Products where premium brands don't matter...

[snowman]

Exactly...

M

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[snowman]

What I meant by computers is the amount of memory, processing speed that sort of thing. Better 'performing' computer will cost more. I'm one of those people that revolted against apple, all my work stuff is PC based.

You pay for more, you get more, but that's nothing to do with 'Premium Brands" - You'd expect to pay more for 2 kilos of tomatoes than 1.

Shoes shoes shoes... I couldnt disagree with you more on this. I swear by Cheaney and I see the difference in quality between Cheaney and, say, Clarks being a bigger difference that that from, say, Timex to Rolex. The aftersales, the materials, the build quality. I have 20 year old hand made shoes that are as good as new worn weekly.

I'm sure you disagree with me, but that doesn't mean you're getting value for money.

I don't WANT aftersales for shoes, I want to buy them and wear them and never have to think about them. The materials? What are they made of? Unicorn leather with linings from the ear of a Dodo? They're cow leather probably, really it can't be THAT different...

I want shoes to be comfortable and value for money - I've had 'better' shoes that weren't comfortable and gone back to buying cheaper shoes that I can wear all day... I also NEVER wear leather soled shoes as they're like walking on ice on slippy tarmac...

For me, areas where the brand matters and an example of a 'good' brand in my price range...

Shirts, Charles Thrwyhit
Audio, NAD/B&W
Road Cycling, Cannondale/Mavic
Tools, Britool/Snap-On/Makita
Tyres, Continental/Michelin

Other areas where I'm no longer bothered;

Phones, every phone is rubbish after 3 years. Ive had 'good ones' & 'bad ones'. Currently have an Asus Zenphone (£120 on ebay) beats the pants off IPhones. They all get lost/outmoded/broken in a flash.

Supermarkets, for basic day to day stuff (bog roll, milk, sliced bread, veg) Aldi etc. are the way forward. Theres a time and a place for Waitrose etc.

Fuel, I am now convinced that 'premium' petrol/diesel is a great fallacy. Pharmacuetical companies spend billions to counter the effects of placebo in clinical trials, posh fuel is the same thing as normal fuel in 'normal cars'.

Bottled water, San Pellegrino be damned.

I don't think you've made a case for that being anything other than your preference.

There's nothing at all wrong with liking a brand, be it Rolex or Boss (I keep saying I'm going to buy a Boss suit, because I think they're nicely cut, but I rarely wear a suit and have 5 in the wardrobe already!). Aldi - I wouldn't shop there personally - I've been in a few and they're bloody horrible places for the small difference in price, in my view.

Spending hundreds on shoes and thousands on watches but buying no-name brand food for a few pence less than something they've been enjoying for years seems to be a case of having priorities a little skewed.

Fuel is NEARLY all the same, but I won't put Tesco petrol in my Mazda (no 'premium' brand for me ) as when I have, it's run like a dog... As it's, at best, 1p less than Esso and BP in our local garages, no problem.

Tyres seem a place where premium is a bit over-rated, but there is a point at which I'll say "too obscure" - But having driven on Kumhos for a while, I don't really see a need for Michelins on the average car (I do have Bridgestones on my Mazda, but only because it drives better with them, not because I value the brand..).

Maybe I'm missing your point, though?

If you mean, is it worth paying for better quality or more, of course it is, but that's not necessarily got anything to do with "Premium Brands".

M

[TimeThoughts]

For me, the post is about products where there are premium brands but the product of the premium brands is no different in performace/reliability/style to the budget end of the segment.

Its not just about functionality, its where I struggle to spot the benefit of the premium brand to me, the consumer.

(By premium fuels I mean the Ultimax type fuels at 'the other pump' !)

[bonzo697]

Montblanc pens. There are so many proper pens that will perform as well or better for a third of the price.

[Slamdoor]

You get what you pay for - quality sells. Not always but I'd rather pay four times as much for a Miele washing machine than a cheapo that may blow up or catch fire.
My old B&O tv lasted 13 years and was still going when I got a new version. 5k for a tv seems a lot but it sounds bloody fantastic and I like the way it swivels around to the viewing position at turn on. Each to there own obviously.

[Belligero]

In general, I care far more about country of origin than brand.

There are still a few brands that actually mean something in terms of quality, but far too many have been ruined by outsourcing and cheap labour.

By the way, industrial lagers are one of the most glaring examples of the brand being meaningless. The only difference between these American-style yellow-fizz products is the ad campaign.

[TimeThoughts]

You get what you pay for - quality sells.

It couldnt be true though could it. It couldnt possibly be the case that the more expensive item will allways 'better'...

