Having speaker or cellular reception issues on your GSM/AT&T iPhone 4 and want to DIY repair it? iMore has you covered. We can guide you through the process and give you advice on where to get your parts and tools. Replacing the bottom speaker assembly or cellular antenna are both pretty straight forward repairs if you’ve got good instructions, the right tools, and quality parts.

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 issues this repair will address

• Cellular reception issues – if your iPhone 4 can’t hold a cellular signal, won’t connect to 3G, or constantly says “Searching..” – you may need to replace your antenna. First try replacing your SIM or speaking with your carrier.
• Bottom speaker doesn’t work when using speakerphone or playing music

What you need for a DIY speaker or cellular antenna 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.

Please note the speaker assembly is the same across all models of iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S but the antenna will be different.

• GSM iPhone 4 (please note there ARE internal differences between the GSM and CDMA models)
• New GSM iPhone 4 speaker assembly or cellular antenna (whichever part you are replacing) – iPhone 4 speaker assembly, GSM iPhone 4 cellular antenna
• SIM removal tool (or a paper clip)
• #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

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.

Replace the speaker assembly

If you’re replacing the speaker assembly, you’ll just need to unscrew the cellular antenna and peel back the adhesive holding it in place. There are only 2 screws holding it in place. Place the cellular antenna carefully on the new speaker assembly and follow the instruction video for reassembly below.

Replacing the cellular antenna

Remove the 2 screws holding the old assembly down and peel it off the speaker assembly. From here you can apply the new cellular antenna to the speaker assembly. Most will come with adhesive already on them and ready for installation. Be sure to put any folds or creases where necessary as some come flat and you’ll have to work it into place.

Reassemble your iPhone

Once you’ve gotten your new speaker assembly or cellular antenna reassembled using the steps above, you’ll just need to reassemble your iPhone 4. We’ve put together a reassembly video you can watch above.

And… done!

Your bottom loud speaker should now work or your cellular antenna should be back in working condition. As a side note, once replacing the cellular antenna you may have to toggle 3G on and off in certain cases.

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

Wondering how to save time and effort entering common information like your name, email address, or phone number? The good news is iOS 5 has a special feature called “Shortcuts” that lets you define a word or phrase to a key combination. Follow along and we will show you how easy it is to setup and how it can save you a lot of time too:-

• Go to Settings

• Click on General

• Click on Keyboard

• You will now see a predefined shortcut which is triggered by typing omw
• Click on Add New Shortcut

• Type in a username, email address or phrase you use a lot
• Now choose a letter combination to trigger the shortcut

• Hit Save and that’s stored for future use
• Add as many as you like

• When you are finished you will see a list of your shortcuts under General>Keyboard
• Now open up an app that you can type into, we will use Notes
• Type in the shortcut for one of your phrases, you will see the whole phrase open up in a bubble below

• Hit the Space Bar and the whole phrase appears

If your iPhone 3G or iPhone 3GS is no longer holding a charge, and always running out of power, replacing the battery is a moderate level DIY repair. If you’ve got the right tools and parts, it shouldn’t be too difficult to swap out that old battery for a brand new one on your own. It’ll take a little bit of patience and about 30 minutes of your time.

Disclaimer: As with any repair, TiPb 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 3G/3GS battery swap

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.

• A sad iPhone 3G or 3GS
• A new battery – iPhone 3GS, iPhone 3G
• A #00 Phillips screwdriver
• A suction cup
• A pry tool or spudger
• Sim removal tool or paperclip

Power off your iPhone

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

Remove the dock connector screws

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

Remove the digitizer & LCD 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. I highly recommend using the suction cup method unless your screen is cracked above the home button for some reason and you can’t get a proper seal with the suction cup.

Suction cup method (recommended):

The easiest way to remove the digitizer assembly is by using a suction cup.

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):

ONLY use this method if your screen is cracked above the home button. If this is the case, you’ll need to use a razor blade or spudger in order to remove it. And while you’re at it, replace that broken screen!

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 & LCD assembly and set it aside.

Remove your SIM card

Using your SIM tool or a paperclip, either works, remove your SIM card and tray from your device.

Unclip cables from the logic board

1. Towards the top left of the logic board, use your pry tool to pop up the two cables labeled 5 and 6.

2. Towards the bottom of the logic board, 3G owners will only see one cable to the left labeled 4. 3GS users will see two cables (one on each side of the dock connector) labeled 4 and 7. 3G users will just pop up the number 4 cable while 3GS owners will need to pop up both the number 4 and 7 cables.

