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Rating: 
Summary: A good book
Review: Although it is a little harder than the actual test, this book is worth every penny I spent on it. It provides a vivid environment for you to get familar with the real test. And since the higher bar of this book, you will find the real test is easier to go through.
Rating: 
Summary: An excellent tool for Gmat preparation
Review: I recently took the Gmat and the Kaplan book/ CD package was my main preparation tool. I found the book to be outstanding. The advice and test taking techniques are superb. The CD is a little cheesy, but it's good for adapting to the computer format. I agree that the Kaplan problems are much harder than the actual test. I scored a 570 on the Kaplan full length test, and a 700 on the real thing. The whole point is to do well on the real test, and the Kaplan package was the main reason I did just that. I also highly recommend getting the Official Guide to the Gmat, which includes real test questions that have been retired. The strategies and question explantations are far inferior to Kaplan's, but it gives you plenty of practice problems, which is important. If you're rusty on math (like I was), Arco's Gmat - Gre math review is excellent, although it explains the "long route" approach to most problems. The Kaplan package tells you how to take shortcuts, which is essential on the test. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: An important element for GMAT review
Review: I scored in the 700s on the big test, and relied on 3 resources: Kaplan GMAT CD ROM, A+ Notes for Algebra by Rong Yang and the Official Guide by ETS (DO NOT GET THE FLAWED SOFTWARE -- BUY THE ETS BOOK). My focus area was math, having not taken a math class in 8 years, but those 3 resources helped me get me where I wanted to be. Be forewarned, the Kaplan CD math questions will game you. The questions on the real test are more straightforward, and don't try to trick you with units as often as Kaplan does. So don't be discouraged if you score a 570 on a Kaplan practice test with poor Math scores, you can probably add 100 points. But that's my experience -- let the poor score scare you into more study! I was probably ready for the verbal portion without much review. If your weakness is Math, as mine was, those three resources worked for me. I found Kaplan's timed tests and quizzes to be very helpful. But study you must, young Jedi.
Rating:
Summary: tough diags!!
Review: Im a native Canadian GMAT-TOEFL test prep consultant in Santiago, CHILE. I use a variety of techniques and materials, but i recommend this book especially for the DIAGS, which are tough. my email: jamesmex@hotmail.com
Rating:
Summary: The CD-ROM is definitely worth it.
Review: Kaplan's GMAT CAT is definitely one of its kind. None comes close to be this hard and it is worth every penny. There are three sets of practice CAT on the CD-ROM. I took each set twice. It preps me up for the real CAT. And in the end, I got the score of 700. I strongly recommend this product to anyone serious. It's much harder but it prepares you for the real thing.
Rating:
Summary: Overall, a very good product.
Review: Overall, Kaplan has put together a very good product for the GMAT test. Although i did not find many of the test taking techniques in the book useful (as many of them were common sense anyway), I found the CD rom to be very good. The CD rom contains not only a number of computer adaptive tests, but also a multi-media learning course. In relation to whether the Kaplan CAT questions are representative of those in the real test, my comments are as follows: Maths: Kaplan questions are arguably harder and slightly different to those in the real GMAT. Sentence correction: Kaplan's are slightly easier. Reading comprehension: Kaplan's seem to be representative. Note, however, some passages in real GMAT may be longer than Kaplan's. Critical reasoning: Kaplan's are generally representative. Again, a very good product overall. I would argue that the Kaplan book is the best non-official GMAT preparatory material available in a book store.
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Way to Prepare for the GMAT
Review: The book and CD-ROM goes step by step through all the different types of verbal and math problems and points out things to look for. The practice tests in the book and on the CD-ROM helped me out a lot. They are definitely harder than the questions on the actual test - at least for the math section. The tests on the CD-ROM do a good job preparing you for the format of the CAT test. Overall this book definitely was a great tool to have and I recommend it to everyone.
Rating:
Summary: Worth it.
Review: The Kaplan GMAT book/cd was worth the money I paid for it. I started with it in June and took all of the practice tests. Most of the techniques suggested in the book were common sense, but I still found the reinforcement and repetition helpful. It also helped build my 4-hour test endurance. Like all the other reviewers stated, the full-length Kaplan tests were unrealistically difficult, so don't get discouraged. My scores on Kaplan's full-length CATs were 590, 600, & 580. In August, I began using the ETS Official Guide along with their Powerprep software. I was told that they are the most accurate predictor of your eventual test-day score. This was indeed the case. I got a 710 & 730 on the Powerprep tests and then took the GMAT on Sep 13 and scored a 740. My advice: start with Kaplan, don't worry about your low-ball Kaplan scores, then move to the Official materials, get a fair idea of your scoring ability there, rest and relax, then tear it up on test day. You'll surprise yourself. Good luck!
Rating: 
Summary: Beware Before Purchase
Review: The study guide was excellent. It gives hints on finding short cuts to answers. It focuses on what you need to know. The only problem is with the CD rom. It didn't install successfully and Kaplan offered no support. If you go to the Kaplan web site read the FAQ ... you'll see many on the FAQs addresses GENERAL PROTECTION FAULTS and SYSTEM CRASHES. Kaplan knows the software is unrealiable... purchase the study guide without the CD. Use another software for simulated GMAT CAT exams.
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