HTC smartphones in the United States are apparently circumventing Apple patents. Apple recently landed a big victory against HTC with the International Trade Commission finding that HTC Android phones were in fact infringing on a patent Apple holds having to do with context menus. HTC is already shipping new versions of those phones minus the menus that infringe getting around the patent and the ban.

According to recent data from Gartner, Apple now holds 7.9% of the entire phone market around the world with the iPhone. That puts Apple in third place for the largest phone maker in the world behind Samsung and Nokia.

The new rumor has surfaced that claims the next iPhone will feature a larger screen. The Wall Street Journal reports a rumor that says the next iPhone will have a screen at least 4 inches diagonally.

HTC’s stock has taken a beating after Apple has blocked smartphone shipments from the company into the United States. Shipments were blocked after and Apple complained to the ITC of patent infringement by the One X and Evo 4G LTE.

Some new unofficial concept images of the iPhone 5 have surfaced that show and angular and very shiny back device. I would love to see the actual iPhone look like this concept art.

Apple and Samsung had been battling in court for a long time now. Recently Apple accused Samsung of deleting “vast quantities” of evidence that would’ve implicated Samsung in the ongoing legal battle.

The iPhone could gain one of the key BlackBerry 10 features before the new BlackBerry devices hit store shelves. According to the developer behind the Octopus Keyboard for iOS, he has been cooking up a keyboard with the floating text prediction system used by RIM.

A few tidbits about iOS 6 have been surfacing recently. You already know Apple has ousted Google Maps from iOS, and now we hear that Siri will be expanding beyond the iPhone and an API will be offered.

An Apple patent surfaced that hints at the future of facial recognition security for devices like the iPhone. The patent covers away that the phone can make a 3-D version of a person’s face from 2-D images and then compare the persons face to that 3-D representation in real time.

Apple and Foxconn have pooled money to work together on refreshing Foxconn factories in China used to make Apple products like the iPhone. Exactly how much money is being spent on the refresh is unknown.

The Google+ app for iOS has been updated. The update brings new features along with improved fonts and a more user-friendly homepage design.

A new app is limited for the iPhone and other iOS devices called TU Me. The set is sort of like Skype and combines free VoIP with a walkie-talkie like instant voice feature among other things.

Bracketron has a new iPhone charging dock that is very simplistic and Google called the MetalDock. It’s an L-shaped piece of metal that can be used in portrait or landscape modes and has iPhone dock connector in 3-foot USB cable.

It’s nice to see smaller local carriers getting their hands on the iPhone if you don’t want to use AT&T or Verizon. A company called Bluegrass Cellular has announced that it will be getting the iPhone 4S on May 18 at $149 with a two-year contract.

Audio-Technica ATH-ANC9 headphones have launched canceling noise in three different levels. The headphones also have an integrated remote and microphone for use with the iPhone.

Polaroid is showing off a new Apple compatible GL 10 mobile printer concept at CTIA. The concept will work with the iPhone and other iOS devices for mobile photo printing.

Facebook has updated its iOS and Android Messenger apps. The update brings the ability for people you message to get your exact GPS location and read receipts have been added in.

Apple has filed a complaint with the World Intellectual Property Organization seeking to gain control of the URL. The URL in question is iPhone5.com, which links to a little trafficked iPhone forum talking about the device.

Bowers & Wilkins has unveiled a new set of headphones that includes a cord designed to work with the iPhone. The new headphones are called the P3 and it ships with a cable that has a mic and remote control on it specifically for the iPhone.

The headphones also come with a straight standard cable for use with other devices. They will ship this summer for £169.99 and promise comfort and high sound quality.

Apple senior VP for iOS sold off over 64,000 shares of stock he was granted as a retention bonus. At current prices, he netted $38.7 million in a single day.

The Smithsonian has announced that the Steve Jobs exhibition at the National Mall will start on May 11. The exhibition will have patents along with Mac hardware that Jobs was responsible for

The Instagram app has hit 50 million users and most of them are on the iPhone. Between the two available versions of Instagram, the iPhone version is more popular for now.

Apple is reportedly rejecting apps that have Dropbox functionality. The tip comes from developers who are seeing their apps rejected if they integrate support for Dropbox.

Samsung has denied that it was responsible for staging the “wake up” anti-Apple flash mob. The mob showed up outside the Sydney Apple Store not too long ago.

The Skype 4.0 update has hit iOS. The update brings tweaks to the user interface and stability updates.

Apparently, a Simpsons expansion pack is coming in the future. At least that’s what we expect considering the pink doughnut in the picture Homer favors. Research firm comScore has reported that smartphone gaming is continuing the surge.

In February smartphone gaming increased 55% in Europe. 42% of all smartphone owners in five key markets in Europe have played at least one game on their phone. According to the analytics firm 16.4% of smartphone users in the UK surveyed during the three months ending in February of 2012 said they had played at least one game other smartphone daily with over half playing at least once a month.

Apple CEO Tim Cook has stated that he would “highly prefer to settle” the Android patent litigation. Cook says settlement is more desirable than fighting in courts. Legal fights were more the style of Steve Jobs.

Apple recently reported is Q2 financial results. The company sold 35 million iPhones during Q2 and made gigantic profits.