Remove your logic board

1. Remove the 8 screws outlined in the video that hold the logic board in place. One of the screws is under a Do not remove sticker at the bottom right by the dock connector. Obviously you’ll have to remove the sticker to get to it.

2. Make sure you place the screws in an order you will remember. They are different sizes in some instances so you’ll need to make sure you put them back in the correct order.

3. Notice the screw holding the camera in place has a metal bracket underneath it. Just take care not to lose this as you’ll need to put it back during reassembly.

4. Gently pop your camera up with your spudger or pry tool.

5. Insert your pry tool in the space between the dock connector and logic board and gently pry upward to loosen the logic board.
6. Gently grab the bottom of the logic board and slide it out downwards to remove it.

Remove the old battery

There is nothing holding the battery down but adhesive. Gently use your pry tool to loosen the battery from the back of the device. Run it along the sides and gently pry up taking care not to bend or damage the battery. They are secured with quite a bit of adhesive so you may have to use a little bit of force to remove it. Just take care not to bend the casing either.

Insert the new battery

Most replacement batteries will come with adhesive already on them. Simply remove the backing from the adhesive and place the battery in the device taking care not to trap any loose cables underneath it. Push down firmly to make sure the adhesive stays in place.

Replace the logic board

1. Make sure there are no cables in the way. I typically tuck the number 4 cable into the frame (refer to video) so it does not get stuck underneath the logic board.

2. Start by positioning the top of the logic board below where the SIM tray sits and start sliding it upwards into place.
3. Once the top is in place, you can place the bottom of the logic board into its place. Just make sure no cables are stuck underneath the logic board where they should be on top.

Insert your SIM card and tray

The easiest way to make sure the logic board is in place is to replace your SIM card tray at this point. If it slides in easily, you’re right on track. Don’t force it if it doesn’t want to go in. That means you don’t have the logic board lined up correctly. Remove it and try again. The SIM tray will also help keep the logic board in place as you replace screws in the logic board.

Reposition and snap down your camera

Once the logic board is positioned right, you can reposition and snap down your camera again.

Replace the logic board screws

Replace the eight screws your removed earlier that secure the logic board. Just make sure you replace the metal clip over the camera before replacing the screw that holds it in place.

Reconnect cables to the logic board

1. Towards the top left of the logic board, reconnect the two cables labeled 5 and 6.

2. Towards the bottom of the logic board, 3G owners will only see one cable to the left labeled 4. 3GS users will see two cables (one on each side of the dock connector) labeled 4 and 7. 3G users will reconnect the number 4 cable while 3GS owners will need to reconnect both the number 4 and 7 cables.

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 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!

If you followed all the steps above correctly you should be able to power on your phone and be on your way! I recommend you drain the battery completely and do one full charge. You also may notice you’ll need to reset the time and date on your device. Battery pulls tend to reset the clock.

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!

If the vibrate function of AT&T/GSM iPhone 4 isn’t working or is very faint, you may need a new vibrator assembly. If you’re out of warranty but have just a little bit of ninja skill, it’s a very cheap and easy repair to perform yourself.

It’s worth noting that this guide is only valid for the AT&T or other GSM variant of the iPhone 4. The iPhone 4S and Verizon/CDMA iPhone 4 are very similar internally but very different from the GSM variant of the original iPhone 4. So if your iPhone 4 is not AT&T/GSM, proceed no further young Jedi!

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 vibrator assembly 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.

• A GSM iPhone 4
• Replacement vibrator assembly – GSM iPhone 4 vibrator assembly
• #00 Phillips screwdriver
• Security screwdriver (only if your iPhone has the security screws in the dock connector)

Power off your iPhone 4

You should always power off your device before performing any type of internal repair work. Simply hold down your top power button and Slide to power off.

Remove the back of your iPhone 4

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.

Replace 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 old vibrator assembly out of the device.

4. Place the new one in carefully and replace the two screws that hold it in place.

Reassemble your iPhone

All you need to do now is replace the back on your iPhone 4 and put the two dock connector screws back in.

And …done!

That’s all there is to it! 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, follow us on Twitter or e-mail us directly!

Going on vacation or just to someplace new and curious how to print out Maps driving directions so you can keep a hard copy handy? While the built-in iOS Maps app lacks turn by turn navigation, it does give you a visual map of your route and a list of directions. If you’re driving through an area with dodgy data service, or you’re just old school and want a physical copy, it’s easy to print out that list of directions. They can then be handed to your passenger without the need for them to have your iPhone in their hand and it saves your battery life too.

