Have you ever come across a PDF file while surfing the web in Safari and wondered how to save a copy to iBooks for later viewing? Whether you need to save an important forms, an eBook, a user manual, an insurance policy, or something as simple as a nutritional information sheet for your favorite restaurant, your iPhone and iPad have the ability to save to iBooks built right in. And using iBooks to store and manage PDFs is much, much easier than saving tons of bookmarks and waiting for them to re-load each time.

Here’s how to do it.

Note: Make sure you have Apple’s free iBooks app installed on your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad. If you don’t, you can get it from the App Store.

• Free – Download now

1. launch Safari
2. Go to the PDF link you want to save.
3. Tap the screen once to bring up the overlay menu beneath the address bar.
4. Tap Open in iBooks.
5. iBooks will launch, and in a few moments, it will add the PDF to your collection.

You can find your PDF any time simply by launching iBooks and taping the Library button in the upper left hand corner. Your PDFs will all be on your shelf.

You should be able to do this with any standard PDF you find in Safari and decide to keep.

Bonus Tip: If you have iBooks installed on more than one device, including iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and iTunes on Mac or Windows, and iCloud syncing enabled, all your PDFs will automatically be downloaded to those other devices as well.

With iOS 5, Apple introduced a split keyboard mode for the iPad, so we could more easily type with our thumbs when holding the iPad in both hands. If you already use the split keyboard, you know it provides one of the best touchscreen typing experiences on any tablet. But did you know Apple built in “phantom keys” to make typing with the split keyboard even faster and easier?

How to activate the split keyboard

If you’re not familiar with the split keyboard, it’s easy to enable.

1. When the keyboard is visible, tap-and-hold the Shuffle Slider button on the bottom-right hand corner of the keyboard.
2. From here, a popup menu will let you activate the split keyboard, or just slide your finger up to split the keyboard into two sections.
3. Adjust the keyboard placement to your liking.

Bonus tip: Once you get the hang of it, you can simply “pinch to zoom in” (like you would to make a photo or website bigger) to split the keyboard, and “pinch to zoom out” (like you would to make a photo or website smaller) to join the keyboard back up again.

How to use the phantom keys

It turns out, when using the split keyboard, the empty spaces on the inside edges actually function as if the missing keys were actually there. So, for example, if you want to type ‘H’ you can just tap the empty space next to ‘G’, and your iPad will subsequently output ‘H’ without actually requiring you to tap the key. (And vice-versa.)

This is a great feature for those of us who type based on muscle memory and expect keys to be where we’re used to them being. Most of us don’t have thumbs long enough to reach entirely across an iPad screen, but when we’re typing fast we’re certainly apt to reach a little, anticipating an extra key to be there.

By making “phantom keys” available, but invisible, Apple provides the best of both worlds. Our eyes see where we should be typing, but the system catches us if our thumbs inadvertently overreach themselves.

It’s thoughtful user interface design like this that’s makes typing on the iPad even faster and easier than it otherwise might be.

Check out the video above to see it in action.

• More iPad typing tips

Source: Finer Things in iOS

Complete dictionary of iPhone and iPad jailbreak terminology from Absinthe to Zephyr

New to jailbreak and running across a bunch of strange looking terms and not exactly sure what they mean? Jailbreak is a unique culture among iPhone, iPod touch and iPad users that combines a lot of technical terms, like Unix commands and utilities, on one hand, and modern hacker jargon like pwn and pwnage on the other. And because jailbreak lets you add a whole new world of functionality to your iPhone, iPod touch also means you’ll be adding a bunch of new words to go along with it.

Enter this complete guide to jailbreak terms. It’s a glossary, or dictionary if your prefer, of all the most common words you’re likely to hear when looking to jailbreak your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad, or once you’ve jailboken and are looking for hacks, apps, themes, utilities, tweaks, and all the other goodies that come with it. We’ve already posted our general iPad and iPhone glossary, as well as our SMS/iMessage slang glossary, and social networking slang glossary. This one is just for jailbreakers.

So, whether you’re brand new to jailbreak or a veteran who’s been jailbreaking and unlocking since the very first iPhone back in 2007, the scene moves so quickly, new code is pushed out so continuously, that’s there always something new to learn or pick up. And, frankly, keeping up with it can sometimes be overwhelming. That’s why we’re putting the bulk of the jailbreak glossary, namely the entries themselves, on the Jailbreak Forum. That’s what makes them a living, breathing document that everyone can help add to, correct, and update as time goes on. Because it’s your jailbreak dictionary, and we’re just getting it started for you.

If you’re about to jailbreak for the first time, or you’re looking for help troubleshooting common jailbreak issues, go give the jailbreak glossary a read first. It’s a great place to start. If you’ve been jailbreaking since literally day one, go give it a read and tell us what else needs to be included. We want the best resources possible.

Dive right in via the link below, and if you think we missed anything, let us know asap!

• Access the jailbreak glossary

Have a shattered or unresponsive screen on your GSM iPhone 4 and need to know how to DIY repair it? If you don’t want to put out the extra cash for a new phone and feel pretty confident in your repair skills, we can walk you through how to fix your iPhone 4 on your own.

Disclaimer: As with any repair, iMore nor PXLFIX can be held responsible for any damage you may do to your device. It’s also worth considering that opening up your device to perform any repair or modification can and will void your Apple warranty. If you don’t feel comfortable opening your device, don’t. Use extreme care and caution when performing a repair on any device.

What you need for a DIY GSM iPhone 4 screen replacement

PXLFIX recommends using only quality and genuine parts from a reputable supplier like eTech Parts. They have quality parts, tools, and much more for all your repair needs.

• GSM iPhone 4 (please note there ARE internal differences between the GSM and CDMA models)
• New GSM iPhone 4 LCD & digitizer assembly – GSM iPhone 4 LCD and digitizer assembly
• SIM removal tool (or a paper clip)
• #00 Phillips screwdriver
• Pry tool or spudger (you may need a handheld razor blade as well)
• Security screwdriver (only if your iPhone has 5-point security screws in the dock connector)

Power off your iPhone 4

Before performing any repair, always power off your device before removing any screws or parts.

Remove the back

1. First remove the bottom 2 dock connector screws in your iPhone 4. Use either your #00 screwdriver or the five point depending on whether or not your iPhone 4 has security screws in the dock connector. Almost all newer devices will have security screws.

2. To remove the back simply slide the back upwards and lift it off gently.
3. Set the back and 2 dock connector screws aside.

Remove your SIM card

Use a SIM removal tool or a paperclip to remove your SIM card and tray. Set them aside.

Remove the battery

1. To remove the battery you’ll need to remove the #00 screw holding the battery clip in place. Remove this screw located to the bottom left of the battery.

2. The metal clip on the battery is what clips the battery to the logic board. You’ll need to pop this clip up with your plastic pry tool. Simply stick the end of your pry tool underneath the clip and gently pull upwards until it unfastens from the logic board.

3. To remove the battery, I do not recommend using the plastic pull tab. There is quite a bit of adhesive underneath the battery and the tab will normally just rip off or you can bend the battery. Instead, run your pry tool along the right side of the battery and break the adhesive that way. Once the battery is free from the adhesive, you can pull the battery out of the phone. There are no other connectors holding it in.

4. You will notice a tiny grounding clip sitting underneath where you unscrewed the battery. Set this aside for replacement during reassembly. This is a grounding clip for your antenna. Make sure you put it back in place before reconnecting your battery.

Remove the dock connector shield and disconnect the cable

1. There is a shield held on with two screws covering the dock connector cable. Remove the two screws holding it in place and set the shield and screws aside, remembering where they came from.

2. Next, use your pry tool to pry up the actual dock connector cable. Be careful as there is adhesive holding the cable in place as well. Peel back the adhesive gently to free the cable.

Remove the top logic board shield

1. There are 5 screws holding the logic board shield in place. Remove the 5 screws holding it in place. Just be sure to remember which holes they came out of as the screws are different sizes. I always keep them in order of how they came out.

2. Next you’ll need to remove the shield. There is a tiny clip built into the shield holding it in place. (Refer to the photo above.) Pop it up with your pry tool and you should be able to slide the shield up fairly easily. Just take care not to bend it or break off a clip.

Disconnect the 6 cables from the top of the logic board

1. There is only one connector holding the camera to the logic board. Remove this cable in the picture above using your pry tool. Gently lift upwards and it will pop right off.

2. Next gently lift the camera out of the device. You’ll notice there is a tiny tab that is seated underneath the LCD and digitizer cables to the right.

3. Next pop up the LCD and digitizer cables to the right of where the camera cable was connected. You pop them up in the same direction.

4. The 3 cables further to the right will need to be disconnected as well. They pop up in the opposite direction.

Remove the logic board

1. Start with the 2 screws holding the logic board down in the middle and at the bottom left. Both use your #00 Phillips screwdriver. They are the same size. The one on the right of the logic board in the middle of the device has a water sensor over it you’ll need to remove.
2. The second screw is located where the logic board meets the speaker assembly towards the bottom left of the device.

3. The third and final screw holding the logic board in is located at the top of the logic board off to the right. It is the only cross-head screw in your device. Use a small flathead screwdriver to carefully remove it.

4. You should now be able to remove your logic board. Holding it at the bottom, gently pull it upwards. I use my other hand to lift up at the top where the rear facing camera used to be.
5. Take note that there is a small rubber piece that sits at the top of the logic board. You will need this for re-assembly so make sure it doesn’t fall off. If you lose this, you could see reception issues.

Remove the speaker assembly

1. To remove the speaker assembly you have one more #00 screw to remove. It sits to the right of the speaker assembly in the bottom right hand corner of your device. Remove it.
2. The second screw holding the speaker assembly into your iPhone you’ve already removed when you removed the logic board.
3. Gently lift the speaker assembly out of your device and set it aside.

Remove the vibrator assembly

1. Locate your vibrator assembly in the upper right hand corner of your iPhone 4 (assuming you’re looking at it from the back).

2. It is held in with two screws. Use your #00 Phillips screwdriver and remove them. The screw on the left will be significantly longer. Just remember which screw came from where.

3. Next, gently lift the vibrator assembly out of the device.

Remove the 4 screws in each corner

There are 10 total screws that attach your iPhone 4 LCD/Digitizer assembly to your frame. The 4 in the corners will need to be completely removed. They are all #00 screws.

Loosen the remaining 6 screws

These screws run along the sides of your iPhone and also have washers on them. I find it best to just loosen them opposed to removing them completely. The washers are not fun to put back in. Loosening them will allow you to remove the LCD/Digitizer assembly just as easily. About 2 1/2 to 3 turns for each screw should loosen them up enough to continue. If you feel the washer wobbling back and forth a bit, you’ve loosened it enough.

Remove the broken LCD & digitizer assembly from your iPhone

This is where it can get a bit tricky. Your screen is held in not only with the 10 screws mentioned above but also with strong adhesive. You will need to break this adhesive in order to remove the front panel.

1. Hold your iPhone in one hand with the screen facing you. Starting in the top left hand corner, run a pry tool or razor blade in between the frame and front panel. You’ll need to pry up quite a bit in order to break the adhesive. Be careful around the front facing camera and speaker area.

2. Next move your pry tool or razor blade to the bottom of your device and do the same thing, working your way around until the adhesive is broken and the front panel starts to come off. If your screen is cracked, additional glass may break off. That’s perfectly normal.

3. To completely remove the front panel – start at the top of your iPhone and gently pull the assembly away from the frame. Be careful to allow the LCD and digitizer cables to slip through the opening in the frame without getting caught up.

Remove any left over glass or debris from the frame

Before reassembling your iPhone, you’ll need to make sure there is no glass stuck to the remaining adhesive or inside the frame. If there is it could cause damage to the new screen or you’ll be able to see it through the new assembly, which can be annoying. Just make sure you do a thorough job of picking off all the glass on and around the frame before continuing to reassembly.

Reassemble your iPhone

Once you’re sure you’ve gotten all the glass and leftover debris out of your iPhone, you’re ready for reassembly. Watch our reassembly video above or repeat all the steps above in the reverse order.

And… done!

If you followed the above steps correctly you should know have a working and non-broken iPhone 4 again. Have you done this repair yourself? Let us know how it went! Want to know how to perform another type of iPhone repair or modification? Send me suggestions to ally.kazmucha@imore.com or leave a comment in our brand new Mod and DIY Repair Forum!

For questions or to inquire about mail-in repairs through PXLFIX, please follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook or e-mail us directly! Of course, you can like us and follow us just because you think we’re cool too!

Jailbreaking your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad and need to know how to troubleshoot all those annoying little errors, bugs, and assorted problems that crop up along the way? Whether you’re having issues getting your device to jailbreak or running into problems after you’ve jailbroken, we’ve got the answers to lots of common problems.

First make sure you’re performing the process correctly. If you need a guide or tutorial, we’ve most likely got you covered.

• Guides to jailbreaking and jailbreak basics

If you know you’re performing the process correctly but you’re running into an error, we’ve got a whole list troubleshooting steps you can try and we add more to it all the time. If you find a new issue, let us know!

• How to troubleshoot common issues during the jailbreak process

If none of the guides or troubleshooting tips seem to solve your problem, you can check out our general jailbreak forums. We’ve got the answers to a variety of questions and a huge community that’s ready and willing to help you out.

• General jailbreak help forums

We finally got an untethered jailbreak for iPhone 4S and iPad 2 yesterday via Greenpois0n Absinthe. Until now the tool was only released for Mac users. It has now been updated with support for Windows users.

If you haven’t already jailbroken your device via redsn0w CLI 0.4.3, I’d recommend using this method. Hit the links below for instructions and a download link.

• Download Greepois0n Absinthe
• How to jailbreak iPhone 4S and iPad 2 on iOS 5.0 & 5.0.1 via Greenpois0n Absinthe
• Jailbreak help and discussion forums

If you’re running Windows, you can now jailbreak your iPhone 4S or iPad 2 on iOS 5.0 or iOS 5.0.1. The Dev Team has issued an update to redsn0w that adds support. This process isn’t as easy as a simple one click tool like Greenpois0n Absinthe but if you absolutely can’t wait any longer to jailbreak, we’ve got you covered.

• How to jailbreak iPhone 4S and iPad 2 on Windows (CLI method)
• Jailbreak help & discussion
• iMore software downloads page

You can now untethered jailbreak your iPhone 4S or iPad 2 running iOS 5.0 or iOS 5.0.1 with Greenpois0n Absinthe. It’s been a long wait and we’re all more than ready to have all our jailbreak extras back in action.

Whether you’re new to jailbreak or a veteran, we’ve got you covered in our jailbreak forums. Hit the link below for a walkthrough of how to jailbreak your iPhone 4S and iPad 2.

Forums Link: How to jailbreak iPhone 4S and iPad 2 via Greenpois0n Absinthe

The iPhone 4 is known to have issues when it comes to the home button — all that double-clicking for multitasking seems to have come at a price! This is probably the reason they redesigned the home button assembly in the iPhone 4S. If your GSM iPhone 4 home button has become unresponsive or loose, a DIY repair is something you can perform with the right tools and about 45 minutes of your time.

Disclaimer: As with any repair, iMore nor PXLFIX can be held responsible for any damage you may do to your device. It’s also worth considering that opening up your device to perform any repair or modification can and will void your Apple warranty. If you don’t feel comfortable opening your device, don’t. Use extreme care and caution when performing a repair on any device.

What you need for a DIY GSM iPhone 4 home button replacement

PXLFIX recommends using only quality and genuine parts from a reputable supplier like eTech Parts. They have quality parts, tools, and much more for all your repair needs.

• GSM iPhone 4 (please note there ARE internal differences between the GSM and CDMA models)
• New GSM iPhone 4 home button and flex cable (while you can replace one or the other, I suggest replacing both. Most of the time the culprit is the contact on the cable, not the actual button itself.)
• GSM iPhone 4 home button (white)
• GSM iPhone 4 home button (black)
• GSM iPhone 4 flex cable
• #00 Phillips screwdriver
• Pry tool or spudger (you may need a handheld razor blade as well)
• Security screwdriver (only if your iPhone has 5-point security screws in the dock connector)

Power off your iPhone 4

Before performing any repair, always power off your device before removing any screws or parts.

Remove the back

1. First remove the bottom 2 dock connector screws in your iPhone 4. Use either your #00 screwdriver or the five point depending on whether or not your iPhone 4 has security screws in the dock connector. Almost all newer devices will have security screws.

2. To remove the back simply slide the back upwards and lift it off gently.
3. Set the back and 2 dock connector screws aside.

Remove your SIM card

Use a SIM removal tool or a paperclip to remove your SIM card and tray. Set them aside.

Remove the battery

1. To remove the battery you’ll need to remove the #00 screw holding the battery clip in place. Remove this screw located to the bottom left of the battery.

2. The metal clip on the battery is what clips the battery to the logic board. You’ll need to pop this clip up with your plastic pry tool. Simply stick the end of your pry tool underneath the clip and gently pull upwards until it unfastens from the logic board.

3. To remove the battery, I do not recommend using the plastic pull tab. There is quite a bit of adhesive underneath the battery and the tab will normally just rip off or you can bend the battery. Instead, run your pry tool along the right side of the battery and break the adhesive that way. Once the battery is free from the adhesive, you can pull the battery out of the phone. There are no other connectors holding it in.

4. You will notice a tiny grounding clip sitting underneath where you unscrewed the battery. Set this aside for replacement during reassembly. This is a grounding clip for your antenna. Make sure you put it back in place before reconnecting your battery.

Remove the dock connector shield and disconnect the cable

1. There is a shield held on with two screws covering the dock connector cable. Remove the two screws holding it in place and set the shield and screws aside, remembering where they came from.

2. Next, use your pry tool to pry up the actual dock connector cable. Be careful as there is adhesive holding the cable in place as well. Peel back the adhesive gently to free the cable.

Remove the top logic board shield

1. There are 5 screws holding the logic board shield in place. Remove the 5 screws holding it in place. Just be sure to remember which holes they came out of as the screws are different sizes. I always keep them in order of how they came out.

2. Next you’ll need to remove the shield. There is a tiny clip built into the shield holding it in place. (Refer to the photo above.) Pop it up with your pry tool and you should be able to slide the shield up fairly easily. Just take care not to bend it or break off a clip.

Disconnect the 6 cables from the top of the logic board

1. There is only one connector holding the camera to the logic board. Remove this cable in the picture above using your pry tool. Gently lift upwards and it will pop right off.

2. Next gently lift the camera out of the device. You’ll notice there is a tiny tab that is seated underneath the LCD and digitizer cables to the right.

3. Next pop up the LCD and digitizer cables to the right of where the camera cable was connected. You pop them up in the same direction.

4. The 3 cables further to the right will need to be disconnected as well. They pop up in the opposite direction.

Remove the logic board

1. Start with the 2 screws holding the logic board down in the middle and at the bottom left. Both use your #00 Phillips screwdriver. They are the same size. The one on the right of the logic board in the middle of the device has a water sensor over it you’ll need to remove.
2. The second screw is located where the logic board meets the speaker assembly towards the bottom left of the device.

3. The third and final screw holding the logic board in is located at the top of the logic board off to the right. It is the only cross-head screw in your device. Use a small flathead screwdriver to carefully remove it.

4. You should now be able to remove your logic board. Holding it at the bottom, gently pull it upwards. I use my other hand to lift up at the top where the rear facing camera used to be.
5. Take note that there is a small rubber piece that sits at the top of the logic board. You will need this for re-assembly so make sure it doesn’t fall off. If you lose this, you could see reception issues.

Remove the speaker assembly

1. To remove the speaker assembly you have one more #00 screw to remove. It sits to the right of the speaker assembly in the bottom right hand corner of your device. Remove it.
2. The second screw holding the speaker assembly into your iPhone you’ve already removed when you removed the logic board.
3. Gently lift the speaker assembly out of your device and set it aside.

Remove the vibrator assembly

1. Locate your vibrator assembly in the upper right hand corner of your iPhone 4 (assuming you’re looking at it from the back).

2. It is held in with two screws. Use your #00 Phillips screwdriver and remove them. The screw on the left will be significantly longer. Just remember which screw came from where.

3. Next, gently lift the vibrator assembly out of the device.

Remove the 4 screws in each corner

There are 10 total screws that attach your iPhone 4 LCD/Digitizer assembly to your frame. The 4 in the corners will need to be completely removed. They are all #00 screws.

Loosen the remaining 6 screws

These screws run along the sides of your iPhone and also have washers on them. I find it best to just loosen them opposed to removing them completely. The washers are not fun to put back in. Loosening them will allow you to remove the LCD/Digitizer assembly just as easily. About 2 1/2 to 3 turns for each screw should loosen them up enough to continue. If you feel the washer wobbling back and forth a bit, you’ve loosened it enough.

Remove the LCD/Digitizer assembly from your iPhone

This is where it can get a bit tricky. Your screen is held in not only with the 10 screws mentioned above but also with strong adhesive. You will need to break this adhesive in order to remove the front panel.

1. Hold your iPhone in one hand with the screen facing you. Starting in the top left hand corner, run a pry tool or razor blade in between the frame and front panel. You’ll need to pry up quite a bit in order to break the adhesive. Be careful around the front facing camera and speaker area.

2. Next move your pry tool or razor blade to the bottom of your device and do the same thing, working your way around until the adhesive is broken and the front panel starts to come off.

3. To completely remove the front panel – start at the top of your iPhone and gently pull the assembly away from the frame. Be careful to allow the LCD and digitizer cables to slip through the opening in the frame without getting caught up.

Remove the old home button and cable

1. Flip the phone back over and look by your dock connector. There is a tiny bracket that holds the home button flex cable in place. You’ll need to flip up the clip on the bracket. Be very gentle as it can break easily.
2. Next, carefully back out the cable from the bracket.
3. You can now remove the home button flex cable by pushing it through the opening in the front of the frame. The home button and the flex cable will come off in one piece.
4. If you are only replacing the cable, peel the actual home button off the old cable and apply it to the new one.

Put in the new home button and cable

1. Starting from the front of the frame you’ll need to stick the flex cable through the opening just as you had taken the other one out.
2. Next you’ll need to gently wiggle the cable connector back into the bracket and clip it back down. The bracket is very small and it may take a few tries to get the cable seated all the way in.
3. Clip the cable back down.
4. Turn your iPhone back over and make sure your home button is aligned and straight. Push it down once or twice to make sure you are getting better feedback than before. You should hear a click and it should feel springy if it is installed correctly.

Reassembly

In order to re-assemble your device, follow these instruction in the exact opposite order or watch the reassembly video below.

Tip: When reassembling your front panel, make sure the LCD and digitizer cables come through and they are both the same height. They tend to crimp up occasionally and you’ll have issues snapping them down to the logic board if they aren’t even.

And… done!

You should now have a home button that’s a lot more responsive and be ready to go!

Have you done this repair yourself? Let us know how it went! Want to know how to perform another type of iPhone repair or modification? Send me suggestions to ally.kazmucha@imore.com or leave a comment in our brand new Mod and DIY Repair Forum!

For questions or to inquire about mail-in repairs through PXLFIX, please follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook or e-mail us directly! Of course, you can like us and follow us just because you think we’re cool too!

Ever wondered whether or not you can text message multiple photos at once? The answer is yes. Sending them individually is annoying and time consuming. And why when your iPhone easily allows you to send multiple photos at once? This will not only work for text messaging but for e-mailing photos as well.

