With the year 2008 in the books, we can look back on a year full of amazing new products and pick the choicest morsels. You have definitely heard of all of these top-shelf products, and you may even use a couple of 'em yourself (you lucky duck).
Without further ado, here are our five nominees for the Most Foolish Product of 2008:
Wii Fit
Nintendo's (Pink Sheets: NTDOY.PK) Wii console still sells out very quickly every time a new shipment hits stores, more than two years after its launch. On that note, good luck finding a Wii Fit in your local Wal-Mart (NASDAQ:WMT), Fool. The game is a big seller for good reason, too. It's an innovative effort to firm up videogamers' physiques, and great fun to boot. There's nothing quite like it on the video game market today.
Amazon Kindle
Like Nintendo, Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) can't seem to make its digital book reader fast enough, and the product is perpetually sold out. The Kindle gives us quick and easy access to tons of books and magazines, all squeezed into a handy little gadget that fits in purses and briefcases everywhere. Traditional publishing may be in trouble, but Amazon is still breathing new life into the written word.
Tesla Roadster
We're sick of the gas-guzzling mega-SUV, and even Toyota's (NYSE:TM) hybrids aren't quite green enough yet. Enter the Tesla Roadster, a sports car with roots in the Lotus Elise and investment backing from Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) co-founders Brin and Page. This is another hot seller with a 15-month waiting list, despite a $109,000 base price. You won't find too many all-electric cars doing 0-60 in less than four seconds, after all.
iPhone App Store
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) taught the world to sing in profitable harmony by launching a bustling marketplace where developers can sell custom software for the smash hit iPhone handset. Now, everyone from Google to Research In Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM) is racing to launch their own app stores and cash in on the programming skills of independent designers. What's the most sincere form of flattery, again?
Michael Phelps' swimsuit
Privately held Speedo rounds out the field, though it did nothing of the sort in Beijing 2008. The new LZR Racer swimsuits adorned Michael Phelps every stroke of the way to eight historic Olympic gold medals. All told, swimmers wearing that suit won 94% of the swimming gold medals in Beijing and set 23 new world records. Was it the suit, or something in the water?
Pick your favorite product and head over to the voting booth, dear Fool.
Further Foolishness:
See the rest of our Fool Awards nominees.
Wal-Mart is a Motley Fool Inside Value selection. Google is a Motley Fool Rule Breakers pick. Nintendo, Amazon.com, and Apple are Motley Fool Stock Advisor recommendations. Try any of our Foolish newsletters today, free for 30 days.
Fool contributor Anders Bylund owns shares in Google, but he holds no other position in any of the companies discussed here. There's a Wii and a Wii Fit in his living room, but he'd look silly in a skintight swimsuit. You can check out Anders' holdings or a concise bio if you like, and The Motley Fool is investors writing for investors.