• First of all, you must have a printer that supports AirPrint
• Open your Maps application and enter your start and end positions

• Press the Route button
• The route will then be calculated and displayed graphically

• Tap on the curled up map options icon in the bottom right corner of the screen

• Select Print

• Select your printer
• Select the number of copies you want

• Hit Print

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 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.

iPhone or iPad feeling kind of sluggish or an app freezing up on you and wondering how to manually force-quit multitasking apps to free up memory? iOS 5 does a great job automatically pausing or killing background tasks, but once and a while a big game, rogue process, or similar situation can drain resources or tie up memory. Luckily, iOS 5 makes it easy to quit these apps any time you like.

1. Double click the Home button to bring up the multitasking Fast App Switcher.
2. Touch-and-hold an app to put it into ‘jiggly mode’.
3. Tap the red minus-sign icon that appears at the top left corner of the app.
4. Watch the app close and disappear from the Fast App Switcher.
5. Hit the Home button again to exit jiggly mode.
6. Hit the Home button one more time to return to your Home Screen.

That’s it! Next time you notice you’re iPhone or iPad is acting strangely or running slower than normal, just close a few of the apps you have running in the background. Problem solved!

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.

Annoyed that, by default, Notification Center seems to display alerts by some sort of weird app association method and wondering how to get them to follow a more sensible order? If you want to change this to sort your notifications by time of arrival, then there is a very easy way to do it.

• Swipe down on your home screen and take a look at how your notifications look now

• You can see that the times are all over the place and not in any sort of order
• To change the sort order by time descending, first go to Settings
• Tap on Notifications
• Tap on By Time under the Sort Apps heading

• That’s it, all your notifications will now be in order of the time they came in, with the latest at the top of he list!

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.

New to iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad and heard about Jailbreak, but not sure if it’s for you, and how to get started if it is? No problem, TiPb’s here to help! Jailbreak lets you change the look of your entire iPhone, put extra icons in the dock, reply to SMS or iMessage without leaving a game, preview events from the lock screen, toggle settings with a swipe, and much, much more. Compiled here is a master list of basic Jailbreak terms, tools, apps, tweaks, themes, and utilities, and a break down the pros and cons, so you’ll know if you’re comfortable taking the plunge.

Already a Jailbreak wizard? Save this link as a handy reference to shoot friends and family who are just getting started.

Note: If you need extra help or want to get into more advanced areas of Jailbreak, check out:

• Jailbreak Forums
• Jailbreak Apps, Hacks, and Themes Forum
• Jailbreak Dev Forum

Common ways to Jailbreak

There are usually several ways to jailbreak depending exactly when a new version of iOS is released, when a new exploit is found, and when new jailbreaks are released. Some are one-button easy, others command-line complicated. Here are the latest and the simplest. We’ll continue to update this page and our main jailbreak page whenever new jailbreak tools are released or updated.

If you’re not sure which tool you’d need, here’s how to find out which iOS software and iPhone modem firmware you’re running.

iOS 5 & 5.0.1 (GSM/CDMA) Jailbreak (tethered)

• How to Jailbreak iOS 5 & 5.0.1 via RedSn0w (does not work on iPad 2 or iPhone 4S)

iOS 4.3.3 (AT&T/GSM) Jailbreak (untethered)

• How to Jailbreak iOS 4.3.3 via JailbreakMe (including iPad 2)
• How to Jailbreak iOS 4.3.3 with redsn0w

iOS 4.2.6 (Verizon) Jailbreak (untethered)

• How to jailbreak iOS 4.2.6 on your Verizon iPhone 4 with Greenpois0n

Common Jailbreak Terms

Jailbreak

The most obvious of all terms, but yet the most confused. Jailbreak comes from “breaking open” the root “jail” that Apple uses to secure iOS against running unsigned — aka unapproved by Apple — code. (You might have heard this called “rooting” on other platforms.) While Apple does this for security reasons, so bad guys can’t put viruses and malware on iOS, it also prevents good guys from making some incredibly useful but currently frowned upon features — like ssh access, shortcuts, themes, side-loading, and much more.

Jailbreaking applies to iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad, and at its core is about control and customization, letting you do what you want with the device you purchased.

Tethered vs. Untethered

Two common terms you’ll see associated with Jailbreak are Tethered and Untethered. These refer to whether or not you need to connect your Jailbroken iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad to your PC over USB in order to reboot it.

An Untethered Jailbreak can be rebooted any time, anywhere, without having to connect to your PC. It works just like a non-Jailbroken device.

A Tethered Jailbreak needs to be plugged into your PC over USB, and you typically need to re-run your Jailbreak utility — like redsn0w — and choose the “reboot” option to restart your device.

