Apple trumps Windows PC makers in customer experience study

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Apple's reputation has been polished with a new customer experience study from Forrester Research that shows happiness and overall satisfaction with Macs being much higher than for several major Windows PC builders.



A Customer Experience Index report from Forrester Research came to the conclusion after studying almost 4,600 computer users' experiences from 2008 and asking them to score the ease of use of their computers, how enjoyable the experience is and whether or not the systems fulfill their owners' needs.



Apple's overall score reached 80 and was not only enough to give it the lead but also leave it as the only company to earn a "good" ranking in Forrester's view. Every other manufacturer in the list scored significantly lower, with Acer's American label Gateway being closest with a score of just 66; the standing is only "okay" in the research group's chart.



Every other major vendor in the chart fared worse. HP and its budget brand, Compaq, were lumped into the "poor" category with near-identical scores of 64 and 63. Dell, once considered a baseline for PC quality, was ranked just 58.



The spread is that much more evident when comparing only the more subjective qualities of ease of use and happiness. In his personal blog, the report's chief architect Bruce Temkin explains that Apple's lead only widened when focused on these two criteria: although its overall lead was 14 percent, it garnered a 17 percent edge in terms of ease of use and 15 percent for contentment with respective systems. For Dell, this last category was humbling as the Texas-based PC builder scored just 47 -- enough to give it the "very poor" label in that section.



Exactly why Apple is above the fray isn't the focus of the research, though the Cupertino, Calif.-based company has regularly skewed its Mac lineup towards the premium end of the market and, accordingly, can use faster or higher-quality parts that improve the perceived experience.



Whatever the case, the study can't come at a worse time for Microsoft, which has gone to great expense to persuade the public that choice and price in Windows PCs trump Apple's higher-cost but focused lineup. Where Microsoft maintains that Mac owners are simply buying the logo, Forrester suggests they're buying a better overall experience; where it paid off a consultant to manipulate cost differences and claim Mac users pay more for less, the Customer Experience Index suggests that any savings from the Windows PCs may be countered by extra frustrations stemming from hardware or software.



Apple hasn't responded to Forrester's study, but it doesn't necessarily have to. Its response to the Microsoft ads has mirrored its results in the Index and asserted that many cheaper PCs represent a false economy if they turn out to lack important features.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 111
    lamewinglamewing Posts: 742member
    I would agree 100% as my experiences with Apple and OSX have been great.



    EXCEPT (there is always something, right?)...

    I use a thinkpad X61 tablet with Vista Home Premium when I wish to ink. When do I ink? Whenever I am writing in Japanese as it give me much practice writing kanji. Unfortunately, OSX's handwriting recognition is a decade behind Vista (and soon Windows 7).



    Come on Apple, when will we see true handwriting recognition (in multiple languages) on OSX?

    Joey
  • Reply 2 of 111
    nasseraenasserae Posts: 3,167member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by lamewing View Post


    Come on Apple, when will we see true handwriting recognition (in multiple languages) on OSX?

    Joey



    Maybe when they release a tablet because (business wise) it doesn't make sense to invest heavily in handwriting recognition when you don't make the hardware for it. I know there are third party input devices and tablets (ModBook) put we all know Apple don't like to work for third party.

    I agree with you though. Microsoft handwriting recognition as well as voice recognition are excellent.
  • Reply 3 of 111
    wingswings Posts: 261member
    "...vice president at Forrester, said the PC industry indeed bombed in the survey, but the low ratings were mostly driven by consumers? views about Microsoft?s Windows."



    That's about all a wise shopper should need to know.
  • Reply 4 of 111
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,757member
    No surprise here.



    Microsoft is facing a problem (which they have always faced), given that they are trying to compete against a vendor who uses the vertically integrated model rather than the horizontal model which Microsoft and the PC market uses. The result is that you have a poorly-integrated approach to marketing, hardware and software design where the experience is as much dictated by the hardware vendor as the quality of the operating system - both of which are developed by two separate companies with different goals over all in regard to their respective strategies.



    By the way, someone should post this article on Neowin.net. Should be fun.
  • Reply 5 of 111
    awmawmawmawm Posts: 67member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Wings View Post


    "...vice president at Forrester, said the PC industry indeed bombed in the survey, but the low ratings were mostly driven by consumers? views about Microsoft?s Windows."



