The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) released a report, Tuesday, showing that Apple still leads the pack of mobile phone manufacturers in terms of customer satisfaction but Samsung, Nokia, and Motorola are inching closer. While Apple continues to reign with an 81 percent rating, customer satisfaction for the brand dropped two percent compared to its rating in 2012.
The ASCI report noted that while the iPhone 5 sold well, it was not able to push the overall customer satisfaction of the brand. The benchmark for the phones of the Cupertino-based technology firm is lower than that of its computer and tablet business, and was rated 86 percent last year.
Korean gadget manufacturer Samsung, in comparison, benefited from the mid-year roll out of its Galaxy S3 that boasts a bigger display and excellent features. The latest ASCI index shows a 7 percent jump of its rating to 76, the biggest improvement for any smartphone manufacturer.
Samsung Eletronics ranked the same as the industry average and the same as Finnish company Nokia and only a point behind Motorola Mobility that took second. Motorola's ranking went up by 5 percent to 77.
Looking at the rest of the field, HTC and LG saw a drop in customer satisfaction with 72 and 71 percent respectively. HTC posted a 4 percent decrease while LG fell by 5 percent.
BlackBerry is at the bottom of the category with 69 percent, same as its 2012 customer satisfaction rating.
The ASCI report also tabulated the satisfaction rating of customers for TV, Internet, and wireless phone services.
The wireless telephone service category went up by 2.9 percent to 72 for this year's index. This matched the 10-year high of the industry. Verizon Wireless led the group with a score of 73, overtaking Sprint that was pegged at 71. AT&T climbed a notch to 70. T-Mobile dropped to 68 percent.
"It remains to be seen whether T-Mobile's recent move to become the first national wireless carrier to forgo contracts, augmented by the company's just-completed acquisition of MetroPCS, can make things better," the report explained.
Subscription TV services reflected a better appreciation of customers for satellite and cable TV posting a three percent improvement to 68 percent. The internet services category has an industry rating of 71 percent.
The ACSI index is a result of a survey of 70,000 people in the United States about their satisfaction for companies, industries, services and economic sectors.
