The American Consumer Satisfaction Index has released its latest research results and Apple has once again come out on top. For the past eight years, Apple has dominated the polls, in which time the company"s stock price has increased by 2300%. Claes Fornell, founder of the ACSI, attributes the success to "Apple’s winning combination of innovation and product diversification."
According to the report, Apple outshines its nearest competitor by nine points, at a score of 87 points. HP, which holds the title of second place, far surpasses the last-place position of the other HP brand Compaq, but the ACSI still believes HP is under real pressure from the emerging tablet market and the fact that HP might even split off their PC division further cements this idea.
The eight years that Apple has reigned supreme have been something of a renaissance for the company. The once-failing corporation has seen record profits in recent years and a high satisfaction rating shows customers are clearly happy with the company"s offerings. The question now is what direction Apple will take with its Mac product line. If the tablet market is taking off in as big a way as some people think, are the Mac"s days numbered? With recent reports of a redesign of the entire lineup, it might not be too hard to believe that Apple is shifting towards a new tablet-centric model, and with the release of OS X Lion and talk of a "post-PC" world, it looks like the company might already be taking steps in that direction.