As requested, Car Reviews, here's your monthly update from ConsumerReports.org, your go-to place for information on the products and services you use every day. This month, we're featuring content from the brand-new June 2012 edition of Consumer Reports as well as other topics of interest.
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Subscribe today and get access to our new Consumer Reports Mobile™ program. | |  |  | |  | What's new on ConsumerReports.org  | | | We publish dozens of Ratings updates each month for appliances, consumer electronics, cars, home and yard gear, and even wine. Be sure to visit ConsumerReports.org regularly to find the latest product reviews and read our Consumer News blog to stay on top of important consumer happenings, notifications of Ratings updates, exclusive videos, and much, much more. | | |  | | | Babies & Kids: How to choose the best car for your family, whether you have small children, school-age kids, or teen drivers | | | Having a kid changes one's life in lots of ways, including your automotive choices. In other words, once your baby makes the scene, along with the car seat, diaper bag, toys, and snacks, you might as well bid your two-door days goodbye. Now it's time to look into kid-friendly vehicles, and because needs change as your kids grow, we tell you all the things to keep in mind when considering your next set of wheels. | | | | | | Cars: SUV tests and distracted driving | | | We've recently published the results of our tests of the BMW X5, Buick Verano, Chrysler 300, Honda CR-V, Mazda CX-5, Mercedes-Benz ML350, Nissan Armada, Volkswagen Beetle, and Volvo XC90. See how the models fare in our battery of more than 50 tests.
It's dangerous to use a cell phone behind the wheel, but many teenagers and other young drivers still play the odds by talking, texting or operating a mobile device while driving. Those are the findings of our recent survey of drivers 16 to 21 years old by the Consumer Reports National Research Center. | | | | | | Electronics: Facebook privacy and tablet computers | | | How much personal information are you giving away on Facebook without even realizing it? We talked to Facebook and security experts and surveyed over 2,000 online households to help answer your privacy questions and coach you on how to protect your privacy on Facebook step by step.
The more mature electronics products are, the lower their prices. You can see this happening now with tablets, at least partially due to the introduction of the Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet. Now Samsung has introduced this update to its original 7-inch tablet, and it's shaping up to be a solid competitor; it's also the least expensive Galaxy Tab yet, at $250. | | | | | | Health: Pregnancy care and unnecessary medical tests | | | The U.S. health-care system has developed into a highly profitable labor-and-delivery machine, operating according to its own timetable rather than the less predictable schedule of mothers and babies. Keeping things chugging along are technological interventions that can be lifesaving in some situations but also interfere with healthy, natural processes. We've listed the top 10 procedures to think twice about, starting with unnecessary cesarean sections.
Doctors often order tests and recommend drugs or procedures when they shouldn't, and sometimes even when they know they shouldn't. The Congressional Budget Office says that up to 30 percent of the health care in the U.S. is unnecessary. All that unneeded care can be hazardous to both your health and your wallet. Learn when to say no to your doctor when it comes to unnecessary care. | | | | | | Home: Indoor air quality and reviews of exterior paints and stains | | | Fewer than 10 percent of Americans consider indoor air quality a threat to their health, and 70 percent aren't concerned about it at all. But many of the things you do—or don't do—can add to the stew of airborne contaminants in your home and worsen asthma, allergies, and other health conditions. We offer ways to protect yourself against six of these hidden hazards, plus Ratings for air purifiers, dehumidifiers and humidifiers.
Exterior paints and stains that will last
Who has the best exterior paint? Our new winner among satin and semigloss finishes is Sherwin-Williams, and it shares top honors with California for flat paints. But our tests also prove that other players do almost as well for far less, and beat the pricey brand when it comes to exterior stains. | | | | | | Money: Overdraft fees and store credit cards | | | While it's little comfort, you're not alone. Banks took in more than $30 billion of them last year. We have advice on how to avoid those nasty fees, such as passing on pricey overdraft protection.
Would you like to save 10 percent on your purchase right now? You've heard that line, or something similar, when you're checking out at most retail stores. The deals sound tempting, but when we compared the terms of 14 store credit cards we found that some carry sky-high interest rates, and opening too many accounts can hurt your credit score. | | | | | | |
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