PC Magazine - Apple tops reader survey, again

Written by Philip Roy | 25 August 2005
Posted in International

In the 18th Annual Reader Satisfaction Survey conducted by PC Magazine it's not surprising to read "As usual, Apple receives the highest ratings for overall satisfaction with both desktops and notebooks, and it is a Readers' Choice award recipient."

PC Magazine surveys often highlight consistently impressive results from Apple in terms of their products and support. It's great to see such an non-Mac-centric website acknowledging the feedback from its users and the fact that so many Mac users are very happy indeed.

The survey was completed by 14,000 PC Magazine readers, who described their experiences with desktops, notebooks, and printers....rating products used in the home and at work. Survey feedback detailed not only the reliability of these products (how well they hold up over time) but also the quality of the support and repair services provided by manufacturers.

However, it's not all a bed of roses for the Mac. PC Magazine comments about the issues with the first generation iMac G5's, which Apple acknowledged recently with the iMac G5 Repair Extension Program for Video and Power Issues...
http://www.apple.com/au/support/imac/repairextensionprogram/
...and that Apple walks a thin line in the States, offering perhaps the stingiest support with only only 90 days of free support and breakdown support for only a year. Apple also fails in the States to offer on-site service unlike competitors.

That said, PC Magazine even admit they had to reshape the way they evaluated reader's feedback in some category simply because the impressive Apple feedback appeared to destroy the relevance of any other user's comments....

"For the first time, we've removed Apple from the mix when calculating these relative weightings. Whether because Apple's products are truly so much better than everyone else's or because Apple's customers are so passionate about their products, the company scores so high that it's like the class genius blowing the curve."

More details can be found at....
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1851354,00.asp
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1851295,00.asp