I reckon theres a ton of bogus marketing spoof out there telling us whats good and whats not.

[Chris_in_the_UK]

It couldnt be true though could it. It couldnt possibly be the case that the more expensive item will allways 'better'...

I reckon theres a ton of bogus marketing spoof out there telling us whats good and whats not.

How so?

Product 'X' markets itself as the dog's do da's - the market feeds back and it either is or it is not?

[TimeThoughts]

How so?

Product 'X' markets itself as the dog's do da's - the market feeds back and it either is or it is not?

Take the femine Dyson thing.

Dysons are shite but they are still deemed to be best in class by droves.

Dyson marketing has everyone brainwashed into beliving their product is the best.

[Glamdring]

Not everyone is quite as stupid as you make them out, otherwise Apple wouldn't be doing so well...

[TimeThoughts]

Not everyone is quite as stupid as you make them out, otherwise Apple wouldn't be doing so well...

All the cost of the iphone is the profit margin...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/bu...-10009741.html

[PaulSim]

Worth pointing out that Beko are currently refitting bits to the dryers that haven't yet burned people's houses down - slowly, according to some organisations. It's a 'value brand,' like Tesco Basics, or whatever. Rarely does well in Which?'s reviews and wasn't well-viewed by the guy I had out to fix my six-year-old AEG washer-dryer. Irony maybe.

Exactly this. My sister bought Beko washer and drier from Currys. 18 months later washer catches fire luckily they were in and then a week later dryer catches fire. Buy cheap buy twice

[SteveR]

I work in procurement in private healthcare and sadly I cannot adopt this philosophy. You get what you pay for most of the time! See the mattress thread also!

[TimeThoughts]

Exactly this. My sister bought Beko washer and drier from Currys. 18 months later washer catches fire luckily they were in and then a week later dryer catches fire. Buy cheap buy twice

Website of the UK Association of Fire Investigators (IAAI) UK Chapter; Product recalls;

Beko - 3
Miele - 2
AEG - 2
Bosch - 5
Siemens - 4
SMEG - Zero

Not sure the fire thing is black & white.

[SimonK]

Not everyone is quite as stupid as you make them out, otherwise Apple wouldn't be doing so well...

Justin Bieber is doing well, X-Factor is doing well, Eastenders is doing well, The Daily Mirror is doing well... Doing well and stupidity are not particularly interdependent.

[Glamdring]

^
You have a point with those examples! ;)

[Captain Morgan]

Website of the UK Association of Fire Investigators (IAAI) UK Chapter; Product recalls;

Beko - 3
Miele - 2
AEG - 2
Bosch - 5
Siemens - 4
SMEG - Zero

Not sure the fire thing is black & white.

This needs the number of machines affected by each recall and the overall numbers sold to be meaningful

[aldfort]

My philosophy is now based on who cares where you buy your toilet paper.
Aldi are excellent for day to day consumables. A lot of their food products are also really good and very well priced.
I've not found a supermarket yet who can get anywhere close to my butcher for meat quality.
We do use 97 octane petrol in both cars as the engines can make use of it. We tend to buy branded petrol but once you decide to buy the high octane stuff you may as well go premium brand.
Clothing - if only there was more quality clothing available on the high street. A lot of brands now are no better than generic alternatives. I still tend to favour Barbour and Aigle for casual wear and suits are a bit of the thing of the past for me now. Shoes - Loakes, Cheaney's and Church's are my preferred brands. Rohan for holiday clobber.

[Belligero]

^
Clothing's a real minefield. Most brands are meaningless, and almost all are outsourced to subcontractors to varying degrees.

Better to develop an eye for quality than to trust a label.

[SteveR]

A colleagues husband runs a business that 'finishes' clothes for shops such as Next. She has said you may as well get the same items from Matalan and such shops. It's pretty much the same gear

[RobDad]

I've always bought what I'd call mid range appliances - Hotpoint washing machines, Bosch dishwasher, that kind of thing. We recently inherited a bunch of 'posh' appliances with a house move - American style whirlpool fridge freezer etc - and tbh I don't think id have paid the extra £ for them. I tend to avoid cheap brands like the plague - I remember 'White Knight' products all being recalled a while ago as they had a tendency to catch fire. I don't mind cheaper white goods but the 'catch fire, destroy your house and possibly kill you' option is one I don't find attractive 😋

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[PhilipK]

A colleagues husband runs a business that 'finishes' clothes for shops such as Next. She has said you may as well get the same items from Matalan and such shops. It's pretty much the same gear

I have two blue-and-white striped shirts - one bought from Ralph Lauren, the other from Marks and Spencer. Apart from the labels and the RL logo they are identical. My wife and I spent an hour one evening comparing every detail (fabric, stitching, buttons, etc) and could find absolutely no differences.

