∞ Survey shows iPhone 4 owners less satisfied than iPhone 3GS owners

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ChangeWave, a market research company, has surveyed iPhone 4 owners. The survey reveals that iPhone 4 users are, on a whole, satisfied, though not perhaps as much so as iPhone 3GS users were.

The survey gathered responses from 213 iPhone 4 owners – not a huge sample, by any stretch of the imagination, but perhaps large enough to glean some basic information from.

A total of 93 percent of iPhone 4 owners described themselves as either “very satisfied” (72 percent) or “somewhat satisfied” (21 percent) with their purchase. By comparison, 99 percent of iPhone 3GS owners polled last August said the same – and the percentage of “very satisfied” owners was higher, at 82 percent.

One-third of those polled said the iPhone 4 exceeded their expectations; half said it met them. ChangeWave says those rates are below the “nosebleed” levels it saw for the 3GS launch.

The iPhone 4′s screen resolution, camera and flash, interface and ease of use were cited as the most popular attributes of the new device. The biggest dislike was, predictably, AT&T – more than one-quarter of those polled wished that AT&T wasn’t required for use in the United states, and 24 percent disliked the coverage, speed or quality of AT&T’s 3G network.

About the same number of users also complained about antenna issues and excessive dropped calls – though ChangeWave noted that iPhone 4 owners report better dropped call frequency than iPhone 3GS users did.

The news isn’t bad for Apple – ChangeWave suggested that the sensitivity iPhone 4 owners showed towards antenna issues is largely because of the early media attention payed to it. Once Apple is able to get beyond that, “this survey shows there is a high likelihood the iPhone 4’s customer satisfaction levels could end up equaling or surpassing those of the 3GS,” said Paul Carton, ChangeWave vice president of research.


  • http://tewha.net Steven Fisher

    Wow. I’ll trade them!

  • Cris

    Well, they never called me. I love my iPhone 4

    • http://mangochut.net mangochutney

      Ditto.

  • http://I'vewaitedjustlongenough! Daniel Swanson

    Shows how superstitious a lot of people are: believing what others say over seeing for themselves.

  • Bannana Joe

    Well, there is no real benefit between the iPhone 4 and the 3GS

    More speed. Not worth
    Front camera..no use at all since my buddies don’t have that function either.
    Better Resolution & Display….maybe the best reason
    better camera….nah I never take pictures or videos
    Anything more interesting??

    Oh and I don’t need bumpers LoL

    But in speed and overall performance there’s no difference.
    So I will keep my 3GS until maybe the 4GS or the 5 comes out. That’s right. Apple is already planning the iPhone 5, so there is no real hurry.

    I see more differences between the 3G and the 3GS than the 3GS and the 4. Is like compare the 2G and 3G in basis.

    I buy it, used and sell it. Sorry no bubble for me.

  • http://crankygeek.com Jack Brewster

    Even granting the point thattheres some useful info here, what the hell is it with these survey groups (such as Retrevo) and their shitty sample sizes?

    • http://mangochut.net mangochutney

      Less of an effort. The name ‘Apple’ in the headline will do the rest and most people don’t understand statistics.

  • WooDz

    Signal drop out during a phone call is my biggest gripe with the iPhone 4.

    However that’s where the negativity ends.

    Positives:

    Battery:
    Biggest issue with previous iPhones was battery life in that many would say they had to charge their phone everyday. I’m currently on day 3 since my last charge with 65% battery life still left.

    Retina Display:
    The question has to be asked, who doesn’t want Crystal clear graphics?

    Twin Microphones:
    On any Mobile device ambient noise is an issue. Ok the iP4 doesn’t cut everything away but goes a long way in filtering out unwanted noise.

    Cameras and video:
    The picture quality may not be able to replace large expensive reflex-cameras but at 5mp and larger (don’t the correct term) thingies to capture photons, the new iPhone takes better pictures than my last 5mp camera, and will no doubt better than an iP3G
    Front facing camera enables me to take video footage of myself for blogs, where now I can actually see myself in the viewfinder. Previously it was all a guessing game. That’s a big thumbs up for the iP4
    HD video doesn’t mean great video but it does mean the end to really crap pixelated video quality.

    Quality:
    finally quality and feel. I still think the best looking iPhone was the original with its metal back. Compared to many phones on the market at the time the iPhone just made the others look inferior and tacky. Sadly the 3G and 3GS went plastic too which obviously had it’s advantages but lacked the original cache of the original. The new iP4 with its slim design packaged in matt Aluminum and Glass gives the feeling you are holding something of real worth in your hand.

    As I mentioned in a previous comment I’m happy with the new iP4; it does exactly what I expected it to do, except for the antenna which when weighed up against all the positives becomes something I’m happy to live with.

    • WooDz

      OMG… I must have written this in my sleep…. how many errors????

      Still; hope you got the point which is, more than happy with the phone…

  • Eric in London

    This is such a bogus survey I can’t believe anyone is reporting it. First, as you point out, they only surveyed 213 people out of some 5+ million owners and don’t even tell how these 213 people were chosen. Are they some sort of representative sample or just the guys on the office? Then they told everyone to give 3 responses to what they liked and 3 for what they disliked thus magnifying the extremes. It’s total PR stupidity. And to top it all off I’ve seen the results interpreted as showing that people are less happy with iPhone 4, that the antenna problem is larger than Apple is saying and that iPhone owners are generally happy with their phones. It’s madness! This is a totally bogus survey. Why did you even covee it?

    • Lucas

      exactly all 213 folks could have been from the same general geographical area with iffy ATT service, which is exactly what tends to cause the whole “less satisfied” because numbers are growing and strained towers are becoming overflowing ones (reducing already so so towers to straight up crap ones)

  • IcyFog

    I still have had no issue with my iPhone nor AT&T, and I’m new to both.

  • Brady

    I disagree. I stinkin love my iphone 4! Faster, more possibilities, and tons of other stuff that the 3gs wishes it had.

  • Nathan

    Ah, changewave – ye of questionable methodology and a penchant for sensational headlines. This probably means nothing, but if we took it at face value the accurate summary would be iPhone4 customers extremely satisfied (much more than any competitor) and the earlier results a fluke (99% approval is nearly impossible, more likely a sampling error). Looking at 2-year contract cycles, the improvement from 3G to 4 is less than 2G to 3GS, so that might explain some difference.