Rebooting a Tethered Jailbreak without plugging into your PC could result in your device not restarting, or restarting but with no access to Cydia, or other side effects.

An Untethered Jailbreak is typically harder to develop and takes longer to release than a Tethered Jailbreak, so Untethered Jailbreaks are often only available for older versions of iOS while Tethered Jailbreaks get updated more quickly.

For example, iOS 5 can currently only be Jailbroken with a Tether.

Unlocking

If you bought your iPhone from a carrier like AT&T, or at a subsidized (on-contract) price, it will almost certainly be SIM-locked to that carrier. That means, for example, you can’t take out your AT&T SIM and put in a T-Mobile SIM if you want to change plans, or put in a Rogers or Vodafone SIM if you’re traveling.

While you can buy SIM-unlocked iPhones directly from Apple in many countries, and some carriers will unlock an iPhone for you after a certain period of time or for a certain amount of money, many won’t, including AT&T. So, unlocking is a Jailbreak method of removing the carrier SIM-lock so you can use your iPhone on the network or networks of your choosing.

The unlock process can change from firmware to firmware but typically, you’ll need to jailbreak your phone and then install a program via Cydia like ultrasn0w or yellowsn0w, which will then unlock your iPhone.

Note: There are also other ways to unlock such as the Gevey SIM but they’re typically frowned upon considering you’ve got to dial an emergency number for the process to work.

Cydia

Apple has the App Store, jailbreakers have Cydia in addition to Apple’s App Store. (If you want to be technical, Jailbreak had Installer even before Apple had the App Store.) Because Cydia isn’t run by Apple, Cydia apps don’t have to be approved by Apple and you can find all sorts of highly useful themes, utilities, tweaks and other software in Cydia you simply can’t find anywhere else.

Cydia works with repos, or repositories. These are simply the sources for the software files that Cydia lets you install. ModMyi and BigBoss are two of the largest. They are already added when you install Cydia. You are always welcome to add custom repos if you choose, however, you really want to stick to well known, trusted sources. Just because good guy developers are making great software for Jailbreak, doesn’t mean a bad guy won’t try to sneak in something you don’t want.

Recovery Mode and DFU Mode

There are two “modes” you might have to enter in order to Jailbreak your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad — Recovery Mode and Device Firmware Update (DFU) mode. While they may seem similar, there are some differences.

If your screen shows a “Connect to iTunes” logo with a “Slide for Emergency” control, that’s Recovery Mode. If you only see a “Connect to iTunes” (no “Slide for Emergency” control), or more commonly, a black screen, you are in DFU mode.

The main difference between these two modes is what they will and won’t bypass for installs. Recovery mode will implement iBoot (basically a portion of the bootloader than runs an integrity check) which will not allow you to downgrade your device’s current version of iOS.

DFU mode will still talk to iTunes but it bypasses iBoot which will then allow you to downgrade firmware. Most jailbreaks will require DFU mode for these reasons.

• How to put your iPhone or iPad into DFU mode

SHSH Blobs

Signature HaSH or SHSH* blobs are the signature system Apple has created to verify iOS firmware for authentication. Apple uses them to prevent iTunes from restoring older versions of iOS to iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. For example, a short time after iOS x.1 is released, Apple will stop signing iOS x.0 and you’ll no longer be able to restore that version to your device.

This is important because iOS x.0 might have a Jailbreak and iOS x.1. might not yet have been Jailbroken (or may be a tethered vs. untethered Jailbreak. So, if you upgrade you could lose your Jailbreak, your untether, etc.

SHSH blobs save you from this headache. It will basically give iTunes a fake authentication, which in turn, makes iTunes think your restore has been verified.

Cydia will save SHSH blobs for you but occasionally their servers get flooded and they disable it for a period of time. If that happens, you can use TinyUmbrella as well. I highly recommend saving your blobs early on in case you ever find yourself in this predicament.

• How to save SHSH blobs via TinyUmbrella.

Baseband

The baseband is essentially the part of your iPhone that controls the antenna. This has everything to do with your service and signal. This is why most unlockers have to be extremely careful when upgrading. If the baseband changes, it can permanently keep them from achieving an unlock again. This is the main reason most unlockers tend to favor PwnageTool. It creates a custom firmware bundle for you to upgrade to that doesn’t upgrade the baseband, only the main OS. If you are running on the same carrier you bought your iPhone from and don’t care about unlocking, the baseband it typically less of a concern. Wifi and Bluetooth don’t run on the baseband either, so iPod touch or wi-fi only iPad owners typically don’t have concerns when it comes to new baseband versions.

