★ PEOPLES ★ DEALERS BACK JAPS AND AMSTRAD ★ |
| Dealers Back Japs and Amstrad (New Computer Express) |
A survey of the UK's main computer retailers has revealed that most of them see Amstrad and Japanese-made hardware as the most reliable. Amstrad also rates best on technical support and backup, though this is generally considered bad. The survey, which was carried out by newspaper Computer Trade Weekly, revealed that no retailers believed more than 1 in 8 of their Sega or Nintendo consoles were faulty. Only a few dealers reported the same figure for the Amstrad PCW and none reported faults higher than 1 in 8 for the five-year-old CPC. which was seen as the most reliable machine apart from the consoles. On the other hand, more than 1 in 8 Spectrums (a hangover from pre-Amstrad days) were thought of as faulty by 40% of dealers, with C64s and 128s hitting a similar figure.
The same survey showed the Amstrad PCW was the most widely available machine, being stocked by three-quarters of dealers, with the PC1512 and PC1640 notching over 60%. The Amstrad PPC was the most widely available portable. Technical support and backup was rated by the overwhelming majority of dealers as ‘fair' to ‘poor' for Acorn. Commodore and Atari, and ‘not very good' to good' for Amstrad. Over half those interviewed thought Amstrad's ad campaigns were 'very good', everyone else being rated 'fair' to ‘good'. The sample was not weighted and did not claim to be definitive market research, but included information from over 350 dealers. New Computer Express (4/1989)
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