iPod tops annual Amazon charts

Apple Computer's iPod continued to rule in 2006, according to Amazon.com.

Amazon's "Best of 2006 List," published Thursday, highlights the year's bestselling, most positively reviewed and most wished-for products of the year.

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Not only did various versions of Apple's iPod comprise the hottest-selling consumer electronics item on Amazon, but the fifth-generation 30-gigabyte model with video playback topped Amazon's list as the most wished-for product and the most popular gift item in the consumer electronics category for the year.

iPods were especially hot-selling during the holiday gift-shopping season, dominating the sales charts for the third year in a row, according to analysts at Hitwise, a company that provides Web site statistics for marketers.

Hitwise reported that Apple's iTunes Store saw a 413 percent increase in traffic between December 24 (Christmas Eve) and December 25 (Christmas Day). And the company saw a 110 percent increase when comparing Christmas Day 2005 with Christmas Day 2006.

More precise sales figures of the iPod will likely be made public during Apple's Macworld event next month.

As for other hot products of 2006, consumer love for game makers was spread pretty evenly. For example, the Nintendo DS Lite in polar white was the hottest-selling video game on Amazon, and the Nintendo Wii was the most wished-for game of the year. But when it came to gift giving, Microsoft's Xbox 360 20GB console was the game most often bought as a gift on Amazon.