I have been watching a number of various shave videos for a long time. I talk to a few friends who are wet shavers, too. One thing I have noticed is that many of the shavers give their opinions on every aspect of the shave - hardware and software - near immediately. Maybe it is sometimes just a first impression but some seem to be rendering an immutable verdict. They may be able to render an opinion on a single outing with some of these items but I cannot. I have found that I have to use a product for some time before I really have a good sense of the performance and personal appeal. A good example, when I first came back to DE after a lifetime with cartridges, I was trying any number of blades. I found I was not thrilled with the performance of most of them in any respect. Eventually I settled on one blade (Voshkod if you must know) which I used for at least half a year, uninterrupted. I am thoroughly pleased in all respects with these blades. I had Wizamet Iridium Super blades recommended. I used them and for a week and a half I thought they were poor, not the worst but certainly not as good as my Voshkod. I stuck with it and once I was acclimated, I found the Iridium Super are excellent - I am just as pleased as with the Voshkod. I have had this very same experience with any number of soaps and aftershaves. I have several aftershaves I thought near repulsive that are now in my regular rotation. I have to mention B&M Full Measure of Man AS which I have really come to love - initially I thought I had to PIF that stuff immediately. Now I am saddened to see Will makes it no more. In the end, in my opinion, I really need to use something repeatedly to gain a good understanding of all its' qualities and whether they appeal to me or not. Along the way, I have had a couple items that I have given away - fully certain that they were not suitable for myself as I had used them for usually at least two weeks if not more.
IMO - Giving an opinion
- Thread starter Virgil Sollozzo
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YouTube incentivises people to profess opinions, in so many ways. Watching the videos on mute is so much more instructive; you get to see how the <product> is used, not how it is sold... 
+2!! Yes indeed! I need to use things for awhile before deciding if they really work for me!!
And my opinion often changes as I ‘dial in’ a new soap, razor, etc to figure out how to get the best outcome.
And my opinion often changes as I ‘dial in’ a new soap, razor, etc to figure out how to get the best outcome.
It would reduce the impact of a video if the reviewer said at its end: "I'm not sure about this razor/brush/soap just yet. I'll have to try it out a few more times, or maybe for six months."
There's so much "good" in this thread.
People who are good at making popular videos tend to talk a lot, even if that means some of them tend to blather and spew.
It is also true that it takes time and experience to dial something in before you can really evaluate it.
If I could form a complete opinion about something in one go, then I could grab one razor, one blade, one soap, and so on, and sell or PIF everything else.
I do find some things I can draw a conclusion about quickly, but they are the exception and they are usually flawed objectively or uncontroversially.
It is also true that it takes time and experience to dial something in before you can really evaluate it.
If I could form a complete opinion about something in one go, then I could grab one razor, one blade, one soap, and so on, and sell or PIF everything else.
I do find some things I can draw a conclusion about quickly, but they are the exception and they are usually flawed objectively or uncontroversially.
I disagree. It’s one thing if a video person has used a product a bunch and waited to do the video and then says it’s a great product. But if someone is really using something for the first time and saying it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread, I can’t take that seriously. I would much rather have an honest assessment even if that’s just “I’m still not sure about this”, rather than a trend of everything I’ve just received is great and sounding like a total shill.
It’s not just video people, it’s on the forums too. I know that people like to feel involved and make posts and start threads, but I see way too many of these “reviews” where someone says they got a new razor and it’s amazing and they know it’s going to be at the top of their rotation… and what’s really amusing is there’s way too many instances of those kind of posts, and then the intending up in a BST listing a week or two later.
I think we're actually agreeing here. A lot of videos I've seen are made by people using a product for the first time, or after just a few uses, yet they still feel the need to reach a strong conclusion to give it the impact I mentioned. I wan't saying that's the best way to do things, just that it's the way these videos are often made.
100%. It incentivizes click bait as well. You need to keep views and engagement up after all. 
YouTube incentivises people to profess opinions, in so many ways. Watching the videos on mute is so much more instructive; you get to see how the <product> is used, not how it is sold...
Yes! But you and I are not ‘required’ to draw definitive conclusions after the first use!! (In contrast to ‘influencers.’)
Once you have enough experience with the various products generally and know what you like…you definitely don’t need multiple uses to figure out whether you like/dislike something. Either you like something or you don’t. People often ride the process out a little but I doubt opinions change significantly between a 1st use and 7th use.
This reminds me of when I ordered my first samples of Stirling in 2019. I tried it over a dozen times and just couldn't get a good shave with it. I'd been wet-shaving for over 8 years at that point, and didn't have a problem with anything else, including stuff like Williams and MFW which people often did have trouble with.
I soon figured it out and it's now one of my favorites, but it took more than those first few tries before I was able to form an opinion of it. Then again, I was convinced I was missing something and I'm stubborn. I suppose most people would have formed an opinion after the first couple tries and thrown it away, but I consider that a premature and therefore uninformed opinion.
Fortunately, there are enough stellar products around these days that even if you throw away anything that doesn't work perfectly the first time without any effort, you're still spoiled for choice.
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- #13
Exactly
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