Lifestyle & Technology in 2007

In 2008, we take a look-back at 2007, to see how far we have come.

Here's a look at CNNMoney picks for top 10 stories of 2007:

1. Apple-iPhone: June 29 saw all-night lines in front of some stores. The iPhone marked Apple's first smart phone, the phone industry will never be the same.


2. Google-Wireless: In this case, the bigger part of Google's wireless story might not play out until 2008. In the January spectrum auction, Google might bid.


3. Baidu: China's search leader has relegated Google to a distant No. 2 in the world's most populous nation. In the U.S., Baidu translates into "hot stock".


4. Google-Click: Google will-buy DoubleClick if regulators allow it. Antitrust-officials in the U.S. are taking a close-look at the planned-merger.


5. VMware's IPO: Not since Google's 2004 initial public offering had a tech firm generated so much heat with an IPO. Priced at a heady $29 a share, VMware ended its first day of trading at 51 and peaked near 125 on Oct. 31. It's fallen to 85 since then, but its outlook remains strong.


6. Facebook: First Friendster, then MySpace, now Facebook. These outfits have led the way in showing how easy it is for friends to network on Web sites. Microsoft outbid Google in October to buy a 1.6% stake in the business.
   


7. Cleantech: When Al Gore was named co-winner of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize, a fast-emerging industry got another boost.


8. Entertainment Online: In October, British band Radiohead released its new album directly to the Web and let fans buy it for whatever price they wanted to pay -- a no-middleman business model that some say only a well-known outfit like Radiohead could afford to do. In April, an 80-episode series for the MySpace social-networking site debuted.


9. Newspaper: Newspapers have some of the best Web sites out there, but the economics of advertising don't yet convert well. That is, newspapers aren't making enough money online as they're losing with print ads. Online-ads made up just 7.1% of newspaper revenue in the third quarter, though that's expected to rise to near 9% by the end of 2008.


10. Nintendo Wii: The key to Wii (pronounced "we" -- or better yet, "whee!") is its motion-sensing controller, which players move in order to play the game.

Copyright (c) 2007, Investor's Business Daily, Inc. All rights reserved.