• 9to5mac, Thursday, May 13, 2010 12:50 PM

In its June issue, Consumer Reports calls Apple's retail stores "the best place to buy a cell phone." That's despite the obvious yet remarkable fact that the stores only carry one brand of phone. Consumer Report bases its findings on a survey of some 11,000 readers conducted last year by its National Research Center. Apple's stores got "especially high" marks for activation and check out, while, overall, the company took an 84% satisfaction rating.

Relatively speaking, the big losers including Alltel and Sprint/Nextel -- each with a 74% ranking; along with T-Mobile and AT&T Wireless - each with a 76% rating. In general, Consumer Reports found people who "purchased a phone at some retailers unaffiliated with a carrier were at least as satisfied on average as those who bought from the carrier itself."

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