Software/Hardware used: iPhone 4 running iOS 4.2.

1. While your iPhone or iPod Touch is locked, press the Home button twice.

2. When you do this you will notice that basic playback controls on your iOS device will appear. If you have an Apple TV on your network you will also see the option to stream the music to that device.

You can always unlock the iPhone and open the iPod app to control your music, but this may save you some time, especially if you’re on the road listening to some music.

Do you have any other iPhone/iPod Touch tips to share?

Here are the top seven improvements in iOS4.2:

• Multitasking
• Folders
• Message Archiving
• Unified Inbox
• Search Text in Safari
• AirPlay
• AirPrint

Compatible Devices

Products compatible with this software update: iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 3G, and iPod touch 2nd generation or later

If you want to learn how to use the new features on the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch make sure to check out our iOS4.2 guides and coverage by visiting the iOS4.2 page.

Note: This will not affect alerts that are specific to a given game.

If you have any comments or questions please use the comments form at the end of the article.

Software/Hardware used: iPhone 4 running iOS 4.1 with Game Center.

1. Tap on Settings in the Home Screen.

2. When the Settings page opens tap on Notifications.

3. You will be presented with a list of Apps that have notifications. Locate and tap Game Center.

4. Tap on each of the notification types to toggle them ON or OFF.

Available Notifications

• Sounds: Similar to an SMS sound alert. I usually disable it to keep myself from confusing App alerts with SMS messages.
• Alerts: These are the alert boxes that appear from time to time, they can be rather annoying.
• Badges: Badges will appear as a small icon on the App, in this case Game Center, indicating that there are alerts pending your review.

If you plan on turning off the Sounds and Alerts notifications I recommend you leave on badges so that at least you have a visual notification.

Steve Jobs today stressed the wearability of the new iPod Nano and boy is he right, we may finally get the computer watch we’ve all been yearning for. The new Nano sports a multi-touch user interface, it is 46% smaller and 42% lighter than previous model, seven colors, 24 hours of audio playback, and prices starting at just $149 for 8GB models and $179 for the 16GB model. Pre-orders are being taken today.

Today Apple introduced the new and improved iPod shuffle among other iPods.  It seems that people wanted the buttons from the previous generation shuffle and the voice over of the last generation shuffle.  At first glance, it looks a lot like the previous shuffle that was introduced two years ago with the only exception being that it has buttons on it.  So, the shuffle seems to be a merge of two generations with a lower price point. The new model gets up to 15 hours of battery life, available in five colors and runs for $49.

If you have any comments or questions please post them below.

Note: I used an iPhone 4 running iOS4 for this tutorial.

Create a Playlist on the iPhone

1. Tap on the iPod application.

2. Tap on the Playlists button.

3. Tap on Add Playlist from the Playlists list.

4. Name the New Playlist and 5. Tap on Save.

6. You can select Songs, entire Albums, and even Playlists when adding songs to your playlist.

7. Tap on the (+) button to add the song to the new playlist or tap on Add All Songs to add all listed songs to the new playlist.

8. When you are done adding songs to the playlist, tap on the Done button.

A. Songs you add to the playlist will be greyed out as they are added.

Edit, Clear, and Delete Playlists on the iPhone

1. Tap on the playlist you wish to edit.

2. Tap on the Edit button.

3. Tap on the (-) button to remove songs from the list, when deleting songs you will be asked to confirm the deletion (see below).

4. Confirm the deletion by tapping on the Delete button when it appears.

Note: Songs will not be deleted from the iPhone, they are only being removed from the playlist.

5. You can also change the order in which the songs are listed by tapping and dragging the song to the desired location.

6. When you are done editing the playlist, tap on the Done button.

A. You can clear all of the songs on the playlist by tapping on the Clear button and confirming by tapping on the Clear Playlist button when it appears.

B. You can delete all of the songs on the playlist by tapping on the Delete button and confirming by tapping on the Delete Playlist button when it appears.

Rather than just review the software I decided to also show you how it works by creating a tutorial showing you how to convert a personal DVD to a format that is compatible with your iPad. I have also included a set of screenshots describing the features found in the application along with the minimum requirements.

Although the application is names iPad Magic, it is compatible with pretty much all Apple portable media devices including the iPhone.

Do you own an iPad? You might want to look into protecting your investment with invisibleSHIELD screen protectors. If you need any help or have questions please post them below.

