????上個月，消費者對個人電腦的滿意度達到了有史以來的最高值。美國消費者滿意指數(shù)（American Customer Satisfaction Index）顯示，消費者對于個人電腦的滿意度達到了80分，突破了此前78分的高點。

????考慮到除傳統(tǒng)個人電腦外，個人電腦領域已增加了平板電腦、超輕便攜式電腦和其他新興設備，這樣的得分不算糟糕。其實，滿意度的提升，部分正是源于平板電腦。消費者看來就是喜歡用平板電腦，非常非常喜歡。隨著這部分個人電腦市場的增長，個人電腦行業(yè)的整體消費者滿意度獲得了提升。

????這一改變在蘋果（Apple)身上體現(xiàn)得尤為顯著。自推出iPad平板電腦以來，蘋果公司的市場占有率得到了提升。蘋果在2012年美國消費者滿意度指數(shù)調查中繼續(xù)穩(wěn)居第一，在100分制中獲得了86分。但這一得分較上年仍有所下降，可能是由于Windows系統(tǒng)個人電腦和其他平板電腦的滿意度上升。“蘋果產品一直以來都擁有更高的滿意度，”NPD Group的行業(yè)分析副總裁斯蒂芬?貝克稱。

????蘋果不是唯一一家美國消費者滿意度指數(shù)上升的公司。雖然惠普（Hewlett-Packard）和宏基（Acer）2012年第二季度的PC發(fā)貨量都出現(xiàn)了下降，惠普降幅13%，宏基降幅14%，但它們的滿意度也都略有提升，都獲得了79分的成績。戴爾（Dell）得分79分，較上年提高了5分。同樣，戴爾第二季度的個人電腦總發(fā)貨量也同比下降了10%。東芝（Toshiba）首次上榜，得分77分，雖然其在美國的個人電腦發(fā)貨量也下降了20%。

????即便是三星（Samsung)、亞馬遜（Amazon）這類規(guī)模相對較小的制造商，總體的美國消費者滿意度指數(shù)得分也有所提升，較2011年上升4%至80分，同期總發(fā)貨量增加了12%。

????大部分滿意度都源于個人電腦易用性和可靠性的提升。 “評分和設備質量有非常緊密的關聯(lián)，”美國消費者滿意度指數(shù)的董事總經理大衛(wèi)?范安布格稱。“我們發(fā)現(xiàn)消費者投訴和撥打售后服務電話的數(shù)量確實呈現(xiàn)下降。表示最近與售后服務中心打過交道的人數(shù)減少，表明此類問題已不那么普遍?！?/p>

????便攜式電腦的尺寸也被視為是滿意度提升的一個因素。如今的便攜式電腦不僅更薄更輕，功能也更強大?！氨銛y式電腦正在經歷一次革命，”范安布格對《財富》雜志（Fortune）稱。“這使得便攜式電腦比十年前更有吸引力?！?/p>

????當然，功能提升和尺寸縮小也推動了平板電腦的銷售，消費者發(fā)現(xiàn)平板電腦打開包裝即可上手。“平板電腦給消費者帶來了終極的即插即用體驗，”IHS iSuppli負責顯示器和平板電腦的高級經理羅達?亞歷山大表示?！八苋菀咨鲜?，立刻就可以使用。這類設備對用戶很友好，消費者一旦用上就再也放不下，和我們過去看到的情況大不相同。”

????平板電腦不會完全取代個人電腦。如今平板電腦大多被用作傳統(tǒng)桌面電腦和便攜式電腦的補充，用來看視頻、查郵件和打游戲。它們依然是消費品，不是用于再創(chuàng)造的設備。相比之下，生產和工作領域仍由傳統(tǒng)個人電腦一統(tǒng)天下?！巴耆皇褂闷桨咫娔X的人不是很多，”貝克強調。

????Consumer satisfaction with PCs reached an all-time high last month. The American Customer Satisfaction Index reported that customer satisfaction with computers reached a score of 80, breaking the former high of 78.

????Not bad, considering traditional PCs are being supplemented by tablets, super-light laptops, and other emerging gadgets. Thing is, the improvement is driven in part by tablets, which consumers seem to enjoy using. A lot. As that segment of the computing market has grown overall customer satisfaction with the PC industry as a whole has picked up.

????This shift has been particularly notable for Apple (AAPL). The company's market share has grown since the introduction of iPad tablets. Apple remained on the top of the satisfaction list in 2012, ranking 86 out of 100. This is actually down from the previous year, possibly the result of a rise in satisfaction for Windows-based PCs and rival tablets. "Apple has had a higher satisfaction level with its products," says Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis at NPD Group.

????Apple isn't alone in getting a boost in the ACSI ratings. Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Acer both made small gains and each attained scores of 79. These increases come even as those companies have seen shipments of computers fall in Q2 of 2012, with HP shipments down 13% and Acer down 14%. Dell (DELL) came in with a score of 79, ，戴爾up 5 points from last year. These numbers come as Dell's total PC shipments dropped 10% in the second quarter compared with a year prior. Toshiba made its debut on the list with a score of 77, while its saw a 20% fall in its U.S. PC shipments.

????Even the aggregate of smaller manufacturers, in which ACSI includes Samsung and Amazon (AMZN), has increased the overall customer satisfaction ratings. This group of smaller players saw a 4% increase in 2011 to 80, while its shipments increased by 12%.

????Much of the satisfaction continues to be driven by the fact that computers have just gotten easier to use and more reliable. "The ratings and the quality of the machines very much goes hand in hand," says David VanAmburg, managing director of the American Customer Satisfaction Index. "We've measured how customer complaints and customer care calls have really been on the decline. Fewer people noted that they had a recent interaction with customer care and that suggests those kinds of issues are less prevalent."

????The size of the devices on the laptop side has also been seen as a factor in increased satisfaction. Today's laptops are not only thinner and lighter but more powerful. "Laptops are going through a revolution of their own," VanAmburg told Fortune. "This has made the laptops far more attractive than they were 10 years ago."

????Of course, this computing power and smaller form factor are also driving sales of tablets, which consumers are finding easy to use right out of the box. "The device delivered to the consumer is the ultimate in plug and play," said Rhoda Alexander, senior manager for monitors and tablets at IHS iSuppli. "It is easy to pick up and start using immediately. It is a device that is user-friendly, and it is geared toward pulling the user into the experience and that's very different from what we've seen historically."

????Tablets are not entirely replacing PCs. They are being used as ancillary devices to the traditional desktops and laptops to watch videos, check email and play games. They remain consumption rather than creation devices. Productivity tasks, in contrast, are still the domain of traditional PCs. "There aren't a lot of people who are just using tablets," Baker emphasizes.