Westlake Village, Calif. – Price and in-store displays drive purchases of HDTVs, J.D. Power found in its latest HDTV customer-satisfaction report.
The report also found overall customer satisfaction with recently purchased HDTVs declined slightly in the company’s latest consumer survey in both the 50-inch and larger smaller than 50-inch categories.
Overall satisfaction, however, is higher among consumers who purchased an HDTV 50 inches or larger than among those who purchased a smaller screen.
Among consumers who bought HDTVs in the past 12 months, price was the primary factor in their choice, J.D. Power said. A total of 69 percent of those buying an HDTV smaller than 50 inches cited price as their primary reason, and 63 percent of those with an HDTV larger than 50 inches cited price as their primary reason.
The report also found that about half of HDTV purchasers relied primarily on in-store displays as
their primary source of information during the shopping process.
Among purchasers of HDTVs with 50-inch and larger screen sizes, overall satisfaction slipped to an average 859 from 870, and among purchasers of smaller displays, satisfaction fell to 839 from 855.
The report measures satisfaction across seven factors: performance; reliability; features; price; ease of operation; style/appearance; and warranty. Satisfaction is calculated on a 1,000-point scale. The 2015 HDTV Satisfaction Report is based on responses from more than 3,750 customers who purchased an HDTV in the past 12 months. The study was fielded in May 2015.
In other findings, J.D. Power said:
- a higher percentage of people who bought the bigger TVs bought smart TVs compared to purchasers of smaller TVs. A total of 75 percent of purchasers of 50-inch and larger models bought a smart TV, while 51 percent of people buying smaller models got a smart TV.
- Buyers of 50-inch and larger TVs are more likely to access video on demand and social media than purchasers of smaller TVs.
- a greater percentage of 50-inch-and-up buyers bought a model with a curved screen or with 4K Ultra HD resolution compared to purchasers of smaller TVs. Among 50-inch-and-up buyers, 16 percent bought a curved screen compared to 8 percent of buyers of smaller TVs. Also among 50-inch-and-up buyers, 22 percent bought 4K TVs compared to 9 percent of smaller screen buyers.
Among HDTV brands, Samsung ranked first for the second consecutive year with the highest customer kudos in two categories: HDTVs 50 inches and above and 50 inches or below.
The ranks of the top five brands of smaller-than-50-inch TVs were unchanged from the previous year’s survey, with LG placing second in 50-inch and larger TVs with a score of 846 compared to Samsung’s 856. LG was followed by Vizio with 834, Emerson with 821, and RCA with 818. Element came in sixth with 809.
In contrast, the ranks of the top five brands of 50-inch-and-larger TVs changed dramatically, with Sharp slipping to fourth from second, Vizio moving up to second from fifth, and LG and Emerson breaking into the top five.
This year, Samsung placed first with 871, followed by Vizio with 867 points, LG third with 857, Sharp with 847 points, and Emerson fifth with 818 points.
In contrast, the ranks of the top five brands of 50-inch-and-larger TVs changed dramatically, with Sharp slipping to fourth from second, Vizio moving up to second from fifth, and LG and Emerson breaking into the top five.
This year, Samsung placed first with 871, followed by Vizio with 867 points, LG third with 857, Sharp with 847 points, and Emerson fifth with 818 points.
Panasonic, which placed third in 2014, wasn’t included in this year’s survey because of market-share shifts, J.D. Power said.
