A man has filed suit against Apple Inc. alleging it conspired with the Italian Mafia against him using his two Apple iPods to send threatening messages to him.

Gregory McKenna filed suit against Apple and other defendants - including the St. Louis County Police Department, an auto mechanic and unknown FBI agents - on Wednesday in a U.S. District Court in Missouri.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth has been presented with a gold-plated games console. The 83-year-old monarch was given the exclusive Nintendo Wii by game developers THQ to commemorate the launch of their forthcoming "Big Family Games" collection, which she was also given a copy of.

A spokesperson for the THQ said: "Big Family Games is the ultimate Wii game to get all family members, from grandparents to young children, playing together."

A man who has been robbing customers of Apple stores in Manhattan, New York City since January has been arrested, police said Tuesday.

Police ended Dwayne Stewart's computer-grabbing spree on May 6, when they traced to him one of the stolen computers brought by an unsuspecting buyer from an electronic shop, where the thief pawned it. Stewart has been charged with robbery and his bail has been set at $50,000.

Much of what Americans used to consider luxuries are now seen as necessities, but can things go the other way? A new Pew Research Center poll says yes, they can and do.

No longer do substantial majorities of Americans say a microwave oven, a television set or even home air conditioning is a necessity. Instead, nearly half or more now see each of these items as a luxury, and the proportion that considers a dishwasher or a clothes dryer to be essential has dropped sharply since 2006.

A new electric car by Chrysler debuted at the New York Auto Show, the Peapod, sounds cute and is innovative too. The car includes an iPhone docking system that lets your iPhone turn on your car.

"Simply dock your iPod for a fun, cutting edge way to start up. Exclusive software designed exclusively for Peapod turns your iPod into a key," said a brochure on the care, according to a report on Autobloggreen. "Both options are interchangeable and secure."