Springboard and Re-Spring

On a computer you have a desktop, on an iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad you have a Springboard. That’s the technical name of the iOS Home Screen system, and it’s basically the interface you constantly interact with. Another term you’ll come in contact with is respringing.

Which leads us to Re-Spring, or the process of restarting the Springboard. Some jailbreak apps you install will require you to do this. All changes in the appearance of your phone via Winterboard (explained below) will require a respring as well. It’s nothing more than refreshing your desktop on a computer.

Popular Jailbreak Utilities

Winterboard or Dreamboard

A lot of people jailbreak for the ability to change the look — aka theme — of their device. Enter Winterboard and the newly released Dreamboard. Both are free downloads in Cydia. When you install a Winterboard theme, all the components will show up in Winterboard. Depending upon how a theme developer decided to bundle their theme, you may have only one package in Winterboard, or you may have several. I personally prefer when developers separate theme elements.

Since Winterboard works as a hierarchy, I can select a theme and if I don’t like the sounds, I can download a sound pack I “do” like and apply that in Winterboard. The key is to move it above the main theme so it overrides the sounds I don’t want. I highly suggest jailbreakers become very familiar and comfortable with Winterboard. If you do, there is no limit to what you can do to your phone and you’ll be able to tweak and customize even the littlest details of your springboard.

Dreamboard is a relatively new tweak to the jailbreak scene but one I’ve already decided to include it on my must have iOS 5 jailbreak list . It gives you even more theming ability straight from the device. Swap out icons, customize your theme, and simply apply it. Even though it’s in its early stages, it shows a lot of promise so far.

SBSettings

SBSettings is a free utility that allows you to add quick toggles that will drop down onto your springboard. There are also several plug-ins and themes you can download for SBSettings as well. It’ll also allow you to hide icons you don’t want or use. This is especially useful for hiding stock apps you can’t uninstall. I hide the default weather and stock apps among others that are simply wasting space on my springboard. You’ll also be able to more closely keep tabs on your memory and running processes. This was extremely useful before multitasking. It’s still useful today for freeing up memory and seeing what may be eating through battery or slowing your phone down.

Notification Replacement Apps

Even though iOS 5 introduced Notification Center, some users may still feel there’s a lot to be desired when it comes to customizing their notification preferences. Jailbreak developers have stepped up once again to provide other options such as IntelliscreenX. Developers such as Intelliborn and David Ashman (creator of LockInfo]) have frequently stepped in to fill the gaps. I think jailbreak tweaks and customizations for Notification Center will just get better and better.

SMS Apps and Add-Ons

There are many apps that improve SMS capabilities as well. Again, iOS has come a long way in terms of how messages are handled but I’m still waiting for that magic quick reply button to appear as a stock option. Until then, apps like BiteSMS have kept me content. There are other options like TLert available via Cydia as well. Before iOS offered a default option for custom text tones, BiteSMS was reason alone for me to jailbreak.

MyWi

Many users are left bitter when certain carriers want to charge them an additional fee just for the privilege of tethering. MyWi is a wonderful little app and in my opinion, a major reason to jailbreak on its own. MyWi alllows you to create a wifi hotspot with your iPhone.

If you aren’t to keen on paying tethering fees every month to your carrier for the same bits and bytes of data, MyWi may be a better solution. Just keep in mind a lot of carriers are cracking down on unauthorized tethering. This isn’t a viable solution for heavy data users but if you only need the ability here and there, this is a good option if you jailbreak.

Jailbreak next steps

Once you’re comfortable with the basics, you can start jumping into the Jailbreak deep end. Here are the best places to start.

• Everything Jailbreak
• Jailbreak Forums
• Jailbreak Apps, Hacks, and Themes Forum
• Jailbreak Dev Forum

As always, if you guys think of anything awesome you think should be on this list, shoot me an e-mail to ally.kazmucha@tipb.com or post it in the comments below!

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!

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.

Curious how to change the amount of lines shown on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch email preview? If you get a lot of email, it is really handy to see a preview  of the first few lines to know if it is important enough to read and deal with. If you’re concerned about privacy, you may prefer to display nothing at all. Out of the box, the iPhone and iPad only show the first two lines of text from an email but that can be changed to show much more, or nothing at all.

• Click on Settings
• Click on Mail, Contacts and Calendar

• Scroll down to Preview
• Click on Preview
• You will now see a screen that lists the number of lines of text you will see in an email preview

• If it is set on two lines, this is how it will look

• Change the setting to your preferred amount of lines, four in this example
• When set at four lines, you can now see much more of the email message without opening it.

