SmallBizResource Blog -- Customer Service

Apple Best For Tech Support: Consumer Reports

Posted by Gayle Kesten Tuesday, May 6, 2008, 10:37 AM ET

I rue the day, and I know it's coming, that something goes wrong with my laptop. An IT department is no longer a four-digit extension away, and the results of Consumer Reports' latest tech-support survey are making me nervous.

Based on 10,000 desktop and laptop computers whose owners contacted tech support between September 2006 and January 2008, Consumer Reports' study found Mac users to be most satisfied with the help they received. Apple scored 17 points ahead of second-place Lenovo and 40 points ahead of last-place HP.

Consumer Reports has long been among my must-reads when researching electronics purchases. But I didn't factor in tech support when I bought my laptop nearly a year ago. Guess its maker.

Here's the breakdown, keeping in mind a score of 80 or higher indicates "very satisfied":

Consumer Reports also weighs in on the worthiness of extended warranties, something I wrote about in my February post "Reading Between the Retail Lies"). Here's what CR says: "Our survey results and analysis suggest such plans generally aren’t good buys. We certainly don’t recommend buying a plan on the basis of its repair coverage alone. As with extended warranties for other products, our data suggest that on average, computer repairs cost about the same as a plan, which you may or may not ever need to use for repairs."

But never say never: "One circumstance in which you might consider a plan for repair reasons: if you’re buying a laptop that will be especially vulnerable physically—because, say, it will be used on the go a lot—and the plan will cover accidental damage."

In weighing out purchasing an extended warranty, CR advises:

1. Check your credit cards for extended warranty coverage; many cards double the manufacturers’ warranty period if you use them to buy a computer or other warrantied item.

2. Spend no more than about 10 percent of the purchase price of the computer for each year of extended
coverage.

Customer Service