Although you can send multiple images at once there is still a few caveats that we’ve found. The first being that you can only send a certain number at once. In most instances, this seems to be five. It also may depend on the size of the photos you’re trying to send. You can also only send one video message at a time (for now anyways).

To text multiple images at once, follow these easy steps –

1. Open your Photos app and hit the arrow in the upper right hand corner.
2. Now you should see a few new options along the bottom – Share, Copy, Add To (only in iOS 5), and Delete
3. Tap on the photos you would like to SMS and then click Share. If you’re tapping on too many, the Share option will be greyed out.

4. Once you’ve tapped Share you’ll be presented with a few options. Tap Message to send them via text.

5. Your message app will automatically open. Just type in the name of the person you want to send them to and click Send.

That’s it! All your photos will be sent to the recipient. They will receive them as separate messages but this method seems to be a lot easier than tapping each photo individually.

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

New to iPhone and wondering how to change your signature to something a little more custom and personal than “Sent from my iPhone?” Luckily, it’s easy to do and it can save you a lot of time when you are writing your emails. It also will reduce the chances of making contact detail errors. Here’s how.

1. Tap on the settings application on your home screen. 2. Tap on Mail, Contacts, Calendars. 3. Scroll down to Signature. 4. Enter whatever details you would like.

Note: This signature will be on all your outgoing mail so make sure it’s appropriate for all your contents!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com.

Curious about how to make it easier to insert Emoji icons into a text message, email or iMessage? Switching between the normal keyboard and the Emoji keyboard, navigating to the emoticon you’re looking for, then switching back to the normal keyboard to resume typing can be tiresome. Luckily, you can use Emoji much more efficiently thanks to keyboard shortcuts in iOS 5.

Before getting started, you’ll have to enable the Emoji keyboard from within the Settings app.

1. Tap the Settings app on your Home screen
2. Tap General settings
3. Scroll down and tap Keyboard
4. Next, tap International Keyboards
5. Tap Add New Keyboard
6. Now, just scroll down a bit until you see the option for Emoji and tap it

At this point, your keyboard setup will allow you to switch over to the Emoji keyboard by tapping the small globe next to the 123 button.

All you have to do next is setup your own custom keyboard shortcuts for emoticons now that you have the Emoji keyboard enabled.

1. Tap the Settings app on your Home screen
2. Tap General settings
3. Scroll down and tap Keyboard
4. At the very bottom of the Keyboard settings pane, tap Shortcuts
5. Tap the ‘+‘ button in the upper right-hand corner
6. In the Phrase field, call up the Emoji keyboard (see above for instructions) and select your desired emoticon
7. Input the specific shortcut you’d like to use for the corresponding emoticon

That’s it! This tip saves boatloads of time when trying to input Emoji and it’s a total no-brainer with the new keyboard shortcut feature in iOS 5.

Thanks @kcmon for the tip!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com.

Kids have access to your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad and curious how to prevent them from deleting your App Store apps the moment you’re not looking? They’re fun and games can cause a lot of additional work for you if you’re not careful. Luckily, Apple lets you lock down app deletion.

1. Jump into the Settings app.
2. Tap General settings.
3. Next, tap Restrictions.
4. At this point, you’ll be prompted to enter your 4-digit passcode if you have one set, or create one if you don’t.
5. Scroll down and switch Deleting Apps to ‘OFF’.

That’s it! Now, if you ever hand over your iPhone to a friend or family member, they’ll have no ability to accidentally remove or delete your favorite apps from the iPhone Home screen.

**Bonus Tip: Using an older version of iOS that doesn’t provide for app deletion restriction? If you’re jailbroken check out No Uninstall in Cydia, which removes the ability to delete apps from the iPhone Home screen.

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com.

No Uninstall is a A jailbreak mod in Cydia that prevents 3rd party apps from being deleted from the Home screen on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.

This tweak removes the “X” when uninstalling an iPhone app. Good for pranking your friends and preventing accidental app removal.

No Uninstall requires iOS 4 or higher (got that wrong in the video — sorry!).

You can do this on a stock iPhone via the Restriction Settings, but if you’re running an older version of the OS that doesn’t support the app deletion restriction — or you just want to have some fun at a friend’s expense — give No Uninstall a try.

• Free — Cydia Link

YouTube Link

Replacing the rear camera in your GSM or CDMA iPhone 4 isn’t a very difficult DIY repair, as long as you have the right tools and parts. We’ll walk you through step by step and show you how to get your camera back into working order in no time. While the GSM and CDMA variants are slightly different, the guide will work for both. So grab your tools and your sad iPhone 4 and follow along!

Disclaimer: As with any repair, iMore nor PXLFIX can be held responsible for any damage you may do to your device. It’s also worth considering that opening up your device to perform any repair or modification can and will void your Apple warranty. If you don’t feel comfortable opening your device, don’t. Use extreme care and caution when performing a repair on any device.

What you need for a DIY iPhone 4 rear camera repair

PXLFIX recommends using only quality and genuine parts from a reputable supplier like eTech Parts. They have quality parts, tools, and much more for all your repair needs.

• GSM or CDMA iPhone 4
• Rear camera replacement – iPhone 4 camera
• #00 Phillips screwdriver
• Pry tool or spudger
• Security screwdriver (only if your iPhone has 5-point security screws in the dock connector)

Power off your iPhone 4

Before performing any repair, always power off your device before removing any screws or parts.

Remove the back of your iPhone

1. First remove the bottom 2 dock connector screws in your iPhone 4. Use either your #00 screwdriver or the five point depending on whether or not your iPhone 4 has security screws in the dock connector. Almost all newer devices will have security screws.

2. To remove the back simply slide the back upwards and lift it off gently.
3. Set the back and 2 dock connector screws aside.

Before we move on to actually replacing the camera. You may want to make sure your back plate is not the culprit if your camera is producing bad images. Check and make sure neither the inside or outside of the lens cover is scratches or cloudy. If it is, try taking a picture with your back cover removed. If the pictures turn out fine, you’ll just need to replace your iPhone 4 back cover. If your images are still blurry or the camera does not function at all, you’ll need to continue on to replace the actual rear camera component.

Remove the battery

1. To remove the battery you’ll need to remove the #00 screw holding the battery clip in place. Remove this screw located to the bottom left of the battery.

2. The metal clip on the battery is what clips the battery to the logic board. You’ll need to pop this clip up with your plastic pry tool. Simply stick the end of your pry tool underneath the clip and gently pull upwards until it unfastens from the logic board.

3. To remove the battery, I do not recommend using the plastic pull tab. There is quite a bit of adhesive underneath the battery and the tab will normally just rip off or you can bend the battery. Instead, run your pry tool along the right side of the battery and break the adhesive that way. Once the battery is free from the adhesive, you can pull the battery out of the phone. There are no other connectors holding it in.

4. GSM iPhone 4 users will notice a tiny grounding clip sitting underneath where you unscrewed the battery. Set this aside for replacement during reassembly. This is a grounding clip for your antenna. Make sure you put it back in place before reconnecting your battery. CDMA users will not see this as it is in a different location.

Remove the top logic board shield

1. There are 5 screws holding the logic board shield in place. Depending on whether you have a CDMA or GSM iPhone 4, your shield will look different. The process is the same though. Simply remove the 5 screws holding it in place. Just be sure to remember which holes they came out of as the screws are different sizes. I always keep them in order of how they came out.

2. Next you’ll need to remove the shield. Both models have a tiny clip built into the shield holding it in place. (Refer to the photo above.) Pop it up with your pry tool and you should be able to slide the shield up fairly easily. Just take care not to bend it or break off a clip. The Verizon variant seats into the logic board with two tiny notches underneath the camera connection. When reassembling, just line up the two notches on the shield and it will slide into place easily. For the AT&T model, just make sure the clip in the photo above is the first part you insert and it will line up nicely again.

Replace the rear camera

1. There is only one connector holding the camera to the logic board. Simply remove this cable in the picture above using your pry tool. Gently lift upwards and it will pop right off.

2. Next gently lift the camera out of the device. You’ll notice there is a tiny tab that is seated underneath the LCD and digitizer cables to the right.

3. To insert the new camera, start by sliding the tabbed part underneath the two cables and then push down gently to seat the camera. Try not to touch the lens at all.

4. Re-fasten the cable to the logic board.

And …done!

That’s it! All you’ll need to do now is reassemble your device in the reverse order and you’ll be taking pictures again in no time.

Have you done this repair yourself? Let us know how it went! Want to know how to perform another type of iPhone repair or modification? Send me suggestions to ally.kazmucha@tipb.com or leave a comment in our brand new Mod and DIY Repair Forum!

For repair questions or to inquire about mail-in repairs through PXLFIX, please follow us on Twitter or e-mail us directly!

Apple has created a new section on their website to give a better breakdown into how the new iTunes Match service works.

With iTunes in the Cloud, the music you buy from the iTunes Store automatically appears on all your devices.1 And for music you haven’t purchased from iTunes, iTunes Match is the perfect solution. iTunes Match is built right into iTunes on your computer and the Music app on your iOS devices.2 It lets you store your entire collection in iCloud, even music you’ve imported from CDs or purchased somewhere other than iTunes. When it’s in iCloud, it’s available on all your devices. So you can enjoy all your music anywhere, anytime — on your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, PC, or Apple TV.

Ally has already put together a great How To on getting started with iTunes Match, but in case we missed anything, it’s good to know that Apple has something setup that TiPb readers can fall back on. Check it out via the link below.

Source: Apple

Curious how to set up the new accessibility feature in iOS 5, namely the custom vibration patterns? Custom vibrations patterns let you set up uniquely identifiable series for contacts in your address book — a handy feature to say the least!

Turning custom vibration patterns on

To get started, you’ll first need to turn on custom vibrations from the accessibility settings:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap ‘General’.
3. Scroll down to the bottom and select ‘Accessibility’.
4. Set the Custom Vibrations option to ‘ON’.

Now that custom vibrations is enabled you’ll be able to record your own custom vibration pattern. Follow these quick steps to record your own vibration, or just check out the video at the top of this post.

Recording your custom vibration pattern

1. From the Settings app, tap ‘Sounds’.
2. Scroll down to the very bottom and tap ‘Vibration’.
3. Under the ‘Custom’ section, tap ‘Create New Vibration’.

At this point you’ll be presented with a recording screen asking you to tap anywhere in order to begin recording you custom vibration pattern. Custom vibrations have a maximum duration of 10 seconds, but you can simply tap ‘Stop’ when you’re done recording your own vibration if you want something short and sweet.

Now just hit ‘Save’ and you’ll be asked to name your new vibration pattern. Once you’ve done that, you’ll be taken back to the Vibration settings pane with your new pattern automatically selected as your custom vibration.

Setting up your contacts

You can even set custom vibration patterns for individual contacts!

1. Launch Phone or Contacts
2. Select your desired contact,
3. Tap ‘Edit’ and scroll down until you see the vibration option.

All contacts will be set to the default vibration you’ve selected from the settings app, but you can manually select your newly-created vibration pattern for any contact this way. You can also set a specific contact to only ring instead of vibrating at all.

That’s it! Although Apple supplies you with five built-in vibrations, it’s great that they’ve given users the ability to set their own custom vibration patterns in iOS 5. As always, let us know if we missed anything in the comments below, and enjoy your new custom vibration patterns!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com.

If redsn0w isn’t doing it for you, and you’re a Mac user, you may be wondering how to Jailbreak iOS 5.0 and iOS 5.0.1 using Ac1dSn0w. Ac1dSn0w is a newly released jailbreak tool that’ll allow you to tethered Jailbreak most iOS devices (unfortunately, still not iPhone 4S or iPad 2). It’s also a fairly straight forward process.

Currently supported devices

• iPhone 3G/3GS
• iPhone 4
• iPod Touch 4th generation
• iPad 1

What you need

• One of the supported devices listed above
• A Mac running either OS X Lion or OS X Snow Leopard
• Ac1dSn0w – Download here

Jailbreak your device

1. Once you’ve downloaded Ac1dSn0w, open it.
2. Next connect your device to your Mac and power it off.

3. If you’ve already gotten your device in DFU (device firmware update) mode, just click Jailbreak. If you don’t, tick the checkmark box that says Show Assistant and a prompt will come up that will help walk you through putting your device in DFU mode.
4. Once your device is in DFU mode, hit the Jailbreak button on the main screen of Ac1dSn0w.
5. Let Ac1dSn0w do its thing.

Perform a tethered boot

1. After you jailbreak the phone will reboot which will require you to perform a tethered boot. Use the assistant in Ac1dSn0w to put your phone back in DFU mode.
2. This time instead of clicking Jailbreak, you’ll click on Tethered Boot.

You’ll need to perform a tethered boot anytime your phone is completely turned off. You can still install applications that require the springboard to restart as that won’t require a tethered boot. The only time you’ll need to tethered boot is if your phone dies completely or you turn it off.

While this program will do the same thing as programs like RedSn0w, feel free to use whatever program you find the easiest. If you do happen to try out Ac1dSn0w, let us know how it went. And if you run into issues or have questions, check out our TiPb jailbreak and unlock forums.

Shattered the glass on your iPhone 3G or 3GS, or have a touchscreen that has stopped responding, and wondering how easy a screen replacement is to DIY? Well, you’re in luck — a screen replacement is a relatively easy repair to perform. You’ll just need a few tools and a new digitizer assembly to make your broken iPhone 3G or 3GS good as new! This repair can also fix an unresponsive home button as well.

Disclaimer: As with any repair, iMore nor PXLFIX can be held responsible for any damage you may do to your device. It’s also worth considering that opening up your device to perform any repair or modification can and will void your Apple warranty. If you don’t feel comfortable opening your device, don’t. Never use any type of conductive tool to pry or lift cables. Always use a plastic pry tool or spudger. And of course, make sure your device is powered off before beginning any repair work.

What you’ll need

PXLFIX recommends using only quality and genuine parts from a reputable supplier like eTech Parts. They have the proper parts and tools for all your repair needs.

• A broken iPhone 3G or iPhone 3GS
• A new digitizer assembly (while the steps for this repair are the same for both phone models, the part is different so make sure you order the correct assembly for your device) – iPhone 3GS digitizer assembly, iPhone 3G digitizer assembly
• A #00 Phillips screwdriver
• A suction cup
• A plastic pry tool or spudger
• A metal spudger/spatula or razor blade (you’ll only need this if the suction cup method won’t work depending on where the glass is cracked)

Power off your phone

First things first, power off your device. Hold down the power button and slide to power off. Once the device is completely off, move on to the next step.

Remove the dock connector screws

Using your #00 Phillips screwdriver, remove the 2 screws located on each side of the dock connector.

Remove the old digitizer assembly

This part can be a bit tricky so please do this with extreme care so you don’t tear any cables during the process.

Suction cup method (recommended):

The easiest way to remove the old digitizer is by using a suction cup to pull up the old screen.

1. Position the suction cup on the screen directly above the home button.
2. Using your other hand, hold down the frame while gently pulling up on the suction cup.
3. The goal is to get the bottom of the digitizer loose. Do not pull directly up. There are 3 cables attached in the top right of your iPhone. You do not want to tear these. Just pull up until the bottom of the assembly pops out.
4. After you have the bottom up you can remove the suction cup.

Spudger/razor blade method (only use this method as a secondary method):

If your screen is cracked above the home button, a suction cup may not create a seal strong enough for you to pull the digitizer up. If this is the case, you’ll need to use a razor blade or spudger in order to remove it.

1. Starting in the bottom left hand corner, insert a plastic spudger and gently pry up. Once the first side is starting to pop up, do the same on the bottom right side.
2. Run your pry tool along the bottom of the device in order to pop up the bottom of the assembly. Take special care around the home button area.

Remove the cables that attach the digitizer assembly to the logic board:

Once you have the bottom of your digitizer assembly popped up we can remove the cables attaching it to the logic board.

1. Gently lift up your digitizer enough to have a clear view of the 3 cables in the top right of your iPhone.

2. With your plastic spudger or pry tool, you’ll need to pry up the first two cables that attach the digitizer and LCD. They should be labeled with orange stickers numbered 1 and 2. Simply pop them off the logic board gently.

3. Underneath these cables you’ll see one other labeled as cable 3. This one is a bit trickier as it is clipped down. You’ll need to gently pop up the clasp holding it into the fastener. It is a tiny white clip. Simply pop it upwards and the number 3 cable should then slide right out.

4. Remove the digitizer assembly and set it aside for LCD removal.

Remove the LCD from the old assembly and place it in the new assembly

1. There are 6 screws holding the LCD in place. They are all the same size. Three on the left side of the frame, 2 on the right side of the frame, and 1 on the top right holding down the induction flex. Remove all 6 screws with your #00 Phillips screwdriver and set them aside.

2. Next use your pry tool to slowly work the LCD out of the old assembly on the left and right sides. It should come out fairly easily. Just take special care not to scratch it while removing it. The LCD and back plate will remove in one piece as they are glued together.

3. Re-position the LCD and frame in the new assembly and replace all 6 screws in the new assembly. Make sure to remove any protection film on the inside of the new assembly before putting in the LCD. This is also a good time to check for dust between the LCD and new digitizer. I use air duster when necessary to make sure none gets stuck on the inside of the device.

Reassemble the digitizer

1. Begin with the number 3 cable that clips down. Getting it seated can be a bit tricky. Use a plastic spudger to guide it in the opening if needed. Then push back down the clip that holds it in place.

2. Next push down the number 1 and 2 cables onto the logic board.
3. To snap the new digitizer assembly back in place, start at the top and make sure it is lined up. Once the top is pushed down and flush, snap the bottom into place on each side of the home button.
4. Replace the two dock connector screws.

And… done!

That’s it! You now have a brand new digitizer on your iPhone 3G or 3GS! Turn your iPhone back on and test the digitizer. If the touchscreen is unresponsive, remove the digitizer again and verify that the number 2 cable is pushed down all the way onto the logic board and seated correctly. Also test your proximity sensor while making a call and make sure it is functioning properly.

Have you done this repair yourself? Let us know how it went! Want to know how to perform another type of iPhone repair or modification? Send me suggestions to ally.kazmucha@tipb.com or leave a comment in our brand new Mod and DIY Repair Forum!

For questions or to inquire about mail-in repairs through PXLFIX, please follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook or e-mail us directly! Of course, you can like us and follow us just because you think we’re cool too!

Seen those funky little QR (quick response) bar codes floating around and wondering how to scan them on your iPhone or iPad? QR codes are used to store useful information like web URLs, contact cards, e-mail addresses, etc… While QR reading isn’t built into iOS, there are, of course, apps for that.

1. First you’ll need to get an app that reads QR codes. There are tons in the App Store. Some are free and some are paid. In this example, we are using a free app called [RL Classic](http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=xhX*vKggN*k&subid=&offerid=146261.1&type=10&tmpid=3909&RD_PARM1=http%3A%2F%2Fitunes.apple.com%2Fus%2Fapp%2Frl-classic%2Fid312720263%3Fmt%3D8) by Occipital. Others include [QR scanner](http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=xhX*vKggN*k&subid=&offerid=146261.1&type=10&tmpid=3909&RD_PARM1=http%3A%2F%2Fitunes.apple.com%2Fus%2Fapp%2Fqr-scanner%2Fid377643590%3Fmt%3D8) or [QR reader](http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=xhX*vKggN*k&subid=&offerid=146261.1&type=10&tmpid=3909&RD_PARM1=http%3A%2F%2Fitunes.apple.com%2Fus%2Fapp%2Fqr-reader-for-iphone%2Fid368494609%3Fmt%3D8) and tons to choose from will come up. Take your pick and download one.

2. Next you’ll need to find a nifty code to scan and open the app. It should pull up something just like above where you can scan a code using your camera app. Apps like RL Classic don’t require you to take a physical picture – simply center the QR code in between the bars and it should pick up on it.

3. Next you’ll get some type of prompt showing you the information in the QR code. In this example it’s a web URL. I can just tap to visit the URL or cancel and it will save it to my history.

That’s it! You can now scan all those handy QR codes you see floating around in magazines, books, stores, and more.

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com.

Have an out of warranty AT&T or Verizon iPhone 4 that’s can’t seem to hold a charge and wondering how to replace the battery DIY (do it yourself) style? Changing out batteries is a service we provide at PXLFIX on a regular basis, but it’s actually a pretty simple repair and something most people with just a bit of technical know-how can perform.

Disclaimer: As with any repair, iMore nor PXLFIX can be held responsible for any damage you may do to your device. It’s also worth considering that opening up your device to perform any repair or modification can and will void your Apple warranty. If you don’t feel comfortable opening your device, don’t. With this specific repair, please take care not to puncture or bend the battery in any way as it could be a potential fire hazard. Use extreme care and caution when performing a repair on any device.

What You need for a DIY battery swap

PXLFIX recommends using only quality and genuine parts from a reputable supplier like eTech Parts. They have the parts, tools, and all your other repair needs.

• A sad iPhone 4
• A new iPhone 4 battery – GSM iPhone 4 battery, CDMA iPhone 4 battery
• A #00 Phillips screwdriver
• A mini 5-point screwdriver (you’ll only need this if you have five point screws in your dock connector instead of standard #00 Phillips screws)
• A plastic pry tool

How to remove the back of your iPhone 4

1. First remove the bottom 2 dock connector screens in your iPhone 4. Use either your #00 screwdriver or the five point depending on whether or not your iPhone 4 has security screws in the dock connector. Almost all newer devices will have security screws.
2. To remove the back simply slide the back upwards and lift it off gently.
3. Set the back and 2 dock connector screws aside.

How to remove the old battery of your iPhone 4

1. To remove the old battery you’ll need to remove the #00 screw holding the battery clip in place. Remove this screw located to the bottom left of the battery.

2. The metal clip on the battery is what clips the battery to the logic board. You’ll need to pop this clip up with your plastic pry tool. Simply stick the end of your pry tool underneath the clip and gently pull upwards until it unfastens from the logic board.

3. To remove the battery, I do not recommend using the plastic pull tab. There is quite a bit of adhesive underneath the battery and the tab will normally just rip off or you can bend the battery. Instead, run your pry tool along the right side of the battery and break the adhesive that way. Once the battery is free from the adhesive, you can pull the old battery out of the phone. There are no other connectors holding it in.

4. As a side note, there is a tiny grounding clip that sits right where you unscrewed your battery from. Do NOT lose this clip. It grounds your wifi antenna. You will need to make sure it is in place before installing the new battery.

How to install a new battery in your iPhone 4

1. Make sure your wifi grounding clip is in place. It should be lined up with your #00 screw hole for your battery. It goes under your battery clip.
2. Once your grounding clip is lined up you can snap your new battery in place. Just line up the clip on the battery to where it gets seated on the logic board and snap it down. You should hear it click into place.
3. Set the new battery in place and line it up.
4. Replace the #00 screw that holds the battery and grounding clip in place.

How to put the back cover back on your iPhone 4

1. Place your iPhone 4 back cover back on by lining up the clips and sliding it down into place. It should fall directly into the track. It should be easy to slide it into place.
2. Put the two dock connector screws back in.

And… done!

That’s it. You now have a new battery in your iPhone 4! Have you done this repair yourself? Let us know how it went! Want to know how to perform another type of iPhone repair or modification? Send me suggestions to ally.kazmucha@tipb.com or leave a comment in our brand new Mod and DIY Repair Forum!