That is all there is to it, simple but a very handy tweak.

Daily Tipsrange 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.

bamf-hacker in our iPhone 4S Forum wrote up a quick but smart tip on how to use Siri to access Bluetooth and other Setting with only… the power of your voice.

All you need to do is create a contact and in the Web site field put the code for the system preference. for example.

Contact name is Bluetooth and the Web address is prefs:root=General&path=Bluetooth

Then activate Siri and say “Bluetooth” the contact card will open with a clickable link right to the Bluetooth settings.

It’s not the much-sought-after “Siri, turn off Bluetooth” feature we’ve all been hoping for, but it’s better than the nothing we have now.

bamf-hacker has also posted the URL schemes for other popular Settings, so hit the link below and get the details!

Source: bamf-hacker from the TiPb iPhone 4S Forums

Wondering how to us iOS 5‘s new AE/AF lock to stop your iPhone’s auto-focus from wrecking your perfectly set up shot? Fret no more! With iOS 5, locking exposure and focus couldn’t be easier, and after applying the lock, you can even recompose your shot without the camera kicking in the auto-focus.

Here’s how!

1. Launch the camera app and get your subject in the frame
2. Tap the object/person you want to focus on and hold your finger on the screen for a few seconds
3. Release your finger after the blue focus square pulsates
4. The square will disappear and AE/AF Lock will appear at the bottom of the screen
5. Perfect your composure and snap the photo!

The times I find this feature most helpful is when taking photos of my daughter or dogs, because anytime they move, the camera wants to refocus – even if it’s just a head turn. I’ve lost a countless number of shots because of this. Now I just trigger the AE/AF lock and snap away!

Let us know how this tip worked out for you, and if you have any questions, ask them in the comments below!

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 re-open a recently closed tab on iOS 5 Safari for iPad? When Apple released iOS 5, it included some nice new updates to mobile Safari, especially on the iPad. One of the best features on the iPad is tabbed browsing, it makes opening and using multiple web pages a breeze. What happens if you accidentally close one of them down and need to quickly open it back up again? Well there is a way to it very easily. We will show you how.

• Open up Mobile Safari
• Look to the far right of the screen about an a half inch down from the toolbar
• There should be a + sign

• Hold your finger down on the plus sign and a box will open up

• The box now shows a list of the web pages that you recently had open and its scrollable
• Click on the one you want to re-open and there you go
• That’s it, you are done

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…)

Taken a bunch of great photos with your brand new iPhone — or photos with your new iPad or iPod touch — and wondering how to share them with the people you know? There are several ways, including Mail and Twitter, but you can easily use Apple’s new iMessages service for free, or old style MMS if your friend or family member doesn’t yet have an iOS 5 device of their very own.

If you already know how to do this, just save the link for family and friends who might not! (We’ll do the helping so you don’t have to!)

Sharing photos via Messages from Photos app

Sharing a single photo

1. Open the Photos app
2. Tap the photo you with to share
3. Tap the arrow in the bottom left corner (If the menu bar has disappeared, tap the photo once to bring it back)
4. Tap Message.
5. This will open a blank message with the photo inserted. Fill in the To: field. If you wish, add text below the photo.
6. Tap Send.
7. The Message box with now disappear and send in the background.

Sharing more than one photo

1. Open the Photos app and select the folder that contains the photos you want to share
2. Tap the arrow in the top right corner
3. Tap up to 9 photos that you wish to share (note you can choose only one if you wish)
4. Tap Share in the bottom left corner
5. Tap Message
6. This will open a blank message with the photos inserted. Fill in the To: field. If you wish, add text below the photos.
7. Tap Send

Sharing photos via Messages from Messages app

1. Open Messages app
2. Open a new message or tap on existing conversation with person you wish to share photo with
3. Tap on the photo icon in the bottom left
4. If you want to take a new photo, tap Take Photo or Video. If you want to upload a photo from your Photo Library, tap Choose Existing.
5. If you chose Take Photo or Video, the camera will launch. Take your photo, then tap Use.
6. If you chose Choose Exisitng, browse to and select the photo you wish to share.
7. Both choices will result with the photo being inserted into a new chat bubble.
8. To add more photos, tap the photo icon again.
9. Add any desired text
10. Tap Send

There you go! Now you’re all set to start sharing messages via iMessage or MMS!

Let us know how this tip worked out for you, and if you have any questions, ask them in the comments below!

