CHOICE Test Research is our commercial testing arm. We're here to help you make products that people love.
Find out how we can help your business to develop or test products
Ready to contact CHOICE Test Research?
Fill out the online request form or call +61 2 9577 3304.
On this page:
- What we offer
- NATA-accredited testing
- Product development
- Industry seminars
- Raw data reports
- Contact CHOICE Test Research
What we offer
The same CHOICE laboratories that perform tests and reviews for our website and magazine, also offer fast and cost-effective testing for your products.
It's our mission to work for just and safe markets that meet the needs of Australian consumers. And that includes testing and reviewing products of all sorts to find the safest, best-performing models on the market.
We can help you make better products. That's a win for consumers, and a win for your company too.
CHOICE facilities and specialist staff
Toasters being tested in our small appliances lab.
CHOICE Test Research gives you access to our world-renowned facilities and equipment, and in-house experts. We can offer your business:
- NATA-accredited laboratories
- Access to expert technical specialists who are Standards Australia technical committee members
- Testing to relevant standards for product safety
- Testing of GEMS requirements for energy and water efficiency ratings
- Creation of testing programs to develop your product, based on our independent, consumer-oriented research
- Confidential testing and reporting
CHOICE Test Research services are provided by our staff using in-house laboratories, just an arm's length from the rest of our work. All test research work is confidential and not used for CHOICE reports or reviews.
NATA-accredited testing
CHOICE laboratories are accredited by Australia's leading national accreditation body, NATA, across a wide range of manufactured goods testing, including:
- Whitegoods and TVs (NATA accreditation 1702)
- Children's products (NATA accreditation 3601)
We provide nationally-accredited testing for these products:
Refrigeration and thermal appliances
Washing machines being loaded for testing.
The Chris Ruggles sound lab is set up for testing audio equipment and accurate sound measurements of appliances, like fridges.
TVs are tested for picture quality, energy usage and other factors in our TV lab.
We test a wide variety of computers and peripherals in our computer lab, including monitors, laptops and software.
Our thermal lab is NATA-accredited to test the performance of household refrigeration appliances to AS/NZS 4474, AS/NZS IEC 62552 and the current 2019 GEMS Determination.
Our test rooms provide strictly-controlled ambient temperatures between 10 and 43°c.
Each of our rooms has precision equipment and data loggers that record 40 temperature channels per minute, plus power measurements and other key technical information.
Laundry appliances
Our laundry lab is NATA-accredited to test:
- Washing machines to AS/NZS 2040 part 1 and 2
- Dishwashers to AS/NZS 2007 part 1 and 2
- Rotary clothes dryers to AS/NZS 2442 part 1 and 2
We can also test water-efficiency ratings and labelling for dishwashers and washing machines to AS/NZS 6400.
We offer efficient and reliable appliance testing in our climate-controlled lab environment.
All standard appliances and test equipment are calibrated. Our high-quality water system provides water temperature and hardness control.
TVs and home entertainment
Our home digital laboratory is NATA-accredited to test power consumption for televisions with digital receivers using AS/NZS 62087.1 (clause 11.6) and AS/NZS 62087.2.2 (sections 1 to 5).
We operate a sound room and computer laboratories that can be used to develop your product to specific requirements.
We can help you make better products. That's a win for consumers, and a win for your company too.
Our toy lab is equipped to test a range of toys to Australian Standards.
Cots being tested to the Australian Standard in our mechanical lab.
Prams and strollers are put through durability tests on our rolling road rig.
Nursery and children's products
Our children's products lab is NATA-accredited to test:
- Children's toys to AS/NZS ISO 8124 part 1
- Prams and strollers to AS/NZS 2088
- Household cots to AS/NZS 2172
- Portable cots to AS/NZS 2195
- Cot mattresses to AS/NZS 8811.1
- Baby dummies to AS 2432
- High chairs to AS 4684
We can test dummy (pacifier) chains to the mandatory clauses of EN 12586:2007, as set out in Consumer Goods (Babies' Dummies and Dummy Chains) Safety Standard 2017. )Note that we are not NATA-accredited for this particular test.)
We can also offer testing to meet mandatory standards for button and coin batteries, based on the option of testing to the toy standards AS/NZS 8124.1 and AS/NZS 62115. We don't currently have accreditation for AS/NZS 62115, so test reports to that standard will not be NATA-accredited.
Our laboratory is climate-controlled and we have an extensive range of test equipment based on Australian and International Standards.
If you're a manufacturer, retailer or importer – CHOICE Test Research can provide the test reports you need to register your products for sale in Australia.
Our kitchen lab tests a wide range of appliances, such as cooktops, ovens, microwaves and blenders.
Kitchen appliances and other household products
We operate kitchen and small appliance laboratories.
Our staff have more than 40 years' combined experience and can help you with product development for kitchen and household appliances like ovens, and vacuum cleaners.
Contact CHOICE Test Research to discuss your NATA-accredited testing for your product.
Product development
Need help improving a product, developing an appliance, or want key insights into what consumers are looking for in your product? We can help.
Our areas of expertise
We can tailor performance and ease-of-use tests to suit your project. Our state-of-the-art laboratories and expert staff can help your business with a range of products, including but not limited to:
- Whitegoods like washing machines, dishwashers and fridges
- Home entertainment appliances, such as TVs
- Kitchen appliances like ovens, cooktops and microwaves
- Vacuum cleaners including barrel and upright models, stick vacs and robot
How we work with your business
We can test your product using CHOICE methodologies, or with other tests by mutual agreement. For example, we can test your product alongside competitor products to see how each performs comparatively.
Whether you're looking to release a new product, or improve an existing model, our consumer-focused research will help you develop a better product for your brand and for consumers.
For this work we generally don't provide NATA-endorsed reports. As with all CHOICE Test Research reports, test results are kept confidential.
Contact CHOICE Test Research below to discuss your product.
Industry seminars
Our expert testers and content specialists regularly put together seminars to provide industry with valuable insights on how we design and conduct our tests. This includes hands-on demonstrations of selected tests.
Previous CHOICE Test Research seminars
Why are CHOICE test methods different to Standards?
At CHOICE we often test products according to the relevant Standard. But in many cases, we find that the Standard doesn't accurately reflect typical consumer usage of the product. So we design our own methods to reflect how people actually use the item. That keeps CHOICE product reviews relevant for Australian consumers.
Contact CHOICE Test Research below about our scheduled seminars, or to discuss setting up a seminar for a product that's not listed.
Raw data reports
The data that sits behind our published scores, and for competitor models that we've reviewed, is also available for purchase in report format.
We can report on your scores individually, as a group, or as a subscription that we send each time we publish new results within the categories and brands you're interested in.
Contact CHOICE Test Research below to request details and pricing.
Contact CHOICE Test Research
For more information, to request a report, or to schedule a test with us: fill out the online request form, or call +61 02 9577 3304.
We're on your side
For more than 60 years, we've been making a difference for Australian consumers. In that time, we've never taken ads or sponsorship.
Instead we're funded by members who value expert reviews and independent product testing.
With no self-interest behind our advice, you don't just buy smarter, you get the answers that you need.
You know without hesitation what's safe for you and your family.
And you'll never be alone when something goes wrong or a business treats you unfairly.
Learn more about CHOICE membership today
Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
