To The Editor:
In reading your December 2009 issue and the report on the "Top Products of 2009," I was intrigued by the diversity of the products on the list, everything from the smallest ICs and low-cost voltage-variable attenuators (VVAs) to the most expensive vector network analyzers (VNAs). Yet, on the same list with these fancy VNAs were low-cost power meters built into the shell of a Universal Serial Bus (USB) device. Although the list seemed to be heavy on test equipment, it also contained components and devices. In reading the story, I was not able to find an explanation or justification for how these products were selected by your editors, or what made them so special. I would appreciate some kind of explanation on the rationale used to determine what is a "Top Product." And I would also like to know if this is a contest only open to advertisers in the magazine, or if a small company with a limited budget, such as ours, could be considered for a top product, say in 2010?
Al Ternate
Configuration Analysis Management
Danbury, CT
Editor's Note:
Thank you for reading the story and for your interest in our Top Products of The Year selections. To clarify a few of your points: First of all, not every product on the list represents an advertiser in the magazine. Many companies making this annual list have never advertised in this magazine and perhaps never will, but advertising in the magazine is not a prerequisite for consideration as a Top Product of The Year. Second, not all of the companies mentioned in the article are large. Often startup companies make the list because they have introduced something that is practical yet innovative. And that is the key to what makes the list: that the list contains what our editors consider the most innovative, highest-performance, and practical products introduced during the year. Not all are flashy or expensive, but all make a contribution in some way to this industry, and across any number of technologies, including components, devices, software, systems, and test equipment. It is not a perfect list, but it does generate interest, from those who are on it and those who want to be on it, no matter how large or small the company.
Microwaves & RF welcomes mail from its readers. Letters must include the writer's name and address. Please write to:
Jack Browne, Technical Director
jack.browne@penton.com
Microwaves & RF Penton Media, Inc.
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