14 DAY TRIAL // When shopping for a new laptop or display, certain matters need to be taken into consideration, as the looks, the feel and the performance of the device. Almost never does a common, inexperienced user think about the support available for the newly purchased item.
The American magazine Consumers Report conducted this past January a survey on over 7,000 desktop and laptop owners and also its subscribers regarding the winners and losers on the manufacturers’ market. The respondents thought over the ability of the manufacturers to solve their problems regarding features like the communicational abilities and knowledge of phone support staff, how long it was that they were put on hold and, the most important one, the quality of the company’s support.
The report on ConsumersReport.org addressed an experiment. It placed together some computer labels made by the same company (HP and Compaq, for example) and observed that one out of six manufacturers reached the top marks across the board. In contrast, another manufacturer received alarmingly low scores in the overall satisfaction among respondents. Apple, on the other hand, scored 86 out of a possible 100 for laptops, 23 points higher than Lenovo, which scored 63. As for desktops, Apple scores 87, which compares to Dell’s second-place ranking with a score of 55, according to the ConsumersReport survey.
Jobs’ company has also been chosen by the Business Week magazine as one of the most responsible manufacturers regarding the customer support, in the annual awards section. Apple received justly an A+ in both the quality of the staff at its retail stores, and the efficiency of the stores’ service.
The ConsumerReport’s reference on how the survey is made relates, “Surveys allow us to capture real-world consumer experiences. When we ask consumers to share their experiences, we discover such things as how well a product held up over time, how often it had to be repaired and at what cost. To provide that perspective, the Research Center surveys well over one million people each year about the products and services they buy and use including cars, electronics, appliances, home and garden supplies, financial services and health care. Our research calendar includes more than 100 topics each year.”