Apple, Amazon Lead Tablet Satisfaction

Entertainment Close-Up

September 17, 2012

Tablets are transforming the way content is consumed and challenging the usage patterns for personal computers, according to the 2012 U.S. Tablet Satisfaction Study released by J.D. Power and Associates.

The inaugural study finds that tablet owners spend 7.5 hours per week browsing the internet, watching videos, listening to music and reading books on their device compared with the 9.6 hours per week they spend on a personal computer for the same activities.

Overall satisfaction is 857 on a 1,000-point scale among owners who view three or more hours of video per week on their tablet, which is 45 points higher than among those who do not. In addition, those who spend three or more hours viewing video content are more likely to purchase another tablet from their current manufacturer in the future than those who do not watch as much video content—90% vs. 81%, respectively.

“As tablet computing, multimedia, display and application offerings continue to evolve, their impact on usage patterns will continue to grow,” said Uma S. Jha, senior director of mobile devices at J.D. Power and Associates. “Tablets are a force in the marketplace that offer a great alternative to laptops and netbooks.”

According to a release, the study measured tablet owner satisfaction among those who have owned their tablet for less than two years. Satisfaction was measured across five key factors. In order of importance, they are: performance (26%), ease of operation (22%), styling and design (19%), features (17%) and price (16%).

Apple ranked highest, achieving a score of 848, and performed well in four factors: performance, ease of operation, styling and design, and features. Amazon closely followed Apple in the rankings with a score of 842 and performed particularly well in the price factor.

The study, which was based on experiences reported by 1,985 tablet owners, also found the following key tablet usage patterns and purchase trends:

• Tablet owners who also have a smartphone spend 40% more time browsing the internet on their tablet than on their smartphone. Similarly, they spend 56% more time using gaming apps on their tablet than on their smartphone.
• Twenty-five percent of owners indicated they use their tablet for business purposes.
• More than one-third (37%) of tablet owners said they are likely to buy a new tablet within the next 12 months.
• Among tablet owners who are highly satisfied—those rating their device 10 on a 10-point scale—90% said they are likely to purchase additional consumer electronic devices from the same manufacturer.
• Seventy-five percent of tablet owners indicated they were the sole decision-maker in purchasing their device.
• Sixty-one percent of owners share their device with at least one other person.