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Read other letters about this article
Sorry if so, but I wanted to answer these direct questions:
"you don't think that I'm an idiot, do you?"
No, I don't.
"But wouldn't you say that a fancier packaged item with a higher price immediately has a higher perception of quality over something in a plainer package selling for less? Is it justified paying an extra $300 for niceness that you could have gotten for an extra $30? Would you feel more inclined to give a higher rating to the thing that you perceived as nicer because someone convinced you it was nicer?"
Yes, no, yes. But consumer satisfaction surveys are a pretty well established way of evaluating product performance. I don't think the factors you cite can account for the entire ratings difference.
"Did you ever stop to think that the people who actually review products favorably may already be have a bias towards them and that the people who feel rather mediocre about a product don't feel the need to give their opinions? Do you think that there is no bias in a publication that makes it money selling ads?"
I've worked at such places, and in my experience (1) magazines don't generally let only the people who already like a product review it--that's not how the assignment process works; (2) writers and editors, except at the management level, have little idea of or interest in who the advertisers are; and (3) I doubt PC Magazine runs many Apple ads.
