Apple has taken the lead in both the personal and business categories of J.D. Power and Associates’ latest mobile phone satisfaction study. The firm announced its second set of study results for 2009 on Thursday, noting that satisfaction among all phone owners has gone up since just six months ago. Apple in particular has managed to come out even further ahead, even in a category where it is not typically considered to be a front runner.

Among those who use their smartphones for business, Apple scored 803 points on a 1,000-point scale, while RIM came in second at 724. Among those who use their phones for personal reasons, Apple came in with a score of 811, followed by LG at 776 and RIM at 759. Among other things, key factors in the decision making process were physical design, features, operating system, ease of use, and battery function. (LG managed to come out on top for overall satisfaction with 723 points.)

The results are another pat on the back for Apple, though they aren’t particularly surprising. Apple has historically performed well in J.D. Power’s rankings in addition to various other consumer satisfaction studies. The iPhone’s ease of use, slick OS, expandability provided by the App Store, and frequent software updates have all helped Apple get to the top, despite the company’s many remaining challenges.

[Via arstechnica.com]

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