Microsoft awarded Top Technology Innovator of 2010

The Street ranks Microsoft No. 1 in its year-end top 10 list. According to The Street “Yes, we know, Windows Phone 7 manufacturers have only sold 1.5 million devices in six weeks — roughly equal to the number of Android phones activated every seven days. Yes, we know it’s been more than a year since the launch of Windows 7 and that there’s still no market for the Zune. But anyone remotely associated with the video game industry knows that Microsoft is no longer playing around with its Xbox and Xbox Live stable of products.”

They further said “First off, after slimming its Xbox 360 hardware and just about eliminating the red circle of deathfailures that cost gamers hundreds of dollars in console investment, Microsoft snagged the console sales lead from Nintendo’s Wii and has held it for months. Also, after years of taking a back seat to the Wii’s fun little motion controllers and Miis and getting beaten to market by Sony’s(SNE_) PlayStation Move motion device, Microsoft sold 1 million versions of its $150 controller-free Kinect motion-capture device within 10 days of its Nov. 4 release and 2.5 million before the end of November. By all accounts, that should have been a tough sell, considering the console itself goes for as little as $199, but a good concept and great third-party partner products such as Viacom’s(VIA_) infectious Dance Central remind us what Microsoft is capable of when its back is to the wall.”