty reputable to begin with. (At least the ones I know of, mostly Canadian sites)

carolineM · Sep 30, 2016

We don't actually know what the girl in the photo was doing. Even if she was faking positive reviews, she'd only be able to do one per App. Apple's system requires your password (thus an iTunes account) plus a nickname to write a review.

ardchoille · Sep 30, 2016

carolineM said:
We don't actually know what the girl in the photo was doing. Even if she was faking positive reviews, she'd only be able to do one per App. Apple's system requires your password (thus an iTunes account) plus a nickname to write a review.

Let's say you have ten friends. All of your friends use iPhones.. under their own Apple ID account. Now, suppose those ten friends unlocked their iPhones and set them down on a table in front of you for you to do anything you want. Viola! You can now write ten fake reviews for the same app.

The girl in the picture is sitting in front of a wall of iPhones, each iPhone is being used under a different Apple ID and each one can write a review under their own ID. This girl is able to write a review from hundreds of different Apple ID accounts for the same app - which results in hundreds of faked reviews.

carolineM · Sep 30, 2016

It would be an extremely expensive way of doing it and I am sure Apple would detect it very quickly.

KevinJS · Sep 30, 2016

If I shelled out my hard earned $$$ you can bet your life any review will be honest. I've had them rejected by Amazon a couple of times. Once when my review was "It probably would have been OK if I'd actually received it!" That one set up a second delivery attempt which only took a few days (from Germany) so all was good. The other was more or less "Oh dear. We can't print THAT!"

KevinJS · Sep 30, 2016

ardchoille said:
I have some oceanfront property in Arizona that I would like to sell you.

I'll take it, if it's the one with London Bridge in the yard.

ardchoille · Sep 30, 2016

KevinJS said:
If I shelled out my hard earned $$$ you can bet your life any review will be honest. I've had them rejected by Amazon a couple of times. Once when my review was "It probably would have been OK if I'd actually received it!" That one set up a second delivery attempt which only took a few days (from Germany) so all was good. The other was more or less "Oh dear. We can't print THAT!"

I try to write a review for everything that I use - and I try to be as honest and objective as possible.. heavy on the "honest" bit, if a product doesn't work as advertised, then I'm going to let the world know about it.

We didn't have reviews and online discussions back in the 60's and 70's, manufacturers are under the microscope more often now.. and I feel this contributes to product improvement. The downside to this is that some review boards punish people for negative reviews - such as that hotel that charged a hefty sum to visitors who posted negative reviews. Manipulating reviews is never a good thing, I see it as a sort of false advertising.