Will the lawsuits never end? Apple manages to entangle itself once again in another lawsuit, this time filed by Klausner Technologies over the iPhone's Visual Voicemail feature. Details in the full article.

For the typical globetrotter, a smartphone is perhaps one of the best investments one can make. Having said that, Sprint is now offering the BlackBerry 8830 to mobile users who need that extra "oomph" in their phones.

The first question most consumers would ask is how much will it cost. Well Sprint's Worldwide BlackBerry plan is available for US$ 69.99 per month and gives customers unlimited BlackBerry email and web access in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico using CDMA technology. That's a pretty good deal considering what other companies charge for their plans.

Of course, if you already own a CDMA-based BlackBerry smartphone from Sprint such as the BlackBerry 7130e or the BlackBerry 8703, you won't have to pick up a new handset since you can use the one you already have. If you do decide to pick up the BlackBerry 8830, however, it will be available next month.

It will be priced for US$ 199.99 with a two year-service agreement but you will get a US$ 100 mail-in-rebate and US$ 100 instant rebate.

The BlackBerry 8830 has a plethora of features that will make mobile phone users very happy to own one. Some of which include a speakerphone, voice activated dialing, and Bluetooth support.

The unit also sports a full QWERTY keyboard and trackball navigation. Want to know more, check out the list of features below:

• Built-in GPS – customers can utilize applications such as Sprint Navigation, spoken and visual turn-by-turn driving directions, or BlackBerry Maps, a mapping application.
• OnDemand - a unique application available exclusively from Sprint that delivers customized, up-to-date information such as sports, weather, news, money and movie information, all with the push of a button.
• Phone as Modem – with the included USB cable, customers can utilize the BlackBerry 8830 as a wireless modem to extend the capabilities of the Sprint Nationwide Network to a laptop. An appropriate service plan is required.
• Media Player – play videos, audio podcasts or music files with the built-in media player; also includes a stereo headset jack.
• MicroSD slot – allows expandable memory to store music and video files.

Given all those, you'll probably be thinking it can't get any better. Well, they're also the first company to offer AOL messenger service, so again,  that extra "oomph" you're looking for is definitely in this phone. When it rolls out next month, check it out and see if it's something you'll need for your busy lifestyle.

A new variant of the ever-popular BlackBerry phone has hit the market. Thanks to RIM and T-mobile USA, fans of the award-winning phone in the United States can now get their hands on the new white BlackBerry Pearl.

"The BlackBerry Pearl has set the bar for combining the functionality of a full-featured BlackBerry phone and the ultimate in style, all at an affordable price," said Mike Butler, Chief Marketing Officer, T-Mobile USA. "Now, the white BlackBerry Pearl provides our customers with another effortless, yet stylish, option to stay connected with loved ones."

Features of the BlackBerry Pearl include the following:

• Access to up to 10 supported personal and corporate email accounts, including most popular ISP email accounts through the BlackBerry Internet Service
• AOL, Yahoo! MSN and ICQ support
• 1.3 megapixel camera with 3 zoom levels (up to 5X) and built-in flash
• Multimedia player with stereo headset jack with support for MP3 and AAC music files, as well as MPEG4 and H.263 video formats
• High-performance HTML browser
• Newly enhanced version of RIM’s popular SureType™ keyboard technology
• Smart dialing, conference calling, speed dialing, and call forwarding
• Speaker Independent Voice Recognition (SIVR) for Voice Activated Dialing (VAD), dedicated 'send', 'end', and 'mute' keys, speakerphone, and Bluetooth support
• Quad-band GSM/GPRS and EDGE network support
• BlackBerry Maps – a new application which adds mapping and location-based services to the BlackBerry Pearl
• Polyphonic, mp3 and MIDI ring tone support
• 240x260 color display
• Innovative light-sensing technology
• 64MB built-in flash memory, expandable via microSD expansion slot
• BlackBerry Enterprise Server support

The T-Mobile exclusive white BlackBerry Pearl also comes with a host of similarly-colored accessories including a stereo headset, travel charger, and USB cable. Premium leather holsters and totes, an automotive charger, and Bluetooth headsets are also available online and through T-Mobile retail outlets.

Following the search privacy scandal that occurred in the company's research department, AOL has decided to shut down the department altogether.

Why? Apparently the people that AOL had to sack in connection with the scandal basically comprised the whole department. There have been mixed emotions about the department shutting down, some say that with AOL's tremendous customer data that could've been put to good use, the news is quite disheartening. Some people on the other hand see the research company shut down as something that they have anticipated, if not expected.

Google owns 5% of AOL, and some are saying that AOL could and/or should outsource all their customer data to Google if they want to keep the company alive. Hmm...now that's an idea...

In an interview. the CEO of AOL Germany, Charles Fränkl, said that the company is going to launch a mobile phone service in Germany sometime this year.

With the new service, the company's aiming for an extension of AOL's internet platform. Users of the AOL service are going to have access to AIM (instant messenger), photo albums, blogs and several other features. As reported earlier, Helio did a similar thing in the US this month. Helio's services lets subscribers access mySpace features and other internet related things.

As of the moment, there is no announcement on a similar AOL service coming to the US. Maybe they're trying it out on a smaller scale first? We'll see.