Microsoft Surface Thrashed Apple iPad In Recent Consumer Satisfaction Report

For years, Apple has been at the top of the rankings when it comes to consumer satisfaction in practically every survey and report. In recent years, however, the Cupertino company has been in steep decline. Few things prove this better than the most recent J.D. Power Tablet Satisfaction report, where Microsoft’s Surface tablets beat out the iPad for the first time.

There were several considerations that pertained to judging the tablets in the recent J.D. report, CNBC notes. This included availability, the applications that were pre-installed, internet connectivity, and the number of accessories that were officially released by the company.

On top of those categories, the preferences of customers were taken into account as well, including the design of the tablets, the material quality, and its size. In the past, Apple handily took the award for all considerations. This time, Microsoft beat its rival by 6 points in the total scoreboard, according to Jeff Conklin, the vice-president of J.D. Power’s service industries.

"The Microsoft Surface platform has expanded what tablets can do, and it sets the bar for customer satisfaction," Conklin said in a press release. "These tablet devices are just as capable as many laptops, yet they can still function as standard tablets. This versatility is central to their appeal and success."

The Surface tablets beating out the iPad on design and style is particularly notable, as CNET points out, due to how well ahead of the game Apple has been with its products in this arena. Of course, the data was taken from the response of just 2,238 tablet owners in the US, but the results are quite telling, nonetheless.

Much of this loss can be attributed to Apple’s recent complacency in designing and manufacturing its products. The latest iteration of its iPad line-up was released quite late in the year and the reception of the MacBook Pro is a good indication of just how far off course the company has drifted.