For 25 years, Steven Halpern, editor of TheStockAdvisors.com, has surveyed the leading financial newsletter advisors asking for their favorite stocks for the coming year. This article is one of 100+ ideas in the Best Stocks for 2008 report.

"My top conservative idea for 2008 is Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO)," says Rusty Szurek with Next Inning.

"While the phrase has definitely lost some of its cache, the simple fact remains, 'video changes everything' and for Cisco, that's doubly true. Cisco stands to benefit from the explosive growth we're seeing today in IPTV and internet video.

"The firm will not only benefit from the specialized video equipment it obtained in its acquisition of Scientific Atlanta, but also by the higher traffic demands video places on both the internet as a whole and on business and home networks -- all markets where Cisco is far and away the world market share leader.

"Some might say that Cisco's push into dedicated video products, which range from service provider equipment to home set-top boxes to its TelePresence initiative that is visible in virtually every major corporation in the world today, is like the salty pretzels served free at your local bar.

Although global expert Vivian Lewis believe we are not yet "at the end of the correction" she continues to find selected opportunities in individual stocks, such as Israeli-based Alvarion (NASDAQ: ALVR), a leader in WiMax technology.

In her Global Investing newsletter, the advisor says, "The market's recent rise was fed by a 'shortage' of stocks; without buybacks and private equity, there will be glut."

She forecasts that as borrowing gets costlier, it will dry up investment by the corporate sector, homebuilders and consumers. And, she cautions, fixed-income vehicles will then lure investors away from the stock market.

Nevertheless, she continues to recommend select special situations, and has added Alvarion to her buy list. She explains, "WiMax started out as the commnications standard of the Israeli Army in desert campaigns, but is now widely used in countries where telephony is in its infancy, in the developing world."

Now, she says, "Alvarion's all-IP OPEN WiMAX ecosystem opens the door to complete, best-of-breed networks." She explains, "Through a new technology arrangement with ArrayComm's Advanced Multi-Antenna software, the company will be able to offer fast personal broadband network services and take this around with them."

She explains, " This will be a kind of 'always-on' IP-based service for high speed broadband. This will do email, computing, telephoning and texting, games, other consumer electronics, media, office, whatever. Another way to name it is 'DSL on the move'. We rate the stock a buy."

Each day, Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com features the latest investment ideas and market commentary from the financial newsletter community.