For repair questions or to inquire about mail-in repairs through PXLFIX, please follow us on Twitter or e-mail us directly!

If you’ve updated your iPhone 3GS to iOS 5 or 5.0.1 and lost your unlock we can help you get it back. The actual jailbreak will be tethered but you’ll still be able to unlock and continue using your device in the mean time until an untethered jailbreak solution is released. iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S users should steer clear of this as it will not work.

Devices supported

• iPhone 3GS

What you’ll need

• RedSn0w 0.9.9b5 or later, we recommend the most current version which is RedSn0w 0.9.9b8 – Mac Link, Windows Link
• A working SIM card (doesn’t matter what carrier as long as it’s activated and working)

Jailbreak with RedSn0w and Install the iPad baseband

You’ll follow the same steps are you would to jailbreak via Redsn0w except for one difference. Instead of just checking Install Cydia you’ll need to check off Install iPad baseband. RedSn0w will warn you that this can not be undone. Agree and continue the jailbreak process.

Boot Tethered

After jailbreaking you’ll need to perform one tethered boot before unlocking. Simply launch RedSn0w again and click Extras. Check the box for Just boot tethered right now. You’ll be walked through DFU mode and your phone should reboot.

Install UltraSn0w

After your phone reboots you’ll need to perform the following steps to unlock it:

Known Issues

A few users have seen issues where their phone will not obtain service after using ultrasn0w on iOS 5 or iOS 5.0.1. If you have this issue, launch RedSn0w once more and choose jailbreak again. Instead of going through the whole process this time, you only want to check Deactivate. Do one more tethered boot and you should be good to go!

If you need more help, visit our TiPb jailbreak & unlock forums for answers to many common questions and to ask your own!

Update: Some users are pointing out that using RedSn0w 0.9.9b8 is breaking GPS functionality again but using RedSn0w 0.9.9b7 doesn’t. So if you’re having that issue, try using the beta 7 version instead. Thanks to all that tipped this!

If you’re currently running iOS 5.0.1, you can jailbreak via RedSn0w 0.9.9b8. This one is also tethered like the previous beta versions of RedSn0w for iOS 5. It’s also worth noting that unlockers should stay away from this one unless they’re okay with being tethered. iPhone 4 users should stay away from any newer stock iOS firmware versions altogether in order to preserve their baseband.

Be advised that not all jailbreak apps and tweaks have been updated to support iOS 5 yet. If you’re alright with running tethered and don’t mind a few bugs here and there, follow along for a quick walkthrough.

If you’ve used RedSn0w before, you’ll be right at home. It’s not too much different than jailbreaking any other firmware version you may have used it for previously.

Devices Supported

• iPod touch 3G
• iPod touch 4G
• iPad 1
• iPhone3GS
• iPhone 4 (GSM)
• iPhone 4 (CDMA)

And I can’t say this enough times, if your device is not listed above, please do not attempt to jailbreak any device but the ones listed above. iPad 2 and iPhone 4S users will have to sit this one out.

What you need

• iOS 5.0.1 installed on your device
• RedSn0w 0.9.9b8 – Mac Link, Windows Link

1. First Launch RedSn0w

2. This version and other newer versions of RedSn0w should automatically detect what version of iOS you are running. No need to manually browse to a firmware file this time. Just click Jailbreak and follow the prompts.

3. Next RedSn0w will prompt you to only continue when your device is powered off. If it isn’t already, power your device off while it’s connected to the computer.

4. Next you will be guided through putting your device into DFU mode. Follow the steps and RedSn0w will take care of the rest.
5. If you’re on 5.0.1, you will need to manually navigate to an iOS 5.0 firmware file (not 5.0.1). RedSn0w will fail to identify the build on iOS 5.0.1. So do this when RedSn0w fails just like you had to with all other previous versions that didn’t automatically detect an IPSW. Just navigate to an iOS 5.0 file for your device instead of 5.0.1.
   Update: You can use redsn0w 0.9.9b9b for native iOS 5.0.1 support now and not have to point to a 5.0 IPSW. Download links for the newer version of redsn0w are here: Mac, Windows
6. After RedSn0w finishes doing it’s thing, you’re done!

7. Next you may need to perform a tethered boot. If you do, simply open RedSn0w again and click Extras and then Just Boot
8. Your phone will perform a tethered boot and you should be good to go!

RedSn0w has also thrown in a little bonus for Windows users. You can copy the redsnow.exe file to your desktop or anywhere you like and rename it something like justboot.exe. As long as you have the word “boot” in the file name you can just double click that file to perform a quick tethered boot with RedSn0w.

That’s it boys and girls. If you need any help, be sure to check out our TiPb jailbreak forums. Until next time, happy jailbreaking!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com.

Wondering how to quickly and easily add icons to your Home Screen that will take you to frequently used Settings like Brightness, Bluetooth, or Wi-Fi? Developer Jeff Broderick has created profiles that do just that!

Follow along to learn how to get them!

1. From your iPhone, visit brdrck.me/settings/
2. Tap the setting you wish you add to your homescreen
3. If there is more than one icon option, tap the one you wish to have. Then tap Install [setting] Shortcut.
4. This will open the Install Profile Page. Tap Install.
5. A popup will appear warning you the the profile is unsigned. If you’re ok with that (we are!), tap Install Now.
6. When the profile is done installing, tap Done.
7. This will bring you back to brdrck’s website.
8. Tap the home button to find the icon on your home page.

Now when you tap on your new icon, you will see a quick flash of brdrck’s website before being taken to that specific setting in the Settings app.

Personally, I only installed the Brightness setting and have that sitting on my first page. I’ve been dying for quick access to my Brightness slider for many years. If you want all of the shortcuts, you may want to add them all to a folder on your first page for quick access.

Bonus Tip: If you desire more than these 11 settings, check out godlaya. The website is mostly in German, but you can install a bundle of 23 settings profiles in English.

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com.

Like to go to sleep listening to your iPhone’s Music app and curious how to get it to “sleep” after a set period of time? One of the most annoying things is waking up a few hours later and it is still playing. Especially true if you are listening to an Audio Book and have to scrub back through hours of audio to find where you stopped listening.

Luckily you can set your iPod to stop playing after a set amount of time. It is really easy to do and we will show you how.

• Open up your Clock app on the home screen

• Select the Timer

• Set the amount of time you want the Music app to play for
• Click on the When Timer Ends button
• Scroll down to Sleep iPod

• Click on Set
• Start the Timer

• Fire up the Music app, lie back, relax and enjoy
• After the timer runs down, the Music app will stop

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com.

So you’ve subscribed to iTunes Match and now you want to know how to set up your iPhone or iPad to use it? No problem, it’ just a few ticks and taps and you’ll be on your way to iCloud music goodness!

1. First you’ll need to jump into Settings and Music from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch.

2. You should see a new setting at the top for iTunes Match. Simply enable it. It will ask you to confirm as well.

3. Your device will now start to match your library in the background. You can also choose to show music on your device that you have the ability to download but don’t currently have on your device. I have this turned off but you can enable it if you’d like it to show up in your library.

That’s pretty much it! You’re now set up on iTunes Match. If you run into problems or issues during the process check out our TiPb Forums for answers to commonly asked questions as well as to ask new ones!

• iTunes Match Forum thread

Since Apple just recently launched their iTunes Match service for users in the United States, you might be curious how to subscribe? Luckily, subscribing to iTunes Match is just about as easy as making an App Store or iTunes music purchase. Once you’re all paid up — it’s $24.99 a year — and set up, you’ll be able to access an online version of your iTunes library via iCloud from devices such as your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and AppleTV without physically having a computer to stream from.

1. First launch iTunes on your computer and make sure you are running iTunes version 10.5.1 or higher.

2. Next you should see an iTunes Match section under Store in the left hand pane. Select it. (If you don’t see this, you can alternately go to the iTunes Store homepage and select iTunes Match from the Quick Links section on the right. This option was missing for me at first and then magically appeared… weird.)

3. Next you’ll need to click Subscribe to iTunes Match for $24.99. You’ll be asked to input your iTunes password. (You’ll only see the not taking subscriptions message when the servers are slammed. If you get this, just try subscribing later.)

4. Next click iTunes Match in the sidebar just like you did to purchase it and you should now see an option to add your computer. Do so by clicking the Add this Computer button.

5. iTunes will begin Step 1: Gathering information about your iTunes library. In this step Apple scans all your songs to see what’s in your library.
6. In Step 2: Matching your music to songs in the iTunes Store, Apple compares your library to the massive iTunes Catalog. Anything that already exists in the iTunes Catalog is immediately made available to you in standard iTunes format — 256Kbps AAC with metadata and album art.
8. Step 3: Uploading artwork and remaining songs takes any other music in your library — anything Apple couldn’t match with the iTunes Catalog — and uploads it to Apple’s servers so it will still be available to you from the cloud (albeit in its original format, if that format was worse than iTunes standard.)
9. That’s it, you’re all set up.

Troubleshooting iTunes Match

A few things you’ll want to pay special attention to:

• iTunes Match can only handle 25,000 songs. If your library is bigger than that, iTunes will refuse to match it. About all you can do right now is create a new iTunes library on the same computer with a subset of your songs — no more than 25,000 — and use that library to set up iTunes Match. (Just make sure you don’t copy your music into new folders, leave it in its existing folders or you’ll waste a lot of disk space.)
• iTunes Match isn’t currently doing a great job actually matching a lot of songs. It could be an issue with metadata, if the song information is really different between the iTunes Catalog copy and your local copy. You could try updating the metadata on your local copies before going through iTunes Match, but it can take a lot of time and results may still vary. (Anything iTunes doesn’t match gets uploaded to Apple’s servers, so you still have access to it, but in its original form, not the iTunes Catalog copy in 256Kbps AAC with “official” metadata)

That’s it! iTunes Match should be happily processing, matching, and uploading your library. In the meantime, let us know how the setup went for you, and if you have any issues, jump into our iTunes Match Forum and get some help!

• iTunes Match Forum thread

Just hear about Google+ Pages for brands and businesses and want to know how to set up one of your very own — just like TiPb’s done? Google makes it stone stump simple to do, so launch your favorite web browser, get a beverage ready, and follow along.

1. Log in to your Google+ account
2. Head on over to http://plus.google.com/pages/create
3. Choose the type of brand or business page you want to setup – Local Business or Place, Product or Brand, Company, Institution, or Organization, Arts, Entertainment, or Sports, and Other.
4. Each type has many sub-types so read carefully and choose the one that applies best.
5. Fill in the name, website address, and agree to the terms of service.
6. Choose a profile picture for your page and use the draggable handles to crop it just the way you want.
7. Give you Page a tagline. Something short and snappy that conveys what it is and piques interest.
8. Share your new Page with your personal account’s circles, if you want.
9. Start a conversation on your new page, connect it up to your website, and tell the world about it!
10. And… you’re not done. Creating a Google+ Page is just the first step. Now you have to share, hang out, and get all social with it!

Have you created a Google+ Page for your business or brand? Tell us about it in the comments and let us know if you have any tips on getting the most out of them!

Now that you’re running on iOS 5 with iCloud and creating OTA backups, you might find you’re quickly blowing through the 5GB that Apple gives away from free. While you can turn off some individual things, like Camera Roll backups, to save space, if you’re backing up multiple devices or lots of data, you might still need more iCloud storage. Surprise, surprise, Apple gives you the ability to buy it.

1. First tap into your Settings app.

2. Scroll down and tap into the Settings for iCloud.

3. You’ll see all the services you have synced with iCloud on this screen. If you scroll down a bit further you’ll come across a Storage & Backup tab. Tap it.

4. You’ll now be presented with storage upgrade options. All paid MobileMe users were given an additional 20GB storage plan for free for their first year. But if you feel the need to upgrade from the free 5GB everyone will get, you can do so here. You can add an additional 20GB for $40/year or an additional 50GB for $100/year.
5. Simply tap on the option you’d like to upgrade to in order to select it. You may be required to sign in with your Apple ID to confirm.

You should now be good to go with even more storage to back up all of your content to iCloud. And if you think you’ve purchased too much storage you can always go back in and downgrade your storage whenever you like.

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Don’t need a fancy location-based Reminder in iOS 5 and just want it to tell you what time your task is due? No problem, time-based Reminders are perfect for those who care more about the when than the where, and couldn’t be any easier to set up.

Start by launching the Reminders app.

1. Tap the + sign in the upper right corner to add a reminder.
2. After you add the reminder, click Done in the upper right hand corner. Or just clicking Return on the keyboard will complete the reminder as well.

3. Next tap on the reminder you just created in order to enter the settings for it. By default reminders won’t notify you and function like a checklist of sorts. To change that, tap on the Remind Me option.

4. You’ll have two options to set a notification. On a Day or At a Location. Since we want to set a time based reminder, select the On a Day option.
5. Simply select the date and time you’d like to be reminded and click Done in the upper right hand corner.

That’s it! The Reminders app will now send you a push notification at the time you specified very similar to how the Calendar app already displays notifications for events. I’ve found myself using the built-in reminders app a lot more than any of the third party apps I used before due to the simplicity and syncing with iCal on all my Macs. Will you guys be using Reminders going forward or will you stick with whatever third party task app you used prior to iOS 5?

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Running iOS 5 and iCloud and wondering how you can manually trigger a backup? iCloud will automatically backup at some point during the day when you’re on Wi-Fi, but if you need to replace or restore your phone, or you know you’ll be leaving for a while and want to make sure the backup is done before you go, you do have that option.

Here’s what to do:

1. First tap into your Settings app and tap into iCloud.

2. On this screen you’ll see a list of all the services you are syncing with iCloud.
3. Scroll down a bit further and you’ll see a button labeled Storage & Backup. Tap it.

4. Scroll all the way down to the Backup sections and you will see a button labeled Back Up Now. Tap it to start creating an iCloud backup.

5. iCloud will begin creating a backup for you. It can do this in the background so you can continue using your device like normal while the process completes.

iCloud will create backups for you regularly but it will only perform a backup when you are connected to Wifi and plugged in to a charging outlet. So as a note to users on tiered data plans, if you need to create an iCloud backup manually at least make sure you are on Wifi if at all possible. If you have any other questions about iCloud backups or anything iOS in general, check out our TiPb forums for all questions related to iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Have a ton of unreal messages and wondering how to just declare email bankruptcy and mark them all as read? iOS 5 still doesn’t give you that magical “mark all” button but it does let you mark multiple messages as read in the Mail app, which can help save a lot of time when you’re crunching through emails on-the-go.

1. Launch the Mail app
2. In the Mail app, tap Edit in the upper-right hand corner.
3. A bullet list will appear on the left allowing you to select emails individually.
4. Tap each email you would like to mark as read
5. Tap Mark in the lower-right hand corner.
6. Tap ‘Mark as Read’ from the menu list.

Now, all of the emails you selected will be marked as read and, if you’re using iCloud, Exchange, or IMAP, will reflect as such across all email clients you have connected to your email service. It’s as simple as that!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Tired of tethering your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad to iTunes and wondering how to set up iTunes Wi-Fi sync? It works just like traditional USB sync but without the cable! (Without the sync cable that is, you still need to be plugged into a power cable — baby steps!) Here’s how to get it going:

• Make sure your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch is connected to your Wi-Fi network and running iOS 5. (Here’s how to update to iOS 5)

• Make sure the PC running iTunes is connected to the same Wi-Fi network and is running iTunes version 10.5

• Plug in the device you want to setup Wi-Fi sync with
• When its been recognized, click on it in the left column then select Summary in the header bar

• Scroll down until you see the option for Sync with this iPhone over Wi-Fi

• Click the box to turn it on
• Hit Apply

(Yes — It has to be plugged in to the power for this to work, so you are really just cutting the cord to the PC not to the wall!)

If you want to initiate a sync manually, you can do this from your iOS device and you don’t need to be plugged into a power outlet.

• Go to Settings
• General

• Click on iTunes Wi-Fi Sync
• Click on Sync Now

That is all there is too it, you can now sync your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad without the cable. Well without a cable connected to your PC anyway!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

New to iOS, worried about the security of your iPhone or iPad, and wondering how to set a Passcode Lock for better protection? While the current version may not be perfect, it provides a number of real advantages over just leaving your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad unlocked. It’s also easy to set up. here’s how:

Simple 4-digit Passcode Lock

To simple, 4-digit Passcode Lock:

• Open Settings
• Tap on General
• Tap on Passcode Lock

• Tap Turn Passcode On

• Enter a four digit passcode

• Re-Enter the same passcode again to confirm

Strong alphanumeric Passcode Lock

If 4 numbers just doesn’t make you feel secure enough, you can switch to a stronger, alphanumeric Passcode.

• Open Settings
• Click on General
• Click on Passcode Lock
• Slide Simple Passcode to Off
• Type your new passcode in the box, this can now be anything you like

• Re-Enter the same passcode again to confirm

Siri and Passcodes

The iPhone 4S’ voice control system, Siri, has the ability to bypass Passcodes for some functions, like making calls or sending messages. If you consider this a security risk, you can toggle it off from the same screen.

Erase Data

At the bottom of the page, you have an option to Erase Data in the event of ten incorrect passcode entries.

If you have small children who think it’s a fun game to tap away at the numbers while your phone turns red, you may not want to enable this or you’ll be restoring your phone a lot. Security is constantly at war with convenience, make your choice.

Data Protection

Once you’ve enabled a Passcode Lock on an iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPad 2, iPad, iPod touch 4, or iPod touch 3, you get the added benefit securing the hardware encryption keys. This makes everything from email to App Store apps more secure.

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Wondering how to get Siri to better understand and pronounce your contact’s names? Sometimes adding phonetic spelling will solve the problem. A good example of this is my name. Siri is pronouncing it as A-lie, as in the cake is a lie. Here’s how to set up a phonetic spelling to a name.

1. You’ll need to go into whatever contact card Siri is having trouble with. In this instance, I’m editing my own.
2. Next you’ll need to tap Edit at the top of the contact card.

3. Scroll all the way to the bottom and click add field.

4. You will see two fields that allow you to add a phonetic first and last name. Fill them out. In this instance I put “Alley”. This seems to make Siri pronounce my name correctly.

5. Once you are finished click Done to finish editing your contact card. You should now see the phonetic spelling of the name underneath the contact’s actual name.
6. Try Siri again. Your name should be pronounced correctly now.

Has Siri had issues pronouncing any names for you? Did adding a phonetic spelling fix the issue?

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

If you have used Siri to add a relationship on your iPhone 4S(http://www.imore.com/iphone-4s) you may be wondering how to go about removing it. Maybe you had someone labeled as a girlfriend or boyfriend and need to remove that relationship. While Siri can’t remove relationships (yet) itself, we can walk you through how to do it manually.

When iOS adds relationships it simply remembers them via your own contact card. So we’ll need to edit that.

1. First go into your Address Book and find your own contact card.
2. You’ll want to tap Edit in the top right corner.

3. Now scroll down a little ways and you’ll see a relationships section.
4. Simply delete whatever relationships you don’t want anymore.
5. Scroll back up and click Done.

iOS should no longer remember those relationships. You can always use Siri or manually add relationships again anytime you want.

Wondering how to setup iOS 5′s new iMessage service on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch? Using iMessage you can send text messages, photos, video and much more to other iMessage users around the world, all over your existing data connection. That’s right, no texting plans or charges needed! Here’s how to get started.

Let’s take a look at the iPhone first

• First off ensure your running the latest iOS 5 software
• Select settings
• Select Messages
• Turn the toggle switch for iMessage to on

• You should see a message saying “Activating”
• You can now enter your receive to addresses, this can be an email address (Apple ID) or just your iPhone phone number, or both. The phone number part should already be filled out
• If you have an Apple ID and want to use that as well as your phone number, enter it here

• Once completed you will now have an active iMessage account on your iPhone
• You can toggle various options on and off such as read recipts etc
• Also you have an option to send as an SMS if iMessage data connection is not available

Now for the iPad and iPod touch

• First off ensure your running the latest iOS 5 software
• Select settings
• Select Messages
• Turn the toggle switch for iMessage to on
• A new box will open asking you for an Apple ID

• If you have an Apple ID, enter it here
• If you don’t have one, select Create New Account
• Once completed you will now have an active iMessage account on your iPad or iPod touch

If you want separate iMessage accounts for each device, you will need to create separate Apple ID’s for each device, these can be created for free in the iMessage original set up screen. Just select Create New Account.

If you want to have all devices use one iMessage account then you need to input the same Apple ID details into each device iMessage setup page.

That should be all you need to get started with iMessage!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Curious about how to remove the photos that iCloud stores in your Photo Stream? Maybe you have a few controversial pictures you need to clear out of the stream before letting a friend use your iPhone or iPad?

With iOS 5 and iCloud, Apple introduced Photo Stream to keep your photos synced between devices. By default, photos are automatically deleted after 30 days or after you cross the 1,000 photo threshold, but what if you need to manually remove them? We’ll show you how after the jump!

Getting Started

To get started, you’ll need to navigate to iCloud.com from the desktop in order to access advanced iCloud preferences. Once you’re there, just follow these quick steps to reset Photo Stream and clear out your pictures.

1. Once you’re at iCloud.com on the desktop, click on your name in the upper-right hand corner.
2. From the Account Settings pane, click on ‘Advanced’.
3. Now, click ‘Reset Photo Stream’ to begin the process.
4. Finally, you’ll be asked to confirm before iCloud erases all contents in your Photo Stream.

And that’s it!

I’d run a quick check on your iPad or Mac to make sure all the photos have been fully removed from the Photo Stream before handing over your iDevice to a friend, but this process should do the trick if you’re looking to clear out or reset your Photo Stream contents.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Apple hasn’t (yet?) added posting to Twitter to the tricks in Siri‘s bag, but if all you want to do is tweet out a quick status, you can add it yourself.

It’s simple: Navigate to Twitter from Mobile Safari, jump into the mobile settings panel and make sure you have your mobile phone number setup with the service. Twitter will then spit out a number for you to text message Twitter updates to. For confirmation’s sake, send a quick status update to the number to make sure the text is pushed to your Twitter timeline.

For more, see Clay Russel’s write up below.

Source: iPhone Addict

New to these giant software releases and wondering how to upgrade your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to iOS 5? Luckily iTunes makes the process of upgrading painless. The best part is once you’re on iOS 5 you can start to receive OTA updates and you’ll never have to fuss with cables and computers again.

For now though, where you’re ready to update to iOS 5, here’s what you need to do:

1. Plug your current iPhone into your computer and open iTunes. Your phone should start to sync and backup automagically.

2. If it doesn’t start to sync automatically, click the Sync button in order to back up your device. (You can alternately right click your device name in the navigation bar and click back up as well. Either way will work just fine.)

3. iTunes may prompt you that an update is available. If it does just click update after you’ve backed up your device (iTunes will also prompt you to back up if you haven’t already.)

4. If it doesn’t, click Check for Update under the Version section.
5. The new software will start to download and then install. Your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad will restart. Don’t worry about it. Let iTunes do it’s thing and update your device to iOS 5.

6. Once it’s done updating, iTunes should prompt you to do one of two things – set up as a new device or restore from a backup. Choose to restore from a backup and select the backup you just made.
7. Once the restore is done your device will reboot. When iTunes detects it again it will start to sync back any apps and games your old iPhone had installed.

After you’ve done the initial manual update to iOS 5 you’ll have the option to use iCloud backups in the future. Do it. It’s free and it just works.

