Inhoudsopgave van June 2015 - Consumer Reports

Family (Best and Worst) Values My wife and I laughed out loud at the Annual Auto Issue (April 2015). How many other households own a “best” and “worst” car? Our Camry Hybrid and Jeep Wrangler get along just fine. —Rocko Graziano, Readfield, ME I Want a New Car! I have a 2006 Acura MDX—purchased new— and I’m really itching for a new car. Fortunately for my husband, “Do You Really Need A New Car?” (April 2015) did confirm that our MDX does indeed have much life left to live. Unfortunately for me, I must now wait until problems arise and it becomes more cost-effective to purchase a new vehicle. Thanks for making the annual Auto Issue the must-read in our home each year. And darn you, Acura, for making such…

CLAUDIA KNAFO interviewed several physicians before her spinal surgery in 2012, finally finding one she trusted and who took her health insurance. Her recovery was smooth, but sorting through her claims afterward was confounding: The hospital website said that her doctor accepted her plan, but he had dropped the carrier in 1997. That meant her out-of-network coverage for the $101,000 surgery was a paltry $3,510—and she was on the hook for the rest. Fearful that her family would have to file for bankruptcy, Knafo, a concert pianist based in new York City, spent the next seven months searching for a fix. “It consumed every hour of my day,” she recalls. The insurance company eventually dropped the charges, but Knafo continued to have a sense of outrage. “I’m an educated person,…

Even devoted readers don’t want to pay twice the price for a year of national geographic, The new York Times, or, yes, Consumer Reports. That’s why the attorneys general in five states filed lawsuits against several companies hawking unauthorized subscriptions to more than 40 leading publications. We first covered this problem in 2013, after some of our readers complained of receiving unauthorized subscription notices. We brought the matter to the attention of the attorney general’s office in new York, where some of the victims live. now that office and its counterparts in oregon, minnesota, missouri, and Texas have taken action. Dozens of solicitation companies have been named, including the Associated Publishers network, the express Publishers Service, and the magazine Clearing exchange. According to the new York lawsuit, the companies usually…

*To determine safe levels of canned-tuna consumption based on your body weight, go to consumerreports.org/cro/fish1014 and select “Safer Seafood choices.”…

We wanted to find out what fishmongers really know about the shrimp they’re selling, so our mystery shoppers went shopping for shrimp near our Yonkers, N.Y., headquarters. Here are a few choice tidbits fish sellers told us: We Asked “Are these shrimp organic?” The seller’s Answer “yes, they’re organic.” The Truth there are no organic standards for shrimp, or for any seafood, in the u.s. We Asked “Why is wild shrimp more expensive?” The seller’s Answer “Wild shrimp is more expensive because it’s better for you.” The Truth According to our dietitians, farmed and wild shrimp have the same basic nutritional profile. But from a safety and sustainability standpoint, this fishmonger is right; our experts say that sustainably fished u.s. wild shrimp is the best choice. We Asked “Why are…

LAST SPRING, AS 41,000 RUNNERS made their way through the streets of Dublin in the city’s Women’s Mini Marathon, an unassuming redheaded man by the name of Candid Wueest stood on the sidelines with a scanner. He had built it in a couple of hours with $75 worth of parts, and he was using it to surreptitiously pick up data from activity trackers worn on runners’ wrists. During the race, Wueest managed to collect personal info from 563 racers, including their names, addresses, and passwords, as well as the unique IDs of the devices they were carrying. Fortunately, Wueest is not a data criminal. He’s one of the good guys—a security researcher at Symantec, the company behind Norton antivirus software. His experiment was done to expose some of the risks…

STEP ONE In your quest for award travel, you should start with the destination, then work backward. after you decide where you want to go, figure out which airline program gives you the best chance of getting there. use our table below to find out which of the largest airlines booked the most award tickets for the 25 most popular u.s. award routes in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2014, the latest 12 months for which figures are available. (the figures come from a department of transportation ticket database.) although availability varies by day, flight, and destination, our analysis reveals some general trends. Among hundreds of routes studied, not just the top 25, southwest offered the most award tickets of any big airline: 11.9 million, or 11.5 percent…

Where consumer rights and protections are concerned, airlines hold all of the cards. The department of transportation says it “does not have regulations” that directly govern frequent-flyer programs, except for the requirement that airlines disclose their own rules. Those rules are universally one-sided: American says “mileage credit does not entitle members to any vested rights.” United says it has the right to change the terms and conditions, rules, or mileage levels at any time, with or without notice. delta “has the sole right to interpret and apply” its program’s rules. Southwest rapid rewards members “do not acquire property rights in accrued points and awards.” And Jetblue reserves the right to change or cancel its program rules at any time, “in its sole discretion, without notice to or liability to you.”…

