From our president

This monthly letter to subscribers from Consumers Union President Jim Guest highlights the critical consumer issues behind our current reports. See archived installments of From our president.

Ratings on the go

Roughly one-fourth of U.S. adults own a smart phone, our surveys show. And a sizable percentage expect to buy one this year. If you're among them, you might find the new Consumer Reports Mobile Shopper one of the most useful apps for your phone.

Say you're walking down the street and realize that you forgot your mother's birthday and if you don't find that MP3 player she wants you'll be forever in the dog house. Pull out your iPhone, scan the Ratings, compare models, and choose one that looks good, all right there on the sidewalk. You can then hit "Shop Locally" and our app gives you a list of nearby stores that carry the player and pinpoints them on a map, or you can shop online. If you're already in a store, scan the UPC bar code for our test results, see how reliable the brand has been, compare prices at different stores and online, read user reviews, and more.

The app costs $9.99 for a year. It's available for the iPhone and will be soon for the Android. Behind the 3,500 (and growing) rated products is our unbiased, in-depth testing. The app includes our most popular categories, except cars; we do have car-related products such as tires and batteries. The information is updated daily. We accept no outside advertising for the app or for any other Consumer Reports product; that's how we stay independent. We charge subscription fees because that's how we pay for the testing and research that lead to the information you can't get anywhere else.

One of our staffers used the app when he was shopping for a small TV over the Thanksgiving weekend. Every retailer was screaming that its prices were the lowest. He scanned the bar code of one possibility with his phone. The big-box store he was in was charging $170, and our app told him he could get it online for $151, with free shipping. He could save about twice the cost of a year's worth of the app in one moment of retail glory. And so can you.

Jim Guest
President