If you have any questions or have issues, check out our TiPb Forums for all the help you could ever need!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

If you’ve got the iOS 5 GM seed on your iOS device, you can now jailbreak via RedSn0w 0.9.9b3. This one is also tethered like the previous beta versions of RedSn0w for iOS 5.

Be advised that not all jailbreak apps and tweaks have been updated to support iOS 5. If you’re alright with running tethered and don’t mind a few bugs here and there, follow along for a quick walkthrough.

By this point, almost anyone jailbreaking is already familiar with RedSn0w and how it works. It’s not too much different this time except that RedSn0w has a nifty little tool to automatically detect the iOS 5 GM IPSW which makes the process a bit smoother.

Devices Supported

• iPod touch 3G
• iPod touch 4G
• iPad 1
• iPhone3GS
• iPhone4 (GSM)
• iPhone4 (CDMA)

And I can’t say this enough times, if your device is not listed above, please do not attempt to jailbreak it on any version of iOS 5! And if you rely on a software unlock and don’t have an older boot rom, stay away from iOS 5 altogether.

What you need

• iOS 5 GM seed installed on your device from the Apple Developer Portal – Developer license required
• iTunes beta 7 for either Windows or Mac from the Apple Developer Portal – Developer license required
• RedSn0w 0.9.9b3 – Mac Link, Windows Link

After you have iOS 5 GM installed on your device, your device backed up, and your version of iTunes upgraded to the newest beta version, follow the steps below to jailbreak.

1. First Launch RedSn0w

2. This version automatically detects your IPSW unlike older versions of RedSnow. Just click Jailbreak and follow the prompts.
3. After RedSn0w finishes doing it’s thing, you’re done!

4. Next you may need to perform a tethered boot. If you do, simply open RedSn0w again and click Extras and then Just Boot
5. Your phone will perform a tethered boot and you should be good to go!

RedSn0w has also thrown in a little bonus for Windows users. You can copy the redsnow.exe file to your desktop or anywhere you like and rename it something like justboot.exe. As long as you have the word “boot” in the file name you can just double click that file to perform a quick tethered boot with RedSn0w.

That’s it boys and girls. If you need any help, be sure to check out our TiPb jailbreak forums. Until next time, happy jailbreaking!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Did someone get ahold of your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad and try to guess your Passcode Lock one (or a thousand!) times too many, and now you’re wondering how to regain access to it yourself in this lifetime? The screenshot above was sent to us by a baffled reader who’s small child got ahold of their iPhone. But don’t worry if you’ve actively been creating backups of your iOS device, you can still regain access — without having to wait 6 million minutes first.

To regain control of your iPhone, you’ll simply need to restore your device in iTunes.

1. First put your phone in either DFU mode or recovery mode. Either will work in this scenario. Most people will prefer recovery mode as DFU can be a bit trickier. If recovery mode doesn’t work, then backtrack and try DFU mode.

2. iTunes will prompt you that a device in recovery mode has been detected and that you’ll have to restore before using it. 3. Now go ahead and click Restore.

4. iTunes will do its thing and when it’s done it will prompt you to either Set up as a new iPhone or Restore from a backup. Choose whatever option you’d like and let iTunes restore your device.

You’re done and you didn’t have to wait six million minutes! Thanks to reader Tom for the tip idea and we hope this helps you get into your iPhone well before that timer runs out!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Are you jailbreaker eager to test a theme or jailbreak app and need to know how to find your Cydia account number? Chances are if you’ve ever downloaded or purchased an app or tweak from Cydia, you have one. In case you ever need to know where it is and how to find it, we’ve got you covered!

1. Launch Cydia and go to the main Cydia tab.
2. Tap on Manage Account.

3. Cydia will ask you to log in if you aren’t already. Simply sign in with Facebook or Google.

4. Once signed in, you’ll see a screen that shows your Cydia account information. Underneath Installable Purchases you’ll see your Cydia account number in small font.

Simply make note of this number and give it to any developer you’re testing for. This will allow them to give you access to paid apps so you can simply install them without having to pay first. This is very similar to how official App Store developers utilize your UDID number. Once the developer adds your Cydia account number you’ll be all set to start testing their jailbreak apps. Just make sure you add their repository as well if you don’t already have it.

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Currently running iOS 5 beta 7 and wondering how to Jailbreak? Well you’re in luck, you can now do so with the newest version of Redsn0w. Of course this one is also tethered like the previous beta versions of RedSn0w for iOS 5.

Be advised that not all jailbreak apps and tweaks have been updated to support iOS 5. If you’re alright with running tethered and don’t mind a few bugs here and there, follow along for a quick walkthrough.

By this point, almost anyone jailbreaking is already familiar with RedSn0w and how it works. It’s no different this time.

Devices Supported

• iPod touch 3G
• iPod touch 4G
• iPad 1
• iPhone3GS
• iPhone4 (GSM)
• iPhone4 (CDMA)

And I can’t say this enough times, if your device is not listed above, please do not attempt to jailbreak it on iOS 5!

What you need

• iOS 5 beta 6 and 7 IPSWs from Apple’s Developer Portal
• RedSn0w 0.9.8b7 – Mac Link, Windows Link

After you have iOS 5 beta 7 installed on your device, your device backed up, and your version of iTunes upgraded to the newest beta version, follow the steps below to jailbreak.

1. First launch RedSn0w.



2. It should ask you to navigate to a firmware file. Simply navigate to the iOS 5 beta 6 firmware file instead of beta 7.
3. Once you click next, RedSn0w will take a minute to do it’s thing. You should see a patching kernel message and that Redsn0w successfully recognized your firmware.



4. Next select the options you’d like RedSn0w to perform. I typically only select Install Cydia. It’s worth noting that this is where you will perform a tethered boot if needed as well. You will just select Just boot tethered for now if you need to do this or your device reboots or dies.



5. Redsn0w will now walk you through putting your device into DFU mode



6. After you’re successfully in DFU mode, simply let Redsn0w do its thing and you’re done!

That’s it! The process is pretty much the same as the first time around. But if you do run into problems or have questions, make sure you check out our TiPb Jailbreak Forums. We’ve got tons of great members more than ready and willing to help!

[Daily Tips](http://www.imore.com/tips] range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

On a Mac and wondering how to get free ringtones for your iPhone? We all know you can purchase or create ringtones in iTunes but… they can be limited in functionality or selection. Luckily GarageBand, which is part of the the iLife suite, has the ability to create ringtones built right in.

The process isn’t too difficult and you can fine tune them however you like; including fade ins, fade outs, splicing sections together, and more.

After you choose the song you want to use, you’ll need to drag it into GarageBand. For iLife 11 users, you’ll need to do these steps first. If you’re using an older version of iLife, you can simply skip to the next section.

iLife 11 users, do this first

If you want to use a song that was purchased from iTunes (a .m4r file), GarageBand is picky about you dragging those in as of iLife 11, so you’ll need to change the format from .m4r to .mp3 before dragging it in.

1. Drag the file from iTunes you’d like to use for your ringtone to your desktop.
2. Change the extension from .m4r to .mp3
3. Finder will prompt you asking if you’re sure you want to change it. Click use .mp3
4. Now move on to the next section.

Making a ringtone

1. Drag your song into GarageBand, you should see something similar to above (if GarageBand opened a virtual keyboard, just x it out). I also go to the counter and change it to time instead of measures (located on the bottom). That’s up to you. It’s just personal preference.

2. Now expand the view by clicking the tiny scissor icon in the bottom left hand corner of GarageBand (it’s the third icon from the left in most versions of GarageBand.

3. The expanded view should look like the screen above. This view allows you to highlight and cut sections out as well as finer tune your selection.

4. Now comes the Apple loop part, next to your play/pause/forward controls to the right, you should see the button above. Click it and you will now see a yellow bar that you can adjust appear above your song in the top section of GarageBand.

5. Simply slide this bar back and forth to select the portion of the song you’d like to make a ringtone out of. You can increase and decrease the length by dragging it at the beginning or end as well. Just make sure it’s under 30 seconds total.

Those are all the steps to create your ringtone, the video also explains a few more options as far as fading in and out as well as cutting and splicing so be sure to check that out as well.

Import your ringtone into iTunes

Now all that’s left to do is to send the ringtone to iTunes.

1. At the top of GarageBand click Share.
2. Next select Send ringtone to iTunes
3. iTunes should pop open and import your ringtone automatically.
4. Now just sync your iPhone and the new ringtone and you’re done!

That’s all there is to it! You can create as many ringtones as you want this way without paying any additional money. If you run into issues, check out our TiPb forums for more help and suggestions!

[Daily Tips](http://www.imore.com/tips] range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Trying to figure out where to find the UDID or serial number of your iPad, iPod touch, or iPhone? There are many reasons you may need to look up your UDID, IMEI, or serial number of your iOS device. While earlier generations had the serial printed on the back casing of the device, many newer models don’t. There are still several ways you can obtain this information both natively on your device or via iTunes.

Follow along to find out how.

As a side note, a lot of information is taken out for privacy reasons. Obviously your fields will not be empty.

Serial Numbers

There are a few ways to obtain serial numbers. The most common in under Settings.

1. Tap Settings and go into General.
2. Now click About.
3. When you scroll down you’ll see quite a bit of device information including your serial number. (As a side note, users on 4.x will not see the UDID/ICCID number on your device like in the picture above. I believe this is a new feature in iOS 5.

If your iOS device will not boot and it has a SIM tray, you can also pull out the SIM tray and view the serial printed on it. As long as your SIM tray has not been mixed up with anyone else’s, it should be the correct serial number.

UDID numbers

To view your UDID number in iTunes, use the following steps –

1. Open iTunes with your device plugged in and you will see your device name and information. Tap where your phone number is a couple times and it will eventually show your UDID number (also known as ICCID). This is the number you have to have on file to test developer builds of iOS.

2. If you need to paste this number somewhere, simply go to the top of iTunes and click Edit and then Copy. This will paste your UDID number to the clipboard. From there you can easily copy it into an e-mail or text document.

To view your UDID number from on your device, use the following steps –

1. Download a UDID app from the App Store. There are several available and most are free. I use UDID by Sean White (Free – iTunes Link)
2. Simply open the program and it will give you all of your device information.

3. You can then copy it into an e-mail or just view it.

Viewing device information from programs like UDID are especially convenient if you aren’t home to plug into iTunes and need to access the information quickly.

But what if your device is stuck in restore mode and you can’t load this information in iTunes or on the device?

You can still pull the information if you have a previous backup file as the backups are saved as “UDID – Date”.

Simply navigate to the following location and view your UDID as the name of your backup –

Backup locations in Windows

C:\Users\USERNAME\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup

Backup locations in Mac OS X

~/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup

Have you used any of these methods or a different one? How’d they work for you?

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

If you’re currently running iOS 5 beta 5 but just can’t live without your jailbreak, the Dev Team has already released RedSn0w beta 5. The only catch is, it’s tethered, just like the previous beta versions of RedSn0w for iOS 5.

Be advised that not all jailbreak apps and tweaks have been updated to support iOS 5. If you’re alright with running tethered and don’t mind a few bugs here and there, follow along for a quick walkthrough.

By this point, almost anyone jailbreaking is already familiar with RedSn0w and how it works. It’s no different this time.

Devices Supported

• iPod touch 3G
• iPod touch 4G
• iPad 1
• iPhone3GS
• iPhone4 (GSM)
• iPhone4 (CDMA)

And I can’t say this enough times, if your device is not listed above, please do not attempt to jailbreak it on iOS 5!

What you need

• iOS 5 beta 5 IPSW from Apple’s Developer Portal
• RedSn0w 0.9.8b5 – Mac Link, Windows Link

After you have iOS 5 beta 5 installed on your device and your version of iTunes upgraded to 10.5 beta 5, follow the steps below to jailbreak.

1. First launch RedSn0w.



2. It should ask you to navigate to a firmware file. Simply navigate to the iOS 5 beta 5 firmware file instead of beta 2.
3. Once you click next, RedSn0w will take a minute to do it’s thing. You should see a patching kernel message and that Redsn0w successfully recognized your firmware.



4. Next select the options you’d like RedSn0w to perform. I typically only select Install Cydia. It’s worth noting that this is where you will perform a tethered boot if needed as well. You will just select Just boot tethered for now if you need to do this or your device reboots or dies.



5. Redsn0w will now walk you through putting your device into DFU mode



6. After you’re successfully in DFU mode, simply let Redsn0w do its thing and you’re done!

That’s it! The process is pretty much the same as the first time around. But if you do run into problems or have questions, make sure you check out our TiPb Jailbreak Forums. We’ve got tons of great members more than ready and willing to help!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Using Tweetbot and wondering how to enable the recently added experimental push notifications? Tapbots just recently opened up tons more slots in the beta program so if you haven’t enabled it, there’s still a good chance you can snag a slot.

The most common question I’ve been getting is how to enable push notifications. Although Tweetbot is a gorgeous Twitter client, the push settings are in a bit of a weird place. Follow along for a quick guide on how to try and activate push in Tweetbot.

1. First launch Tweetbot and click the account icon in the upper left hand corner of your timeline.
2. Then tap Accounts & Settings.

3. You will see a page that lists all your accounts. Tap Settings at the bottom.

4. From the next screen select the username you’d like to try push notifications for.

5. Now select Notifications at the top.

6. Simply turn on the switches for each type of notification you’d like and your’e done!
7. If notifications don’t work for some reason, make sure you have Tweetbot push enabled from your general iPhone settings under Settings and Notifications.

As a side note, Tweetbot push is still experimental and they are only allowing so many users at one time. Most people seem to be getting it to work but if you get an error message, the testing slots could just be filled. Keep trying to turn them on occasionally to see if more testing slots have opened. Hopefully push will be available publicly soon!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Getting the dreaded “This device isn’t eligible for the requested build” error when trying to install an iOS 5 beta, and wondering how to edit your hosts file to get around the problem? Host files can often be used to resolve issues with an iTunes restore, even those that happen due to SHSH saves on jailbroken devices. Follow along for a quick walkthrough, and I’ll show you how.

If you’re getting an iTunes restore error message, first you’ll want to make sure your host file is the problem. As a side note, I am only demonstrating this on a Mac as I don’t have a PC but much of the same commands and edits can be done through command prompt on a PC as well.

1. Open Terminal

2. Type in ping gs.apple.com and hit Enter

3. If you see something other than 17.112.176.11: bytes=32 as the reply, you’ll need to edit your host file, so continue to the next section.
4. If you do see the above, you may want to try forcing your device into DFU mode and then restoring. Or try restoring from a different computer as that seems to work sometimes. Your host file is not causing your restore to fail. Something else is causing it.

If you “do” need to edit your host file, follow the steps below to do so.

1. Right click on Finder in your dock and select Go to folder…

2. In the prompt, type /private/etc and hit Ok
3. You may be prompted to enter your password while editing or accessing some of these folders. Simply type in your admin password if asked.
4. Drag the Hosts file from the /etc folder to your desktop and then open it with TextEdit or a simliar program
5. You will need to add the following text to your host file: 74.208.10.249 gs.apple.com (refer to the screen above)
6. Save the file and drag it back into the /etc folder where you originally pulled it from (choose to overwrite or replace if asked)

7. Now we just need to flush the cache in order for the changes to take effect. Open Terminal again and type in dscacheutil -flushcache and hit enter. (The command prompt entry for Windows users is ipconfig /flushdns
8. You should now be able to restore your device in iTunes without any issues.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Curious how to create a playlist directly on your iPhone or iPad? We already know you can create them within iTunes, but what about when you’re on the go and want a different mix to listen to?

Creating playlists from your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad is just as easy as it is in iTunes. Follow along and we’ll tell you how!

1. First, go to the playlist tab in your iPod app and tap Add Playlist…

2. You’ll be prompted to enter a name for your playlist. Enter it and tap Save

3. Now you can tap any of the tabs along the bottom to look for music you want to add to the playlist. Simply tap the plus song to add individual songs or whole albums.

4. Once you are done adding music, tap Done in the upper right hand corner.

5. If you need to edit your playlist (delete or add songs), simply go into the playlist and scroll up and you can edit, clear, or delete the playlist altogether.

That’s pretty much it! Next time you sync to your computer, your newly created playlists should also sync back to iTunes. I use this feature quite often on vacations and trips. I also find myself using it to add music I’ve just recently download to playlists that already exist. Do you guys use this feature?

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Trying to figure out how to easily add holidays and sports schedules into the iPhone or iPad Calendar app? Lucky for us Apple actually solved this problem quite a while ago for Mac iCal users. Simply subscribe to Apple’s already built calendars and you’ll be all set. Read on to find out how!

Sure, you can manually add calendar subscriptions right on your iOS device, but finding them and tapping them all in can be a pain. iCal on Mac makes it simple, and if you’re already syncing, it can save you some time and effort!

1. First, open iCal on your Mac.

2. Next, from the top menu choose Calendar and then Find Subscriptions.
3. Your web browser should open and direct you to Apple’s iCal calendar downloads page.

4. From here you can browse from many calendars. Choose the one you want and click Download next to the calendar name.

5. Your computer will ask you what program you want to open the file with. iCal should be highlighted. If it’s not, select it and tap Ok.

6. iCal will automagically open and show you the subscription link. Simply click Subscribe. You should now see the subscribed calendar in your side bar and the events should now be added to your calendar.
7. That’s it! Simply sync your iPhone or iPad and your calendars will come down. If you have MobileMe, it’ll do it by itself with no syncing required.

If you guys subscribe to calendars via Apple, which ones do you use? I find these especially handy for things like holidays and sports schedules as well as astronomy calendars. We live on the beach and sometimes I want to know what time the sun is setting. Sure I can use a weather app but it’s nice to be able to set alarms for nights I know I’m going to be around the beach area. How about you guys, any calendars you found that you think are especially cool?

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Trying to figure out how to shorten URLs quickly and easily? Droplr is one of my favorite ways. Not only do they have an iOS version, they have a Mac version as well. It’s one of my favorite task management apps since it helps me share and organize files.

I find it incredibly useful for uploading images, long URLS, and videos. It also allows you to create shortened links quickly and easily. Long links are annoying and look bad in statuses and posts. If you find yourself needing shortened links quite often, Droplr will help you do just that.

1. First you’ll need to purchase Droplr from the App Store. It’s currently available for $3.99. – iTunes Link
2. Navigate to the web page that you’d like to shorten the link to.

3. Select all the text and copy it to your clipboard.
4. Launch Droplr and click the plus sign in the upper right hand corner.

5. Next select Shorten Link.

6. Droplr should automatically have the text you previously copied on the clipboard. Click the check mark in the upper right hand corner to confirm that’s the correct URL. If it isn’t, simply edit it.

7. Droplr will now show the link as created. Simply tap it and it will bring down a menu. The second icon from the left is copy. Tap that and it will copy the shorten link to your clipboard.
8. That’s it, you can share the shortened version of the link wherever you want or go back into the Droplr app and copy again when needed.

There are several link shortening services available. I just think Droplr has a nice feature set and a great Mac app as well. If you guys use something different, tell us what!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Since Apple recently released iOS 5 beta 3, you may be wondering whether or not you can jailbreak as you could with beta 1 and beta 2. Fortunately, beta 3 is also jailbreakable.

But again, we’ll warn you that beta software has its own qualms to begin with so if you’re not comfortable with a few more bugs, we urge you to stay away. Also keep in mind a lot of jailbreak tweaks and apps have not yet been updated to support iOS 5. If you absolutely need to get your beta jailbreak on, follow along for another walk-through.

Devices supported

• iPod touch 3G
• iPod touch 4G
• iPad 1
• iPhone3GS
• iPhone4 (GSM)
• iPhone4 (CDMA)

If your device is not listed above, please do not attempt to jailbreak your device. So yes, iPad 2 owners will have to wait or jailbreak iPad via JailbreakMe on iOS 4.3.3.

1. First you will need to download Redsn0w 0.9.8b2 – Mac Link, Windows Link
2. Next you will need to make sure you have the iOS beta 1 firmware file from the Apple Developer Portal or wherever else you choose to find it.

3. Launch Redsn0w. You should be asked to navigate to the firmware file from the previous step. Select it and click next.

4. Once you click next, Redsn0w will take a minute to do it’s thing. You should see a patching kernel message and that Redsn0w successfully recognized your firmware.

5. Next select the options you’d like Redsn0w to perform. I typically only select Install Cydia. It’s worth noting that this is where you will perform a tethered boot if needed as well. You will just select Just boot tethered for now if you need to do this or your device reboots or dies.

6. Redsn0w will now walk you through putting your device into DFU mode

7. After you’re successfully in DFU mode, simply let Redsn0w do its thing and you’re done!

Have you jailbroken iOS 5 beta 3 yet? Let us know your results and about any bugs you find. If you’re having issues, don’t be shy! Ask for help in our official TiPb Jailbreak & Unlock forums.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Curious how to use the new iCloud feature that enables Automatic Downloads? Luckily for us, this feature has rolled out before iOS 5, and anyone using iOS 4.3.3 or later has the ability to use it. But what exactly is Automatic Downloads? To find out, follow along after the break!

Say, for example, you purchase 1password on your iPad. This is a universal app, so you probably want it on your iPhone as well. To do this before, you would have to either sync your iPad, then iPhone with iTunes, or manually install 1password from the App Store on your iPhone. Not any more! Now you can enable automatic downloads on your iPhone, iPad, and computers so that any music, iBook, or app purchase you make will automatically download to all your devices – and here’s how!

Enabling Automatic Downloads on iPhone and iPad

1. Open Settings
2. Tap Store (it’s located at the very bottom of the 3rd group of options)
3. You will see four ON/OFF toggles. The first three are to enable Automatic Downloads for Music, Apps, and Books. Select which ones you want ON.
4. The last toggle is to “Use Cellular”. If you don’t want to download apps over 3G (perhaps to lessen data usage) make sure this is OFF. Otherwise, turn it ON.

Enabling Automatic Downloads on iTunes

1. Open iTunes
2. Open Preferences
3. Click the Store tab
4. You will see boxes for Music, Apps, and Books. Check the ones you wish to be automatically download.

There you have it! Now your devices are ready to automatically download your purchases through the cloud. Let us know how this worked out for you and if you have any questions!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

If you were lucky enough to get a beta invitation for Google+ and have an iPhone, you can already post updates and browse your Google+ streams quickly and easily. In just a few steps you’ll be posting updates, checking out your friends’ streams, adding them to circles, and more!

As a side note, this tip only works if you already accepted an invitation into the beta, otherwise you won’t be able to access Google+.

1. First go to www.google.com from Safari on your iPhone and sign into your Google account with your Gmail address.

2. Next tap more at the top right and you’ll see a few tabs. Tap the Apps tab.

3. Click the Google+ app and you’ll be taken into the main feed.

4. Next, create a bookmark on your home screen. Simply tap the arrow on the bottom of your browser and tap Add to home screen.



5. Now all you have to do to access Google+ is to tap that bookmark!

As a side note, if you have to sign in every time, you can remedy that by simply choosing to stay signed into your Google account. If you’ve been using Google+ let us know what you think. Do you expect more than the web app if and when they release an iPhone app?

