But wherever compromise tried to sneak in at the expense of absolute quality, we tried to resist it.

FORBES: How To Build A Top Quality Classical Music Library For $100

The primary goal of the music technology industry has historically been to make music available to consumers in a convenient medium, but that goal is increasingly giving way to a new pursuit: delivering the absolute best sound quality possible.

FORBES: Consumer Electronics Deliver Music the Way the Artists Intended

The rear camera doesn't claim an absolute crown for quality now that the Lumia 920 is in the field, but it still produces some of the sharpest, cleanest images we've seen, and it's one of the few that can take photos in the dark with hopes for a truly usable picture.

ENGADGET: IRL: ColcaSac's Hanakapiai sleeves, the iPhone 5 and the Galaxy S III on MetroPCS