Verizon Tops Again for Consumer Reports: Latest Tips and Rankings

by Holly Shoemaker

Last week I provided the tablet trends from the December 2012 Consumer Reports Electronics Issue. Now, I gave gathered the latest smartphone trends and rankings by carrier.

Smartphone Trends

• Screen Size and Edges – Customers will see larger screens and rounder edges for easier viewing and holding. Most of the top-rated phones have 4.3 inch screens, measuring diagonally.
• Beyond Apple and Samsung – Despite the Apple iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S III making Consumer Reports top ten electronics list, the non-profit agency says to look beyond Apple and Samsung. The other standout devices were Verizon’s Motorola Razr phone, which Consumer Reports says has, “nifty apps," and the HTC One for its intuitive interface.
• 4G – This is now considered the standard, with the exception of the iPhone 4S on Verizon and Sprint. More speed may translate into using more data so keep track of monthly payments.

Smartphone Rankings by Carrier

As Verizon did in the Consumer Reports Buying Guide 2012, the carrier still ranks first in satisfaction, followed by Sprint, T-Mobile and AT&T.

For Verizon subscribers, the Motorola Droid Razr Maxx topped the list with a score of 78, followed by the Galaxy S III (32 GB) with a score of 76 and the iPhone 5 (16 GB) with a score of 75. The Motorola Droid Razr M and Razr also scored in the top five.

For Sprint users, the Galaxy S III (16 GB) ranked first with a score of 76, followed by the iPhone 5 (16 GB) with a score of 75 and the HTC EVO 4G LTE with a score of 73.

For T-Mobile subscribers, the Galaxy S III (16 GB) scores first with 78 points, followed by the HTC One S with a score of 77 and the Galaxy S II with a score of 75.

AT&T subscribers show a similar trend with manufactures for T-Mobile. The Galaxy 3 III (16 GB) ranks first with a score of 78, followed by the iPhone 5 with a score of 77 and the HTC One X with a score of 76.