Study: Leopard satisfaction driving "explosive" Mac sales
High levels of customer satisfaction with Apple's new Leopard operating system are spurring "explosive sales" of the company's Mac computer line, a new consumer spending survey has revealed.
The survey of 4,604 ChangeWave Alliance members, conducted January 2-8, revealed 17 percent of respondents bought an Apple notebook over the past 90 days, up 3 full percentage points from the firm's previous survey this past November.
Meanwhile, Apple desktop purchases came in at 16 percent over the same time period, up 6 percentage points, likely driven by robust demand for the Cupertino-based firm's new line of glass and aluminum-clad iMac all-in-one systems.
"The results represent an astonishing leap for Apple among consumer PC purchasers over the holidays," ChangeWave wrote in its report. "Looking at the next 90 days, a third of planned PC buyers (33 percent; up 4-pts) say they’ll purchase an Apple notebook -- a new all-time high for the electronics giant."
At the same time, 29 percent of buyers say they’ll buy an Apple desktop, matching the same all-time high percentage reported by the firm in its November study.
According to the latest report, Apple also maintained its commanding lead in customer satisfaction when compared to other major PC manufacturers, with nearly four-in-five Apple buyers (79 percent) over the past 90 days saying they are Very Satisfied with their purchase. By comparison, the Mac maker's two biggest competitors -- Dell and Hewlett-Packard -- had 59 percent and 58 percent satisfaction ratings, respectively.
"It comes as no surprise that Apple sets the standard in terms of customer satisfaction," said Tobin Smith, founder of ChangeWave Research, "but there’s a new twist on why they’re outperforming the rest of the industry -- it’s the amazing customer satisfaction rating on Apple’s new Leopard OS."
Smith said that more than four-in-five Apple buyers (81 percent) said they were Very Satisfied with Leopard, which is "an exceptionally high rating" for a new operating system. This compares to 53 percent and 51 percent for Windows XP, and just 27 percent and 15 percent, respectively, for the Microsoft Vista systems.
The high customer satisfaction in Leopard not only dwarfs its competitors, but is also having a direct impact on consumer intentions to purchase an Apple Mac, Smith added.
The study revealed that more than one-in-four consumers (26 percent) say the Leopard OS is making them more likely to buy a Mac in the future.
The survey of 4,604 ChangeWave Alliance members, conducted January 2-8, revealed 17 percent of respondents bought an Apple notebook over the past 90 days, up 3 full percentage points from the firm's previous survey this past November.
Meanwhile, Apple desktop purchases came in at 16 percent over the same time period, up 6 percentage points, likely driven by robust demand for the Cupertino-based firm's new line of glass and aluminum-clad iMac all-in-one systems.
"The results represent an astonishing leap for Apple among consumer PC purchasers over the holidays," ChangeWave wrote in its report. "Looking at the next 90 days, a third of planned PC buyers (33 percent; up 4-pts) say they’ll purchase an Apple notebook -- a new all-time high for the electronics giant."
At the same time, 29 percent of buyers say they’ll buy an Apple desktop, matching the same all-time high percentage reported by the firm in its November study.
According to the latest report, Apple also maintained its commanding lead in customer satisfaction when compared to other major PC manufacturers, with nearly four-in-five Apple buyers (79 percent) over the past 90 days saying they are Very Satisfied with their purchase. By comparison, the Mac maker's two biggest competitors -- Dell and Hewlett-Packard -- had 59 percent and 58 percent satisfaction ratings, respectively.
"It comes as no surprise that Apple sets the standard in terms of customer satisfaction," said Tobin Smith, founder of ChangeWave Research, "but there’s a new twist on why they’re outperforming the rest of the industry -- it’s the amazing customer satisfaction rating on Apple’s new Leopard OS."
Smith said that more than four-in-five Apple buyers (81 percent) said they were Very Satisfied with Leopard, which is "an exceptionally high rating" for a new operating system. This compares to 53 percent and 51 percent for Windows XP, and just 27 percent and 15 percent, respectively, for the Microsoft Vista systems.
The high customer satisfaction in Leopard not only dwarfs its competitors, but is also having a direct impact on consumer intentions to purchase an Apple Mac, Smith added.
The study revealed that more than one-in-four consumers (26 percent) say the Leopard OS is making them more likely to buy a Mac in the future.