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Double-billed, have a purchase you didn’t make, or just have a problem with an iTunes purchase and wondering who to contact an how? There are millions of users and credit cards on file with iTunes, so every once in a while weird issues are bound to pop up. Unfortunately iTunes doesn’t have a phone line to call but they do have a pretty good support team that answers e-mails and deals strictly with iTunes billing issues. Keep reading and we’ll show you how to contact them!

All you’ll need to do in order to contact iTunes customer support is find the problem invoice on your iTunes account and e-mail them a little blurb explaining the issue. You can find your invoice in either the email receipt iTunes sends you after you purchase an app (or a few apps, they try to bundle them to lower credit card transaction fees), or by logging into your account via the iTunes desktop app and then clicking on Purchase History.

Once you have the right invoice…

• Click on the Report a Problem link directly from the problem purchase and you’ll be routed to the iTunes support site instantly. Just jot down your invoice number.

• Once on the iTunes support site, on the left hand column navigate to iTunes Store Account and Billing.
• Next select the topic you need. Most likely Billing Inquiries.

• Then click E-mail us and fill out the form. Your invoice number isn’t required but I’ve found they respond a lot faster if you submit complete information. Also make sure you provide a valid e-mail address and that your Apple ID is correctly input.



• You’re done! You’ll receive an automated message stating an iTunes rep will respond within 24 hours. Shortly after, you’ll receive correspondence from an iTunes rep that can help you resolve your issue.

I’ve always had a great experience when dealing with them. They always seem to respond promptly and resolve the issue at hand. What was your experience? Let us know!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Just get iOS 5 beta 2 and already wondering how to Jailbreak it? We recently showed you how to jailbreak iOS 5 beta 1 with Redsn0w. Fortunately, the process for beta 2 isn’t much different. You’ll simply need to use the beta 1 IPSW in order to jailbreak.

As always, betas are already buggy to begin with, and iOS 5 is no exception. The Dev-Team and many jailbreak devs are really only encouraging developers to jailbreak iOS 5 beta as of now. So if you are a developer (or a ninja who is afraid of nothing), follow along for a short walk-through.

Devices Supported

• iPod touch 3G
• iPod touch 4G
• iPad 1
• iPhone3GS
• iPhone4 (GSM)
• iPhone4 (CDMA)

And I can’t say this enough times, if your device is not listed above, please do not attempt to jailbreak it on iOS 5!

What you need

• iOS 5 beta 1 IPSW from Apple’s Developer Portal
• Redsn0w 0.9.8b1 – Mac Link, Windows Link

After you have iOS 5 beta 2 installed on your device and your version of iTunes upgraded to 10.5 beta 2, follow the steps below to jailbreak.

1. First launch Redsn0w.



2. It should ask you to navigate to a firmware file. Simply navigate to the iOS 5 beta 1 firmware file instead of beta 2.
3. Once you click next, Redsn0w will take a minute to do it’s thing. You should see a patching kernel message and that Redsn0w successfully recognized your firmware.



4. Next select the options you’d like Redsn0w to perform. I typically only select Install Cydia. It’s worth noting that this is where you will perform a tethered boot if needed as well. You will just select Just boot tethered for now if you need to do this or your device reboots or dies.



5. Redsn0w will now walk you through putting your device into DFU mode



6. After you’re successfully in DFU mode, simply let Redsn0w do its thing and you’re done!

That’s it! The process is pretty much the same as the first time around. But if you do run into problems or have questions, make sure you check out our TiPb Jailbreak Forums. We’ve got tons of great members more than ready and willing to help!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

There are hundreds of thousands of iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad apps for just about everything — so how come the one you need, the one you know just has to be there, is so hard to find? Enter TiPb’s new weekly feature where staff and readers alike sort through the App Store and help you find just the right App for That. This week, Colin asks:

I have need of an app that will alert me to take my medication. More specifically, I need to an app that will remind me of a medication that I need to take every 72 hours.

Sure, the built in alarm in the iPhone’s clock app will work for many medication reminders, but it does not have an option to set a repeating alarm for every 3 days. To see our solution for Colin, follow along after the break!

RxmindMe [Free - iTunes link] is a great little app designed for setting alarms that remind you to take your medication and they boast of being able to handle the most complicated of reminders.

This app is more than just an alert system, however. RxmindMe allows you to store a massive list of medications and prescriptions including photos, type of medication, dosage, and more. Additionally, the entire FDA Drug Database is stored in the app so that you don’t have to manually enter everything about all your medications.

RxmindMe supports the following types of reminders: every “X” number of days (perfect for Colin), hourly, daily, on specific dates, weekly, on a particular day of the month, as needed, on a particular week of a month, or even just recording pills you took out of the blue. So if you have a complicated prescription schedule, RxmindMe has got you covered!

Anyone else have any App for That suggestions for Colin? Let him — and all of us — know in the comments.

Having trouble finding what you need in the app store? Send us an email to iosapps@tipb.com and let us know what you’re looking for, and we’ll do our best to find you just the right App for That!

Jailbroken iOS 5 and curious how to get custom Notification Center widgets up and running? Right now, Apple has only included weather and stocks widgets and hasn’t shown any signs of extending an API to 3rd party developers for building their own. However, as soon as iOS 5 was jailbroken a few developers started tinkering around and found it was rather easy to build their own custom widgets, and we’re already starting to see some interesting things come out of developers. We’ll show you how to add them to your custom Notification Center… after the jump!

To get started, first check out our iOS 5 jailbreak how to and then fire up Cydia. Note: these widgets are fairly new athere are still some bugs that need to be worked out, but for the most part they’re interesting and useful.

The widgets we’ll go over are developed by @qwertyoruiop, so you’ll have to add his beta repo to get access. Just follow these quick steps to add the correct Cydia repository before getting started.

1. Open Cydia and tap the ‘Manage’ tab.
2. Tap ‘Sources’
3. Tap ‘Edit’ in the top-right corner.
4. Tap ‘Add’ and input http://qwertyoruiop.com/beta/

The first widget is one I’d definitely suggest getting…

UISettings

UISettings is a great widget that offers most of your settings toggles right from within Notification Center. Much akin to SBSettings, UISettings lets you toggle WiFi or Bluetooth, respring, reboot, adjust brightness/volume and more. You swipe to reveal more toggles, and turning your WiFi or Bluetooth radios on/off is very fast.

The developer is actively working on improving UISettings and we’re betting he’ll keep up with Apple’s iOS 5 betas as they roll out. The only issue (if you can even call it an “issue”) is the icons used aren’t the best looking, but they’re currently a big step up from the initial release last week. We’re also looking into the possibility of manually changing the icons via SSH and we’ll have a guide up if we determine it’s possible.

MusicCenter

MusicCenter offers now playing information in the Notification Center with playback options available by swiping to the left. It’s great if you need more track identifier data over what’s shown in the native app switcher when swiping left, and also comes with a Twitter option to tweet what’s playing from the official Twitter for iPhone app.

I found the playback controls to be quite buggy, but I think it was more due to the button design than anything else. The playback control buttons are too small, making it difficult for those with larger thumbs to get the button press exact. Additional bugs were noticed after my iPhone crashed into safe mode when I tried to disable the widget, and in one case I had to completely reboot my iPhone after disabling it.

This one needs a little more work, but the concept is great for quickly getting to track information on what’s currently playing without going into the Music app.

BatteryCenter

BetteryCenter is a very simple widget to display your current battery percentage. BatteryCenter shows a battery icon on the left and the percentage on the right. It will also tell you whether the device is charging or unplugged.

For most, this widget might seem useless since the information it displays is also included in the status bar. But for some, it serves a purpose if you don’t want the percentage displayed on the status bar, as some status bar icons tend to get “pushed” out of the way when too many icons are being displayed (including the percentage indicator). I personally use BatteryCenter for this very reason, and have since disabled the battery percentage in the status bar since it’s no longer needed. I also ran into zero bugs with this widget.

RSSWidget

RSSWidget is a simple RSS reader for Notification Center that displays a single RSS feed, letting you swipe between recent articles with the post’s title and first few lines displayed. Tapping an article takes you straight into Mobile Safari to read the full post.

I noticed a few small bugs with this one as well, in that some RSS feeds with links in the first few lines get displayed as HTML code, making it difficult to read without going into Safari to view the full post. This is very noticeable on blog posts that start with a photo (see above image). I also had occasional crashes to safe mode when enabling or disabling the widget, similar to buggy behavior in MusicCenter.

This is a great widget for getting news at-a-glance or keeping up with your favorite RSS feed, but it also needs a little work. Follow these quick steps in order to change the RSS feed displayed.

1. Download iFile from Cydia (link)
2. Open iFile and navigate to /System/Library/WeeAppPlugins/RSSWidget.bundle/
3. Tap on com.idevhaice.rsswidget.plist and open with the Text Viewer
4. Get into editing mode by tapping ‘Edit’ in the top-right corner
5. Scroll down until you find http://www.9to5mac.com/feed and replace the pre-existing address with your favorite feed. For quick reference, our feed is http://feeds.feedburner.com/theiphoneblog

It would be nice if there was a shortcut setting to change the RSS feed a little quicker, but for now you’ll have to do it through iFile or via SSH.

That’s it! These new Notification Center widgets are looking good, and there’s more to come from other great jailbreak developers. If we left anything out, or if you know of other cool Notification Center widgets for iOS 5 then let us know in the comments!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Trying to figure out how to post status updates and upload photos as the admin of a Facebook page? If you’ve recently created or become the admin of a Facebook Page it can be a frustrating task using Facebook for iPhone. Luckily, all you need to do is change a few settings on the web. To find out how, follow along after the break!

Before we jump into the details, let’s quickly clarify how a Page is different from a Profile. A Facebook Profile is for the “everyday person” and what everyone in the world (except Georgia) uses. A Facebook Page is for organizations, businesses, celebrities, and bands and can by “liked”. Check out TiPb’s Facebook Page for a fabulous example!

How to switch to admin on Facebook

1. Login into Facebook on the web.
2. Click Account in the upper right corner.

3. Click Use Facebook as Page from the drop down menu.

4. Select the Page you wish to post from with your iPhone.

5. Click Edit Page in the upper right corner.

6. Click Your Settings from the left column

7. Check the first box that says “Always comment and post on your page as…”

8. Click Save Changes.

Now you’re all set to post from your Facebook Page with Facebook for iPhone! Now when visiting the Page’s profile with Facebook for iPhone, all uploaded photos and status updates will be posted as from that Page and show up on the news feeds of all your fans.

Bonus tip: Gain quick access to your Facebook Page by adding it to the Facebook for iPhone menu screen with the + sign.

Let us know how this works for you. If you have any questions, please ask in the comments below!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Want to know how to find the closest sushi restaurant, or pizza, or who to call to make a reservation when it’s your anniversary and you completely forgot to make a reservation? Never fear, the native Google Maps app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch is here! We’ll show you how it can save the day — or at least save yourself from pizza famine — after the break!

1. Launch maps
2. Get your current location by tapping the arrow button at the bottom left.
3. Using the search field at the top right, type in the type of food you want, the name of the restaurant you’re looking for, or anything you can remember about the address. For example, I’m in New York City near Broadway and Reade Street and I’m in the mood for Pizza. Typing “pizza” will then search the environs for the nearest pizza joints and drop a pin on their precise locations.
4. Tap the pins to get more information. You can click the small blue chevron to bring up more information about your chosen pizza place, and if it has a Google Streetview icon on the left, you can even see the place and its surroundings!
   
5. Tap the link to the homepage of the restaurant, or if you’re on an iPhone, simply tap of the phone number to call it right up (so they can have your pie hot ‘n ready for you when you get there).
6. Finally, tap the “Directions to Here” button at the bottom of the info page and select if you are driving, taking public transit or walking with estimated time it takes to get there.

That’s it, a few simple steps to find the food, Starbucks, burger joint, pizza place, or 5-star restaurant of your choice, all right on your iOS device! If you have any other Maps tips, let us know in the comments!

[Special thanks to Master from the iPad live chatroom for this tip!]

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

About to embark on a much needed, well deserved vacation and wondering how to find lodging close by? Hotels, motels, beds and breakfast places, the Google Maps app can help you easily locate tons of possibilities. Follow on after the break and we’ll show you how!

Let say you are planning a trip to San Francisco and need to find places to stay that are closest to the airport.

1. Where will you be? – Instead of using iOS’s location services in the Maps App, type in the city name in the search field.
   
2. Refine the details – Once the Google Maps App resolves the city name and drops a pin, you can then type the word “Airport” in the search field (in case you don’t recall the name). I know that Berkeley is the airport I’m heading to, so next I pinch and zoom to the pin for Berkeley Airport.
3. Search!- search for “Hotel” to find a hotel that is nearest to the Airport. I’ve chosen La Quinta Inn Berkeley.
   
4. More info – Click the info chevron and select if you want to call them direct or visit their website to make a reservation.
5. You can finally click the “Directions to Here” button at the bottom of the info page and select if you are driving, taking public transit or walking with estimated time it takes to get there.

Any other great vacation planning tips to share? Let us know in the comments!

Thanks to Master from the iPhone Live chatroom for the tip!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Wondering how to downgrade from iOS 5 to iOS 4? Maybe you rushed out to test your app on the next big thing but now have to deal with a bug in the here and now version, and you don’t want to buy an additional device, or maybe you just don’t have what you need yet and you’d prefer to wait for a later beta. Either way, it is possible to go back to iOS 4. Last year we showed you how to downgrade from the beta version of iOS 4 as well. I am pleasantly surprised with how good the first beta version of iOS 5 is, but if for any reason you need to go back to iOS 4, we’ll show you a couple ways after the break!

I don’t recommend downgrading firmware unless you really need to. It can be a painful process that most people won’t like dealing with. But if you need to, it is completely possible.

Downgrade via XCode (Mac Only + dev license)

Downgrading via XCode is probably the easiest way to roll back to a previous version of iOS. The bad part is that it can sometimes put you into a never ending DFU loop. You can typically use iRecovery to kick you out of it.

1. Download the firmware version you’d like to downgrade to. For most people, this will probably be iOS 4.3.3 so simply find and download it via *iClarified*.

2. Open XCode and from the top select Window and then Organizer.

3. You should now see your device. Under software version, it will show you are on iOS 5. Choose to restore from Other Version.

4. You can then navigate to the iOS bundle you’d like to restore to that you downloaded and saved in step 1.
5. Let XCode do its thing. If you’re lucky, you’re done. If not, go to the next step. (aka if you get any error message or get thrown for a loop via DFU craziness.)
6. You’ll need to use a program like iRecovery which is linked above. I use Faster iRecovery as opposed to the original. Also, download the libusb files for Mac as well. iRecovery uses these.
7. Simply run iRecovery after you’d downloaded the libusb files and it should throw your phone out of recovery mode.
8. After this, simply restore in iTunes and you should be downgraded. The first time you may get an error, simply restore again like you normally would and it should downgrade successfully.

As a side note, PC users can also use iRecovery and libusb if they get stuck in a DFU loop.

Downgrade via iTunes beta with TinyUmbrella (Mac and PC)

You need iTunes 10.5 beta for this, which is also available via Apple’s dev portal (and maybe elsewhere if you scan the internet)

You also need TinyUmbrella

• Mac download
• PC download

This is the route PC users will have to take. Mac users may also choose to do it this way if they don’t have XCode or the SDK. Start this process with your device NOT connected to your computer.

1. Install iTunes 10.5 beta and TinyUmbrella

2. Then open TinyUmbrella and click on Advanced.
3. Uncheck the box that says Set Host to Cydia On Exit.
4. Restart your computer.
5. Now plug in your device and turn back on your computer.
6. After your computer restarts, you’ll need to go into iTunes. It may bring up error messages again. That’s okay. Just ignore them for now.
7. You’ll need to put your device into DFU mode. Refer to our DFU mode instructions if you’re not sure how to do this.

8. If you don’t do it correctly, just try again. When you get your device into DFU mode correctly, iTunes will pop up and tell you the device can’t be used until it is restored.
9. You can now restore your device like normal.

If you downgraded successfully using one of our ways (or a different way), let us know how it went in the comments! If you need additional help, check out our TiPb jailbreak forums.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

There are hundreds of thousands of iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad apps for just about everything — so how come the one you need, the one you know just has to be there, is so hard to find? Enter TiPb’s new weekly feature where staff and readers alike sort through the App Store and help you find just the right App for That. This week, @davidkeppler asks:

I need an app that knows I have connected to my car kit and records mileage and route then logs it as google route.

To see what we found for David, follow along after the break!

iNomad [$6.99 - iTunes link] is a navigation app for the traveler. With it, you can track everything about your voyage including distance traveled, average and max speeds, and duration. It includes an altimeter, digital speedometer, compass (magnetic, true or GPS), distance to target, scale ruler, and much more.

After you’ve completed your trip, you can export your route in KML (and GPX) via email or iTunes Share to store to Google. If you already have routes saved, you can import the KML files into iNomad. Creating a new route is as simple as tracing your finger on the map to later follow during your travels. You can even create key points on your route.

iNomad is loaded with features including the ability to download maps for offline viewing. However, it does not seem that iNomad will be able to know when David connects his iPhone to his car kit, but all he needs to do is remember to launch the app before he begins his trip. Once the tracking begins, it will continue in the background.

Anyone else have any App for That suggestions for David? Let him — and all of us — know in the comments.

Having trouble finding what you need in the app store? Send us an email to news@tipb.com and let us know what you’re looking for, and we’ll do our best to find you just the right App for That!

Here is a tip for developers on how to install a beta for iOS using XCode or iTunes. One of the coolest things about being an iOS developer is being able to check out new versions of iOS before they’re publicly released. With WWDC 2011 upon us, we should see a beta of iOS 5 soon. If you’re a new developer, or you’re testing for a current developer, you’ll want to make sure you install beta firmware correctly. If you don’t, this can lead to problems when upgrading to official or later versions of iOS.

As a forewarning, betas are only intended for developers and testers. Don’t expect a beta to be flawless, expect the opposite. I also recommend installing betas on a test device when you can in case something goes wrong.

So if you’re new to this process, hit the jump for a walkthrough of how to provision your device and install a beta version of iOS. And obviously, betas are Mac only.

Download the SDK, XCode, iTunes beta, and iOS firmware

1. Log in to your developer account on Apple’s Developer Site.
2. Next you’ll need to go into the dev center for iOS.



3. Under downloads, you’ll see a link for the SDK, iTunes, and beta firmware IPSWs.
4. Download everything you need and then move on to the next step. (Note: If you’re installing via iTunes beta, you don’t “have” to install the SDK if you don’t want to.

Provision your device’s UDID within the the Apple Developer Portal

There’s a couple ways to add your UDID to the provisioning portal. The easiest is with XCode (which is what you should be using anytime you are installing beta firmware).

1. Simply open XCode with your device plugged in. It should bring up your device in the side bar. Right click and choose to add it to the provisioning portal. XCode should ask for your developer login.



2. Alternately, you can also log into the developer portal and add a UDID via the provisioning portal as well. The XCode option is just a lot easier as it does it for you. You can pull your UDID from XCode or from iTunes (simply click your serial number until it changes to the longer 40 digit number, that is your UDID and what you need to enter into the provisioning portal.

Install the beta version of iOS via XCode

If you’re installing via a beta version of iTunes, skip this section and jump down to the iTunes install instructions below.

Once you’ve provisioned your device with the developer portal and downloaded the newest beta of iOS, you’re ready to install it via XCode. It is always a good idea to back up your iPhone and restore it clean before installing a beta as well. Not required but I recommend it. If you are jailbroken, it is especially a good idea to restore stock before attempting this.

1. In XCode, under software version, you’ll need to choose Other version…
2. Then you will need to navigate to the .ipsw file that you earlier downloaded (the beta firmware file). I typically save them on my desktop or somewhere in a folder that I can easily find.
3. Select it and click Restore iPhone
4. A warning will pop up telling you all data will be erased. Agree and your device will be restored to the beta version. You can then restore from a backup in iTunes like normal.

Install using a beta version of iTunes

If you’ve already installed using XCode, no need to go any further, you’re done!

Almost all betas will need to be installed using a beta version of iTunes. In the case of iOS 5, you’ll need iTunes beta 10.5.

1. Open iTunes and click on your device. (Always back up before installing ANY new firmware, beta or not.)

2. Under the main Summary tab, you’ll see the normal restore button. Simply hold down the alt+option key on your keyboard and click restore.
3. A window will pop up that will let you navigate to the saved beta firmware. Simply select it and click Open.
4. Let iTunes do it’s thing. Once it’s done, it will prompt you to Set up as new iPhone or Restore from a backup. You’ll probably want to restore from your backup. But you can choose which one you’d prefer.
5. Let your stuff sync back over and you’re done!

And again, I can’t say this enough times – beta software is just that, beta. It is meant for developers and testers only. Please do not attempt to install beta firmware without a developer license or permission. And I strongly urge developers to not “sell” UDID spots under their account to people who just want early access to the beta. The purpose is for Apple to get legitimate feedback from developers before a final release. If you do not intend on submitting crash logs and bug reports, please wait for an official release.

Use a Twitter app on your iPhone and wondering how to customize a balance between getting far too many push notifications, or none at all? Between your main timeline, @ replies/mentions, direct messages (DMs), list notifications, and trending topics – it can be a little overwhelming. There’s been talk of Twitter being integrated into iOS 5, but until then, you’ve got a few options. We’ll show them to you after the break!

We’ve already shown you how to turn notifications on or off in the Settings app, but what if you want something a little more granular? Several iPhone Twitter apps allow you to customize what notifications you get. Since there are far too many to explain every single one, we’ll take a look at Twitter for iPhone, the official app and most popular, and Boxcar, which works in conjunction with many of the available iPhone Twitter applications.

Twitter for iPhone

The official Twitter for iPhone app is an extremely easy app to use. It also has wicked fast push notifications. But if you’re receiving far too many (or none at all), there are a few settings to play with that allow you to customize what you get notified about.

1. Launch Twitter for iPhone and from your main timeline, tap Accounts in the upper left hand corner.

2. You’ll see a list of all your Twitter accounts, in the bottom left corner, tap Settings.

3. Then tap Notifications under the account you’d like to adjust notifications for.

4. You can now choose to receive push notifications for direct messages and mentions. For mentions, you can choose to receive them from only people you follow, or from anyone. I typically choose from anyone. (That’s how you find cool new followers!)
5. You’re done! But as a side note, also make sure you have Twitter push enabled under Settings, Notifications in your iPhone’s main settings as well.

Boxcar

While Twitter for iPhone has a great push notification system that’s extremely reliable, it’s still somewhat lacking when it comes to options. Enter apps like Boxcar. I use this in conjunction with Twitter for iPhone, which only allows me to receive notifications for mentions and direct messages. Boxcar supports the following notification types when it comes to Twitter:

• Timeline
• Mentions
• Retweets
• Direct messsages
• Favorites (when someone favorites a tweet of yours)
• New followers (when you gain a new follower)
• Added to list (when someone adds you to a list they created)

As you can see, Boxcar has a plethora of options. I personally use Boxcar to notify me when someone new starts following me, when a tweet gets marked as a favorite, or whenever I get added to a list. I let Twitter for iPhone take care of the rest. But if you choose, you can let Boxcar take care of everything. You can even use Boxcar to go into stalker mode and follow someone specific on Twitter. It will alert you every time they tweet if you want it to. Not to mention Boxcar has custom tones for those of you tired of the default tri-tone notification.