[RobDad]

I have two blue-and-white striped shirts - one bought from Ralph Lauren, the other from Marks and Spencer. Apart from the labels and the RL logo they are identical. My wife and I spent an hour one evening comparing every detail (fabric, stitching, buttons, etc) and could find absolutely no differences.

My wife used to work in the buying dept of M&S and told me lots of stories like this. Designer clothes are a con, basically!

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[Backward point]

I have two blue-and-white striped shirts - one bought from Ralph Lauren, the other from Marks and Spencer. Apart from the labels and the RL logo they are identical. My wife and I spent an hour one evening comparing every detail (fabric, stitching, buttons, etc) and could find absolutely no differences.

The long winter evenings must simply fly by!

[Enda]

I know someone who had their house destroyed in a fire. A beko fridge/freezer was the cause.

[sestrel]

Had my AEG washing machine for 15 years. It's had a repair, but still good!
As I'm not a Cheshire footballer I don't need to show off, and I buy the best functioning kit I can. Id rather save up and buy better stuff that will last though.
Have been told in the past that many things like tvs for example, are all but identical inside, no matter what the brand is. Often even made in the same factory.

I watched a program with Gok Wan when he went to a factory in China making jeans. They made budget brands and and expensive label brands too. They all came off the same production line, and had which ever label sewn in at the end, and whatever finish. That was the only difference.

[VDG]

There is no way of telling unless you have access to the premium brand product and can compare user experience for yourself and decide whether you want to compromise or not.

IMO the gap is closing the cheaper the product is, ie carrier bags, on the flip side 18ct plated and diamond encrusted iPhone will do exactly the same job as the plain vanilla one.

Petrus to the tread, Petrus to the thread, it's an emergency

[Zigster]

Socks.

I get M&S socks - 5 pairs for £10, or something like that. Can "premium" socks at £20 a paid (or more) really be any better?

[VDG]

Socks.

I get M&S socks - 5 pairs for £10, or something like that. Can "premium" socks at £20 a paid (or more) really be any better?

Yes.

[demonloop]

^^^ What he said, ditto underwear.

[PhilipK]

The long winter evenings must simply fly by!

Says a man who's posting to the forum at 06:58 on a Sunday morning!

[Backward point]

Says a man who's posting to the forum at 06:58 on a Sunday morning!

I know! I was actually awake much earlier. I have a cold. The sort where it feels as though the entire contents of your head are exiting through your nose.

Now I just feel knackered.

[VDG]

I know! I was actually awake much earlier. I have a cold. The sort where it feels as though the entire contents of your head are exiting through your nose.

Now I just feel knackered.

500mg Vit C BD and Manuka Honey with plenty of hot tea should get you up and running in no time.

And to keep it on topic, Solgar is the one to get https://www.lifestyle-labs.com/produ...genosto-budget

[Argee1977]

Tools, i know someone earlier said they weren't, but in my experience i had nothing but problems with the Snap-On stuff i had at my old job, ratchets and sockets breaking, spanners rounding and so on, only tool i liked that they did was a bespoke torque multiplier, but that cost £10s of thousands!

For me Halford own is just as good, if you want a bit more fancy then Facom were good.

Other premium things that aren't always better, well sporting goods can be in that category, go to somewhere like a Specialized shop and see the 10k bike and apart from being a few grams lighter, it's not that much better.

[snowman]

For me, the post is about products where there are premium brands but the product of the premium brands is no different in performace/reliability/style to the budget end of the segment.

Its not just about functionality, its where I struggle to spot the benefit of the premium brand to me, the consumer.

(By premium fuels I mean the Ultimax type fuels at 'the other pump' !)

Yeah, although I'm sure they would claim different additives, etc improves their fuel.

I buy Esso or BP mainly but they're the local garages to me, that's the only reason I favour those brands.

M

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[sestrel]

Don't know about socks, but I make sure they're 100%cotton, that's the important thing. Couldn't afford £20 for a pair!
Under crackers though.... Never buy cheapo, I always use the proper chaps outfitters for mine. Saying that, I have found pretty good comfy ones in BHS!

[luckyhands]

Now here's a con. As a dentist I can tell you anything with 1450ppmF will do for a general toothpaste. Whitening toothpastes don't work. Sensodyne etc are actually worth it. Cheaper to buy a generic brand or whatever's on offer!

[TimeThoughts]

Now here's a con. As a dentist I can tell you anything with 1450ppmF will do for a general toothpaste. Whitening toothpastes don't work. Sensodyne etc are actually worth it. Cheaper to buy a generic brand or whatever's on offer!

