Depressing, yes, but not news.
The most secure passwords are those which are completely random.
I use a random password generator which produces strings such as kaJ_-HF-/s@9 and Un3*^+eA/(.*
I have a usb flash drive with the password storage program and all my passwords. Doesn't do any good for a phone, of course, but provides as much security as you can reasonably expect on a computer.
I think a good rule of thumb for passwords is, "If you can remember it, they can crack it."