Samsung bests Apple in latest J.D. Power tablet customer satisfaction survey

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J.D. Power and Associates is an American-based marketing information services firm that’s highly regarded for its research on customer satisfaction. Apple loves to quote their surveys, and does so at media events and on earnings calls.

But this is one report Tim Cook and company are probably not going to be mentioning. In J.D. Power’s latest tablet customer satisfaction survey, Apple was bested by Samsung on overall satisfaction and in particular areas like device cost…

Here’s the breakdown (via MacRumors):

jdpowertabletAnd additional context from the press release:

“Whether consumers prefer the online channel for competitive pricing compared with the tactile retail store experience, effectively matching owner needs with the appropriate tablet model during the purchase process goes a long way in positively influencing overall satisfaction,” said Kirk Parsons, senior director of telecommunications services at J.D. Power.

The 2013 U.S. Tablet Satisfaction Study–Volume 2 is based on experiences evaluated by 3,375 tablet owners who have owned their current device for less than one year. The study was fielded between March and August 2013. The study measures satisfaction across five key factors (in order of importance): performance (26%); ease of operation (22%); styling and design (19%); features (17%); and cost (16%).”

Apple finished just 2 points behind Samsung with a score of 833, faring unsurprisingly well in categories like ease of operation and performance. Likewise, it’s not surprising to see that Samsung’s tablet offerings received high scores in cost.

Cost is a major driving factor for purchases in all industries, not just consumer electronics. And at the time this survey was taken, Apple’s cheapest tablet was the iPad mini, which started at $329. Samsung’s tablet line, however, starts at $169.

Still, the fact of the matter is Apple got beat, and it’ll be interesting to see what the numbers look like in 6 months. The company just unveiled a redesigned iPad Air, an iPad mini with Retina display, and it dropped the entry-level price to $299.

What do you make of all of this?