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…)

Ever taken a landscape photo when you meant to take a portrait, or vice-versa, and wondered how to change it so your iPhone or iPad displays it correctly? One of the new features of iOS 5 is the ability to rotate images directly with the Photos app.

1. Open the photos app
2. Tap the photo you wish to rotate
3. Tap Edit
4. Tap the rotate button on the bottom left. It looks like an upward arrow curving to the left.
5. This will rotate the photo 90 degrees to left (or counterclockwise). Tap it as many times as you need achieve the desired rotation.
6. Tap Save.

There have been many times where the accelerometer of my iPhone didn’t trigger the camera rotation when taking a photo, the photos was awesome otherwise, but I didn’t want to be share it on Facebook because I didn’t want to be the loser who uploaded an incorrectly-oriented photo. Well those days are over! Now you can rotate the photos where the iPhone made an error and used the wrong orientation. Don’t be that guy on Facebook or Twitter ever again!

Let us know how this worked out for you. And if you have any questions, let us know in the comments below!

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, iPod touch, or iPad and wondering what tips and tricks you really need to know to get started? Have friends and family that are new to iPhone and would love to have a handy link to send them? Look no further. Carefully curated below are TiPb’s top 10 tips and tricks for new users — everything you need to know to get going now.

Note: If you’re really brand new, check out our New User Guide first, the fastest way to get up and running and enjoying your new device.

How the Home button works: Navigation, Multitasking, Accessibility, Restart, Reboot, Recovery, and DFU

Because the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad have only a few buttons, the Home button does a ton of different things. So many, it can be confusing. A single click can move you around the home screens, a double click can put you into the Fast App Switcher, a triple click can launch Accessibility, a click and hold can start Voice Control on iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 and Siri on iPhone 4S, and clicking and holding in combination with the Sleep/Wake button can restart or reboot your device, or put it into recovery or DFU (device firmware update) modes.

• How the Home button works
• How to re-Spring, restart, or reset your iPhone or iPad
• How to put your iPhone or iPad into Recovery Mode
• How to put your iPhone or iPad into DFU Mode

Typing tips and keyboard shortcuts for iPhone and iPad

Wish you had a faster way to insert punctuation or get to caps or numbers on the iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad virtual keyboard? Or a way to type just a few letters to get a whole word or sentence? iOS has a variety of time saving features built in to do just that.

• How to use keyboard shortcuts for punctuation and more
• How to set up text expansion shortcuts

How to protect your iPhone or iPad with a Passcode Lock

Your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad can store a lot of personal information, including your contacts, pictures, and personal messages. You can set up a simple 4-digit pin or a strong alphanumeric password to protect them.

• How to set up a Passcode Lock

How to take a screenshot with iPhone or iPad

Taking a screenshot is really easy with iOS and lets you quickly record or share a picture of anything and everything on your device — a video game high score, a cool feature in an app, a funny FaceTime moment, a bug you want to report. Just snap it and it goes right into your Camera Roll with all your other photos.

• How to take a screenshot

How to share a photo or video with iPhone or iPad

The only thing better than a great picture, an awesome video, or even a killer screenshot is sharing it with friends and family. Thanks to the action button, iPhone and iPad make this really easy.

• How to email a photo or video
• How to tweet a photo or video with Twitter
• How to upload a video to YouTube

How to setup iMessage and FaceTime on iPhone or iPad

If your friends and family also have iPhones, iPads, or iPod touches, you can avoid using your minutes, and get around costly SMS/MMS fees by using Apple’s free FaceTime video call and iMessage text and picture services.

• How to set up FaceTime
• How to set up iMessage
• How iMessage works

How to use Siri on iPhone 4S

Siri is Apple’s new artificially intelligent virtual assistant and it can help get more done, more easily, on your iPhone 4S. While basic commands are great, Siri also understands context and relationships, and becomes even more powerful when you start putting together combinations.

• Basic Siri commands
• How to get Siri to pronounce names properly
• How to define relationships for Siri
• Secret Siri commands

How to tether to your iPhone Personal Hotspot

If your data plan allows it, you can tether your Windows or Mac laptop, or even your iPad to your iPhone’s Personal Hotspot and get them on the internet even when you’re away from Wi-Fi.

• How to use Personal Hotspot
• How to connect your iPad to Personal Hotspot

How to watch Flash videos on iPhone or iPad

Apple doesn’t support Adobe Flash video on iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad. Often this won’t matter and the video website will realize you’re on an iPhone or iPad and send you H.264/HTML 5 video instead, or if it’s for a TV network, you’ll be able to find an app in the App Store that does it directly. However, for smaller sites that aren’t compatible and don’t have their own apps, there are also several App Store apps that transform the Flash video to Apple-supported H.264 video on their servers, then send it to your iPhone or iPad so you can watch it.

