In which we discuss how to get yourself out of a traffic citation for driving while using a mobile phone. In many parts of the world, it's now illegal to drive with a cellphone pasted to the side of your face - it's distracting for the driver and just isn't a good look. Even drivers in [...]

Nokia sure is one tough bulldog, or legal beagle as the case may be. The world’s largest mobile phone manufacturer just won’t loosen that legal-bite around Qualcomm’s foot. After having their patent exhaustion case against Qualcomm thrown out in the Netherlands and Germany , Nokia has filed an appeal with the German regional court in Mannheim. “Nokia maintains that Qualcomm’s patents in question are exhausted and is seeking a declaration from the court affirming that the principle of patent exhaustion applies to patents which are licensed to others in the telecommunications industry,” a Nokia spokeswoman said. We previously said how glad we’d be when Qualcomm finally ties up all its legal loose ends, but by the looks of things, that’s not going to happen anytime soon. With Nokia adamant about getting a court to issue a patent-exhaustion ruling against Qualcomm’s patent portfolio (for which it is charging Nokia as well as Nokia’s chip supplier, Texas Instruments), and Qualcomm’s other legal battles in other countries, it looks like a long, arduous road for the US chipmaking giant. [Via: Reuters ] ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:Broadcom wins appeal for 2005 anti-trust lawsuit against QualcommUS ITC ban on Qualcomm 3G chips put on hold by appeals courtNokia files Patent Exhaustion Case against Qualcomm in EuropeDutch court dismisses Nokia patent case against QualcommMotorola: See you later, Qualcomm, we're going with Texas Instruments

Well, the iPhone has officially hit European shores today with the launch of the Apple iPhone in Germany, on T-Mobile. While there were probably unlocked iPhones already in Germany, this morning marked the official (read: carrier-supported) iPhone entry into the land of the autobahn. And it seems that Germans, for the most part, have welcomed the iPhone with eager, open arms. T-Mobile has announced that their initial iPhone sales numbers have topped 10,000. In impressive launch-day sales figure to be sure. However, save for a few hundred eager iPhone hopefuls lined up in Cologne, the iPhone-launch-hype that swept the US was largely non-existent in Germany. The Frankfurt T-Mobile store saw a single iPhone fan waiting an hour for the iPhone to launch. Still, with more than 10,000 iPhones sold before the end of launch day, it seems safe to say that the launch was a success. There’s even talk about Christmas demand for iPhones outpacing German iPhone supply. But,  those lucky few official iPhone owners in Germany are now part of the iPhone family. Willkommen! [Via: Apple Insider ] ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:Apple posts iPhone v1.1.2 firmware - yea, greatCarphone Warehouse expecting to hock 10,000 UK iPhones on launch dayGerman iPhone hopefuls will beat UK fans to the iPhone-punchCarphone Warehouse hopes to sell 10,000 iPhones on launch3 million iPhones to be available for launch?

Thanks to some interesting launch-day timings, iPhone hopefuls in Germany will get to play with their own, legit iPhones ahead of Brits. Both the UK and Germany are slated to launch the iPhone on O2 and T-Mobile, respectively, on November 9. However, the Deutsche Telekom store at Schildergasse in Cologne will open its doors to iPhone sales at 12:01am CET (1:01am GMT), while O2 , Apple, and Carphone Warehouse stores across the UK will launch the iPhone at the cleverly devised time of 6:02pm - giving the German iPhone fanbase a head-start on the iPhone. iPhone hopefuls in the UK can expect to be limited to two iPhones per customer and will be subject to a “first come, first served” policy. Deutsche Telekom expects a healthy line to form (a “queue,” for our UK readers) and will be providing food, water, and shelter from the nightly cold. Germans will be looking at a 399 Euro price point with a two-year contract, while Brits can expect a £269 price point with an 18-month contract that will cost £35pm. O2 hopes to sell 200,000 iPhones through the holiday shopping season, while Carphone Warehouse is looking to hock 10,000 iPhones on launch day alone. ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:Apple and T-Mobile announce official iPhone rate plansHTC Touch coming to Germany - Tmobile, Vodafone, O2Apple iPhone finally gets a native iChat application - kind ofInto iPhone - Our Apple iPhone mini-site!AT&T: Only ONE iPhone per person!

Our autobahn-cruising friends in Europe just got a bit of good news from Apple and T-Mobile. The duo has released official details on the rate plans that will be available for use with the iPhone when it’s released on November 9 . All three plans, sized from medium to large to extra large (what, no “small?”) will bring unlimited data, Visual Voicemail, and free T-Mobile HotSpot access. That’s right. German iPhone hopefuls can expect free WiFi access at T-Mobile’s 8,000 nationwide HotSpots. “We’re thrilled to be partnering with T-Mobile and can’t wait to start selling the iPhone in Germany in just a few short weeks,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “Starting at just €49 per month, we think these three rate plans give customers the flexibility to experience all of iPhone’s revolutionary features at affordable and competitive prices.” Check the chart below for pricing details for the German iPhone on T-Mobile. [Via: Apple Insider ] ---Related Articles at IntoMobile:AT&T offering monster iPhone rate plans with thousands of minutes!Apple announces rate plans for the iPhone - unlimited data and 200 SMS text messages included!That's not a paperclip, it's Apple's official iPhone tool!Into iPhone - Our Apple iPhone mini-site!Not so new news: T-Mobile Germany confirms ongoing negotiations with Apple for iPhone exclusivity