Product quality
Storage array quality was measured by asking questions relating to ease of installation, installation without defects, ease of use and the degree to which vendor intervention was required. The category had the widest scoring spread, with HDS (5.88) taking top honors and EMC placing fifth (4.46) (see "Product quality," this page).
However, a closer look at the questions may indicate that the difference isn't as profound as it might appear. For example, when respondents were asked if "This product did not require professional services," EMC ranked at a very low 3.22; however, one must recognize that EMC offers a "high touch" service model that many users find attractive. (All products in this category have a high services component.) Thus, the question might be unfavorable as it relates to EMC's business model. Still, we would expect the results of this question to be offset by EMC's scores for the related questions: "This product was installed without defects" (5.39), and "This product was easy to get up and running" (4.45). Presumably, significant vendor involvement would shield users from most problems, resulting in a higher score. HDS led the pack on both of these questions, with high average scores of 6.28 and 6.14, respectively.
The key question in this category was "This product delivers good value for the money." EMC users responded with a 4.55 rating, while HDS users gave it a 6.07. HP users were also pleased with their systems' value, scoring the question at 5.73.