Same with tootbrushes (non electric ones).

Oral B 'Pro' 'Expert'...
Colgate '360' 'Sensitive' 'Pro' 'Relief'...

Its a small plastic brush with bristles (hard, medium or soft) to get clag out of your teeth gaps and give them the once over. How much computerised modelleing and actors in white coats do we need on this ?

Carlos Fandango 'Extra' 'Wide' 'Wheels'...

[blackal]

There are other parts of the consumer spectrum where the differerence between the 'preimum' brand and the 'budget' brand is hardly worth the effort or cost. The biggest offender in my eyes here is white goods; dishwashers, fridges, washing machines etc.

?

If you had ever bought an ASKO dishwasher (made by ASEA) - you would change your mind.

I think they retailed for £800+ back in the mid-'90s, but worth every penny.

They stopped making them as most people bought Candy or Beko or something

Al

[Crazytrain]

Paracetamol, hay fever tablets, weed killer. Anything where you're buying the 'active ingredient' and can see the same dosage in the cheaper one...

[Newbear]

The Aldi version of all cleaning products like washing powder and dish washer tablets etc plus kitchen and loo rolls are just as functional as premium brands.

On socks, I agree that all generic cotton socks will do the job just as well. The only exception I would have made is socks for walking boots, where I thought the wicking fabric-lined brands like 1000 Miles essential. That is until I found the same (unbranded) items in Aldi at half the price. I now buy those because they are to all intents and purposes identical, except for the price. That goes for their cycling and running socks too.

And just to add a note of controversy, I think the world economy is tending to price deflation. It's banks and central banks who (for their own very particular interests) think lower prices for consumer goods are a bad idea.

[Wharry]

Paracetamol, hay fever tablets, weed killer. Anything where you're buying the 'active ingredient' and can see the same dosage in the cheaper one...

This was exactly what I came here to post.

Literally less than half the price for the exact same thing.

[SteveR]

Paracetamol, hay fever tablets, weed killer. Anything where you're buying the 'active ingredient' and can see the same dosage in the cheaper one...

Have a look at the different versions from the same maker. Express relief and such names, it's often the exact same ingredients and license number but with a large mark up

We just the 20p paracetamol as its, well, it's paracetamol too

[Crazytrain]

Have a look at the different versions from the same maker. Express relief and such names, it's often the exact same ingredients and license number but with a large mark up

We just the 20p paracetamol as its, well, it's paracetamol too

Agreed, I didn't bother mentioning that though as I don't buy it anyway - still trying to convince my wife that a branded version of a paracetamol with some caffeine in it isn't worth 8 times the price of tesco version.
Didn't one of the big firms get their wrist slapped in Australia or somewhere recently for selling three different boxes with the exact same pills - depending whether you had period pains or flu?

[SimonK]

A few years ago Bausch and Lomb got slapped for selling reusable contact lenses for a lot more than one day disposable contact lenses, when a consumer organisation found they were identical.

[MurrayMint]

Now here's a con. As a dentist I can tell you anything with 1450ppmF will do for a general toothpaste. Whitening toothpastes don't work. Sensodyne etc are actually worth it. Cheaper to buy a generic brand or whatever's on offer!

A periodontist I visited quite a few times a few years ago told me that a friend of his did a phd on toothpastes and he found that whitening toothpastes work better for sensitive teeth than sensitive toothpaste. After more research it turned out that the little gritty bits in the whitening toothpastes clog up the nerve endings and therefore make the teeth less sensitive.

On a different topic, I have worked in a Sunblest bread factory and all the different loaves they produced were exactly the same recipe - Tesco, Sainsbury's, etc. The only one that was a different recipe was Kingsmill.

In my experience, my wife would be able to tell the difference between how a Bosch and a Beko wash, but wouldn't be able to tell the difference between how a NAD and a Digihome hifi system sounded. For me it would be the opposite.

[Possu]

One thing to consider when buying your toothpaste: you might want to pick one with no sodium lauryl sulphate, if you have a tendency to get aphthous ulcers.

[Glamdring]

Wonder if all this works with women...

[willie_gunn]

I don't WANT aftersales for shoes, I want to buy them and wear them and never have to think about them. The materials? What are they made of? Unicorn leather with linings from the ear of a Dodo? They're cow leather probably, really it can't be THAT different...

Having worked with leather (in the sense of making things from it) I can vouch for the fact that it really can be THAT different!

[Belligero]

Having worked with leather (in the sense of making things from it) I can vouch for the fact that it really can be THAT different!

Agreed.

Crap shoes literally stink.