This Friday, March 25th, at 5 p.m. sharp, the new Apple tablet iPad 2 will go on sale in Germany and 24 other countries around the world. It will be available at the four Apple stores in Hamburg, Munich, Frankfort and Oberhausen as well as at selected retail stores such as Saturn and Media Markt, Gravis and M-Stores. Here is a short overview of the iPad 2 features, its purchase prices, stores selling the touch-screen tablet and suitable pay as you go tariffs.

Dear readers, we wish you a happy new year! As you have noticed we took a little break around Christmas and new year’s eve. Now we are back and will keep on offering you new information on low-priced pay as you go tariffs for mobile phone calls and mobile Internet access by smart-phone, netbook or laptop and new reviews on the latest handsets available in Germany. But first, let us look back at the most important developments in the German prepaid market in the past year.

Sometimes you just have to switch off your mobile and try to relax. For example, by walking through the streets of Berlin at night and take a look at all the illuminated buildings and sites. The Festival of Lights has become one of the most important international public events in Berlin. Until Sunday, October 24th, numerous illuminations transform the German capital into a sparkling metropolis, where Berlin’s famous landmarks, buildings and sites are the stars of the show – including the Brandenburg Gate, Berlin Cathedral and the TV tower. Overall, more than 60 buildings will be illuminated. Here are some impressions of the Festival of Lights shot on my tonight’s walk from Hauptbahnhof to Hackescher Markt.

Today, the 50th edition of the consumer electronics show IFA in Berlin is starting. Until coming Wednesday, September 8th, more than 1,423 exhibitors are showing consumer electronics and home appliances on the exhibition site. Key themes on display at the IFA 2010 include HDTV, 3D TV, the networked home, TV/internet convergence and mobile media. One of the highlights is the new Android tablet Samsung Galaxy Tab which the manufacturer presented on Wednesday at the SoHo house in Berlin. In the home appliances sector, the focus is on design, ease-of-use and ergonomics. Other important trends cutting across market segments and discussed in conference sessions are digital lifestyles, smart homes, and energy efficiency. Here is some more information for visitors of the IFA 2010 show.

The Starbucks Coffee Company offers free WiFi in 140 coffee houses in Germany. Smartphone, netbook and notebook users can access the Internet for up to two hours without being charged for it - accept for the coffee or cake they order at Starbucks. Starbucks guests need only bring a mobile, wireless-enabled device and connect to the BT Openzone hotspot at the Starbucks coffee house. Customers of British Telecom can use the BT MobileXpress clients to establish a secure connection to their corporate network and access their e-mails, files and applications as if they were in their office. BT MobileXpress does also provide them with hassle-free access to more than 100,000 public hotspots throughout Germany, e.g. in hotels, restaurants or shops.

Google will start its controversial Street View service with its navigable 360-degree photo maps in 20 cities in Germany this year, the Californian company has announced. This service integrated into Google Maps will give users the opportunity to explore cities virtually, to retrieve local directions, to find a new apartment, house or property, or to check the maps and photos for vacation planning. At the beginning, Google Street will be available in Germany for these cities: Berlin, Bielefeld, Bochum, Bonn, Bremen, Cologne, Dortmund, Dresden, Duisburg, Dusseldorf, Essen, Frankfort/Main, Hamburg, Hanover, Leipzig, Mannheim, Munich, Nuremberg, Stuttgart and Wuppertal. But unlike in the United States and in 22 other countries around the world, some people in Germany see Street View as an interference with their privacy in an unacceptable way. Some do also think that Google Street View with its detailed street level maps may have potential applications for thieves or terrorists. The strange thing is: According to Google, Germans have already become loyal users of the Street View service.

New update from June 10th: Germany had been one of the few countries in the world where Apple partnered with one operator for marketing the iPhone. Telekom Deutschland (former T-Mobile) has had the right to sell the Apple iPhone in Germany exclusively since the launch of the first iPhone in 2007. Now, other operators such as Vodafone and O2 Germany market the Apple iPhone in Germany - sometimes even unlocked versions of the iPhone 4 without plan. Here is an overview of the new iPhone 4 and iPhone 3G S offers of Telekom, Vodafone and O2 Germany, Apple itself and other mobile phone providers and retailers in Germany.

The FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa has finally kicked off. Soccer fans in Germany can watch the games on TV at home, on big screen in a pub or via live stream on the web. In this overview you will find all the information you need to watch the World Cup matches live in Germany: Public and commercial broadcasting stations covering the tournament, providers selling web and TV sticks to PC and laptop users, web radio stations with live coverage and podcasts as well as locations of public showings in Berlin and Hamburg.

A small crowd gathered at the Media Markt store at Alexa mall in Berlin (close to Alexanderplatz) to buy the Apple iPad on the first day of sale. However, you could still see the running of a few hasty Apple fans and even one guy tripping. Media Markt did not say how many iPad devices they had in store today, it might already be sold out.

This weekend I exchanged my cell phone for my camera and hit the road for Kreuzberg, that quarter of Berlin that is famous for its multicultural life and spirit. Just as every other year the Carnival of Cultures is presenting the cultural and ethnic diversity of Berlin and promoting the peaceful coexistence of its different cultures. Members of Berlin’s ethnic communities make their cultures – traditional or modern – visible to Berliners and Berlin visitors equally. As home to more than 450,000 people from around the world Berlin is the most international city in Germany. Here are some of my impressions of this year’s street parade.