Comments
Find that Safari has lots of https sites that it barfs on. Appears to be from an older security release but, glad i have the PC as a backup. Nice to have both...
I'd be a lot more satisfied if Apple would get off its duff and release the 10.5.2 update.
I'm looking forward to this update as well, but your post is a good reminder of the fact that the kvetching that goes in in these forums is in no way representative of the experience most users out there have with their computers.
First time buyer and I am loving this machine. Kids spend more time on photo booth than anything else but, nice to be able to have fun with it. I am really enjoying iPhoto08 and iMovie06. Like seeing all my photos and movies for the first time...
Find that Safari has lots of https sites that it barfs on. Appears to be from an older security release but, glad i have the PC as a backup. Nice to have both...
Just install Firefox as an alternate browser to deal with the MS standard centric sites.
Also, there are lots and lots of compatibility problems using programs that haven't been updated for leopard...
I'd be a lot more satisfied if Apple would get off its duff and release the 10.5.2 update.
There was a new developer build released today. No word yet on what the differences are and it's stability.
I'm thinking that 10.5.2 will come out either next week or the week after as Leopard's Time Machine needs an update to work with Time Capsule.
I'm looking forward to this update as well, but your post is a good reminder of the fact that the kvetching that goes in in these forums is in no way representative of the experience most users out there have with their computers.
True. I have been hating these forums this week. If this the way it's moving then i don't think I'll be around here next MacWorld. Effective immediately, this is my 360 day notice.
First time buyer and I am loving this machine. Kids spend more time on photo booth than anything else but, nice to be able to have fun with it. I am really enjoying iPhoto08 and iMovie06. Like seeing all my photos and movies for the first time...
Find that Safari has lots of https sites that it barfs on. Appears to be from an older security release but, glad i have the PC as a backup. Nice to have both...
Have you tried Firefox for OS X? There is also an older veriosn of IE for Mac around. It may come in handy for those sites that require IE. It's much of an issue anymore with FF's marketshare so high, but there are still some gov't sites that require it.
What sites and what exactly are the problems you are having? There may a solution. MacOSXHints.com is a great resource for getting issues resolved. Here we just tend to argue with each other.
I'm looking forward to this update as well, but your post is a good reminder of the fact that the kvetching that goes in in these forums is in no way representative of the experience most users out there have with their computers.
Not kvetching as 10.5.2 was supposed to introduce HP drivers through Apple's Software Update as adverted to by HP. To date, and since the release of Leopard I cannot properly use my HP LaserJet AIO as there are no drivers that make use of all its features. I have loaded the older HP software and it only bonks my system with anomalies when called upon to run my HP peripheral's features.
So if actually wanting to be able to use my HP LaserJet for business reasons is "kvetching" then perhaps you should take another look at matters?a matter where dollars and cents are being lost on my end. Oh the uninitiated...
Since I started with Apple's first Mac OS, I have seen many an Apple OS. Leopard still needs work (anyone who says differently is simply lying) albeit it is very promising.
I'd be a lot more satisfied if Apple would get off its duff and release the 10.5.2 update.
Right, because Apple is just sitting there spanking it, not doing any work on the .2 update. I am sure that most of us Apple users want Apple to release a buggy update with not enough testing. That would just make our day.
Seriously, we don't want this released until it's ready. I am confident they are hard at work on the update.
And yes, every single OS in the world needs work.
Find that Safari has lots of https sites that it barfs on. Appears to be from an older security release but, glad i have the PC as a backup. Nice to have both...
I've run into that problem as well.
Good alternative son the Mac are firefox (as mentioned earlier) or Camino.
Camino is similar to firefox but looks and feels like a Mac app.
Camino is a free app that can be downloaded at the Apple website.
Right, because Apple is just sitting there spanking it, not doing any work on the .2 update.
It's been a whole 63 days since 10.5.1 came out. They are obviously being lackadaisical about Leopard.
It's been a whole 63 days since 10.5.1 came out. They are obviously being lackadaisical about Leopard.
No wonder the stocks dropped. LOL.
I'd be a lot more satisfied if Apple would get off its duff and release the 10.5.2 update.
are you serious? do you not think Apple is working on it... it'll be out as soon as it's ready, relax.
Not kvetching as 10.5.2 was supposed to introduce HP drivers through Apple's Software Update as adverted to by HP. To date, and since the release of Leopard I cannot properly use my HP LaserJet AIO as there are no drivers that make use of all its features. I have loaded the older HP software and it only bonks my system with anomalies when called upon to run my HP peripheral's features.
