I think that's good advice for everything you buy these days. I just bought a small iron for tight spots and applique′, and the sales clerk actually tried to stop me when I wanted to plug it in just to see if it worked properly. I told her I wouldn't buy it unless it worked properly, and if she wouldn't let me test it, I wouldn't buy it. So reluctantly, she let me test it. Wouldn't you know, I sat with it plugged in and turned on high for 15 minutes, and it was still stone cold. Obviously not working. So I brought this to the clerk's attention, and got this attitude about "how I wasn't doing it right." So I let her try it, and she couldn't make it work either. So I went for a similar model, different brand, and plugged that in. It heated right up, and responded rather quickly to changes in temperature settings. So that was the one I bought. But yes, I do check over rulers and all notions before I buy. My dollars are hard earned, and I don't want to spend them on products that don't work. And my time is too precious (and gas is too expensive) to be running back and forth to a store to have items replaced because they are broken.