Android and Mr. Rubin's relevant background does not start, as HTC would like the Commission to believe, with his work at General Magic or Danger in the mid-1990s. In reality, as the evidence revealed at the hearing, Mr. Rubin began his career at Apple in the early 1990s and worked as a low-level engineer specifically reporting to the inventors of the '263 [realtime API] patent at the exact time their invention was being conceived and developed. [...] It is thus no wonder that the infringing Android platform used the claimed subsystem approach of the '263 patent that allows for flexibility of design and enables the platform to be "highly customizable and expandable" as HTC touts.

If Apple sued Google directly over the '263 patent, there could be an injunction against Android

Now in its ninth year, the semiannual study has been expanded in 2011 to collect evaluations from wireless customers’ most recent usage activities in three areas that impact the network performance: calling, messaging and data. Overall network performance is based on 10 problem areas that impact the customer experience: dropped calls; calls not connected; audio issues; failed/late voicemails; lost calls; text transmission failures; late text message notifications; Web connection errors; email connection errors; and slow downloads. Network performance issues are measured as problems per 100 (PP100) network connections, where a lower score reflects fewer problems and better network performance. Carrier performance is examined in six regions: Northeast; Mid-Atlantic; Southeast; North Central; Southwest; and West.

For a 14th consecutive reporting period, Verizon Wireless ranks highest in the Northeast region. Verizon Wireless achieves fewer customer-reported problems with dropped calls, initial connections, transmission failures and late text messages, compared with the regional averages. Verizon Wireless also ranks highest in the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Southwest and West regions.

In the North Central region, U.S. Cellular ranks highest for a 12th consecutive reporting period. Compared with the regional average, U.S. Cellular has fewer customer-reported problems with dropped calls, failed initial connections, audio problems, failed voice mails and lost calls.

If you want a smartphone that is easy to use, performs well, has a good battery life, and doesn't frustrate you, the Windows phone is the best choice of the three options I tested. All you give up is some hipster credibility and access to lesser-used apps.