Which Computers are the Most Reliable?

Whether you’re looking for a new PC for yourself or shopping around for your entire organization, reliability certainly ranks as one of the most important factors. The more reliable the PC, the less time your IT staff and Help Desk need to spend fielding calls and fixing problems.

So as we approach a new year and perhaps a new opportunity to refresh your existing PC lineup, which computers are considered the most reliable?

The list of top contenders seems to change periodically, and a vendor that’s near the bottom one year can often float to the top the next year, or vice versa. But you want to try to find a vendor with a fairly consistent track record, not one that fluctuates too much from quarter to quarter. Scouring through one particular series of reports issued throughout 2011 finds some brands that you should be able to count on.

A report on the second quarter issued by national computer repair company Rescuecom two months ago put IBM (News - Alert)/Lenovo at the top of the list in reliability. Based on the percentage of support incidents received and handled by Rescuecom, Lenovo took home a reliability score of 234, higher than any other vendor.

In second place was Toshiba (News - Alert), followed by Apple and then HP/Compaq. Vying for fifth place were Asus and Sony, each with a score of only 73.

The second-quarter report showed only a couple of changes compared with Rescuecom’s first-quarter report. Lenovo managed to retain its top spot through both quarters, a promising sign of ongoing reliability. But Asus dropped to fifth place from its previous perch in second place from one quarter to the next.

According to Rescuecom, Asus saw a large leap in market share throughout 2009 but was able to continue to offer solid technical support. However, the increase in customers may have finally taken its toll on the company, accounting for the drop in reliability.

HP/Compaq stayed the same in terms of reliability and inched from fifth to fourth place only because of the drop for Asus. Finally, Toshiba was the only vendor to up its reliability score from the first quarter.

Looking back further, Rescuecom’s reliability rankings for 2010 as a whole put HP/Compaq on top, followed by Apple (News - Alert), IBM/Lenovo, Asus, and Toshiba. And going back even further, the 2009 rankings placed Apple on top, followed by Asus, Lenovo, Toshiba, and HP/Compaq.

Eyeing the long-term trend, it’s clear that Lenovo accomplished a healthy increase, moving to its top spot from further down the list over the past few years. Toshiba also has done well by climbing to second place. Apple dropped to third after being on top in 2010 and 2009, which is surprising since Macs typically fare quite well in reliability rankings.

Looking at Apple’s rating in the first quarter, Rescuecom said: “Apple, one of the proverbial reliability favorites narrowly missed number one in the last ranking. Now while increasing 26 percent in market share, mostly at the expense of Dell (News - Alert), they have fallen to fourth place. While Apple’s reliability has consistently placed them in the top five, it will be interesting to see if they can keep their ongoing commitment to quality.”

Among other vendors, Dell grabbed the second highest market share yet was below the top five in terms of reliability. But Rescuecom’s first-quarter report singled out Samsung (News - Alert) as a brand to watch with a sharp rise in market share and good overall reliability.

The reliability rankings are compiled by comparing a vendor’s market share of shipped PCs with the percentage of computer repair calls received by Rescuecom.

A new laptop will be on my shopping list for next year, so I was certainly interested in Rescuecom’s findings. If I didn’t need a Windows-based PC, I would almost certainly choose an Apple. My wife has a MacBook Pro that I sometimes use and I’ve always appreciated the construction and quality that goes into that machine. I’m surprised Apple didn’t maintain its high rankings in Rescuecom’s list but still feel that the MacBook is one of the most reliable laptops around.

Looking at a Windows PC, Lenovo is at the top of my list at this point. I’ve used a few Lenovo laptops and have found them to be a solid carryover from the old IBM Thinkpads--strong, sturdy, well-built, and reliable. And it’s one of the only brands on the market that still offers a solid, user-friendly keyboard. So it’s good to know that Lenovo rates highly at least according to Rescuecom’s results.

Rescuecom’s 2011 report should come out in January, so it’ll be interesting to see if the top five brands remain the same, or if the list gets a bit of a shake-up.