So if actually wanting to be able to use my HP LaserJet for business reasons is "kvetching" then perhaps you should take another look at matters?a matter where dollars and cents are being lost on my end. Oh the uninitiated...
Why the heck don't you contact HP. Apple isn't responsible to find every friggin driver for every printer. Apple can't update them if HP doesn't supply them.
Perhaps you should look here and quit the crying. http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=301175 and if that isn't sufficient check out http://h41140.www4.hp.com/mac_connec...ch_special.pdf (it tells you where to go)
True. I have been hating these forums this week. If this the way it's moving then i don't think I'll be around here next MacWorld. Effective immediately, this is my 360 day notice.
Have to agree 100%. Its become very unbalanced.
Since I started with Apple's first Mac OS, I have seen many an Apple OS. Leopard still needs work (anyone who says differently is simply lying) albeit it is very promising.
Like any software, it need work but I think the issues are that the features brought outweigh the shortcomings. I've very glad they didn't delay the release further. Time Machine has already saved me twice. The speed up of Mail and searching has also increased its usefulness to me. And built-in screen sharing, including through iChat, has saved me tons of support time. So pros far outweigh cons.
Again, improvement and fixes are needed but.....
What sites and what exactly are the problems you are having?
My internal corporate site crashes Safari reliably; I think it has something to do with the security keys. Firefox works mostly, though. We use some Cisco meeting software that a) Doesn't like Safari and b) When using Firefox says to use Safari 1.2 or greater.
RE: The stock price.
I _really_ hope random postings to a fanboi web forum don't really influence the price of Apple stock. That seems like a serious fairy tale delusion.
- Jasen.
P.S. I got burned (a little) by the sudden drop after the keynote. I'm holding on hoping for a big bump when the earnings report comes out.
My internal corporate site crashes Safari reliably; I think it has something to do with the security keys. Firefox works mostly, though. We use some Cisco meeting software that a) Doesn't like Safari and b) When using Firefox says to use Safari 1.2 or greater.
I had periodic Safari crashes. Then I maxxed out my RAM for $80 at newegg.com and Safari crashes occur very infrequently now. There are a few offers that are similar, but here's the one that I used:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231135
Find that Safari has lots of https sites that it barfs on. Appears to be from an older security release but, glad i have the PC as a backup. Nice to have both...
polar315,
The problem is likely caused by a mismatch between the security level of the website (older) and the what the browser expects (newer).
I had this problem with Firefox and a the control panel at one of my webhosting companies.
For example, I got this message in Firefox "Firefox cannot connect securely because the site uses an older insecure version of the SSL protocol". That is because the default setting in Firefox is to NOT support insecurity. The problem and solution are described at http://tinyurl.com/2ooh2e in the Firefox knowledgebase. With Firefox I had to manually adjust my browser settings to accept the older protocol.
My guess is that Safari has the same behavior. The browser developers don't want to support protocols that can be exploited. And, webmasters were supposed to "get with it" and upgrade to the newer protocols.
What I don't know how to do is change Safari's behavior as I can with Firefox. I suspect that you cannot change Safari as Apple tries to make things easy and not complicated.
,dave
Not kvetching as 10.5.2 was supposed to introduce HP drivers through Apple's Software Update as adverted to by HP. To date, and since the release of Leopard I cannot properly use my HP LaserJet AIO as there are no drivers that make use of all its features. I have loaded the older HP software and it only bonks my system with anomalies when called upon to run my HP peripheral's features.
So if actually wanting to be able to use my HP LaserJet for business reasons is "kvetching" then perhaps you should take another look at matters—a matter where dollars and cents are being lost on my end. Oh the uninitiated...
Funny, I have no problem with mine. What model do you have? I have an older CLJ 8500N, and except for more options with Leopard in the printer driver than I had before, there's nothing amiss.
I had periodic Safari crashes. Then I maxxed out my RAM for $80 at newegg.com and Safari crashes occur very infrequently now. There are a few offers that are similar, but here's the one that I used:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231135
There were Safari crashes with the first beta of the new Adobe Flash plug-in, but they fixed that a while ago.
there is sometimes a crash of Safari when using Adobe Acrobat Professional CS3. But, otherwise, I've found this to be the most stable version (3.0.4) yet.