We did research based on what consumer reports recommended and what we were looking for. If you don't already have one, I'd highly recommend a subscription to the online version. It's $25 a year (I think) and covers everything from toaster ovens to cameras to baby products and has a wide range of informational articles as well. It's been a lifesaver for us.
What I like most is that it offers "quick picks" that lets you know the pros and cons, pricing and why it's a quick pick. I think when I did my digital camera research, they had tested something like 50 cameras (?) I was able to look down the columns of attributes offered for each model and immediately eliminate those that didn't offer want I wanted. Then price was the next factor. Anything over $xx was scratched. From there, it was easy to choose based on the ratings of the remaining.
Most recently, we had been looking at flat screen tvs and my hubby was at the store one day and happened across a floor model that we hadn't considered. I looked it up while he was there and found it was rated higher than the model we were initially considering and that the price was lower because it was a floor model. We spent about $200 less than what we were expecting to spend, and got a tv that was originally priced 2x higher than the one we were planning to purchase.
Great resource to have!!