When it’s your turn to host the party, you’ll want to pump up the volume. the Sony SRS-X7, $200 (above), which works on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, is louder than the Bose and tDK. You can also connect two or more srs-X7s simultaneously via Wi-Fi to multiply the sound output as long as the music is stored on a computer. And the speaker is battery- powered, so you can put it almost anywhere. the Sonos Play:1, $200, is another good option. You can use several of the Wi-Fi speakers (which require Ac power) to play the same music, or mix it up with soft jazz near the diners and rock on the dance floor. tip Wi-Fi range is affected by the distance and physical obstructions between the router, music source, and…

Scores in context: Of the 16 adult bike helmets we tested, the highest scored 85; the lowest, 38. Of the seven kids’ helmets, the highest scored 80; the lowest, 30. CR Best Buys blend value and performance. 1. Manufacturer says any helmet damaged in an accident in the first year will be replaced free. 2. Has a removable visor. 3. Multisport style resembles helmets used in BMX and skateboarding. Find The Best Helmet For You CUSTOMIZABLE FIT • A1 Scott $150 • A3 Smith $220 • A4 Bell $80 • B1 Bontrager $40 CR Best Buy These make it a snap to get the fit you want. BEST IF YOU HATE A SWEATY HEAD • A6 Specialized $65 PRICEY BUT WORTH IT • A1 Scott $150 This one has it…

SMARTPHONE CAMERAS have gotten pretty good, but most still lack some features that can translate into better photos, such as larger image sensors, optical zoom lenses, and effective image stabilization. you can find those capabilities in point-and-shoot cameras, which have gotten good enough to give “serious” cameras a run for their money. because they’re usually smaller and lighter than slrs, they’re easier to tote around. here’s what you’ll find in the latest cameras we’ve tested: 1. LONG ZOOM RANGES To capture an image with lifelike detail— say, the gargoyles on the cathedral, a lion’smagnificent mane, or your kid’s face as he waits to catch that fly ball—you need to take a close-up shot. but that’s not always possible (or wise). to take a close-up from far away, you need a…

This month we bring you an in-depth look at the Internet of Things and how it is changing our lives. The world is rapidly becoming a place where the devices people rely on every day are connected to a network that freely exchanges information. That can offer great convenience but also raises fundamental questions about transparency and privacy. Many of these devices are versions of familiar products like televisions and home security systems, which use the Internet to learn and respond to our habits and preferences. This connectivity can be beneficial, at times even money-saving. Think about the thermostat that turns on your air conditioning shortly before you come home. But all this convenience comes with trade-offs, as information about your habits can be sent to servers that may share…

PER POUND—OR UNIT To find the best value on the fruit below, you’d need a scale— and a calculator. WHY IT MATTERS Consumers who rely on unit pricing as a basis for comparison can save more than 50 percent by choosing the most economical size, according to research. GOOD LUCK FINDING INFO Our shoppers found huge size variations in unit-price labels, from type that was a measly 0.22 inch at shop Rite to as large as 0.66 inch at Walmart.…

ASK CONGRESS FOR SAFER DETERGENT PODS Each year poison control centers receive thousands of calls about children mistaking laundry detergent pods for candy, with serious health consequences. Some manufacturers are working to make the containers childproof. The Detergent Poisoning and Child Safety Act, now before Congress, would create safety standards for the packaging, design, and labeling of the pods. You can contact your rep in Congress about supporting that important bill at opencongress.org. HANG UP ON CRIMINALS Robocalls aren’t just annoying recorded messages; they’re often tied to scams costing Americans about $350 million each year. Consumer Reports is urging phone companies to give consumers callblocking options. Sign our petition at endrobocalls.org. THE WIN: CLEANER CREDIT REPORTING The big three credit-reporting bureaus (equifax, experian, and Transunion) have agreed to reforms that…

Our experts have urged the FDA and the EPA to take these steps to minimize Americans’ mercury exposure: • Advise consumers about which types of seafood are lower in mercury when urging them to eat more fish. • Advise pregnant women to avoid eating any tuna, including canned light tuna. • Advise women of childbearing age to eat no more than 4.5 ounces of albacore per week. • Include anyone who eats more than 24 ounces of fish per week among groups considered vulnerable to mercury overexposure. • Add orange roughy and marlin to the list of fish that vulnerable groups should avoid, and consider adding bluefin and bigeye tuna to the list.…