    That's about all a wise shopper should need to know.



    I always bought high quality hardware (IBM/Lenovo Thinkpads and Sony VAIOs) but the machines were just too frustrating to use - all the great hardware went to waste due to an incapable operating system called Vista which crippled my machines within a few months. Everyone who is a heavy user of Vista machines faces the same problems. Hence, these ratings come as no surprise but are not really fair towards the PC manufacturers - they have no control over Vista.
  • Reply 6 of 111
    xsamplexxsamplex Posts: 214member
    I have work to do. Why should I care about this? Apple users are happy? I have an Apple too, but so what?



    Apple fanz are really a bunch of ball washers sometimes. Maybe it's an inferiority complex or something - the obsession over whether a product you happen to buy is successful. And Apple repays you how exactly?



    This site should focus on technical news. I don't care if Apple is getting rich. And I sure ain't rooting for them to become rich at my expense.
  • Reply 7 of 111
    floccusfloccus Posts: 138member
    Could these results also be a result of the different demographics between Mac and Windows users? Mac users who are willing to pay more are also more likely to be better educated and computer literate than the standard Windows user who is simply buying on price. I know in my circle of friends and co-workers, those who focus only on the price of the computer are more likely to also know significantly less about how Windows and the hardware in general works. This means they build up super high expectations only too see them crushed and come running to me to fix issues that are actually quite simple but beyond their scope of knowledge.



    Just throwing it out there...
  • Reply 8 of 111
    floccusfloccus Posts: 138member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by xSamplex View Post


    I don't care if Apple is getting rich. And I sure ain't rooting for them to become rich at my expense.



    Guess you never heard of a thing called stock. Go AAPL!
  • Reply 9 of 111
    addaboxaddabox Posts: 12,665member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by xSamplex View Post


    I have work to do. Why should I care about this? Apple users are happy? I have an Apple too, but so what?



    Apple fanz are really a bunch of ball washers sometimes. Maybe it's an inferiority complex or something - the obsession over whether a product you happen to buy is successful. And Apple repays you how exactly?



    This site should focus on technical news. I don't care if Apple is getting rich. And I sure ain't rooting for them to become rich at my expense.



    If you have work to do and you don't care, why in the world are you posting about it?
  • Reply 10 of 111
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,757member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by xSamplex View Post


    I have work to do. Why should I care about this? Apple users are happy? I have an Apple too, but so what?



    Apple fanz are really a bunch of ball washers sometimes. Maybe it's an inferiority complex or something - the obsession over whether a product you happen to buy is successful. And Apple repays you how exactly?



    This site should focus on technical news. I don't care if Apple is getting rich. And I sure ain't rooting for them to become rich at my expense.



    A successful product (that we want, and keep wanting) ensures more of the same for us to use in the future. All of this points to a healthy Apple, which is what we want. Otherwise, what's the alternative? Windows. Something we definitely, unequivocally, want to avoid like the plague, because it's a third-rate product that provides a third-rate experience.
  • Reply 11 of 111
    awmawmawmawm Posts: 67member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by floccus View Post


    Could these results also be a result of the different demographics between Mac and Windows users? Mac users who are willing to pay more are also more likely to be better educated and computer literate than the standard Windows user who is simply buying on price. I know in my circle of friends and co-workers, those who focus only on the price of the computer are more likely to also know significantly less about how Windows and the hardware in general works. This means they build up super high expectations only too see them crushed and come running to me to fix issues that are actually quite simple but beyond their scope of knowledge.



    Just throwing it out there...



    Super high expectations? Really? I travel a lot and going on and off sleep mode without a hitch is very important to me. Can you fix Vista that it actually wakes up from sleep every single time and let's you work within 5 seconds (and without closing the various programs you are working with...) ? It works flawlessly with OS X - why should I not be allowed to expect the same from Vista?
  • Reply 12 of 111
    mark2005mark2005 Posts: 1,158member
    Ballmer probably sees the results of the survey as providing justification for why Microsoft should be making its own computers. "Our hardware partners suck!!!"



