Tests by consumer advocate Choice have proven what everyone always suspected: spending hundreds of dollars on high-end home theatre cables is a waste of money.

Panel tests by the non-profit company found that, although retailers try to push customers into buying high-margin cables for their digital TVs and DVD players costing upwards of $300, no-frills options costing $40-$60 are just as good.

It comes after this website reported that Australians were being duped into spending hundreds of dollars on so-called "high-performance" HDMI cables when buying new home entertainment equipment.