Q. I read with interest the reviews of mobile phones (“The Right Phone for You,” February 2015) and noticed that none of them scored Very Good or Excellent for voice quality. Why is that? One would think that with all of the processing power and precision parts in mobile phones, they could capture and reproduce audio quality as well as their landline counterparts. —Richard Stuart, Lewiston, ID A. Cell phones have tiny microphones and speakers that use voice-compression technology, and signals travel a long, winding road between callers. Carriers are beginning to use one of the more promising developments for improving voice quality: high-definition (HD) voice, which transmits calls over wider frequency ranges at a higher number of audio samples carried per second. In the meantime, try one of the…

1. A shrimp pond in Asia or south America trouble can begin before a farm is stocked with a single shrimp; to make way for ponds, natural coastal areas can be damaged. tens of thousands of shrimp hatchlings may be added, and the crowded farm can produce a vast amount of waste. If the farm isn’t managed properly, bacteria can grow and disease can break out. 2. What’s in That pond to keep ponds productive and control disease, overseas farmers sometimes use antibiotics and other chemicals. the Food and Drug Administration requires processors to ensure that shrimp intended for the u.s. market aren’t raised with unapproved substances. “But enforcement is practically nonexistent,” says jean Halloran, director of food policy initiatives for consumers union, the policy arm of consumer reports. the…

If you don’t like the idea of being tracked by your devices, you may think you have only two options: avoid the technology altogether or simply surrender to the surveillance. But for most smart products, there are strategies that can at least restrict how much of your information gets collected. (see our related video at consumerreports.org.) 1. Password-Protect Anything That Collects Personal Information. Many smart devices are managed through Internetbased accounts. Some have pass codes you can enter on the device as well. use both. and yes, you do need to pick unique and complex passwords. We suggest at least nine characters in a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols (see our video on creating better passwords at ConsumerReports.org). also, if you haven’t already done so, make sure to password-protect…

Most programs put hurdles in the way of your desired flight. Here’s how to circumnavigate them. Time your purchase. shop for award tickets several months ahead of your departure, when more unsold seats are available. but don’t forget that award ticket holders can change their plans, meaning that their seats might become available again. also be aware that the demand predicted by the airline pricing software doesn’t always materialize. so in some cases, you might have more luck cashing in your miles only a few days before you want to fly. That’s what Idea Works, a consulting firm in shorewood, Wis., found last year when it made 7,640 award-booking queries using the websites of 25 u.s. and foreign carriers. shopping three to seven months in advance, the testers scored 100…

ONCE UPON A TIME all you needed was a grill and a picnic table, but no one stops there anymore. “What homeowners are building outdoors rivals what they’re doing inside,” says Josh Kane of Kane Landscapes in sterling, Va. “They’re making the outdoor space more functional, with lighting, a fire pit or fireplace, and comfortable furniture.” You can start simply by lighting up the night with long-lasting LEDS and a portable fire pit to gather around. underfoot, gravel walkways and patios are a European design style that’s becoming more popular as a lower-cost alternative to stone and concrete. Overhead, a ceiling fan keeps the breeze moving. Outdoor fireplaces, and especially fire pits, have become popular hot spots as homeowners look to make the most of the space. You don’t have…

READJUST Don’t expect sound quality outdoors to be as rich as it is in a room. Bass loses its punch, and treble tends to get lost. turn up both settings, but not so much that the sound is distorted. put the speaker near a wall to enhance bass. STRATEGIZE If you’re using a few speakers, space them to provide good coverage. set them on a table so that they don’t get dirty, wet, or tripped over. If you use extension cords (be sure they’re rated for outdoor use), secure them and keep them away from foot traffic. SET THE MOOD use the mood or genre stations on a service such as pandora or spotify to stream hours of music. CONNECT can’t get a steady stream of music no matter what…

We rated the Cannondale Teramo helmet, $120, a Don’t Buy: Safety Risk because it failed our chin-strap strength test. The buckle snapped off or broke into pieces in four of the five samples we tested. We are not aware of any injuries related to the helmet, but a broken chin strap means a helmet might not stay in place in the event of a fall. We contacted Cannondale to share our test results in December, and the company disputed our findings, stating that it stands by its third-party independent test results. Cannondale also said its helmets are “tested in accordance with the required [CPSC] protocol and have passed all testing” and that it had not received any reports of injuries. When we asked Cannondale whether the company would consider giving…

