The 24th Annual Editors’ Choice Awards

We pick our 20 favorite products of the past year

Normally when we bestow our annual Editors’ Choice Awards—our way of honoring our favorite products from the past year—Apple dominates the proceedings. And for good reason: when it comes to the Mac market, all eyes are usually turned to Cupertino.

This year was different. When it came time to hand out awards for the hardware and software that shipped between November 1, 2007 and November 1, 2008, we bestowed only one Eddy statue on Apple—a well-deserved trophy for the iPhone 2.1 software update. While some might say that’s a reflection of what Apple did this past year—and there’s an argument to be made about that—we think it also speaks very highly of the work being done by third-party companies to help us get the most out of our Macs, iPhones, and iPods.

Follow the links below, as we fete 20 products (including the aforementioned iPhone software) that met our standards for quality, innovation, value, and usability—or some combination of those factors. After reading through our choices, we think you’ll agree that the Mac market is stronger than ever—and it’s partly thanks to hardware and software vendors outside of Cupertino that are taking the lead in pushing us in new directions.

The 24th Annual Editors' Choice Awards

We pick our 20 favorite products of the past year.

Eddy Winner: Nikon D300 digital camera

This Editors’ Choice Award winner is a serious camera for serious DSLR enthusiasts.
Eddy Winner: JamVox

Vox thought of nearly every aspect of what a Mac-using guitarist would want in amp-modeling software and then delivered it with JamVox.
Eddy Winner: Hulu

This online video service is reliable, easy-to-use, and, thanks to major improvements, an Editors’ Choice Award winner.
Eddy Winner: Kodak Zi6 HD mini camcorder

This Eddy Award-winning camcorder shoots good-looking video at 720p resolution—and its price tag is less than $200.
Eddy Winner: Ableton Live 7

Live has always been a capable application, and now the audio application from Ableton is even more so thanks to new features in version 7.
Eddy Winner: NEC MultiSync 3090WQXi display

For color pros who want a large canvas but don’t want to sacrifice color accuracy and performance, the NEC MultiSync 3090WQXi sets a new standard for big displays.
Eddy Winner: Airfoil 3.1

This Editors’ Choice Award winner unshackles you from iTunes so you can send audio from any application on your Mac to your remote speakers.
Eddy Winner: ScreenFlow 1.0.2

If you need to record what’s happening on your Mac’s screen, this Eddy Award winner is the best tool for the job.
Eddy Winner: VMware Fusion 2

If you want to run Windows, Linux, or other operating systems on your Intel-powered Mac, there’s no better choice than VMware Fusion 2.
Eddy Winner: BusySync 2.1.6

BusySync doesn’t quite get us all the way to calendar heaven, but it brought us a darn sight closer than Leopard did this year.
Eddy Winner: AppleJack 1.5

If your Mac starts misbehaving, this Eddy Award winner is the tool you need for tackling troubleshooting.
Eddy Winner: Canon EOS Rebel XSi digital camera

Canon continues to redefine the digital SLR market with the EOS REbel XSi, a winner of our Editors’ Choice Award for 2008.
Eddy Winner: Freeway 5 Pro

This Eddy Award-winning Web publishing tool lets you get professional-looking results without any of the hand-coding that Web pros rely on.
Eddy Winner: Canon Pixma MX850 multifunction printer

The Pixma MX850 from Canon offers everything you’d want in a multifunction device.
Eddy Winner: CSSEdit 2.6

CSSEdit may be a specialized tool, but this Editors’ Choice selection belongs in any Web designer’s tool kit.
Eddy Winner: Flock 2.0

It’s a Web 2.0 world, and Flock 2.0 has established itself as the browser of choice for people who actively participate in the increasingly social Net.
Eddy Winner: Photoshop Lightroom 2

The first version of Lightroom was a solid update when it came out in 2007, but this Eddy Award-winning update is even better.
Eddy Winner: iPhone 2.1 software update

Apple delivered new versions of the iPhone and iPod touch this year, but it was the software update that captured our Editors’ Choice Award.
Eddy Winner: Logitech diNovo Edge Mac Edition keyboard

People have been waiting for a Mac-compatible version of Logitech’s acclaimed diNovo Edge keyboard since the Windows model was released back in 2006. They finally got it in 2008.
Eddy Winner: Epson Stylus Photo R1900 inkjet printer

Epson’s Eddy Award-winning inkjet produces the best glossy photos we’ve seen from any printer priced under $1,000.