These are just the ways I choose to customize my Twitter notifications but there are tons of options out there. Since a lot of Twitter apps don’t have native push, Boxcar is a great app to compliment them. How do you customize yours and what’s your current favorite Twitter client? Let us know in the comments!

Thanks to @jdipane for the tip suggestion!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

There are hundreds of thousands of iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad apps for just about everything — so how come the one you need, the one you know just has to be there, is so hard to find? Enter TiPb’s new weekly feature where staff and readers alike sort through the App Store and help you find just the right App for That. This week, KP asks:

I sometimes need to take a quick pic and upload it to Facebook but need to blur out some incriminating evidence first (don’t ask!!) I know there must be an app that let’s me do that but damned if I can find it. Can you recommend something?

To see what we found, follow along after the break!

Hide My Secret! [$0.99 - iTunes link] is a nifty little app that allows you to overlay your images with a pixelated mosaic effect.

Applying the effect is a breeze. Just touch the screen with two fingers and move them around until you have the incriminating area covered as desired (each finger will be a corner of the box). If the area is small, you can zoom in beforehand to guarantee accuracy. You can also pixelate more than one area before saving the image.

Now that you have hidden whatever it is that you want hidden from your photo (we won’t ask!), you can safely share the image on the social networking site of your choice!

Anyone else have any App for That suggestions for KP? Let her — and all of us — know in the comments.

Having trouble finding what you need in the app store? Send us an email to news@tipb.com and let us know what you’re looking for, and we’ll do our best to find you just the right App for That!

This tip will help you learn how to upgrade from an existing jailbreak. If you’re currently jailbroken on an older firmware version and want to update, it can sometimes be a bit trickier than just restoring in iTunes and backing up. In most cases, it’s always best to start with a clean slate and not restore from a jailbroken backup (with a few exceptions). Luckily there are a couple apps and tweaks out there that make the process not as daunting. Hit the break for some suggestions and a walk-through!

Starting fresh

Most jailbreakers will agree that not restoring from a previously jailbroken backup is the best way to upgrade. For the most part, I’d have to agree. The only exception I see to this rule is if you have to restore (not upgrade). For example, I recently had to swap my iPhone out. I was already running on iOS 4.3.3 jailbroken. After I swapped my phone, I just restored from a backup. I have never typically seen ill results from restoring on the same firmware version. It gets a bit more hairy when you are dealing with different firmware versions and different jailbreak utilities. Whenever you are upgrading to a newer firmware version, always start fresh if you can.

Before restoring

1. You’ll always want to make sure your contacts, calendars, and camera roll are backed up elsewhere. I use MobileMe so I already know my information will come down. Either store them to your Mac or PC, or use an online syncing service like Google Sync or MobileMe.
2. To save your Cydia packages and settings, check out XBackup. There are also other jailbreak utilities that perform similar functions, which one you choose to use, it completely up to you. I’ve had good experience with XBackup.
3. To save your in-app game data, you can use an app such as DataDeposit or appbackup. Both are free but DataDeposit may be a bit more convenient for some folks as it just saves your data to your DropBox account which is an added bonus.

Restoring

1. Next you’ll want to restore your device via iTunes. (If you are an unlocker, you should probably stray away from this process. You’ll almost always want to use custom firmware bundles to preserve your unlock with a jailbreak utility such as PwnageTool. You’ll want to make sure the firmware version you are upgrading to offers an unlock.)
2. Let your device restore in iTunes and then select “Set up as new device” as opposed to restoring from a backup.

Re-jailbreaking and restoring data

1. Once you have restored your device, you’ll need to re-jailbreak and re-install XBackup and DataDeposit (or whatever two apps you chose to use previously). These should bring down your jailbreak settings and app save data.
2. Now you’ll need to re-sync all of your content via iTunes. Just make sure you selected to set up as a new device.

Re-jailbreaking is definitely not the easiest process in the world but a clean start is always best. I’ve found bad jailbreak bits can come over when restoring from a previously jailbroken device. So doing it right the first time can save you a lot of headaches in the long run. If you’ve done this process or are just trying it for the first time, let us know your experiences in the comments. And if you have issues, let us know in our TiPb jailbreak forums!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Not a fan of the official Facebook for iPhone app, desperate for an alternative, but still need to get notifications? Join the club. I’ve never been a fan. Their cryptic “bug fix” updates never seem to improve anything and notifications are always so finicky. More often than not, I open my Facebook app to find several notifications that were never pushed to my iPhone. On top of that, the timeline can be choppy or jump randomly. And the whole “liking comments” just seems to decide on its own whether or not it’s going to work that specific day.

If you feel the same way, hit the jump for some workarounds and alternative solutions to using the Facebook for iPhone application.

There’s a few ways you can ditch the Facebook for iPhone application (and still receive notifications). Unfortunately, unlike Twitter there aren’t any real alternative apps. However, these are the two solutions I found to be the best alternatives to using the official iPhone app.

Facebook web app + Boxcar

This is one thing I use as a fall back method when Facebook for iPhone app decides it doesn’t want to push notifications to my device anymore. It works rather well. You can even route the Boxcar notifications to open the mobile site for Facebook. I actually prefer the layout and functionality of the mobile site. I’m not quite sure why Facebook has not just implemented a lot of this into the native app. They recently integrated liking comments but it hardly ever works or shows up. It always works in the mobile web version.

Simply download Boxcar from the app store, create a login and customize your Facebook notifications how you’d like them. And you can have a different sound other than tri-tone which may be a plus for those of you like me that have tons of friends that use tri-tone. I like my sounds to be unique so I know whether or not my iPhone is going off.

Facebook web app + Facebook native app

Another route is to keep the Facebook native app installed but use the web app. If notifications aren’t a huge issue to you and you just want a more steady user experience, simply keep notifications active but use the mobile site instead. I simply turned off badges and hid the app in a folder. That way, I still get notifications for Facebook but I can choose to use the mobile web version instead.

The only downside to this method is if you open a Facebook notification, it will still bring it up in the native Facebook for iPhone app. I simply tap close and then launch the mobile web version. All the notifications will be right at the top of the web version. Not the best workaround but it’s definitely a more stable user experience than the native app in my opinion.

Do any of you have a better way to use Facebook on your iPhone? Let us know in the comments!

Boxcar – Free

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Curious about how to take better HDR (high dynamic range) photos with your iPhone 4? Maybe you’ve tried it out but the end result wasn’t as good as you were expecting? Apple makes it pretty easy to take HDR photos, but for some pointers on how to take the best HDR photos possible just follow along after the break!

When Apple introduced iOS 4.1 they included HDR capability for the iPhone 4. This rather basic form of HDR works by combining 3 photos (under-exposed, normally-exposed, and over-exposed) for better overall detail and quality. So instead of the sky looking washed-out or shadows an inky mess, you’re left with a better balanced photo that shows more in both areas.

How to enable HDR

First thing’s first — HDR is turned off by default, so you’ll have to turn it on before getting started. It’s as simple as tapping the ‘HDR’ option at the top of the viewfinder in the Camera app.

Better safe than sorry

You also have HDR options from within the Settings app, which let you change whether iOS will keep the original, non-HDR photo as well. Sometimes HDR compositions don’t match up exactly and you get a bad picture. Keeping the original gives you a back up if it’s something important you just can’t take again.

1. Launch Settings
2. Scroll down and tap Photos
3. Toggle ‘Keep Normal Photo’.

Now, on to the good stuff…

1. Keep it steady

When using HDR you’ll want to make sure to keep your hand as steady as possible, otherwise your photo will look a little blurry or not properly aligned like mentioned above. Remember, when the iPhone snaps an HDR photo, it’s actually taking 3 separate pictures and combining them together, but it doesn’t take all 3 photos instantly. That means if your hand moves while it’s capturing the pictures you’re going to end up with a photo that Mr. Blurrycam would be proud of.

It’s best to use a tripod if you can, but in those cases where using a tripod isn’t an option, do everything you can to keep a steady hand for better results. Leaning up against a wall (if possible), or resting on a table or ledge, is a great way to help keep your hand still when taking HDR photos.

Bonus Tip: Another handy tip sent in from a reader is holding down the camera shutter button and releasing it when the moment is right, instead of tapping it when you’re ready take the photo. When you tap the shutter button, you might be slightly nudging the iPhone which can affect the blur level in HDR photos. By tapping and holding the shutter button and then releasing when you’re ready to capture the photo you can dramatically lower movement, thus helping to avoid blur. (thanks parabel!)

2. Focus on your subject

If you’re shooting a specific subject in HDR, make sure your subject is properly focused before snapping the photo. When iOS combines the three images to make it an HDR photo, it has a more difficult time processing and combining the all the pictures to create a good looking HDR photo if the focus is off, so keeping your subject in focus is a great way to get better results.

Just tap on the person or object you want to be in focus. A white square will appear and the iPhone 4 camera will focus accordingly.

3. Keep movement to a minimum

Your photos might not look very good if you have moving subjects within your shot. For example, if you’re taking a picture of a busy intersection like the photo above (thanks, Sion!), you’re not going to get the best results because people and cars moving around in the shot aren’t going to be captured at the exact same time across all three images.

This rule of thumb is especially true when working with HDR photos. When the iPhone does its job and combines the images into a single HDR, just like if your hands shake, the photo with moving subjects involved will likely blur or suffer from ghosting. Any movement within the shot should be avoided whenever possible.

Note: This can also result in artistic and unique HDR photos, so if that’s you’re intent, don’t be afraid to play around a bit.

4. There’s an app for that

Although the native HDR feature on the iPhone is pretty great, it’s also somewhat limited when it comes to flexibility and customizing your settings. If you want more control over HDR photos, here are a couple of great HDR alternatives you can find in the App Store:

• Pro HDR ($1.99 – iTunes link) Pro HDR is an awesome alternative that lets you really drill down in terms of customizing your HDR photos. You can modify the exposure levels for each shot before combining them into an HDR photo, which is great for specific conditions where you need the added modifiability. It also has a proprietary image alignment algorithm that precisely aligns full-size images in seconds, and the app is very speedy in general when handling HDR shots.

• TrueHDR ($0.99 – iTunes link) TrueHDR is another great HDR app to take a look at. It has a lot of nice features and gives you a choice of ‘Natural’ or ‘Enhanced’ modes, with Natural for the most realistic look and Enhanced for slightly more vivid colors and contrast – pick the look you like! It also makes it easier to capture moments with an AutoCapture mode and gives you better control over exposure points.

So go out and put your new-found knowledge of HDR picture taking into practice and let us know how it goes for you! Have any additional HDR pointers or tips we left out? Also let us know of any other great HDR apps, tips or suggestions you have in the comments!

Bonus Tip: If you’re jailbroken, here’s how to enable HDR on your iPhone 3G or 3GS. The process isn’t for beginners, and requires you to SSH into your iPhone to modify a plist file, but the end result is not having to upgrade to an iPhone 4 just to get into the HDR game.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Restoring your iPhone and re-jailbreaking, and wondering how to save your App Store app data? We recently checked out how to use appbackup to save App store app data but now there’s a new app on the block called DataDeposit. What’s unique about DataDeposit is that you won’t need to save any files via SSH or iPhone Explorer. It simply backs up your app data to your Dropbox account. Awesome, right? Hit the jump for a quick walkthrough!

Backing up your app data

1. Download DataDeposit from Cydia
2. Make sure any apps that you want to back up are not running in the multitasking tray. If they are, simply close them out. (I completely emptied out my multitasking tray before backing up data.)
3. From the main screen, select Backup my save data. You’ll be prompted to sign into your Dropbox account if you haven’t already done so.

4. DataDeposit will populate a list of apps you have installed. Tap the app you would like to create a backup for and select Backup.

5. Once you’re done backing up all the apps you’d like to be able to restore, go ahead and restore your device and re-jailbreak.

Restoring your app data

1. Once you have re-jailbroken your device, re-download DataDeposit from Cydia.
2. Launch DataDeposit and this time you’ll select Restore from Dropbox.

3. DataDeposit will automagically populate all the apps you have restore points for in Dropbox. Simply go through the list and restore any backups you’d like. Again, make sure they aren’t running in the multitasking tray.

4. You’re done!

I didn’t have too many issues with DataDeposit but there were a few instances where a backup didn’t sync up to Dropbox for some reason. So before restoring, I’d make sure your backups really are in Dropbox. I have Dropbox installed on my iMac so I made sure my Mac gave me a notification that it received the backup file for an app before I proceeded onto the next one. If you have issues uploading to Dropbox, there is a setting under change options that allows you to turn off HTTPS uploading to Dropbox. Try that if uploads or downloads fail.

I would really like to see a backup and restore all option added at some point too. Either way, DataDeposit definitely made it a bit less painless to restore a jailbroken iPhone. If you guys try it out, let us know what you think!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Wondering how to take better pictures with your iPhone camera? Ever found yourself taking a picture with your iPhone only to discover the photo came out less than perfect? Sometimes you only have one opportunity to capture a moment, so you want to ensure everything is right and your photo doesn’t come out looking like it was taken with a cheap and flimsy digital camera. The iPhone camera has come a long way since the original iPhone in 2007, currently sporting a 5 megapixel sensor with flash in the iPhone 4, but there are still a few things you can do to make sure you’re getting the best shot possible.

In this tip we’ll go over a few pointers to help you in taking better pictures with your iPhone — find out how after the break!

Ready, steady, go!

I’ve been in situations where I’ve had to quickly whip out my iPhone in order to snap a photo on the go, but sometimes I wasn’t keeping my hand steady enough (hello Mr. Blurrycam). One thing you can do is use a tripod, but not everyone keeps one handy when out and about. Camera+ ($1.99 — iTunes link) helps by including an image stabilizer, monitoring how steady your hand is and taking the photo when you’re making the least amount of movement. However, if you’re using the default Camera app then you’re on your own. As such, keeping your iPhone as steady as you can is a good way to make sure you’re getting the sharpest image possible, especially in low light conditions. Speaking of lighting…

Light is your new best friend

Lighting is a big factor in taking great pictures, and it’s important to understand the basics when using your iPhone camera under certain lighting conditions. Taking photos where there isn’t enough light can heavily impact the overall picture quality, so make sure there’s as much light as possible. Although the camera baked into the iPhone 4 is (in my humble opinion) the best in its class, you’ll still notice some noise in low light conditions.

If you’re in a dark environment, make sure you’re taking advantage of the iPhone 4′s built-in camera flash. For older iPhone models without flash, getting a usable photo in low light may take a little extra work but you’ll be glad you made the effort… Take a look at Darkroom (free — iTunes link) to help you out with this problem. Just like Camera+, it features a ‘Steady Mode’ to help avoid blurry photos in low light conditions.

In addition, you’ll want to make sure your subject is properly lit. For example, the light source should be directed at your subject (not at you) to help draw focus on whatever you’re shooting.

Get up close and personal

The iPhone camera features tap-to-focus in addition to decent macro ability with the iPhone 4, so don’t be afraid to get up close and personal with your subject. This is especially true when shooting portraits or close-ups, where letting your subject consume the majority of the photo really goes a long way.

To zoom, or not to zoom

Most point-and-shoot cameras feature an optical zoom of around 3x-5x, which is great for shooting at a distance. However this unfortunately isn’t so with the iPhone (and all smartphone cameras, for that matter). When Apple released iOS 4 they threw in a digital zoom feature for the Camera app, but I’ve never found myself actually using it due how the pictures usually turn out. When you use the digital zoom feature you’ll be losing a significant amount of quality, so unless it’s absolutely necessary, try to stay away from using digital zoom as much as you can.

Edit, edit, and edit some more!

The iPhone has a number of awesome photo apps in the App Store, some of which we mentioned above, but which ones should you use for editing and refining your photos after you’ve taken them? Using the iPhone touchscreen to manipulate photos can be a rather delightful experience, so here are a few photo editing apps we recommend checking out:

• ColorSplash – ($0.99 — iTunes link) ColorSplash lets you take any regular photo and turn it into a colorful work of art. You start off by selecting your desired photo or taking a picture from within the app, to which ColorSplash strips away the color and turns it into a black and white. You then touch whatever area of the picture you want to fill in with color, creating unique images that really stand out from the crowd.
• PefectPhoto – ($0.99 — iTunes link) This app really shines when it comes to the number of options and effects you can work with. My personal favorite is the Spot Healing feature which lets you fix any blemishes or artifacts in your photo. Have a great shot of you and your best friend but want to get rid of that horrible zit that’s taking all the attention? PerfectPhoto is the editing app for you! You can also crop, align, edit exposure and gamma along with a number of other great editing options. There’s even a few noteworthy effects like Bloom and Vintage, taking your photos to a new and fully personalized level.
• Adobe Photoshop Express – (free — iTunes link) Photoshop Express for iPhone is a gem of a photo editing app, and to top it off it’s completely free! A good example of its editing power is reducing noise and smoothing out your pictures so they’re easier on the eyes. This is another great solution for taking pictures in low light conditions, letting you smooth out those darker photos in your collection and making them much more attractive.

Know of any other iPhone picture-taking pointers or suggestions we might have missed? Also let us know what your favorite photo editing apps are, or apps that can help get around some of the issues we mentioned above in the comments!

Bonus Tip: Clean your lens! Having a dirty camera lens can dramatically lower the quality of your pictures, so take a microfiber cloth and some screen cleaner to your iPhone to help your photos look less washed out. We recommend the iKlenz Cleaner Solution Kit to get the job done. You’ll immediately notice a difference, so give it a try!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Having problems with your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad accessories and wondering how to troubleshoot them? Here are a few basic tips which will help you identify the issue. Stick with us after the break.

Check for defects

If you have another iOS device, or have a family member, friend, or colleague with an iOS device, try the accessory out on their iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. For example, if a earbuds don’t plug properly into your 3.5mm headset jack, or a case doesn’t fit quite right, see if it plugs in properly or fits better on theirs.

If there’s a defect, you can contact the store or manufacturer and arrange for an exchange.

Search our Forums

Head on over to our TiPb Accessory Forums and see if there are any discussions already going on about your accessory. If anyone else has already had and solved the same problem, you’ll save yourself a lot of effort by following the same steps yourself. If they haven’t solved it, you can help crowd source a solution. If no one else has discussed the problem yet, you can start a new thread and get it going!

We have some of the best readers in the world and they will be able to let you know if there’s an issue (or not).

Check for compatibility

First thing you should do is make sure that the item that you are using is fully compatible with your iPhone or iPad. To do this you can head over to our accessory store , or to the website of the accessory maker and double check to see which iOS devices are compatible.

You may find that some devices are only partially compatible with your iPad or iPhone. For example, some older car adapters may allow you to play music through your FM radio but won’t charge your iPhone (a very common issue).

Bonus Tip: Our most awesome Managing Editor Rene Ritchie has mentioned that some accessories may also popup an incompatibility warning because they’re not officially part of Apple’s program (haven’t paid the made for iPhone or iPad licensing fee), but still charge you iPhone fine. Either way, find out for sure.

Unplug and Reset

Take out the accessory. If the accessory has a off button turn it off and then restart your iOS device. When your iOS device restarts fully, try to plug the accessory back in. Here’s [how to reset iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad].

Some accessories may require additional steps to start fresh. For example, Bluetooth headsets may need you to press certain button combinations to put them back into Pairing Mode. Check the instructions that came with your device, or check the manufacturers website for details.

Restore

If you know the accessory is not defective and that it’s supposed to work with your iOS device, try to restore your device. Sometimes that will clean out any glitches and get you back to a fresh, default state.

Not sure? Here’s how to restore your iPhone or iPad.

Update iOS

Some accessories may need to have the latest iOS software in order to function properly. For example, iOS 4 added Bluetooth control support that wasn’t available in iOS 3. If your accessory isn’t doing everything it should, make sure your software is up to date.

If you’re not sure, here’s how to update your iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

(Note: if you are are jailbroken you may lose your jailbreak if you update.)

Hope you found this tip helpful. If you have any accessory trouble-shooting tips of your own please share them into the comments!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Jailbroken Verizon iPhone users on iOS 4.2.7 have been stuck on a tethered jailbreak until recently. Sn0wbreeze 2.6.1 will allow you to go from tethered to untethered quickly and easily. So if you used redsn0w to jailbreak your Verizon iPhone and you’re currently tethered, hit the jump for a quick walkthrough on how to free your Verizon iPhone from its tethered state!

What you need

• Verizon iPhone 4 running iOS 4.2.7 currently jailbroken via redsn0w
• Sn0wbreeze 2.6.1 via a Cydia download

1. Launch Cydia on your iPhone and tap on the manage tab.

2. You’ll need to tap manage sources and then add the following source: http://cydia.pushfix.info

3. Cydia will refresh your sources for you. Next tap search in Cydia and search for Verizon Untether for 4.2.7.

4. Install the package and reboot your Verizon iPhone.

You can now enjoy being untethered on iOS 4.2.7! Let us know if you have any questions or how the process went for you in the comments. If you experience issues, you can always visit our TiPb jailbreak forums for help and the answers to many questions.

Have a broken or buggy iPhone Home Button and curious how to work around it? When Apple released iOS 4.1 several of our readers reported a bug with their iPhone Home Button, and for some of us, performing a restore or waiting for Apple to fix it in a software update hasn’t paid off.

If you aren’t near an Apple Store to swap out your iPhone, or you’re out of warranty, here’s something you can do to help circumvent the problem using Activator gestures to simulate a Home Button click — hit the jump to find out how it’s done!

Activator is a well-known jailbreak extension that integrates gestures into your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch using a system-wide mobilesubstrate hook in iOS. You can designate a number of gestures to do things like launch apps, perform tasks, toggle WiFi on-the-fly and a lot more — you can even map a gesture to the Home Button!

My personal iPhone 4 has had this issue for a while. Right now I just swipe up from the bottom of the screen in order to ‘press’ the Home Button, and swipe up from the bottom-right to call up the app switcher. It was a little awkward at first, but after a day or two my muscle-memory kicked in and I haven’t been annoyed by the Home Button problem ever since — simply because I never actually have to press it anymore.

If you haven’t already jailbroken your iPhone then check out our jailbreak starters guide first. Then just follow these quick steps to get Activator set up to allow a custom Home Button gesture:

1. After installing Activator in Cydia (free) open the Settings app and select Activator from the settings menu.
2. Tap ‘Anywhere’.
3. Now you’ll have to select your desired gesture here. I chose the Slide In gesture but you can choose whatever you prefer.
4. Now swipe up to reveal the search bar and run a quick search for the Home Button.

You’ll need to kill the Settings app for the gesture to kick in, and you can go through the same steps for setting up a gesture for the iOS app switcher as well.

That’s it! Using a gesture to simulate the Home Button has taken away those random frustrating moments when my Home Button wouldn’t respond, and we hope it helps you get around the problem too! Let us know what other suggestions and work-arounds you’ve come up with in the comments below!

Bonus Tip: @JBaby_9783 on Twitter suggested using rubbing alcohol to help clean dust and grit from areas around the Home Button. You’ll need to wet a QTip with 91% rubbing alcohol and apply it on and around the Home Button after you’ve powered off your iPhone. Get the button area slightly wet (having a small puddle in the concave of the button is fine) and then press the Home Button multiple times while it’s still wet, then let dry. You can quicken the drying process by applying a blow dryer to your iPhone for about a minute, but make sure it’s fully dry before powering the iPhone back on. This should help address response issues with the Home Button but you won’t see a change if your problem is bug-related.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Wondering how to make your iPhone camera launch faster? Often find that you’ve missed the perfect shot because the camera app took too long to open? It turns out there’s a way to instantly call up the iPhone camera without any load time at all using a lightweight jailbreak tweak called Snappy — hit the jump to find out how it’s done!