Pick A Camera For Your Needs All of the models in the ratings are recommended and are worth considering. the following cameras stand out for the reasons noted. ADVANCED SHOOTING • A2 Panasonic $800 • A4 Canon $700 • A8 Sony $800 All three models offer strong performance. A2, the largest and heaviest, has an electronic viewfinder that’s great for composing in bright light. It’s among the few cameras that can take ultra-high-def video at 30 frames per second. A4’s burst mode fires 6.5 fps; A2 and A8 take 12 fps. A8 has a pop-up electronic viewfinder; the Canon has no viewfinder. EASY-TO-CARRY COMPACTS • B6 Canon $180 CR Best Buy • B7 Canon $150 CR Best Buy These two cameras, which weigh about the same as some smartphones, have…

MODEL Toyota Prius Toyota Camry (4-cyl.) Honda Odyssey Honda Pilot Toyota Corolla Honda Accord sedan (4-cyl.) Honda CR-V Toyota Sienna (V6) Toyota Highlander (V6) Honda Civic sedan (not including Hybrid, Si, GX) 11.4 Average age, in years, of all cars on U.S. roads today, according to IHS Automotive. <1% Percentage of Consumer Reports survey respondents whose cars have more than 200,000 miles. $550 Average amount spent by 200K club members on maintenance and repair in the past calendar year.…

Here at Consumer Reports, I have access to scientists, technicians, and testers who are authorities on, oh, just about everything. I learn just as much from our smart, dedicated readers. For example: Seafood tastes better when you know how it’s raised. Knowing that your shrimp’s free of bacteria or antibiotics, and that its production didn’t harm the environment, enhances any meal. see our shopping tips on page 17. Frequent-flyer miles are no freebie. They’re built into the cost of every flight you take, so make the most of them. on page 31, we tell you how. Lithium batteries make sense in cool climes. William swanson liked our response to a question about batteries in our March issue and sent us an extra reason to buy lithium: “As a winter hiker,…

“When you need to apply heat to any body part, take a sock, fill it with uncooked rice, and tie a knot at the end. Microwave for 30 to 45 seconds, then apply the sock to the affected area. It’s economical and more effective than a heating pad.” —Stephanie Hanel-Seitz, Hendersonville, NC Our experts add: That sounds like a reasonable fix for someone who doesn’t have a heating pad. But you obviously won’t have control of the temperature or the length of time the treatment will be effective. As with all heat applications, separate it from your skin with several folds of towel or fabric. And don’t use it (or a heating pad) with pain-relief creams such as Bengay.…

GET READY FOR MORE debate about who should eat tuna—and how much. The arguments arise from concerns about the levels of mercury in fish, and the outcome could be far-reaching, affecting everything from school lunches to food aid programs. For more than a decade, federal agencies have said that women of childbearing age and young children should limit their weekly consumption of albacore (white) tuna. That’s because it contains three times more mercury, on average, than canned light tuna; even just a few sandwiches can expose some people to too much. Now a federal committee is suggesting that the warning be eliminated, a move that Consumer Reports’ experts strongly oppose. Mercury can damage the brain and nervous system, especially when exposure occurs in the womb. That’s why we recommend that…

Wild or farmed? Wild can be pricier— but is it tastier? See our tasting results on page 20. DECODE THE LABEL Words such as ‘natural’ and ‘organic’ mean absolutely nothing on shrimp. See page 23 for helpful labeling. NICE ON ICE It may look fresh, but most shrimp sold in the U.S. was frozen at one point.…

WHITE SHRIMP (Litopenaeus setiferus) Description White shrimp are prized for their sweet, tender meat and easy-to-peel shells. commercial fishing for these warm-water critters began in 1709. Where it’s from They’re harvested from north carolina to texas, with most from the Gulf of mexico and mississippi river Delta in louisiana. WHITELEG SHRIMP (Litopenaeus vannamei) Description White leg shrimp, also called pacific white shrimp, have a translucent body that often has a bluish-green hue. Where it’s from They are native to the eastern pacificocean, but they’re farmed in the u.s. and abroad. BROWN SHRIMP (Farfantepenaeus aztecus) Description Brown shrimp have reddish-brown shells with dark green and red tail-fan appendages. Along with white shrimp, they are the most commonly sold u.s. wild-caught shrimp. Where it’s from They come primarily from the Gulf of…

About 94 percent of America’s shrimp is imported, but in 2014 the Food and Drug Administration examined only 3.7 percent of foreign shrimp shipments. consumer reports’ own tests found evidence of unhealthy contaminants in store bought shrimp, including e. coli and vibrio (bacteria that can potentially make you sick) and trace amounts of antibiotics that are prohibited in imported shrimp. And although we didn’t find every unapproved antibiotic in our tests, there is concern that foreign shrimp farmers may sometimes use them, including chloramphenicol and malachite green. those farming practices are damaging to the environment and have long-term health consequences for consumers. To keep consumers safe, consumer reports believes the FDA should do the following: • Significantly step up inspections at u.s. ports and at overseas shrimp farms and processing…

