User reviews can be valuable in many instances. You can get a feel for the general consensus of a certain product or service based on a wide variety of ratings and reviews. Most review systems operate on a scale of some sort, 1-5, 0-10, something to do with smiley or frowny faces, etc. A basic range exists.
Now, despite having a range at their fingertips, most user reviews only use the highest or the lowest number. For example, in a 1-10 rating system you are way more likely to see 1's or 10's than any other number. What about 2-9? How about 6's or 8's? In a 1-10 scale an 8 equals an 80%, which is basically a B or B-. This means that product or service is still good! You would expect to see different scores from across the range. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Lowest or highest, 1 or 5, 1's or 10's. There is a reason for this— expectation. Everyone has an expectation of what they purchase that is directly related to the price they paid for the item. If the reality falls just short of a user's expectation, boom...1! On the reverse, if the user's expectation was initially low, and the reality is only slightly better they will immediately rate it a 10.
The other reason is based on previous user reviews and going with the herd. In other words, if a user takes the time to write a review they will be more likely to "vote" with the previous 1's and 10's than going out on their own and casting out a 3 or 8. No one wants to be the odd man or woman out!
Without getting more into the psychology and sociology of user reviews rest assured that all reviews posted by Lotus are scaled accordingly. Our stated range is a scale of 1-10 and we really do carefully consider and score based on that range. Will there be 10's? Sure. Some yo-yos are SO amazing and perfect that they do in fact deserve the highest marks. Chances are you'll see a lot more 8's or 9's though. The same applies to the lowest scores. We consider ourselves to be critical; especially concerning matters of fit and finish. A yo-yo arrives with anodization flaws and we are absolutely taking points off. However, unless a yo-yo arrives mangled beyond repair from the manufacturer (not from shipping) or we open up the box expecting a yo-yo and discover a used, broken kazoo, there really aren't that many 1's in modern throwing.
Our scoring is mainly based on the following criteria:
There are lesser criteria that get considered as well. For instance, if a yo-yo has been marketed as "The best V shape for fingerspins ever!" and it's only capable of a 2 second maximum fingerspin we'd take that into account. As you can see, Lotus goes WAY above "This is a cool looking yo-yo" or "I really like the box it came in."
Now, despite having a range at their fingertips, most user reviews only use the highest or the lowest number. For example, in a 1-10 rating system you are way more likely to see 1's or 10's than any other number. What about 2-9? How about 6's or 8's? In a 1-10 scale an 8 equals an 80%, which is basically a B or B-. This means that product or service is still good! You would expect to see different scores from across the range. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Lowest or highest, 1 or 5, 1's or 10's. There is a reason for this— expectation. Everyone has an expectation of what they purchase that is directly related to the price they paid for the item. If the reality falls just short of a user's expectation, boom...1! On the reverse, if the user's expectation was initially low, and the reality is only slightly better they will immediately rate it a 10.
The other reason is based on previous user reviews and going with the herd. In other words, if a user takes the time to write a review they will be more likely to "vote" with the previous 1's and 10's than going out on their own and casting out a 3 or 8. No one wants to be the odd man or woman out!
Without getting more into the psychology and sociology of user reviews rest assured that all reviews posted by Lotus are scaled accordingly. Our stated range is a scale of 1-10 and we really do carefully consider and score based on that range. Will there be 10's? Sure. Some yo-yos are SO amazing and perfect that they do in fact deserve the highest marks. Chances are you'll see a lot more 8's or 9's though. The same applies to the lowest scores. We consider ourselves to be critical; especially concerning matters of fit and finish. A yo-yo arrives with anodization flaws and we are absolutely taking points off. However, unless a yo-yo arrives mangled beyond repair from the manufacturer (not from shipping) or we open up the box expecting a yo-yo and discover a used, broken kazoo, there really aren't that many 1's in modern throwing.
Our scoring is mainly based on the following criteria:
- Price to value. (What you get for what you paid.)
- Design and specs. (Feel of shape and profile. Consideration of diameter, width, gap width, and weight.)
- Fit and finish. (Anything from anodization flaws to sharp edges.)
- Comparison play. (How "ABC" yo-yo plays in relation to "XZY" or other similar yo-yos.)
- Spin time with factory installed bearing.
- Stability with factory installed axle.
- Spin time with Lotus Bearing.
- Stability with Lotus GoodVibes Axle.
- Range. (How likely you'd be to grab that yo-yo for a wide variety of tricks.)
- Overall. (A running tally combined with the abstract "fun" factor.)
There are lesser criteria that get considered as well. For instance, if a yo-yo has been marketed as "The best V shape for fingerspins ever!" and it's only capable of a 2 second maximum fingerspin we'd take that into account. As you can see, Lotus goes WAY above "This is a cool looking yo-yo" or "I really like the box it came in."
