Understanding Scoring.

Features refers to what a product can do; points like what tech is involved, capabilities, limitations, diverse applications–anything you could ever think to do is considered. While some performance metrics are considered for particularly software reliant electronic devices, for more analog products, this category is about how well a product performs the task it was designed for, as well as any quality of life elements that might improve your experience.

Quality is a measurement of how well the product is made, with special consideration for the lifespan under regular use. Aspects like build quality, durability, protective engineering, material choice and more are all examined in calculating the Quality score. Tastemaker tends to grade these traits through the lens of ‘Are these design and engineering choices best suited to the intended use?’ a sentiment which may better explain what our criteria is geared towards.

Aesthetics, fundamentally, is about looks. More specifically, design language cohesion and compatibility with the intended use environment. While this may sound unnecessary within the context of product quality and sustainability, we firmly believe that creating products that are timelessly appealing prevents disuse due to changing prevailing trends. Enduring aesthetic appeal fosters investment in products that age beautifully and are therefore used for longer–a proven trend we can absolutely get behind.

Sustainability as a category is probably the most complex. Tastemaker takes into consideration the environmental impact of every part of a product’s lifecycle, from material sourcing, manufacturing, delivery, packaging, all the way to disposal. The Sustainability score also factors in a great deal of elements from Quality, with product longevity being crucial to minimizing overall environmental impact; after all, products that last longer don’t require disposal. 

Within the Space distinctly represents the product’s performance in relation to its peers. While products can be good on their own, competition often creates disparities that separate the good from the truly great. By using peer performance metrics proportional to costs, financial or otherwise, the ‘Within the Space’ score gives an accurate picture at a glance of the value for cost of a product compared to similarly priced alternatives that might also be vying for your dollar. 

Cumulatively, these scores create a grade reflective of the product overall. Close observers will notice that the overall score is not a direct average of the five individual scores equally weighted. To that point, we are often asked if categories like Quality are weighted the same as more niche user interests like Aesthetics; absolutely–we have over three hundred points in the current baseline criteria applied to every product, all weighted to reflect consumer interests. While Aesthetics do play a proven role in consumer engagement, elements more directly relevant to a product niche or performance are always given greater importance in the grading formula.