What is The Halo Effect?
A positive experience with one product makes you assume everything else from the same brand is equally good, even without evidence.
Where it comes from
Edward Thorndike (1920)
How it hooks you
Exploits trait generalization: positive feelings about one product quietly transfer to the entire brand.
What the research shows
Marketing research shows a strong flagship product lifts loyalty and evaluations across a brand's whole lineup.
Source: Thorndike, 'A Constant Error in Psychological Ratings' (1920)
How to resist it
Evaluate every product purely on its own merits. Look closely at its actual features and price tag as if it didn't have a logo attached to it.