If you're curious about CNET's choices for the best overall products, there are more than enough editors' top 5 lists (in multiple categories and subcategories) located across the site to satiate you effectively; however, if performance is the only attribute that piques your interest, well, I'm here to help.
Throughout the year, CNET Labs tests hundreds of products, the results of which are used to fuel editors so that we actually have something to say during the review. Sure, a product's design and feature set are very important, but the meat of most reviews comes down to performance.
With the help of a few very helpful (and busy!) colleagues of mine whose days are spent both testing and writing--Joseph Kaminski, Julie Rivera, Dong Ngo, and Justin Yu--I've compiled a list of the top Labs performers of 2010 as per our benchmarks.
Now, judging by the way this blog post started, you may be thinking these products would be completely separate from the best overall products on the site. And yes, when we began compiling this list, it was our intent that all features save for performance were ignored.
Turns out, some of the best performers are actually some of the best all-around great products, too. I guess it shouldn't come as a huge surprise that well-engineered devices are usually made that way from the ground up.
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