Today, Vodafone has launched the first Blackberry on a prepaid plan in Germany. Vodafone customers can now combine the prepaid plan “CallYa OpenEnd Smartphone”, which costs € 2.49 per month, with the new tariff option called “CallYa Smartphone Blackberry”, which costs additional € 9.99 per month. The new Blackberry prepaid plan offers unlimited mobile Internet access, email and Blackberry Messenger over the German Vodafone network.

At home you are used to having access to email, apps and the web and when traveling you want to have it, too. Depending on the destination country and on how often and how long the user wants to connect to the web, it might also be ok to keep the SIM card of the German provider in the smart-phone during the trip. Here is a short overview of what users of a prepaid SIM card of a German provider pay for mobile Internet access on their smart-phone when being in another country.

For the brand’s first birthday, Telefónica Germany (O2) has relaunched the mobile advertising tariff called Netzclub. Instead of having the choice between three different tariff versions, customers can now choose between two versions, both with a mobile data flat rate tariff option for mobile Internet access over the network of Telefónica Germany. “Sponsored Surf Basic” offers monthly mobile Internet access for free with up to 100 MB data volume for transfers with HSPA speeds of up to 7.2 mbps (download). Alternatively, smart-phone users can surf the web with 300 MB data volume for transfers with HSPA speed with the “Sponsored Surf Pro” tariff which costs € 5.00 per month.

On June 18th, Vodafone will launch a specific pay as you go tariff for users of a Blackberry smart-phone. The new Blackberry prepaid tariff will be called “CallYa Blackberry Smartphone” and come with a fee of € 9.99 over 30 days. This tariff includes 200 MB of data volume per month for surfing the web, instant messaging, e-mail and the use of social networks. Customers with the “CallYa Blackberry Smartphone” will be able to use web and WAP services as well as the Blackberry Internet Service (BIS).

Will it be Germany’s Lena again or is her move to try to re-enact last year’s victory in Oslo certain to fail? Will rather the bookies be right who think that Ireland’s pair of identical 19-year-old twin boys Jedward will win the palm with their upbeat number “Lipstick”? Or will French tenor Amaury Vassili get the most votes in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 (ESC)? Tonight, finalists from 25 countries will take the stage in Duesseldorf and millions of viewers will cast their votes by fixed-line phone, mobile phone or SMS. But how much will it cost to cast your vote?

Low-cost provider Tchibo Mobil has launched a new pay as you go tariff for mobile phone users in Germany which replaces the two prepaid and postpaid plans Tchibo had offered over the past few years. Existing customers of Tchibo Mobil with the old 15-cent plan can switch to the new tariff offer on-line or by calling the hotline.

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.

Tonight, the first mobile phone manufacturers will show their upcoming smart-phones at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. We will get to see devices such as the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play or the LG Optimus 3D, just to name two examples. I am visiting Mobile World Congress and will give you a short overview of the most important announcements after the show. For the time being, here is a tip for people looking for an good pay as you go tariff for connecting to the web in Spain via GPRS or UMTS.

In my overview of low-rate pay as you go tariffs in Germany, the prepaid tariff of the Vodafone no-frills brand o.tel.o had been one the few examples without any tariff options. Now, there are four tariff options among which users of the prepaid SIM card of o.tel.o can choose.

Globus Mobile is one of the providers in Germany offering the lowest rates for mobile calls, texting (SMS) and mobile Internet access in Germany. With the pay as you go tariff of Globus Mobile customers can make mobile phone calls for € 0.07 per minute and text each other for € 0.10 per SMS. For accessing the Internet over the E-Plus network via GPRS or UMTS Globus Mobile customers are charged € 0.24 per megabyte.