You can download a trial or purchase the full version for $59.95. iPad Magic is compatible with Windows XP/Vista/7 and Mac OS. Your system must meet the following minimum requirements:

• Processor 1GHz Intel/AMD Processor or above
• RAM 256MB RAM (512MB+ recommended)
• Free Hard Disk 50MB for installation
• Graphics Card Super VGA (800×600) resolution, 16-bit graphics card or higher
• iTunes 9.1 or above, DVD-ROM/CD Drive

iPad Magic Screenshot Tour

The iPad Magic Home screen without the iPad plugged in.

The iPad Magic with the iPad plugged in.

When you click on Videos you will be able to see a listing of all the videos stored on your device.

When you click on Audio you will be able to see a listing of all the audio files stored on your device.

On each screen you can perform several actions:

A. If you have a DVD or CD in your computer’s drive, you can load it into the application by using the Open DVD/Open CD button.

B. Export selected files to iPad button.

C. Export selected files to iTunes.

iPad Magic is available in the following languages:

• English
• German
• French
• Traditional Chinese
• Simplified Chinese
• Japanese

iPad Magic provides users with a set of predefined conversion settings based on the device connected to the application, but it also provides you with the option to customize the conversion settings.

iPad Magic has the following conversion profiles:

• iPod (Classic, 4th, 5th Generations)
• iPod Mini
• iPod Nano (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th Generations)
• iPod Shuffle (1st, 2nd, 3rd Generations)
• iPhone (Original, 3G, 3GS)
• iPad

These conversion profiles ensure that you use the correct resolution and bit rate compatible with your device.

How-to Copy DVD to iPad with iPad Magic

1. Click on File to open the menu A. Click on Open DVD B. Click on the media disc you wish to copy to your iPad.

Status of Media Disc being opened.

2. You can add a check box to include all the files or select individual files to be exported to the iPad.

3. Click on the Export Selected Files to iPad button.

Status of files being prepared for the iPad.

A. Once the conversion and transfer is completed, the video will be available in your iPad.

Make sure that iTunes isn’t running when you launch iPad Magic otherwise you will see the error above. Only one application can run at a time.

Do you own an iPad? You might want to look into protecting your investment with invisibleSHIELD screen protectors. If you need any help or have questions please post them below.

If you are looking for more iPad how-to’s, tips, and help visit our iPad page.

Change the iPad’s Equalizer

1. Tap on Settings in the Home Screen.

2. Tap on iPod in the Settings pane.

3. Tap on EQ in the iPod pane to the right.

4. The EQ (equalizer) list will appear, tap on the type of music you will be playing on your iPad to enhance the sound using the equalizer settings you chose.

Get the App on 

How to Use the TouchMouse App

1. To launch the App, tap on the TouchMouse icon located on the iPhone’s/iPod’s Home Screen.

Splash screen…

2. The application will use your Wi-Fi connection to locate the server running on your computer. If your computer cannot be found, tap on the IP Address text box.

3. Enter the computer’s IP address (to locate your computer’s IP address see the last screenshot below).

Once the connection is established, you should see the notification “iPod/iPhone connected” appear.

Your iPhone/iPod screen will display the touchpad along with Left/Center/Right buttons.

If you tap on the Keyboard icon located on the bottom left of the screen you will be able to type with your iPhone and it should appear on your computer’s screen. Notice how you will have access to the Ctrl, Alt, and even the Windows keys.

The settings dialog gives you the options pictured above. One of my favorite options is the “Use 2 Fingers to Scroll” option, very useful.

If you right-click on the application icon located in the notification area, you will be presented with three options;

• Settings
• Disconnect (if connected)
• Stop Server and Exit

When you click on Settings from the menu you will be able to see the IP addresses for the computer and the iPod/iPhone (if connected). You will also be able to set the application to start automatically when Windows boots.

Unfortunately this is the default setting in iTunes for these precious recordings. In this guide I will show you how to change that setting so that your Voice Memos are available on your iPhone and iTunes for your listening pleasure.

Sync Voice Memos to iTunes

You need to have your iPhone plugged in to your computer with iTunes running before proceeding.

1. Click on the iPhone under Devices in the left pane of the iTunes window.

2. Click the Music tab in the main application window.

3. Make sure that Sync Music is enabled and check Include voice memos.

Note: If Sync Music is disabled you will need to enable it in order for this to work.

4. Click Apply to save the changes and sync your iPhone to iTunes.

A. Once synced, you will be able to click on the Voice Memos playlist and listen to the voice memos on your computer.

If you have any comments or questions please use the comments form below.

Software/Hardware used: iTunes 10.2 and an iPhone 4 running iOS4.3.