Star Ratings

XKCD has a few good comics on the problems with star ratings:

• This one on how good the product is based on how many stars it has, and
• This one on why averaging star ratings might not be the best approach.

With those in mind, I am searching Amazon for a portable air compressor to keep in the car. But what Randall Munroe missed was a mapping between the number of stars and the value of the attached review. So I came up with my own:

• 5 stars: I just got it, and it works!
• 1 star: I just got it, and it doesn't work.
• 4 stars: It's not perfect, but it works.
• 3 stars: It's okay, but don't buy it because I said so.
• 2 stars: It broke, and here's why.

Maybe I'm cynical, but I pretty much just read the two star reviews. Those'll tell you how it broke and why.