Snappy is a jailbreak modification that lets you do a few different things with the Camera app, but its main function is having the camera available no matter what app you’re in — you can even use the camera instantly from the iPhone lockscreen!

(If you’re not sure what Jailbreak is, then check out our jailbreak starters guide first.)

To get started, go into Cydia and search for Snappy. The app uses the Cydia Store and costs $1.99 to purchase.

After you’ve installed Snappy, Cydia will prompt you to respring before the modification can take effect. After that you should see the Snappy icon on your springboard, but I use SbSettings to remove the icon from my iPhone altogether. Snappy uses Activator gestures so you won’t really need the icon once you’ve set it all up.

Once Snappy is ready to go, follow these quick steps to get Activator set to your needs:

1. Go into the Settings app and scroll down until you see an option for Activator.
2. In the Activator menu pane, select ‘Anywhere’.
3. From here you’ll see a number of options including gestures, button presses and tap commands. We’re going to set Snappy to activate whenever you tap and hold anywhere along the statusbar, but you can choose whatever gesture you prefer.
4. To quickly find Snappy just swipe up to reveal a search bar, run a quick search and then choose whether to default to photo or video taking once Snappy is activated.
5. Now close out of the settings app completely (tap once to go to homescreen, double-tap to call up the app switcher then tap and hold the settings icon until it starts to wiggle to kill the app).
   
6. Enjoy instant access to the camera from anywhere on your iPhone!

That’s it! No more waiting around for the Camera app to load and no more missing those perfect shots while on the go!

Bonus Tip: Snappy has a few other nice features including the ability to set the volume buttons as the camera shutter, making it even more convenient to take photos on your iPhone. To do this, activate Snappy and make sure the option for ‘Volume shutter button’ is on under settings. You can also set Snappy to use your current location or snap a quick photo upon launch.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

How to back up application data is a question I get asked almost on a daily basis. This question seems to get asked even more frequently every time a new jailbreak is released. I never recommend restoring from a jailbroken backup, ever. It can bring all kinds of problems with it and cause crashes and freezes. I always recommend a new restore.

But what about all your game save data and other app data? If you don’t restore from a backup, it’s gone right? Not exactly. There’s tons of reasons why you may need to completely restore your device. Whatever the reason is, appbackup is a huge aid that helps bring your application data with you.

Hit the jump for a walkthrough!

Cydia plays host to a wonderful little app called appbackup. It’s free and will back up and save application data for any App Store apps you choose. As a side note, it will not save jailbroken data. There is another app lurking in the Cydia store that will aid you in doing that called aptbackup. We will look at that in a future tutorial.

What you’ll need

• A currently jailbroken iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch
• appbackup
• iPhone explorer or an SSH client of your choice on your Mac or PC. I recommend iPhone Explorer as it is dead simple to use and it’s free.

Backing up App Store applications

1. Download appback for free via Cydia.

2. Launch appbackup. You’ll be presented with a huge list of all App Store applications currently installed on your device.

3. You have two options, you can save all application data or just choose certain application data to backup. I typically save only game data and data from apps that tend to be a pain when wiped clean. To save all, tap “All” in the bottom left hand corner. To selectively create backups, tap the name of the app you’d like to back up and click back up. Do this with all the apps you’d like to save your data from.

4. You’ll see the app save your data before displaying that it was successful. It’s also worth noting you won’t see a restore option until you have a backup saved for a specific application.

Obtaining your backups and transferring them to your Mac or PC

1. Plug your device into your Mac or PC after you’ve created backups for all the apps you care to save.

2. This is where you’ll need to open either iPhone Explorer or SSH into your device. If you’re not sure how to SSH, check out the guide referenced above. I still recommend iPhone Explorer, which is what I’m using in all screenshots.
3. appbackup saves your backups in a specific file path. That path is as follows: /var/mobile/Library/Preferences/AppBackup

4. You will need to navigate to the above file path. After you’ve found the folder, you’ll need to make a copy of that folder on your Mac or PC. I typically keep them in a folder on my desktop called App Backups. However you choose to do it is fine as long as you save them in a location you’ll remember. After you’ve found the folder, all you need to do in order to copy it to your computer is drag it to whatever save location you choose.

5. You now have your backups saved in a secure location. Go ahead and restore your device as new and rejailbreak.

Restoring your application data to your device

1. After restoring your device and rejailbreaking, go back into Cydia and re-install appbackup.

2. Plug your device back into your computer and navigate back to /var/mobile/Library/Preferences/AppBackup

3. This time you will want to replace the AppBackup folder with the one you saved earlier. If iPhone Explorer or your SSH client prompts you, choose to overwrite or replace the file. Just make sure you are copying it in the correct directory.

4. Now launch appbackup on your device. In the bottom left hand corner, tap “All” and choose “Restore”. It will restore all your application save data from your backup.
5. You’re done! You can now enjoy playing Angry Birds and all your other games exactly where you left off!

If you guys try this, let us know how it works for you! If you run into issues, make sure to check out our TiPb Jailbreak Forums for answers to many common questions.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

When Amazon announced their Cloud Drive and Cloud Player music services earlier this week they didn’t mention whether or not it would work on the iPhone, or any other iOS device for that matter. While there’s no app (yet?) and the full site doesn’t seem to want to work on Mobile Safari, single song playback works just fine on the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch via Apple’s built-in Quicktime X Player. Just hit the jump to find out how it’s done!

To get started, first visit www.amazon.com/clouddrive and log in to access your free 5GB of storage. From there you can upload music files in MP3 or AAC format for playback on virtually any device with a web browser.

I’ve gone ahead and uploaded a few of my favorite tunes to test playback on my iPhone 4. Just follow these simple steps to get the service running on your own iDevice:

1. Open Mobile Safari and navigate to Amazon’s Cloud Drive website here, then select the Music folder on the left navigation menu.
2. Choose the song you’d like to play by selecting the checkbox next to the track name.
3. Tap ‘Download’ above the track selection list.
   
4. Put in your earbuds and enjoy the streaming music!

As I mentioned before, Safari won’t actually download and store the MP3 to your iPhone, but will instead launch the built-in Quicktime player for streaming playback. The drawback here is that you can only play one song at a time and must go through the steps for each track you’d like to hear. Additionally, Amazon doesn’t have Cloud Drive set up for the iPhone specifically, so navigating the service directly from your iPhone isn’t an enjoyable experience to say the least.

But, as demonstrated, playback works perfectly on any iOS device. Let us know if you plan on using Amazon’s new service or if you’d rather hold out for a more elegant option from Apple, and as always post any issues you run into in the comments below!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

New to iPhone and curious how to connect to a Wi-Fi network? Wi-Fi is faster than 3G and if you’re on a tiered plan it’s a great way to avoid wasting your precious data. This may seem simple for those of us who have had our iPhones for a while but if you haven’t done it before, stay with us after the break to find out how to use Wi-Fi!

Here’s how to connect to a Wi-Fi network on your iPhone or iPod touch. (It’s also similar on iPad though the Settings app looks a little different.)

1. Launch Settings and make sure that Wi-Fi is turned on.
2. Check the available networks that appear under: Choose a Network.
3. Tap network you would like to join.
4. Enter the network password. If it’s especially complicated, email it to your iPhone and cut and paste it in.

Bonus tip: If you’re at Starbucks, the airport, or somewhere else that has free or paid Wi-Fi, a page may slide up asking you for an account login or to agree to their terms of service. Just fill this in the same way you’d log in via the web on a laptop. If you’re not sure what the Wi-Fi password is, ask an employee or the administrator.

I hope this has helped out those new to smartphones!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

SBSettings is a wonderful little jailbreak app that adds tons of quick toggles to your iOS springboard. The one thing I don’t care for in SBSettings is the default theme. It’s just downright ugly. I get tons of questions on whether or not you can theme SBSettings like you can the rest of your springboard. The answer is yes. It’s quite simple actually. Hit the jump to find out how!

Downloading SBSettings Themes

1. Open Cydia and tap on Sections.

2. Scroll down to themes and you’ll see a section for “Themes (SBSettings)”. Browse through all the available themes for SBSettings and install the ones you like.

Changing your SBSettings theme

1. Now open SBSettings (by swiping to the right or left on your top status bar). You’ll see a “More” option. Select that and you’ll see the window below.
2. Tap the “SBSettings Themes” option. You should see some default themes and all the ones you installed.
3. Tapping the blue arrows will let you see a quick preview of each theme.

4. Simply select the theme you’d like to use by tapping it.
5. Respring your phone and your new theme should now be active!

That’s all there is to it. Try it out and let us know which themes are your favorites in the comments!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Have you ever wanted to know how to track how much data your iPhone or iPad are using? If you’re on a capped plan, you probably should, especially now that there have been accusations AT&T have been fudging data numbers. There are a few different ways in which you can track how much data your iPhone or iPad has used. Stay with us after the break to find out how to use the built-in method.

Most casual users will only go through about 100 to 200 MB per month. So as long as you are not downloading videos or streaming a ton of internet radio you should be fine even on a relatively low tiered plan. The only way to know for sure, however, is to keep track of it. (I have at times gotten into hot water with my carrier due to the number of YouTube videos I watched!)

1. Go to settings
2. Tap General
3. Tap Usage
4. Look at Cellular Network Data, sent and received
5. Reset Statistics

Now you can reset the statistics so you can track your usage. It will also tell you the last day that you reset. Unless you’re a math whiz with a great memory, set an alarm to remind you to tap Reset Statistics at the beginning of each billing cycle so you have a better idea how much data you’re using during the current month.

Bonus Tip: There are also apps like DataMan — which Ally reviewed back in December and now comes in an iPad version as well — that help you track and manage your data.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Annoyed by the having to use Cydia to delete Jailbreak apps and wondering how to delete them faster? There’s a nifty little tweak available that makes this process much easier. In fact, CyDelete lets you delete jailbroken apps just like you would delete an official App Store app. Follow us after the break for a rundown of how to use CyDelete.

To delete jailbroken apps via Cydia can be rather irritating. You have to launch Cydia, click on manage, scroll and find the package you’d like to delete, and then wait for Cydia to reload. CyDelete aims to simplify this process.

1. First, search for CyDelete in Cydia and install it (it’s free).

2. You don’t see an icon on your homescreen. But you can find a few settings for CyDelete inside your iPhone settings panel.

3. Hold down any icon until they start jiggling. You should now see that jailbroken applications also have a delete X option by them just like official apps do.

4. Simply tap the X to delete the app just like you would any other. That’s it!

As a side note, CyDelete does not let you delete Cydia and some mobilesubstrate apps for stability reasons. Other than that, it should work on just about any other jailbreak app. If you’re jailbroken, try it out and let us know how it worked for you!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Brand new to iPhone and wondering how to set a ringtone? This is a great way to personalize your iPhone to reflect you, especially if you make your own custom ringtone. To find out how, follow along after the break!

Setting a new default ringtone

1. Launch Settings
2. Tap “Sounds”
3. Tap “Ringtone”
4. If you have any custom ringtones, they will be listed first, followed by the 25 standard ringtones
5. Tap the ringtone you would like to use or listen to (Warning: when you do this, the ringtone will be played through your iPhone’s speakers, even in silent mode)
6. A checkmark will appear next to the selected ringtone

Setting a new individual ringtone

To set a personalized ringtone for an individual contact:

1. Launch the Contacts app (or Phone app and choose the Contacts tab)
2. Scroll to the contact you want to personalize
3. Tap on their name to bring up their contact page
4. Tap edit
5. Tap on Ringtone
6. Choose a new tone

There you have it! Now you know to set a new ringtone on your iPhone. If you have any questions, let us know in the comments below!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Jailbroken and curious how to get rid of the album art displayed on the lockscreen whenever you’re playing music or listening to a podcasts? Rather look at the wallpaper than album art? If so, we’ll show you how to do just that… after the break!

You need to be Jailbroken to do this. If you’re not sure what that is or means, stop reading this and head on over to Ally’s Jailbreak Starters Guide for more.

We’re going to show you how this is done on a Windows-based machine and from the device itself, but there are similar SSH tools out there for Mac users as well. Before getting started, you’ll need to download WinSCP and also make sure you have OpenSSH installed on your jailbroken iPhone. You’ll also need the device connected to the same WiFi network as your PC for SSH purposes. Once you’re ready to go, just follow these quick steps:

1. Make sure SSH is turned ON from your iDevice before continuing. You can turn SSH on/off via an SBSettings toggle if installed.

2. Start WinSCP. Upon loading WinSCP you’ll be asked to input the IP address, login and password for the device you’re attempting to SSH into. To find the IP address of your iPhone, go into the settings app under WiFi and select the network you’re connected to. The default login/password will be root/alpine unless you’ve changed it manually.

3. Once you’ve successfully SSH’d into the device, navigate to /System/Library/SpringboardPlugins and locate the folder titled ‘NowPlayingArtLockscreen.bundle’. Rename this folder to ‘NowPlayingArtLockscreen.bundle.backup’ or something similar so the system no longer recognizes it

4. Respring your iDevice to see the changes take effect.

That’s it! Now you’ll no longer see album art displayed on the lockscreen when music or podcasts are playing!

Bonus Tip: Cut out the need for a PC or Mac by installing iFile on your iPhone or iPod Touch! iFile will allow you to navigate the iOS file system and make changes to files or folders, among other things. Farbod chose iFile for his App Pick of the Week recently and went over some of the other great functionality of this app, so be sure and check it out! To make the change using iFile, just launch the app and navigate to the path mentioned in step 3 to make the appropriate changes to the required folder. iFile is available in the Cydia Store for $4.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Have limited 3G data on your iPhone or iPad and want to know how to conserve it as best as you can? Get that dreaded “You’ve used up 80% of your data for the month” message and there are still weeks to go before your next billing cycle? Overage charges are probably the most expensive expensive items a carrier can bill you for so stay with us after the break to find out how to best conserve your data!

If you’re worried about conserving your precious data the first thing you need to know is how to track how much data you are actually using. Unfortunately, only your carrier is considered 100% accurate when it comes to data tracking but if you just want a general idea you can use the iPhone’s built-in data usage monitor.

Check your data usage

First it’s a good idea to keep an eye on how much data you’re using:

• How to track your iPhone data usage

Now, on with the conservation…

Death by streaming

The biggest usage of cellular data is media streaming, especially video. If you have a serious YouTube — or whatever site — video streaming addiction wait until you’re on Wi-Fi to feed it. Many sites now offer streaming HTML5 video for iPhone, from news to video podcasts to entertainment. All of them will chew through your data cap in no time. Learn to avoid them when out and about!

The same goes for audio. If you’re streaming Pandora, internet radio, or podcasts it might sound small to start but will quickly add up.

Other things to avoid

• Anything that streams. We can’t stress that enough!
• Online gaming. All those graphics are costing you data!
• Google Maps. The map tiles are being downloaded.
• App Store. Even though apps are capped at 20MB for cellular data, start downloading a bunch of 20MB apps and you’ll feel the pain.

Settings

Once you’ve gotten streaming under control, conserving data becomes pretty much about how to turn off Settings and shut down apps that use up data, especially those that run in the background. Here are some tips:

• Turn off push email. It’s small but it adds up. Switch to fetching email in manual mode. Go to Settings: Mail, Contacts, Calendar : Fetch New Data and set it to Manually.
• Turn off push notifications. Same deal. Go to Settings: Notifications and set them to off.
• Turn off Cellular data unless you absolutely need it. This will prevent anything from running in the background and adding to your overages. Go to Settings: Cellular Data and turn it to off.

Texting is fine, MMS, Visual Voice Mail isn’t

SMS/Texting doesn’t use data so don’t worry about using them when your data usage is at its limit. However, MMS and Visual Voice Mail use data to transmit pictures, videos, and audio. Stop using them if you’re close to your limit!

Upgrade your data plan if you need to

It’s important to be realistic. If you are constantly finding yourself getting billed for extra data use every month it may be a better idea just to upgrade to a bigger data plan. Try to talk to the retention department. While not always the case they can generally give you better deals then regular customer service reps.

Hope this has helped you out, and if you have any other ideas for conserving your iPhone data usage let me know in the comments!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Curious how to stream digital content to your old, standard definition TV? Since they don’t have HDMI ports, Apple TV is out but if you have an old iPod touch (or even iPhone) you can McGyver together something almost as good. We’ll show you how after the break!

The current Apple TV is a great, inexpensive way to stream content to your HDMI-equiped HD TV but if you have an older CRT TV with composite (RCA video/audio) plugs, you’re going to have to get just a little more creative. (You can look for component to HDMI converters but they’re expensive.) And if you have an old iPod touch lying around, why not put it to good use?

What you need

1. An old iPod touch
2. A set of Apple composite cables [$39 - Apple Store link]
3. A copy of the Air Video (or similar) app [$2.99 - iTunes link]

You could use an old iPhone or even a current iPod touch or iPad, though you probably don’t want to leave them connected to an old TV. That’s the reason I recommend an old iPod touch.

What you do

1. Setup your iPod touch as normal.
2. Plug your iPod touch into the dock connector on Apple’s component cables
3. Plug the USB out into an AC adapter (that way you won’t have to worry about charging)
4. Install Air Video’s server client on your Mac or Windows PC [download link]
5. Launch Air Video server
6. Go into Preferences and share the libraries that contain your media (e.g. /music/iTunes)
7. Launch Air Video on your iPod touch
8. Add your Windows or Mac PC as a server
9. Navigate to what you want to watch or listen to
10. Hit play or play with live transcode and watch away!

Unlike an Apple TV, there’s no remote for this setup which is a bit of a pain. However, Air Video can transcode non-Apple supported video formats like AVI and MKV on the fly so you don’t have to worry about converting your collection before hand.

I’ve set this up for my mother using an iPod G3 and it works great. Whenever my sister or I visit we can stream things we want to show her almost as if she had an Apple TV.

If you have any questions or other tips on streaming media or getting more use out of old devices, let us know in comments!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Coming from another platform where you’re used to the Gmail app on Android or the instant push of BlackBerry mail and curious how to get that on your iPhone? Well good news — Google licensed Exchange ActiveSync from Microsoft and offers Google Sync for iPhone (and other devices). So if you set up your Gmail (or Google Account) as an Exchange account you get push email, calendars, and contacts. We’ll show you how after the break!

Setting up Gmail as Exchange/Google Sync is easy provided you ignore that giant Gmail button on the mail account screen and choose Exchange instead. Here are the steps:

1. Launch the Settings app.
2. Tap Mail, Contacts, Calendars.
3. Tap Add Account.
4. Tap Microsoft Exchange.
5. For Email, enter your full Gmail or Google Account email address (i.e. name@gmail.com or name@mygoogleaccountdomain.com).
6. Leave the Domain field blank. (Really.)
7. Again, enter your Gmail or Google Account email address as the Username. (Yup, that’s twice.)
8. Enter your Gmail/Google Account password for Password.
9. Tap Next.
10. When the Server field appears, enter m.google.com.
11. Tap Next.
12. Select what you want to sync (Mail, Calendar, and Contacts).

WARNING: Your iPhone will ask if you want to delete all existing data and replace it with Google data, or merge the two. What you choose depends on how you store your data. If everything is in the Google Cloud, choose replace. If you have a mix of data from, for example, Outlook as well, choose merge.

If you’ve got an questions or any Gmail tips of your own, let us know! And power users, especially if you’re coming from Android, check out our how to get a better Gmail experience tip!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Just get a new Verizon iPhone, or a new iPhone on any network, and curious how to get to your Facebook account? If so, we’re going to show you how dive into the mobile-social wave with grace using the official Facebook for iPhone app. And although Facebook doesn’t currently support an official app for the iPad, we’ll show you a few alternatives to help you get started after the break!

There are umpteen millions of Facebook users and Facebook for iPhone is probably the most download app in mobile. Still, if you’re new to social networking and don’t yet have a Facebook profile, that’s where you ned to start. Just head on over to Facebook.com and register an account before getting started.

Now on to some basic tasks using the Facebook for iPhone app…

Facebook for iPhone

Fortunately Facebook provides an official app in the App Store alongside their mobile touch version in Safari. The native app allows iOS users to view the news feed, upload photos and video, check in to places, view upcoming events and birthdays, chat with your friends and a lot more. Here are a few quick tips to help you get started using Facebook on your iPhone.

News Feed

The News Feed where you’ll find all of your friend’s status updates in one place. If your friends upload any photos or videos you’ll be able to see them in a stream of aggregated updates. From the news feed you’ll be able to comment on a status, jump into a photo or ‘like’ a status update you find interesting or compelling. If you see an interesting link in the news feed the app has a built-in web browser so you don’t get kicked out of the app if you want to continue reading. You can also filter down the news feed to only show photos, notes, status updates etc if you want to cut down on the noise and get to specific updates.

Update your status, photos or location

To get started with the first tip you’ll want to go back into the news feed. Here you will be given three options along the top: Photo, Status and Check In. You’ll be able to post a quick status update, pull a photo or video from the iOS photo-picker to upload or check yourself into the nearest location and broadcast it to your network of friends. The process is easy and straightforward. If you’re uploading a picture of a friend, you’ll also be able to tag that friend from directly within the app!

Chat

Most of my friends use Facebook chat, so if I’m looking to communicate with one of my friends on-the-fly I’ll usually jump into the chat instead of posting something on their wall. To use Facebook Chat on the iPhone just tap the Chat icon in the main section. Next you’ll be taken to an alphabetical list of friends that are online, and from here you can tap a friend to begin chatting. If you don’t want to be seen online whenever getting into Facebook for iPhone, just tap ‘Go Offline’ in the upper-right corner of the chat. The latest update to Facebook for iPhone fixed issues with inconsistencies in the chat, so don’t worry about always having to go offline every time you launch the app if you want to appear offline most of the time.

Search

If you’re quickly trying to find one of your friends all you have to do is tap the search field at the top in the main section of the app. From here you’ll be able to filter down your list of friends and jump to any friend’s profile. From the profile viewer, you can comment or ‘like’ your friends status updates and photos just as you can from the news feed. You can also search the entire Facebook user directory by selecting ‘Everyone’ below the search field, or ‘Pages’ to filter through different Facebook pages.

Notifications

With the latest update to Facebook for iPhone, Facebook has also redesigned the notifications section allowing for a much more aesthetically pleasing interface making it easier to sort through your latest notifications. Using the Notifications section is also a very easy process, as you simply tap your desired notification to be taken to the corresponding update. You’ll be able to view any new comments or changes since the last time you were online from the notifications section.

Facebook apps for iPad

Unfortunately Facebook has yet to release an official app for the iPad – they apparently don’t view the iPad as a mobile device (say what?) – so we’ve rounded up a few great alternatives to use until Facebook comes to their senses.

