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When it's time to make a big purchase, most of us rush to the internet in search of reviews and comparisons, so we can spend our money wisely...but then we rush out and buy one without actually trying it. Here's what I've started doing instead.
需要購買貴重物品時，為了能夠理性消費，很多人都會直接跑到網上去查商品評價或比較。隨后，往往試也不試就直接買下來。我卻不是這么做的。
My Experience: Last year, I was on the hunt for a nice pair of headphones. I wanted something in the $200 price range with a good amount of bass, so I started hunting online. I found a lot of good contenders, but it seemed like the entire internet was enamored with the Audio Technica ATH-M50, and everything I read led me to believe I didn't need to look any further.
我的經歷：去年，我想買一幅好耳機，重低音，200刀以內。于是我開始在網上搜羅信息。網上有很多不錯的耳機，但似乎鐵三角ATH-m50這款特別火。在看了它所有的詳情和評價之后，我堅信自己不用費神再找了，就買它了。
Instead of just picking up that pair, though, I actually bought three different pairs of headphones and tried them all out. I found that despite their rave reviews, I couldn't stand the ATH-M50—it just didn't fit with my personal preferences and music taste, and I ended up with a much lesser-known pair that I absolutely adore (the Shure SRH750DJ, for those curious). That's not to say the M50 isn't a great headphone—it is—I just couldn't have known what it would sound like just by reading reviews, especially since I'd never owned a good pair of headphones and had no reference point.
但是，我并沒有只買這一款，而是同時買了三款不同的耳機一起試用。結果我發現盡管這三款都好評如潮，但ATH-M50跟我的個人喜好和音樂口味完全不搭，于是我最終買了一款相對來說很不出名但我自己完全中意的耳機。
The Lesson: Online reviews can be great, but they're only step one if you really want to get the best product out there for you. The best way to get the right product is to try them for yourself, at home, and compare them to one another. This is what I do now:
教訓：瀏覽網上的評價固然不錯，但如果你真的想買到最適合自己的寶貝，那評價只是第一步。最佳方式是自己先在家試用一番，并與其他類似產品相比較。我是這么做的：
I start by looking at reviews, comparisons, polls (like our Hive Five series), and forum posts and compile a list of two or three items that might fit my needs.
首先，我會瀏覽商品評價、同類比較、推薦打分、論壇帖子等等，最后列出兩三款符合需求的產品。
I then buy all the products on my list, focusing on stores with good return policies. For headphones, HeadRoom is a great choice, and a lot of manufacturers (like Audioengine) have a 30-day guarantee that is just perfect for this. Shop around and read return policies. Clothing stores like Zappos are also really good about this.
然后，在那些提供無障礙退換貨的商家買下列出的所有產品。例如，買耳機的話HeadRoom是個不錯的選擇，其他還有很多廠商（如Audioengine）都提供30天試用期。你要做的就是多逛逛，多了解退貨流程。美捷步購鞋網站這點做得也相當不錯。
Once all the items have arrived, I give them each a short trial period. In the case of things like headphones, I try to compare them side-by-side as well, so I can really hear the differences between each model.
一旦入手，就把每一款產品都小小試用一下。再比如耳機，我甚至會把每一款的左右聲道分別比較，這樣一來我才能真正辨識出每幅耳機的區別。
When I'm done, I return the ones I don't like. Simple as that.
試用過后我就把不喜歡的幾款退掉。就這么簡單。
So far, this has worked really well: I've gotten headphones, a mechanical keyboard, and even shoes this way.
迄今為止，這個方法還挺奏效：我用它買了一幅耳機，一個機械式鍵盤，還有幾雙鞋子。
Obviously this strategy isn't foolproof. If you're buying really expensive items (like laptops), things get a bit dicier, and if you live outside the US, shipping costs make this much less feasible, for example. But the bottom line is that online reviews are great—but reading them isn't the only step to making a big purchase. When you can, try things out for yourself, and you're much more likely to be happy with the final product.
但顯然這個方法也并非萬無一失。假如你要買的東西真的很貴（像筆記本），那就有點風險了。再假如你不住在美國，運費又會很貴。不過有一個底線：網上的評價雖好，但對于購買貴重物品來說只是第一步。如果可能，一定要親自試用，這樣最終入手的才可能是你最最滿意的。
