Top Apple Products of the Last 50 Years
â–¼ Summary
– Ranking 50 items is tedious for one person but easier for a community by breaking the task into small, paired comparisons.
– A modified ELO algorithm is used to combine these individual votes into an overall community ranking.
– In this system, each item starts with a score that changes based on the outcome of paired matchups against other items.
– The point change depends on the opponent’s score, with bigger rewards for beating top-ranked items and larger penalties for losing to lower-ranked ones.
– The standard ELO formula was adjusted to reduce the impact of major upsets, as user preference is less definitive than chess victory conditions.
Ranking fifty distinct items can feel like a monumental task for an individual. Yet, when a community collaborates, the process becomes far more manageable. Our approach simplifies this by breaking the overall ranking into a series of simple, direct comparisons. Instead of asking anyone to compile a full list, we present users with paired choices between products. Each selection you make directly influences a dynamic, community-driven leaderboard.
This system operates on a modified ELO algorithm, a method famously created for chess rankings. In its standard form, ELO adjusts a competitor’s score after each match based on the opponent’s strength. A win against a highly-ranked opponent yields a larger point gain than a win against a lower-ranked one, with corresponding logic for losses. We’ve adapted this model to better suit subjective preferences, tweaking the formula to dampen the effects of major upsets and ensure the rankings reflect consistent community sentiment over time.
Every time you choose between two items from Apple’s storied history, you are casting a vote that reshapes the collective order. Your individual preference, combined with thousands of others, continuously refines the list. This method allows the community rankings to evolve organically, creating a living snapshot of collective opinion rather than a static, one-time poll. Your participation is what builds the final, authoritative order.
(Source: The Verge)