Ratings for the iPhone are down this year as Samsung and Google’s Motorola devices narrowed the gap in customer approval, according to Bloomberg.
According to the annual American Customer Satisfaction Index, Apple’s smartphone is still in the lead with consumers, posting a score of 81. This is a 2.4 percent drop in score compared to last year. Samsung handsets got a 7 percent bump in score up to 76 and Google’s Motorola phones received a 5.5 percent score increase up to 77.
Nokia saw an increase of 1.3 percent up to 76. LG Electronics and HTC saw decreases of 4 percent and 5.3 percent respectively, dropping down to 72 and 71 percent.
Apple saw an increase in iPhone sales by 7 percent in the first quarter. However, this is the smallest increase the company has experienced since the phone debuted in 2007.
Apple’s drop in consumer satisfaction also highlights the growing appreciation for Samsung’s smartphones. According to research-firm Strategy Analytics, Samsung had a third of the global market last quarter, two times as much as the Cupertino, California-based company’s 18 percent.
Samsung has been heavily carried by its Galaxy SIII, which hit stores in May 2012. The company expects great things for its Galaxy S4 as well. By mid may Samsung had sold 5 million GS4 handsets. There is speculation the phone could reach 10 million sales by the end of the month. The GS4 also took 80 less days to ship 4 million units compared to the Galaxy SIII.
According to ACSI, the 7 percent improvement by the makers of the Galaxy series, “is the largest yet of any cellphone manufacturer.”
