Every year, the Fnac Darty group publishes its “after-sales service barometer”, which indicates which brands have the fewest problems. Smartphones, computers, household appliances, headsets, consoles… All major categories are scrutinized.
In the communication of major brands, reliability and repairability have become sales criteria as important as technical characteristics. The tech and household appliance giants all promise that their devices can last for several years and, in the event of a problem, repair is easy. There is obviously a gap between the promise and reality, at least among certain manufacturers.
Every year, the Fnac Darty group publishes what it describes as the “after-sales service barometer”. A fun exercise in transparency for the largest electronics distributor in France, which reveals the secrets of its after-sales service. Product reliability, ease of repair, average age before problem, price of spare parts, etc. Several criteria are analyzed in order to deliver a score to each brand in each category in which it operates. Fnac Darty tells Numerama that it only uses the best-selling products, so as not to distort its ranking. The new barometer was presented on October 1, 2024.
Apple is first in (almost) all its categories
In the collective imagination, Apple is the most premium tech company. Is this status reflected in returns to after-sales service? According to Fnac Darty, the answer is yes.
In the categories of smartphones, connected watches, headphones, laptops, desktop computers and touch tablets, the Californian brand systematically comes first, sometimes with a clear lead over its competitors. Apple stands out from others by the durability and reliability of its products, in addition to parts available for several years. Note that Samsung comes third in the smartphone category behind Honor, despite very high results.
The only category where Apple is not first: connected speakers. HomePods come in second position behind Marshall’s products, but ahead of Google and Sonos. We also notice that Sonos, the self-proclaimed “Apple of sound”, very often comes in last position. The complexity of using its products, in addition to the unavailability of parts to repair them, seems to annoy customers.
Finally, the AirPods Max headset, despite its increasingly popular success, is not in the Fnac Darty ranking. Its sales and the number of returns are not significant enough for Fnac Darty to classify it.
Nintendo and electric scooters, the big losers in the after-sales service barometer
With an average durability score of 1 out of 5, the electric scooter category is, by far, the one that poses the most problems for Fnac Darty after-sales service. Even printers, products we love to hate, have a higher satisfaction rate. Xiaomi and Segway, the two best in the scooter category, have very poor reliability and durability scores, despite good repair capacity.
Another lesson: some popular brands, like Nintendo or Dyson, do not have very good satisfaction rates. In the console category, the Nintendo Switch comes in last position, while the Xbox is first. The difference with PlayStation is small, but the reliability of the Switch is not excellent (its score is nevertheless in the good part of the table). Dyson, in the categories of stick vacuum cleaner, bagless vacuum cleaner, fan and purifier, is never first. High-end doesn’t always mean peace of mind.
In its after-sales service barometer, Fnac Darty also compares household appliances (fridges, ovens, washing machines), cameras, drones and hygiene products. A good way to avoid making a mistake before buying one of these products that you rarely change.
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