    Windows fanboys probably think the same thing. They'll be claiming Temkin has no basis for pointing the finger at Microsoft. "We didn't make the hardware or provide support!"
  • Reply 13 of 111
    goochergoocher Posts: 92member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by xSamplex View Post


    I have work to do. Why should I care about this? Apple users are happy? I have an Apple too, but so what?



    Apple fanz are really a bunch of ball washers sometimes. Maybe it's an inferiority complex or something - the obsession over whether a product you happen to buy is successful. And Apple repays you how exactly?



    This site should focus on technical news. I don't care if Apple is getting rich. And I sure ain't rooting for them to become rich at my expense.



    C'mon, admit it. You're out trolling the blogs tonight, and couldn't resist. You have an Apple? An Apple what? iPod? You offered absolutely nothing in your troll-tastic response to this article. A little analysis -- something, anything -- would have sufficed. Instead, trollish drivel.



    I switched from primarily Windows to primarily OS X when I bought a MacBook at the end of 2006. I followed with a MacBook Pro at the beginning of 2007. I haven't used a Windows box at home in a long time, though I use Windows workstations at work every day. There's no doubt that the OS X/Mac experience is more pleasant, fewer headaches, and just all around better. Even the feel of this keyboard is nicer. It's all the little things that add up to an intuitive, pleasant experience, including the great software that comes on every Mac (or open source, like awesome OpenOffice).
  • Reply 14 of 111
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by awmawm View Post


    I always bought high quality hardware (IBM/Lenovo Thinkpads and Sony VAIOs) but the machines were just too frustrating to use - all the great hardware went to waste due to an incapable operating system called Vista which crippled my machines within a few months. Everyone who is a heavy user of Vista machines faces the same problems. Hence, these ratings come as no surprise but are not really fair towards the PC manufacturers - they have no control over Vista.



    Now that sounds reasonable.
  • Reply 15 of 111
    enzosenzos Posts: 344member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by xSamplex View Post


    I have work to do. Why should I care about this? Apple users are happy? I have an Apple too, but so what?



    Apple fanz are really a bunch of ball washers sometimes. Maybe it's an inferiority complex or something - the obsession over whether a product you happen to buy is successful. And Apple repays you how exactly?



    This site should focus on technical news. I don't care if Apple is getting rich. And I sure ain't rooting for them to become rich at my expense.



    This is a fan-zine. It's called "AppleInsider" [the hint's in the first word]. People here are Apple fans: a person who has a strong interest in or admiration for a particular etc.



    If you're not a fan, what's the point of reading articles such as this? Get over yourself!



    -Enz
  • Reply 16 of 111
    I guess maybe because many people just recently bought a new Acer netbook for cheap and they haven't had a chance for it to break down. Acer is one company I will never, ever buy another product from. Extremely poor construction--the equivalent of a plastic covered turd. I don't know maybe in buying Gateway that helped with their quality and customer service, but I'm highly skeptical.
  • Reply 17 of 111
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by xSamplex View Post


    I have work to do. Why should I care about this? Apple users are happy? I have an Apple too, but so what?



    Apple fanz are really a bunch of ball washers sometimes. Maybe it's an inferiority complex or something - the obsession over whether a product you happen to buy is successful. And Apple repays you how exactly?



    This site should focus on technical news. I don't care if Apple is getting rich. And I sure ain't rooting for them to become rich at my expense.



    I always wash my balls! Sometimes though my girlfriend washes them and they get really clean!
  • Reply 18 of 111
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by xSamplex View Post


    I have work to do. Why should I care about this? Apple users are happy? I have an Apple too, but so what?



    Apple fanz are really a bunch of ball washers sometimes. Maybe it's an inferiority complex or something - the obsession over whether a product you happen to buy is successful. And Apple repays you how exactly?



    This site should focus on technical news. I don't care if Apple is getting rich. And I sure ain't rooting for them to become rich at my expense.



    You know I am a a ball washer. Frequently I might add. There is nothing worse than dirty, stinky, sticky balls.



    We're talking about golf, right?



    Now my Dongle--well that's a whole other story.....
  • Reply 19 of 111
    adjeiadjei Posts: 738member
    Wonderful time for this to come out, Apple should be using this in their ads, some other companies think we should just be buying products because they are cheap.
  • Reply 20 of 111
    xSamplex is right! This is AppleInsider! Stop talking about Apple!
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