I also agree. The XBOX and newest generation of Zune/Windows Phone 7 are probably the most innovative things to be -released- (Courier is therefore discounted)

I also agree. The XBOX and newest generation of Zune/Windows Phone 7 are probably the most innovative things to be -released- (Courier is therefore discounted) from Microsoft in quite some time. You can also argue that they are the Microsoft platforms with the best user experiences. Even MS haters are hard pressed to say that they outright suck. Where MS has stumbled, in my minds and of my colleagues' minds, is the dumbing down of Windows and Office products. In terms of usability, Windows XP and Office 2003 were a good balance of function and learning curve. I'm of the view that Windows and Office have been around long enough to be quite pervasive, at least in the first world. With such high PC penetration in the marketplace, excessive tweaking to the Office and Windows GUI to make it more palatable to non-computer users was probably unnecessary effort, but I'll also concede that the new chrome probably sold a lot of upgrades.