I've also had most of the same problems the OP did recently. Phone works great in many situations, but simply not working as a phone when I need it or losing my text history is infuriating. Didn't know about the available OS upgrade (still on 2.2.1), going to give that a try. And why is it so difficult to broadcast the update to all devices over the air within the course of say, 1 week, instead of forcing the bulk of your customers into the store?
Telecoms are all so horrible at customer experience.