CoolBrand are the self-proclaimed announcers of what’s hot in the UK and each year, draw up a list devised from experts and consumers to gauge opinion about who rules when it comes to cool. Now, any organisation that has the word “cool” in their name earns a certain amount of distrust from myself – there’s nothing less cool than saying you are – but as a barometer for the top gadgets and brand names, they will certainly draw you up a list. Quite how they’ve managed to wangle what is essentially a pub conversation into a business is beyond me, so hats off to ‘em.

Anyway, we thought we’d give you a look at their Top 20 in case you wanted to know what products would earn you street cred, and it’s pretty clear that technology items are at the forefront.

1: iPhone – Attractive, slick and coming to a host of networks near you, soon. Which should help lose the bad signal rep.

2: Aston Martin – We all know Bond’s a big fan and if you’ve got £150,000 stuffed under the mattress you can have one too.

3: Apple - Designers of sleek gadgets extraordinaire and epitome of cool. Although they may want to take over the world.

4: iPod - Not sure why they couldn’t lump all Apple’s product together, but I guess the iPod is still poster-boy for mp3 lovers everywhere.

5: Nintendo - Presumably for the Wii and DS – 2 consoles that have brought a new breed of gamer to the table.

6: YouTube - My personal number one – 10 billion videos watched by over 120 million people in August alone can’t be wrong.

7: Blackberry - Single-handedly responsible for turning business-folks working day into a 24 hour nightmare.

8: Google - Seemingly untouchable and central to the way most people use the internet. Borderline scary.

9: Bang & Olufsen - Amazing to look at and use, but many complain of average sound quality. Style over substance?

10: Playstation – Still up there after all these years, the new slimline version PS3 packs a meaty punch.

11: Xbox - Now available cheaper than ever, this is Microsofts only entry into the Top 20. What, no Windows 7 party?

12: Tate Modern – Contemporary art finds a British home in a truly magnificent building. And it’s FREE!

13: Dom Perignon - The champagne for the socialite – but at those prices they can keep it. Where’s my cava?

14: Virgin Atlantic - Those beds look great don’t they?

15: Ferrari - Italian giants who put the horse into horsepower. I would have a yellow one.

16: Sony – Is there nothing that Sony don’t do? I’ve got one – marshmallows.

17: Mini - Ah, the Mini. Synonymous with Britain’s great car industry for so long. Now owned by the German company BMW. *sighs*

18: Vivienne Westwood - Much like the Mini, a British institution. Happily, not owned by BMW. Mad as a bag of badgers.

19: Rolex - Attached to most high-profile wrists in the country, these watches have probably seen more action than they would care to.

20: BBC iPlayer – Good to see Auntie on the list, paving the way for how we will all watch television in the future.

So there you have it. The actual list runs to a Top 500 and is available from the CoolBrands website if you can really be bothered. Or, there’s a book available for an eyebrow-raising £45.

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