Clare Newsome:
Er, they haven't 'always' got review samples before us - we have bags of exclusives, thanks
Indeed we were the first to have the review of the Samsung C9000 set.
Some manufacturers like to 'spread the love' and give out review samples to a wide group.
Others are aware that our comparative, performance-per-pound testing in dedicated facilties might be a tougher challenge for them than elsewhere, which may cause them to look for reviews that take a different approach first.
And, of course, we publish in print before online - so we may have the review samples first, but be beaten to the review release by an online-only brand.
Please note these are general statements and not specific to the Samsung in question.
Fair comments, Clare. I would usually take the witholding of a review sample as an indication of concern (i.e a lack of confidence in their product by manufacturers). As you say, in such circumstances there is obvious logic is supplying products for review to other publications (often online ones) that might publish a less rigorously comparative or more sympathetic review.
It sounds a similar situation to film reviews in a well known UK publication: usually if a review is published last minute because the distributor witheld a sample copy of the film, you can be pretty sure it's a dud (which is generally confirmed when the review is finally published). Of course there are exceptions to the rule, but why wouldn't a manufacturer want to supply products they're proud of to a magazine with the capacity to promote them among a wide readership.
EDIT: I wonder -- on a sound-per-pound ratio -- how the Samsung would fare against similarly priced rivals...
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