1. Friendly for Facebook is an app that recently went free, making it a great way to get started if your not looking to spend any money. This app is all around a great full featured way to engage with friends on Facebook and allows you to upload photos which is something you don’t get in Safari. You can even get into limited profile editing and customize the color of the layout in the settings. Also look for its counterpart Friendly Plus for Facebook ($.99) which takes out the ads. [iTunes -- free]

2. FacePad was released last week and combines the look and feel of the official Twitter app for iPad, but it’s for Facebook. It really doesn’t get more simple than that. If you’ve ever used Twitter on your iPad then you’ll probably be able to pick up the layout right off the bat. One thing you’re not getting is the ability to upload photos or video and there are a few bugs that need to be worked out, but the app has definitely made a stir in the iPad community and has room to grow. If you like the Twitter app for iPad, check out FacePad today! [iTunes -- $.99]

3. Facebook Browser for iPad isn’t one I’d personally recommend, but it does offer some nice features. I’m not a fan of the layout and design, but others might like it. You can do all the regular things like check your messages, view the live stream and comment on status updates. There are a couple of themes to choose from, but transitions are slow and the app feels more like a webpage than a native app, however it has some promise. Check it out! [iTunes -- $.99]

4. Facebook Touch HD has similar aesthetic qualities to that of Friendly for Facebook, but doesn’t quite pull it off with as much grace. Although you can do things like upload photos and even save your friend’s photos to your camera roll, the app doesn’t have as much polish as I feel it should and crashed more than once while I was playing with it. There are a few things they need to work on given the price, but if all you care about is accessing Facebook outside of the browser then maybe this one is for you! [iTunes -- $2.99]

Remember that you can always get back to the familiar Facebook layout by using Safari, but you’ll lose some abilities (uploading photos). Then again, you’re also gaining other abilities (‘liking’ someone’s comment within a status update), so it’s really a give-and-take game until Facebook officially comes out with a killer way to use the service on the iPad.

As always, let us know if you have any questions or run into any issues and we’ll do our best to help out in the comments. Also let us know what your favorite apps are for browsing Facebook on the iPad below!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Greenpois0n not only works for the AT&T iPhone 4, it will also jailbreak your Verizon iPhone 4 on iOS 4.2.6. I had no issues the first time out. It’s pretty straight forward and pretty much the exact same process you’d use to jailbreak an AT&T iPhone 4 with Greenpois0n running iOS 4.2.1. HIt the jump to find out what you’ll need. We’ll also give you a quick walkthrough as well.

What you’ll need

• Verizon iPhone 4 running iOS 4.2.6
• Either a PC or a Mac
• Greenpois0n RC5 b4, Mac Version – PC Version

This jailbreak is also untethered so you won’t have to worry about having to connect your iPhone 4 to your PC every time you want to reboot like a lot of users did under redsn0w on iOS 4.2.1 (until greenpois0n came along).

How to jailbreak

1. Download Greepois0n from one of the links above (Mac or PC).

2. Save it somewhere easily accessible. I always put mine in the dock of my Mac. It’s easy to find if I ever need it again.

3. Make sure you have backed up all of your data via a sync in iTunes before proceeding any further.
4. Plug your Verizon iPhone into your computer via USB and turn it OFF.
5. Launch greenpois0n

6. Once you are ready to begin click Jailbreak. greenpois0n will walk you through putting your iPhone into DFU mode. If you mess up the first time, that’s okay, it will fail and you can simply try again.

7. After you have correctly entered DFU mode, greenpois0n will begin jailbreaking your phone. (As a side note, a lot of users reported the jailbreak failed because they did not hold the home button down long enough. I suggest holding it down for a few seconds even after the jailbreak begins installing, just to be safe.)

8. Let greenpois0n do its thing. Once it says “Complete!”, click it to close out greenpois0n.

9. When your phone boots back up, you should see a Loader Icon on your screen, tap it.

10. Then choose to install Cydia. Once it’s done, close out of Loader, let your phone respring and make sure Cydia is on your homescreen.

11. Once Cydia is installed, go back into Loader, tap options and uninstall Loader.

12. Close out of Loader and your phone will respring one more time in order to uninstall Loader.
13. Congrats! Your Verizon iPhone 4 is now jailbroken! Launch Cydia and let it update. If it asks you to do a complete or essential upgrade, click complete.

14. Once it is done, you should be able to re-enter Cydia and start enjoying all kinds of fancy jailbreak tweaks and apps!

If you’re new to Jailbreak check out our Jailbreak Starters Guide for all the basics. If you have any issues or just want to talk tweaks and apps, be sure to visit our TiPb jailbreak forums. We’ve got lots of awesome jailbreak forum members willing to help you out and talk jailbreak!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Switching from an AT&T iPhone to a Verizon iPhone, or switching from any old iPhone to a new one, and curious how to transfer all your information, apps, and data over? Luckily Apple makes this process almost painless thanks to iTunes iTunes. Click through for a couple easy steps that will ensure all your AT&T iPhone data and settings get transferred over to your new iPhone smoothly.

If you’ve ever had to swap an iPhone out at an Apple store, you’re probably already familiar with this process. If not, follow these easy steps to copy data to your new phone. This process will save all your contacts, camera roll photos, apps, and settings into an iTunes backup for you.

1. Plug your current iPhone into your computer and open iTunes.

2. If it doesn’t start to sync automatically, click the Sync button. (You can alternately right click your device name in the navigation bar and click back up as well. Either way will work just fine.)

3. Unplug your current iPhone and plug in your new iPhone.
4. You’ll be asked to register your iPhone if you haven’t already.
5. iTunes should prompt you to do one of two things, set up as a new iPhone or restore from a backup. Choose to restore from a backup and select the backup you just made.

6. Once the restore is done your iPhone will reboot. When iTunes detects it again it will start to sync back any apps and games your old iPhone had installed.
7. Let iTunes do its thing. When you come back, your new phone should have all the same settings and data as your old one!

If you guys are switching, let us know how transferring your data worked out! Any issues with things transferring or did everything go smoothly?

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Greenpois0n RC5 now allows you to jailbreak iOS 4.2.1 untethered on most devices including iPhone 4 and iPad. The best part? You won’t need any SHSH blobs saved. redsn0w beta required you to have 4.2b3 blobs saved (and it was pretty unstable). Hopefully greenpois0n is going to be a much smoother experience for you guys. Hit the jump for a walkthrough on how to jailbreak iOS 4.2.1 with greenpois0n and for the answers to some commonly asked questions.

What devices will greenpois0n RC5 jailbreak?

• iPhone 4/3GS
• iPad
• iPod Touch 2G/3G/4G
• AppleTV second generation

You’ll need to be running iOS 4.2.1 in order for this version of greenpois0n to work (4.1.1 for AppleTV second generation users).

Should I do a full stock restore first?

In short, most likely. If you’re already stock and haven’t been jailbroken, you’re fine. Still back up your phone first in case anything goes wrong.

If you are currently jailbroken on 4.1, yes. Do a full stock restore to 4.2.1 and restore as a new iPhone. After jailbreaking, I still don’t recommend restoring from a backup. Old jailbreak pieces can come with your backup and cause issues for you. Just my personal recommendation.

If you are currently tethered on 4.2.1 via redsn0w, you should be able to just run greepois0n right over your current jailbreak to untether. Some of the devs are saying if you have issues installing Cydia via greenpois0n after running it, simply run redsn0w again and let it re-install Cydia. Basically, as long as you aren’t running a Monte version jailbreak on 4.2.1, you should be able to run greenpois0n to untether.

Will this jailbreak iOS 4.3 beta?

No. You’ll have to wait a bit longer on a tested jailbreak for 4.3.

Jailbreaking iOS 4.2.1 via Greenpois0n

1. Download greenpois0n onto your Mac. (Some users have been reporting the servers being down. If you can’t get it to download right away, just be patient. Their servers are probably just lagging from all the traffic. There are a few mirrors out there so be sure to check the comments for the latest updates on those.
2. Plug your iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, or AppleTV in via USB (make sure the power is off) and follow the on-screen instructions to enter DFU mode.

3. Greenpois0n will recognize when your phone is properly in DFU mode and start to do its thing. After it’s done, you’ll see a Loader icon on your homescreen. Tap it and install Cydia. (Note: This only differs for AppleTV jailbreakers. You’ll be done but need to continue accessing and installing apps via Terminal and SSH.)

4. You’re done! Restore all your stuff (if you choose to or were stock before) and enjoy being jailbroken!

Note: Some users in the comments have been reporting sometimes the initializing error is a result of not holding the home button long enough when entering DFU mode. Even when the text is not greyed out anymore, continue holding the home button if you’re getting the Initializing error even after trying Greenpois0n RC5 version 2.

If you guys have already used this version of greenpois0n, let us know how it’s going in the comments! Have other questions? Check our our Jailbreak Starters Guide and jailbreak forums!

New to iPhone, iPod touch or iPad and wondering how to make sure you’re updated and running the latest version of iOS? No problem. Apple makes this easy and we’ll show you how after the break!

Updating your iPhone, iPod touch and iPad is as simple as plugin it into iTunes and following a few steps. It can take a few minutes and you do have to pay attention to a few important choices iTunes gives you, but we’re here to help explain it along the way.

Jailbreak warning: If you are Jailbroken and want to stay Jailbroken make sure you check TiPb.com/jailbreak to see if new version can still be jailbroken.

Ready? Here we go!

1. Connect your iPhone or iPad to your computer with your USB dock cable (it came in the box with your device).
2. When iTunes opens, your device will show up with a little icon in the left sidebar. Click on it.
3. Sync your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad if you haven’t in a while. iTunes will take a backup so it can restore it after the update and you want that to be as recent as possible. The sync button is at the bottom right.
4. In the main window, click ‘check for update’.
5. If a software update is available, a box will pop up telling you about it.
6. The download will start. They’re usually pretty big so it might take a few minutes. When it’s done, iTunes will prompt you to install it.
7. The install will take a few minutes and your iPhone will reboot.
8. Once the update is finished iTunes will ask if you want to restore from a previous backup or set up as a new device. Almost always restore from backup, you’ll save yourself a ton of work entering all your info and apps again.
9. Your iPhone will restart again once the restore is finished, then sync with iTunes to get all your apps and media loaded back on. Again, this can take a while depending on how much stuff you have.
10. That’s it, you’re done!

Hope this has helped out some new users! If you have any questions or extra tips please let us know in comments. If you need any extra expert help, check out the TiPb Forums!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

IAlready jailbroken your Apple TV 2 and curious how to install the nifty little XBMC add-on that allows you to stream and add even more content from your network? Since we don’t have Cydia for Apple TV (yet), the process of installing jailbreak apps is a bit different. Hit the jump for a quick walkthrough on how to get XBMC working on your jailbroken Apple TV 2.

First you’ll need a jailbroken AppleTV. If you haven’t done that already, check out our guide on jailbreaking the AppleTV 2 with Seas0nPass.

After you’ve done that, follow these steps.

1. Open a terminal app as you’ll need to gain SSH access to your AppleTV.
2. Type ssh root@apple-tv.local – if that doesn’t work for you, instead of typing apple-tv.local, replace it with your AppleTV’s IP address which can be found under Settings then Network on your AppleTV.

3. You’ll be asked for the password to your AppleTV next. By default, it is alpine. If you have changed it, enter the password you chose on your own instead. You may be asked if you’re sure you wish to continue, just type “yes”.

4. Once you are at the root menu, type (or copy/paste) this: echo "deb http://mirrors.xbmc.org/apt/atv2 ./" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/xbmc.list and hit “enter”.
5. Next type (or copy/paste) this: apt-get update and hit “enter”.

6. A list of available apps will populate. Type (or copy/paste) this: apt-get install org.xbmc.xbmc-atv2 and hit “enter”.

7. You’ll see the app begin to install and once it reaches 100%, you’re done. Your AppleTV should flash briefly and when the main menu pops back up, XBMC should be added.

As a side note, I had issues getting my MacBook to connect to my AppleTV via SSH. I kept getting connection refused or invalid host errors. There is a file on your Mac you can delete in order to stop these errors (not sure where it would be located on a PC if anyone wants to chime in here). You’ll need to unhide files on your Mac first. You can do that by following the steps below.

1. Open Terminal and type (or copy/paste): defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE and hit “enter”.
2. Type (or copy/paste): killall Finder

That should unhide all of the hidden files on your Mac. Now you should be able to navigate to /Users/username (in my case Ally)/.ssh and delete the file titled “known_hosts”. It should be the only file in that folder. Then try the above steps again. Only some of you may need to do this but I figured I’d throw it in there for anyone who has issues connecting via SSH to their AppleTV.

If you tried this or have installed XBMC, let us know how you like it so far!

If you have any questions or need any extra help, jump on in to our Apple TV Forums.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Considering switching to a Verizon iPhone and wondering how to avoid an AT&T ETF?

Early termination fees are a necessary evil for most carriers. They allow the carrier to recoup some of the cost of a subsidized device if someone cancels early. It also makes the cost of switching to another carrier pretty painful. But there are a few ways to either get around an ETF or offset some of the cost to make the switch a little easier to swallow. Click through for a few suggestions.

Carriers are pretty hard up when it comes to waiving early termination fees. Especially when they know most customers are probably switching for a specific device. In this case, the Verizon iPhone 4. Back in June AT&T changed their ETF policies for smartphone users. The termination fee is not $175 any longer. It’s now $325 and will drop by $10 for every month you carry service with them.

Avoiding an ETF

• Watch for contract term changes. If rates go up, that typically will give you an out. Keep in mind the rate has to directly affect you. If text messaging rates go up a cent or two but you have unlimited texting, the change doesn’t adversely affect you. You’d have a hard time arguing your way out.

• If you’ve recently moved and your service is noticeably worse than what it was before, this can be a way out as well. You’ll need to be able to prove the service is pretty bad. Calling and reporting dropped calls can have a huge impact on their final decision. And when you talk to a rep, always get their name and make sure they notate on your account that you were calling about poor service coverage. This also works for people whose service has went downhill. I live in a huge Centennial acquisition area and we’ve had sketchy service for about the past year. I’ve seen a few people talk their way out of an ETF because of the degradation in coverage.

• Keep your cool. This is probably the most important point of all. You want the person on the other end to sympathize with you. If you have a bad attitude, odds are they probably aren’t going to be too willing to help you out. Explain your situation thoroughly and with a level head. Reps are much more responsive to courteous customers than they are to those who just want to yell at them. Remember, the rep on the other line is a person too.

Offsetting the cost of an ETF

• A lot of you may already have an iPhone 4 on AT&T. They sell like hotcakes on sites like Craigslist and eBay. They’re worth even more if they’re jailbroken and unlocked (or at least on a firmware that can be unlocked). In my area (Chicago), a 16 GB iPhone 4 is currently going for anywhere between $400-550 on Craiglist. A 32 GB that is unlocked is fetching around $650. These prices may vary given your area, but I’m almost willing to bet a mint condition iPhone 4 will fetch you at least the amount of your ETF. I always recommend meeting face to face for cash if you can. I’ve upgraded to the newest generation iPhone every year this way. I unlock them and fetch almost what I paid. I haven’t paid for an iPhone since I purchased my first gen.

• If you don’t want to go through the hassle of listing your phone on websites, sites like Gazelle will take them off your hands for a reasonable amount. For a mint condition iPhone 4 with all the original accessories, the 16 and 32 GB models are being bought at $360 and $420 respectively. Enough to cover your ETF with AT&T.

• If you’d like to get rid of your entire AT&T plan, you can always use sites like CellSwapper. You basically unload your entire contract. The way it works is you list your plan and device and when someone wants it, they’ll notify you. You’ll go through a change of responsibility with the carrier. Keep in mind the person on the receiving end will need to pass a credit check just like you did.

• Find a family member or friend who wants an iPhone 4 and doesn’t mind being on AT&T. Maybe they have better service in their area than you do. This is probably the easiest way. You’ll need to call AT&T and tell them you want to do a change of responsibility. They’ll need to verify information for both parties, so you’ll both need to be on the phone call. They simply agree to take responsibility for the rest of your contract. Once they pass a credit check and pay their deposit (if there is one), you’re free from the AT&T ball and chain.

These are some of the ways that I have found to be most effective for customers. You can also find more advice and experiences with escaping ETFs on sites like the Consumerist as well. If any of you have any luck getting out of your AT&T contract, let us know how you did it!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Installed some Cydia apps onto your Jailbroken iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad and curious how to delete them? Tried the regular method of tapping and holding and making them jiggle but not seeing the handy App Store app “delete” icon in to corner? Don’t worry, if your Cydia apps or extensions aren’t working, are causing conflicts, or are simply no longer desired you can delete them as well. We’ll show you how after the break!

With Cydia there’s a few more steps involved in deleting an app than the App Store method but it’s still rather easy

1. Launch Cydia.
2. In Cydia, tap the ‘Manage’ tab along the bottom toolbar.
3. Tap ‘Packages’ at the top of the Manage pane.
4. Scroll through the alphabetical list to find the app you want to remove.
5. Tap the app to be taken to its respective pane.
6. Tap ‘Modify’ in the upper-right corner.
7. From here you’ll have the option to reinstall the app or remove it altogether. Tap ‘Remove’.
8. Tap ‘Confirm’ in the upper-right corner.

Cydia will then perform some magic and wipe the app from your iDevice, and you’ll no longer see the app icon on your springboard. If you’d like to reinstall the app, simply launch Cydia and search for the app you just deleted to reinstall.

Bonus Tip: If you’d like to remove jailbreak apps the same way you remove App Store apps, go into Cydia and search for CyDelete. CyDelete is a free extension and won’t install any app icon, but instead allows the user to tap-and-hold Cydia apps on the springboard in order to remove them by tapping the ‘x’ once in wiggle-mode. We’ve tested CyDelete on 4.0, 4.0.1 and 4.1, but haven’t confirmed it working on 4.2.1 yet so let us know if you have it up and running.

As always, if you have any questions or run into an issue, let us know and we’ll do our best to help out in the comments below!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Irritated by lyrics and podcast information appearing over the album art on your iPhone or iPod touch and want to know how to make it go away? Well you’re in luck, you can disable this annoying overlay in 3 easy steps. We’ll show you how after the break!

You may have lyrics to some songs in your iTunes Library, or you may download a podcast that has some show episode information, but when you tap the screen for the “scrubber”, the lyrics or information, sits right on top of your gorgeous album artwork.

To disable the lyrics and podcast overlay in iOS 4:

1. Tap Settings
2. Tap iPod
3. Turn “Lyrics and Podcast Info” Off

Its that simple!

If you have any questions or any other favorite iPod/music tips, let us know in the comments!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Curious how to configure access to a VPN client on your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad? L2TP, PPTP, and IPSec VPN support are all built right into iOS and we’ll show you how to set them up after the break!

One thing to note is that you’ll need to make sure you have all the settings and information about your VPN service handy. Some companies will not allow mobile access to a VPN, and some carriers limit 3G VPN access to business accounts, so that’s another thing you’ll need to check on before attempting to add one.

These screenshots show iPhone setup but iPod touch and iPad are similar.

First you’ll need to configure your VPN by adding the settings for your VPN (in most cases, these are provided by the system administrator or IT person at your company).

To configure your VPN, do the follow:

1. Tap Settings
2. Tap General
3. Tap Network
4. Tap VPN
5. Tap Add VPN Configuration

6. Along the top you will see some tabs, you’ll need to select which type of configuration you need. In most cases, you’ll choose IPSec (unless your system administrator has told you different). For this example, I’ve used IPSec.
7. Enter the information for your VPN in the corresponding fields. If you used a proxy, make sure to enable it towards the bottom of the settings page.

8. Tap Save

You’ve now configured your VPN for use. Now you’ll need to turn it on.

1. From your homescreen, tap Settings

2. Under the main settings page, you’ll now see a VPN option, this only appears when you have a VPN configured. Toggle the switch to On

3. Your phone should connect to the VPN. If an error message pops up, go back into your VPN settings and make sure all your settings are input correctly.

That’s it! If you guys have ever used this, let us know your input too. Have any issues setting up a VPN? Check out our TiPb Forums to get helpful from many of our awesome community members.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to . (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Ever been listening to a podcast on your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad an wondered how to easily scrub forward or back? Or maybe you were watching one of your favorite shows but wanted to skip through a boring ad and quickly get back to the content?

When Apple introduced iOS 3 last year, they included a much needed addition to the iPod (Music/Video) app called audio scrubbing. In this tip we’re going to quickly show you how to use this awesome feature and have better control over what you’re listening to, plus a few other nice iPod tips you may have overlooked. Find out how after the break!

All you need to do is tap and hold the seek-slider at the top of the ‘Now Playing’ screen once you’re in the iPod app. From here you can slide your finger left or right to adjust where you are in playback. Something people often overlook when scrubbing through audio is that you can move your finger down to get to different levels of scrubbing (Hi-Speed, Half Speed, Quarter Speed and Fine Scrubbing), giving you much more precise control. And that’s that!

Bonus tip: You can also jump back 30 seconds by hitting the ’30′ button below the seek bar (see above picture). If you’d like to go back a full two minutes for example, simply tap the button 4 times and you’re good to go! In addition to jumping back, you can speed up or slow down your audio by tapping the button on the far-right below the seek bar. This is great for users who need to get through long speeches or lengthy audiobooks more quickly. This feature isn’t available while listening to music, however, and is replaced with the Genius feature.

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Have a lot of different calendars arranged in your Google Calendar, and curious how to manage which calendars display across the different devices you sync to? Perhaps you use an iPhone primarily for work and an iPad for play? If you’re syncing both devices to the same Google account, then knowing how to tell Google which devices should see which calendars is a necessity. Follow us after the break to find out how to do just this.

The default calendar app for the iPhone lets you only show certain calendars, but this often doesn’t extend to 3rd party App Store apps that pull calendar data from iOS. Fortunately, Google has provided an easy and straight-forward way of doing this if you’re set up through Exchange ActiveSync.

• After you setup Google Sync on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, you’ll want to go into Safari and point it to m.google.com/sync in order to manage your devices.

• From here you’ll need to select your desired device. If you’ve ever synced other devices (including but not limited to previous iOS devices) you’ll see them all displayed here with a time-stamp of your last sync.

• Tap on the device you’d like to manage and you’ll have the ability to select any calendar you want synced to your device. De-select any calendar you’d like your device not synced with.

• Finally, tap ‘Save’ at the top and you’ll be taken back to your device selection. Once you’ve saved the calendars you’d like to have synced, open up your calendar app and allow it a moment to sync up your new calendars. If you’d like to verify that only the specific calendars you selected have been synced, tap ‘Calendars’ at the top-left to see a list of all calendars.

That’s it! Now you have full control over which calendars are synced to your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad from Google Calendar. Let us know if you have any questions in the comments below!

Tips of the day will range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Google Latitude just landed on iPhone and as with any location-based app, it’s always good to know how to turn it off and maintain your privacy when you so choose. This one can be a little trickier than most since it looks like even quitting the app and rebooting doesn’t turn off Latitude tracking.

We don’t know if this is some bad coding on Google’s part, whether Apple’s background location API is supposed to be allowed to do this or not, or if this is just the way Latitude is designed to work (scrary if so!) but it just seems to stay on. In order to turn Latitude’s tracking off this is what you need to do:

• Tap Settings
• Tap General
• Tap Location Services
• Scroll down to Latitude
• Flip the switch to off

You should see the little arrow icon in the status bar up top disappear and then you’ll know Google is no longer following your every move. To turn it on again just flip the switch back.

UPDATE: Yes you can go into Latitude: Settings and turn off Background Updating. That works too. Whether you wish to turn it off in Google’s app or Apple’s settings is up to you. If you want to be really sure maybe do both.

Are you sensitive about your location and does Latitude raise any alarms for you if so? Let us know in the comments!

[Thanks @bengillam]