BABY MONITOR What it does. modern multitasking parents check in on their infants via smartphone using fully networked, motion-sensing, hD videostreaming systems with built-in speakers that let them talk to their baby while loading up the washing machine. That type of right-there access is comforting for a parent, but it’s positively sickening if a hacker is also tuning in. The threat isn’t theoretical. In january, it was reported that a nanny in houston heard an unfamiliar voice coming from a two-way baby monitor made by Foscam. according to reports, the voice said, “That’s a really poopy diaper,” then warned her to password-protect the camera. In 2013 and 2014, the british press reported that sadistic hackers took over monitors to scream at sleeping children, and last fall officials in the u.K.…

We suggest you judge the various programs based on the following: How good is the airline? don’t let award-seat availability wag the dog. Look for an airline highly rated by consumer reports. among the five biggest carriers, Jetblue and southwest had the best overall score for such factors as cabin service, seating comfort, and overall satisfaction. that’s according to over 16,000 subscribers who assessed more than 31,732 domestic round-trip flights taken from 2012 to 2013. What’s the value of your points? the miles or points you earn are a currency. but unlike euros or dollars, not all miles are created equal. their value varies by airline and is usually based on the number of points charged for a particular flight, travel dates, and advance purchase. What you don’t know about…

A compact, battery-powered Bluetooth speaker can be placed right on a table when you’re dining with the family on the deck. And you can pick it up and take it with you as you move around the yard. the devices can play music from a tablet, laptop, or phone up to 30 feet away. the Bose SoundLink Color, $130 (above), strikes a nice balance of size and power. At a trim 5.5x5x3.5 inches, it won’t hog the table, and it comes in five fun colors. In our tests, it delivered good sound quality, with a surprising amount of oomph for its size. If you’re worried that a sudden cloudburst will damage the speaker, consider a weather-resistant model such as the TDK Life on Record Trek Max (A34), $150, or the…

When you’re shopping, you’ll come across terms such as Apple Airplay, DLNA, DTS Play-Fi, Heos, and Sonos. Those are wireless standards that a speaker uses to access content on a Wi-Fi network. Many speakers can use more than one. The main things you need to know are: 1. Apple Airplay can access content from any computer that has itunes installed and from Apple mobile devices. With an Android device, you’ll have to use a third party app. Also, to stream to multiple Airplay speakers from an iphone or ipad, you again need a third-party app; you don’t need it with a computer. 2. the other standards work with Apple and Android mobile devices and pcs, and some work with mac computers. 3. If you want to send the same music…

Reflective gear can save cyclists’ lives— provided that drivers can spot them in the first place. our testers looked at 11 reflective garments and accessories along with a dark shirt used as a control. the mission: to judge how well each could be seen in headlights after dark at 300 feet, the stopping distance for a car going 60 mph in normal road conditions. The bright yellow Uline safety vest, $15 (top left), though not so fashionable, popped the most. the Sugoi Zap fluorescent bike jacket, $159 (middle left), was also easy to spot. Both the Gore Windstopper Soft Shell jacket, $180 (middle right), and Eastern Mountain Sports Velo bike jersey, $55 (top right), could be seen easily from the back, thanks to big reflective elements, but less so from…

CARS THAT GO THE DISTANCE Begin your quest for the automotive Fountain of Youth by picking a vehicle from our top 10 list of long-lasting cars. See page 53. EASY STEPS Regular oil changes are crucial to keeping your engine humming along RED FLAGS Five trouble signs, including excessive repair costs, may mean it’s time to put the old car out to pasture. Find out what to look for on page 54.…

By hanging on to Old Faithful, you’re keeping yourself from owning a safer, more efficient, and reliable automobile, not to mention having all of the nice stuff that comes with a newer model. Need more convincing? Here’s why you should throw in the oil rag on your old ride: COST OF MAINTENANCE. No matter how diligently you stay on top of a maintenance schedule, parts inevitably fail. replacing them is expensive and—depending on the car—the parts can be hard to find. if your monthly repair bills exceed the cost of one month’s new-car payment, that’s a hint to trade up. EXPIRED WARRANTY. If your car is approaching an advanced age, even components with longer warranties, such as the engine and transmission, are far off in the rear-view mirror. Defects previously…