text: do expensive goods have higher quality? is there any contradiction?  16/55-22 there are only two things that make anything manufactured of high quality or low quality.       first is the material used. top quality material will make a better product than low quality. next is the workmanship that goes into its manufacture.       price, which usually has little to do with quality is determined by the pricing policy of the manufacturer and the amount of advertising that goes into its selling.       a well known brand name is no guarantee of quality. it is a guarantee that the company has poured gobs of money into making itself known.       learn to judge material. know what is best , and why it is best. examine the workmanship, and learn the best from pretty good, from passable, or poor.       if you buy by label, you're not necessarily getting your money's worth.