Readers’ Choice: Which Notebook Brand Has The Best Tech Support?

May 5th, 2010 by K. T. Bradford  

The people have spoken! In our Readers’ Choice polls you’ve overwhelmingly chosen Apple as the best brand when it comes to design and innovation, though Lenovo reigns supreme when it comes to keyboards and touchpads. And now the final contest is upon us.

Round 4: Tech Support

When you buy a new notebook, you expect it to work properly right out of the box. But issues inevitably arise, and when that happens, you should be able to rely on the manufacturer to fix the problem. That’s why we go undercover every year with each major notebook manufacturer to test their phone and web-based tech support. But our experiences are based on a few interactions. Notebook owners may have to call tech support several times over the course of a machine’s lifespan. Now we want to hear from you.

In last year’s Tech Support Showdown Apple earned an A because they’ve consistently offered some of the best web and phone support of any computer vendor. The website is brimming with well-ordered FAQs, query-based search, and PDF manuals. Refined searches by notebook serial numbers were a time saver.

However, a solid web resource is particularly necessary for Apple, because it’s the only company that offers a measly 90 days of free phone support; most other vendors include one year standard. (Apple’s one-year limited hardware warranty and three months of phone support for MacBooks and MacBook Pros can be extended to three years under the AppleCare Protection Plan, which starts at $249.)

It’s also worth noting that Apple users have another form of support at their disposal: Whether Macs are in or out of warranty, Apple Stores offer free appointments at the Genius Bar, where trained technicians help troubleshoot problems. For $99 per year, you also can buy unlimited One to One personal training (troubleshooting) sessions and workshops.

Lenovo and Sony tie for second place. Lenovo due to their friendly and effectual phone support, plus the website organization was best among the 12 vendors we evaluated. Sony gets high marks for a website is filled with easy-to-navigate menus and helpful phone support.

Click here to read full evaluations of each brand’s tech support prowess, including the ones who earned mid-range grades.

Now it’s your turn. How would you rank the tech support of the brands below? Take our survey then tell us your best and worst tech support stories in the comments.

Comments (9 Responses) 

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9 Responses to “Readers’ Choice: Which Notebook Brand Has The Best Tech Support?”

  1. TinkerTenor Says:
    May 5th, 2010 at 4:27 pm

    I actually had an okay experience with HP, although I can’t recall my hold times or anything like that.

    My USB ports had all died on a laptop, so I called the support number on the website. The phone support quickly led into web support, and after checking several things using their creepy desktop-sharing software, I was instructed to send my laptop in for repair. I already knew what was wrong, which was that the USB ports had all died and that the motherboard would need to be replaced.

    Aside from my techie irritation at having to wait for them to reach the same conclusion, however, the steps that followed were quick. The box came, I sent off my computer, and I had it returned in working order (with all of my data still intact) within a week and a half – much faster than expected.

  2. Frederick Mills Says:
    May 5th, 2010 at 4:49 pm

    Having an Imac and two Macbook Pros, service is and has been very crucial. Apple has come through with the best advice and quality repairs. Superb! Having had other computers of non-apple brands, Apple has proven the best.

  3. Al Says:
    July 1st, 2010 at 2:00 am

    My wife owns a HP G60 series,but I’m the one who deals with any of the problems. HP’s tech support is to say the least subpar. It seems like EVERY major corperation is using India as their choice for tech support nowadays. Being the tech junkie that I am I found out about HP Executive Customer Service, and they got things done the right way. Most companies reviewed in this article has ECS,if tech support does not work the first time around,try their ECS. Gateway, I found out has an Executive Response Team,which is supposed to be the same as ECS.

  4. goldengate Says:
    July 12th, 2010 at 9:36 am

    ASUS representatives are great but their policies sucks!

  5. whitney Says:
    July 17th, 2010 at 10:32 pm

    I am floored to see that the overwhelming majority of laptopmag readers have voted Apple to have the best tech support. I have had nothing but horrible experiences with my MacBook and with Apple. I would NEVER recommend Apple & their products!!

  6. pink88 Says:
    October 25th, 2010 at 4:24 am

    i have Toshiba laptop my husband gave it to me he bought it in Houston but unluckily it is now broken…i only used it only for 8 months i don’t understand why it is broken like that ‘coz i handled it well carefully and now the problem was the service center here in the cebu city phil.can’t repair it coz it wasn’t registered but although it is still in warranty!i had so much trouble dealing with their tech support they sucks!!!

  7. Danica Schellenberg Says:
    December 1st, 2010 at 12:36 pm

    I always look for companies that are microsoft certified, after all – Microsoft arnt just gonna let anyone be certified

  8. John Cook Says:
    February 25th, 2011 at 7:05 pm

    I think I have the topper! I went through “8″ PCs in two years with Dell before I recived one that was 100% complete and functional. Over 300 hours over the ph and even more e-mails, 1.8 gigs of college work lost and a nice grouping of ulcers. I am sure I never want to go through that again. And, I am left with an non-upgradable desk top. My next buy will be eather an Mac or Lenovo lap top.

  9. Sally Zadar Says:
    November 6th, 2011 at 6:44 am

    I have had the WORST service with HP – there was a defective hard drive, they did the diagnostics with me from India and said the part was defective – - this after nearly 24 hours on the phone with them over about 6-8 calls. Then when I removed the hard drive to return it, they told me that I had to go through all the retesting again. I was furious. I asked them on about call three to stop telling me that they cared about my HP experience and were sorry I was facing difficulties. I told them to please stop reading what is on their customer service cards – if they cared, they would help me return the part. IN the end, I contacted the company that I bought the computer from, and they were amazing – they took the computer back, even though it had passed the time. They gave me a full refund, even though I was only expecting a percentage (yeah, Overstock.com). So since HP stole a day of my life, I will NEVER NEVER NEVER buy an HP product again – - including printer cartridges. I gave my printer away after that. My brother in-law who tried to help feels the same way – - his last computer purchase- – NOT HP.

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