In the smartphone arena, you win some and you lose some, as it is with everything in life. Is the iPhone 5 better than Samsung's Galaxy S III, or is the larger Android device the superior smartphone? Part of the answer and subjective and depends entirely on who you ask, but at least one round Apple manages to win against its chief competitor is the display. Our friends at DisplayMate conducted a head-to-head test between these two devices to see which one features the better panel, and not only did the iPhone 5 win, but "it's the best smartphone display we have tested to date," said Dr. Raymond Soneira, President of DisplayMate.

Forget about making room on your entertainment center for yet another set-top box, Roku's Streaming Stick packs the same functionality into a package that's no bigger than a typical USB flash drive. Roku first unveiled the device at the beginning of the year with a promise to ship it in the second half of 2012 for anywhere from $50 to $100. Making good on that promise, Roku today said its Streaming Stick will be available to purchase in October for $99.99.

Samsung is planning to launch its Galaxy Note II device in mid-November with five major carriers, the handset maker announced today. Specific pricing and retail availability is up to each individual carrier to announce at their leisure, but on the bright side, if you've had the Galaxy Note II on your radar, you can go ahead and put it on hour holiday wish list, regardless of whether you're an AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, or U.S. Cellular subscriber.

Imagine, if you will, a world in which blind loyalty trumps common sense and critical thinking, where the power of marketing and the corporate hype machine are so strong that reasonably intelligent consumers are reduced to social status seeking nitwits on a late night television talk show. Sadly, you don't have to imagine such a place. It already exists, as Jimmy Kimmel proved when his camera crew took to the streets of Los Angeles and handed people an iPhone 4S, and then asking them what they thought of the new iPhone 5 they where holding.