Around the Web 2.16.09: Cellphone announcements from Microsoft, HTC phones and pirate trials

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Expect to see a flood of new phones this week. Credit: steve-chippy

-- Microsoft announced a handful of mobile developments in Barcelona this morning, including a voice app that allows users to record notes. All About Microsoft

-- LG will use Microsoft’s operating system on 50 of its smartphones, increasing Microsoft’s footprint in the mobile world. NYT

-- Should smartphones be used as learning devices in classrooms? The cellphone industry certainly thinks so. NYT

-- HTC announces updates to its popular phones, the Touch Diamond and Touch Pro. And the bloggers drool. Boy Genius Report

-- Palm’s Pre will support Adobe Flash, according to a news release today. Engadget

-- Sick of cellphones yet? None of the ones being unveiled in Barcelona are better than the iPhone, an observer says. Sillicon Alley Insider

-- The iPhone is also helping people cheat at blackjack in Vegas. AP via USA Today

-- Facebook’s new terms of service say it will hang on to your content for as long as it likes. Consumerist

-- The operators of the Pirate Bay, a BitTorrent service that helped people find pirated games and music, go on trial starting today. Wired

-- Does running EBay qualify Meg Whitman to run California? LAT

-- Alana Semuels