German Internet service provider 1&1 has launched a new flat rate tariff for mobile phone calls within Germany and mobile Internet access via smartphone as well as two new flat rate tariffs for surfing the web via Notebook or netbook.

The Android 2.1 smartphone HTC Desire is finally available in Germany. T-Mobile is the first German operator selling this smartphone in its shops. Purchase prices at T-Mobile stores range between EUR 4.95 with an expensive 24-months contract and EUR 449.95 without contract commitment. Other operators such as Vodafone and O2 Germany have also announced to market the HTC Desire this month. At o2 Germany stores the Android smartphone will cost EUR 509.00 without contract or EUR 99.90 with contract. Vodafone has not published any purchase prices for the HTC Desire yet.

The HTC Legend smartphone is now available at Vodafone stores in Germany. With a contract over 24 months the touchscreen smartphone costs between EUR 79.90 and EUR 179.90, without contract the purchase price amounts to EUR 419.90. The smartphone’s body measures 112 x 56,3 x 11,5 millimeters and is made out of one solid piece of aluminimum with a brushed metallic finish and shows the same bend as the HTC Hero. The HTC Legend is powered by 600 MHz processor by Qualcomm and runs on Android 2.1 with HTC Sense user interface and is geared towards the use of classical Google web services such as Search, Mail or Maps, but it also supports Microsoft Exchange.

While movie fans have traveled to Berlin this week, the mobile industry met in Barcelona. At the Mobile World Congress 2010 show manufacturers, providers and network suppliers presented latest devices and upcoming trends. Some of it – like eye-controlled earphones by Japanese operator NTT Docomo – seems weird, other things like higher data transmission rates over 4G networks or efforts to introduce standards to the world of smartphone apps sound rather promising. And, of course, handset manufacturers showed lots of new devices with new features. Here is a short wrap up of the most interesting phones and platforms of the show.

Android smartphones are great for using Google web services on the way. Services such as Google Mail, Google Talk, Google Search, Google Maps and Google Chrome web browser are already installed on the mobile, new emails are automatically forwarded to the smartphone, and contacts and calendar on the phone are synchronized with the Google server over the air. In Germany, the first Android smartphone T-Mobile G1 appeared one year ago. Vodafone sold the second Android device in the German market, the HTC Magic. O2 Germany was the third German operator …

The exclusive unveiling on January 5th in Mountain View arranged at short notice, the new category “super phone” invented by Google, the new sales model over the Google web store and new features of Android OS 2.1 on the one hand - poor customer support, poor sales on the first week and a high purchasing price whereas manufacturing costs are low on the other hand: The Google phone Nexus One built by Taiwanese manufacturer HTC is the talk of the town. My first impression after being able to put my hands on the new smartphone for a few hours: The Google phone Nexus One (still) is just another Android smartphone.

The most important question for German smartphone users at today’s official presentation of the Google phone Nexus One has been answered: The Google phone Nexus One will not be available in Germany or any other European country at least for another few months. Even though Google partners with T-Mobile USA in selling the new Android smartphone, it is only available at the new Google web store at http://www.google.com/phone for USD 529.00 for an unlocked phone or USD 179.00 for a phone with a two-year contract of T-Mobile. According to today’s announcement by Google, Vodafone will offer the Nexus One phone in Europe in spring.

With only a few days more to go until the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, the question is: Will the Nexus One be the Google Phone or a Google phone? Will the Nexus One offer new features that other Android smartphones such as the Motorola Milestone with Android 2.0 do not support or will it just be the epitome of what all future Android smartphones will be capable of? There is evidence for both sides of the argument: Google genuinely getting into the hardware business or just giving Android another push as the competitive platform to the iPhone OS.

The new HTC Hero is the most mature Android smartphone in the market at the moment. Menu and applications are easy to use, the touch screen supports multitouch, it has seven well-designed home screens with widgets, and it offers up-to-date technical features such as a 5-megapixel camera, WiFi and HSPA as well as the Chrome Lite browser with Flash support and Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync. Workmanship is good and, in addition, the body of the HTC Hero is protected against fingerprints by a Teflon coating. The user experience is comparable to the Apple iPhone – just with Android apps and Google services instead of iTunes or Safari.