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The iPhone is the most reliable handset, study says

Apple's handset has topped a study, being three times as reliable as Samsung's Galaxy range.

Joe Svetlik Reporter
Joe has been writing about consumer tech for nearly seven years now, but his liking for all things shiny goes back to the Gameboy he received aged eight (and that he still plays on at family gatherings, much to the annoyance of his parents). His pride and joy is an Infocus projector, whose 80-inch picture elevates movie nights to a whole new level.
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Joe Svetlik
2 min read
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If you're torn between buying a new iPhone or a Samsung Galaxy handset, this study might sway you. It says the iPhone is the most reliable mobile money can buy.

Not only that, it's almost three times more reliable than Samsung's Galaxy handsets, which came in second place, five times more reliable than Nokia's Lumia range, and 25 times more than Motorola's Droid range.

Maybe an iPhone is worth the extra cash after all.

The screwdriver-wielders over at FixYa compared 722,558 problems its customers were having with their handsets. Using market share data from StatCounter, it gave each manufacturer a reliability score -- the fewer the problems relative to market share, the higher the score.

Apple came top with a score of 3.47, Samsung second with 1.21, Nokia third with 0.68, and Motorola fourth with 0.13.

Battery life is the main complaint from iPhone owners, which doesn't surprise me, especially as iOS 6.1 sapped the life of many mobiles. Those poor Motorola customers are suffering issues with the touchscreen, speaker and camera, and all the preinstalled bloatware that they can't get rid of. The microphone and speaker are bugbears of Samsung's customers, while Nokia's range has slower load times and fewer apps due to Windows Phone 8's limited selection.

I'm quite surprised at the results, seeing as the iPhone 5 hasn't been without its problems. Customers complained the device was easy to scratch, and the camera was adding a strange purple glow to snaps. Recently, a quarter of all iPhones were said to have borked screens, too.

I suppose components like the speaker and screen are more important than ever, seeing as if you're buying an Android phone, there won't be much difference in the software.

The Galaxy S4 -- set to be revealed next month -- is said to have an unbreakable screen made of plastic substrate to combat cracks and scratches.

Have you had any issues with your smart phone? What do you think of manufacturers issuing software patches to fix glitches, rather than making sure it works in the first place? Let me know in the comments, or on our Facebook page.