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Apple Dominates Consumer Reports' Tech Support Ratings

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Apr 12, 2001
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Consumer Reports yesterday announced the release of new ratings of computer tech support ratings for both laptops and desktop, and while the full details are restricted to subscribers, CNET reveals that Apple dominated the rankings. Not only did Apple top both the overall laptop and desktop categories, but also took top honors in every single sub-category, including problem resolution, phone wait times, phone staff performance, and online support.
For laptop computers, Apple scored 86 out of a possible 100. That's 23 points above its nearest competitor, Lenovo, which scored a 63. In fact, Apple scored the highest in each of the Consumer Reports categories.
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Apple saw even better performance in its desktop computers, grabbing a score of 87 and easily out-distancing second-place Dell, which earned a score of only 55. Also of note is Acer, which had by far the lowest tech support scores in the ratings even as it has surged past Apple in U.S. market share by riding the wave of netbook popularity in recent years.

Apple has traditionally performed very well in Consumer Reports' surveys, and last year the company's notebooks even sweeped the magazine's recommendations.

Article Link: Apple Dominates Consumer Reports' Tech Support Ratings
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2010/03/11/apple-dominates-consumer-reports-tech-support-ratings/
I love apple service. White Americans :)
That may sound racist and could be interpreted as such but you know what, I hate talking with dell or 99% of other companies and I can't even understand them... it's very irritating.
 
This is one of the reasons I have stuck with Apple over the years. I don't dread having to call customer service, because I know they will actually help me. Heck, they even talked my 70 year old father through a diagnoisis once.
 
yet no one seems to consider this when complaining about the "apple tax"... ill gladly pay the tax for the superior service and support.
 
All Apple needs now is full gaming support + lower price tag and they will def dominate worldwide. =)
 
wdaleherring said:
I love apple service. White Americans :)
That may sound racist and could be interpreted as such but you know what, I hate talking with dell or 99% of other companies and I can't even understand them... it's very irritating.
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That is racist. Why can't you just say american? Andrea Jung is on Apple's board of directors. I bet that irks you huh.
 
Yeah, well, the principle of "you get what you pay for" seems to be alive and well in other industries (cars, homes, televisions, etc.), but for some reason people don't like to see the computer market this way. For them it's "how cheap can I go?" Evidently cheap enough to hate the customer service they get.

Go with Apple. You get a quality machine, and you get quality service. All the anecdotal evidence thrown around here by the outliers who wind up with a bad machine or bad service do not negate the real-world results as seen in this survey. You get what you pay for.
 
Apple replaced my out of warranty mid '07 SR MBP 2.4 with a brand new BTO 2.8 Unibody a couple months ago, because of various hardware issues...most companies won't even talk to you out of warranty. I'd say their customer service is unmatched in any market.
 
wdaleherring said:
I love apple service. White Americans :)
That may sound racist and could be interpreted as such but you know what, I hate talking with dell or 99% of other companies and I can't even understand them... it's very irritating.
Click to expand...

Not all Americans who can speak perfect english are just all white...
 
I'm glad to see Apple receiving proper attention for the quality of their tech support/customer service, I've had to deal with them a couple times for repairs and have never had such a positive experience with any other companies in the past (one of the main reasons I'm such a fan of their computers)... kudos to Apple for a job well done.

by the way, on a side note-
MacRumors said:
Apple has traditionally performed very well in Consumer Reports' surveys, and last year the company's notebooks even sweeped the magazine's recommendations.
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wouldn't the past tense of "sweep" be "swept"?
 
For anyone who cares, if you go to Dell's support website and do an online chat with tech support you will have a much, much better experience. You don't have to worry about the accent problem and you don't have to sit on hold for hours (just minimize the window and it will popup when you finally get someone on the other end). I have done this several times for myself and friends during football games and never had a bad experience. I'm not trying to start an argument, just trying to give PC people some helpful information.
 
What does it for me in terms of Apple's customer service is that I can drive to my choice of two Apple stores, both within 40 minutes, to get my laptop serviced.

And I have had to make that trip A LOT in the last three years.

BUT, still better than if I had to ship my computer off to who knows where whenever I have a problem. As a techie, I find it pretty difficult to adequately describe my issues over the phone, not to mention I despise talking on the phone. I much prefer talking to someone about the problem in person. Though, some of those Geniuses are overly smug. In fact I make a point of driving to the Apple Store that is 10 minutes further to avoid the guy I seem to ALWAYS get in Schaumburg.
 
I've always had good experiences taking in my Macs for repair. Always nice & helpful

One thing I'd like to know, though: how does Apple compare to other companies in terms of percentage of customers needing to go in for repairs? Service may be good, but what happens if you keep having to take in your Mac, iPod or whatever in for repair?

ltcol266845 said:
In fact I make a point of driving to the Apple Store that is 10 minutes further to avoid the guy I seem to ALWAYS get in Schaumburg.
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Which one do you go to? I usually go to the one in Oak Brook, but it's currently closed for remodeling. While it's closed, I've been going to the one in Naperville. Though one time I was there, I was talking to one Genius who had worked at the Oak Brook Store with my boss.
 
well with the way apple's quality control has been going lately they better have good customer support :rolleyes:
 
Really? I had a negative experience with support. I had an issue with authorizing itunes accounts. They sent me to email support, and I had to send three emails to get my problem solved, and the first two responses were canned responses vaguely related to my issue that showed clearly that my help had not read the emails I had written that thoroughly described my issue and the steps I had already taken to resolve it.

Well, I am glad that they have pleased some people.
 
saturniphone said:
For anyone who cares, if you go to Dell's support website and do an online chat with tech support you will have a much, much better experience. You don't have to worry about the accent problem and you don't have to sit on hold for hours (just minimize the window and it will popup when you finally get someone on the other end). I have done this several times for myself and friends during football games and never had a bad experience. I'm not trying to start an argument, just trying to give PC people some helpful information.
Click to expand...

The online chat systems are seriously better for most companies. I'm English, and Americans have a tough time with my accent, let alone Indian call center folk. Being able to type my question helps both of us.
 
brendu said:
yet no one seems to consider this when complaining about the "apple tax"... ill gladly pay the tax for the superior service and support.
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Amen.

...although I do recall their was a brief moment in which Apple utilized call/help centers in India. In 2007 I once phoned for an issue on a Sunday afternoon, only to be dealt with an individual who kept repeating my questions. "So if I understand correctly, you need...", after about 20 minutes of this (15 of which was for repetition and proper diction), I simply asked to speak with a manager, and was transferred to a North American tech support center. Oh well.
 
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