Apple's iPhone 5 has been named the Gadget of the Year in Time Magazine's annual Top 10 Gadgets list for 2012 while Samsung's flagship Galaxy S3 smartphone could not find a place in the list. "iPhone 5 is the most artfully polished gadgets anyone's ever built," Time's Harry McCracken wrote.
Apple sold approximately 5 million iPhone 5 devices in the opening weekend in September; however, failed to keep up with the high demand for the phone. Nintendo Wii U took the second spot in the prestigious list and according to the author, the device has "changed gaming forever with its motion-sensing Wii Remote." The Wii U's key innovation is its GamePad, a game controller with a built-in 6.2" touchscreen.
The top 10 gadgets of the year selected by Time Magazine are:
1. iPhone 5
2. Nintendo Wii U
3. Sony Cyber-shot RX100
4. Raspberry Pi Model B
5. Lytro
6. Apple 15″ MacBook Pro with Retina Display
7. Microsoft Surface with Windows RT
8. Samsung Galaxy Note 2
9. Nest
10. Simple.TV
According to McCracken, "The iPhone 5, which starts at $199 with a two-year contract, is one of the most artfully polished gadgets anyone's ever built, with a taller screen than previous iPhones built into a thinner, lighter case. The camera, with a particularly well-done panorama mode, is another highlight. There are lots of nifty smartphones out there, including the iPhone's impressive archrival, Samsung's Galaxy S III. But when it comes to melding hardware, software and services so tightly that the seams fade away, Apple still has no peer."
Though the exclusion of Galaxy 3 surprises many, ranking iPhone 5 the gadget of the year sounds reasonable to the many. "I would argue that the iPhone 5 is more than worthy of the number one spot," Cody Lee of iDownloadBlog said. "Remember, the list isn't just based on innovation or capabilities. It's more-so based on the public perception of the product and its impact on the market. And on those fronts, the phone is doing exceptionally well." Admitting that the iPhone 5 won't outsell the Samsung Galaxy S3 which has sold over 18 million units by early November, John Koetsier of Venture Beat said the Time's award "is a prestigious indicator that Apple is still in the smartphone market leader position in terms of overall device and operating system quality."
