I had a great time sitting down to chat with Daniel Bader on the AC Podcast. If you’ve ever wanted more behind the scenes info on how we approach gadget reviewing, this was a fun nerdy conversation about the tech scene. Especially as Daniel and I are both “But I Digress” kinds of reviewers.
Took me back to some of the fun conversations I used to have on the Pocketnow team, highlighting the main differences between being a solo reviewer and working on editorial for a larger site.
It wasn’t that long ago that I started using the Focals. When crazy situations happen, it’s an incredible opportunity to see what gadgets live up to the marketing, and which gadgets fail.
It’s worth checking in periodically. As my channel evolves and shifts over time, it seems some folks might miss what the goal is here.
To begin, I believe disclosing explicit bias is critical to fair reviewing. No human reviewer is a truly objective machine. There is no such thing as objectivity. Full stop.
I believe a review needs context. If we’re not sure where a reviewer is coming from, then we lack a critical perspective to understand why a reviewer might grade certain aspects of a phone the way they do.
I laid my cards on the table a couple years back, and I’m happy that basically everything I talked about in my “BIAS” video still pretty much holds true today.
Now you know where I’m coming from, and what I value.
Since then however, this conversation has grown more concerning. The issues I talk about at the tail end of that video seem to be getting worse, not better. Over 2019, a major focus for my channel has been to point out media literacy issues which I believe contribute to some disturbing trends in consumer electronics.
Today we find ourselves in a serious and unique situation. Gadgets and electronics are being stressed like never before. How someone spends their gadget money has never been more important.
I naturally have a bit of a contrarian streak, and I enjoy stirring the pot for fun debates. The goal of my channel has never been, and will never be, to trash popular devices simply because they are popular. I’m not praising “less popular” phones just to throw a thumb in the eye of the “cool kids”.
We get lost in new releases and having the biggest specs. It’s important to keep track of how we use these gadgets. Looking at my own behavior using the 7 Pro and the 7T, a few things surprised me. I didn’t PLAN it this way, but what might it say about my personal bias?
As I’ve been talking about the Galaxy S20 and LG V60, people seem surprised by some of the performance I’ve been describing.
We might complain about compromises on one phone, but how do those changes compare to the competition?
How closely should we examine marketing claims? Should popular manufacturers be graded on a curve JUST because they’re popular? Let’s take a look at the Galaxy S20’s spec sheet here… Continue reading “Does the Galaxy S20 use a FAKE Zoom?”
More parents than ever are having to adjust to the realities of homeschooling, and my family is no exception. To keep kids intellectually engaged while traditional schools are closed, there are a variety of video resources, apps, games, and tech tools you can use.
In this video, lets rounds up some of my favorites and share some thoughts about the best way to keep our children learning during this challenging time.
Shortly before the strictest messaging came out on “social distancing”, we took a little field trip.
Amazon is opening more physical stores beyond buying Whole Foods. In our neck of the woods, an Amazon branded grocery store is being built, and recently a “4-Star” opened up in the local mall.
