Top 10 product hits - and misses

The hype surrounding the iPhone is hardly unique. Splashy product launches are a time-honored tradition in the American marketplace -- and so are the stunning flops that sometimes follow. Here's a look at some of the more noteworthy hits and misses.

Nintendo Wii

• Hit Nintendo had been a gaming giant, but fell on hard times when the N64 and GameCube systems missed the mark -- and sales expectations. It was a track record that didn't bode well for the Wii, especially considering that the console was being released head-to-head in late '06 with Sony's breathlessly anticipated PS3. But gamers, and perhaps even more impressively, non-gamers have gone wild for the Wii, demonstrating that Nintendo can still make a great system.


• As for the battle with the PS3, it was a rout: It's been the Wii all the way.

Tickle Me Elmo

• Hit Tickle Me Elmo continues its juggernaut with the junior set, over 10 years after the chortling red doll first hit store shelves in 1996. Witness the toy store melees that were sparked by shortages of Tickle Me Elmo Extreme last Christmas. "There's speculation that a lot of these product `shortages' were just to create demand," said Julie Hall, vice president of the Consumer Group at Schneider Associates. "Whether that's true or not, it generated a lot of excitement around the product."