• How to watch Flash videos

How to update or restore your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad software

Roughly once a year Apple releases a new version of their mobile operating system, like they’ve just done with iOS 5. Eventually, they’ll release a few minor enhancements, for example, and upcoming iOS 5.1. In between, they’ll likely release several bug fixes and performance improvements, for example, an upcoming iOS 5.0.1 or 5.0.2. Once that’s done, you can get future updates over Wi-Fi. If anything goes wrong, you can also easily restore (re-install) either from backup, or as a new device.

Because battery life problems are one of the biggest reasons people resort to restoring, here are some tips on troubleshooting that as well.

• How to fix battery life problems
• How to restore your iPhone or iPad
• How to update to iOS 5 with iTunes.
• How to do over-the-air (OTA) updates on your iPhone or iPad

Your top tip?

There you have them, TiPb’s top 10 tips and tricks for new iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad users. Did we miss any of your favorites, or not cover anything you’d really like to know? If so, add them to the comments! Meanwhile, here are some more of our favorite top 10s!

• Top 10 apps and games for iPhone
• Top 10 apps and games for iPad

Tired of typing out long words, names, and sentences and wondering how to create text shortcuts? Lucky you! One of the new features of iOS 5 is the ability to do just that. For example, instead of typing out “On my way!”, you just type “omw” and the iPhone automatically changes the acronym to the full phrase. This phrase is actually the only shortcut that comes setup with iOS 5. To find out how to add your own, follow along!

1. Launch Settings
2. Tap General
3. Tap Keyboard (towards the bottom)
4. You will find a section called Shortcuts and a pre-created shortcut for omw.
5. Tap Add New Shortcut…
6. In the Phrase field, type in the entire phrase you’d like to create a shortcut for
7. In the Shortcut field, type in the acronym you want to be replaced with the above phrase
8. Tap Save
9. To edit a shortcut, tap on it from the Keyboard menu.
10. To delete a shortcut, tap Edit in the top right corner of the Keyboard menu

There you go! Now you’re all set to create you own shortcuts! They work exactly like autocorrect, so there’s nothing special you need to do to use them. Just type the shortcut and you’ll see a bubble pop up with the replacement phrase. Pressing space with allow the replacement, and tapping the bubble will cancel the replacement.

Any other favorite texting tips? Let us know, and let us know what your favorite shortcuts are!

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…)

Trying to figure out how to get the iPhone 4S‘s Siri virtual personal assistant to say your name properly? One of Siri’s abilities is to learn who you are and refer to you by your first name. However, many of us have names that Siri does not how to pronounce correctly. Or perhaps you don’t even want to be called by your real name. For example, Ally likes to go by “Jailbreak Ninja”. To get Siri to pronounce your name correctly or call you something else, all you need to do ask. Or you can change the phonetic spellings fields of your contact info.

Ask Siri

1. Activate Siri by holding down the home button and wait for the beep.
2. Say “Call me ____” Fill in the blank with whatever you want Siri to refer to you as. This can be your name or anything else.
3. Siri will reply “From now on, I’ll call you ____. OK?
4. Reply “OK.”

Siri will the update the nickname field of your contact info to this name. This is also how your name will appear when Siri types out your name.

Manually update the phonetic spelling of your name

1. Open Contacts app
2. Select your name
3. Tap Edit
4. Scroll to the bottom and tap “add field”
5. Tap Phonetic First Name or Phonetic Last Name
6. Fill out the field with the phonetic spelling of your name
7. Tap Done

Using this method is best for correct pronunciation of your name, because Siri will still display your name with its correct spelling.

Manually update your nickname

To have Siri call you something other than your name, you can update your nickname manually, and here’s how:

1. Open Contacts app
2. Select your name
3. Tap Edit
4. Scroll to the bottom and tap “add field”
5. Tap Nickname
6. Fill in the field with the name you wish to be called.
7. Tap Done

Using this method will display your name as whatever you typed in the Nickname field.

There you go! Now you’re all set to have Siri call you whatever you wish – whether that be the correct pronunciation of your name, or something else.

Please let us know how this tip worked out for you! Is anyone choosing a nickname other than a phonetically spelled version of their first name, like “Master”, to be humorous? Let us know in the comments below!

If the clicking sound you hear when entering text on your iPhone iPad or iPod touch annoys you or in my case others around you, then there is an easy solution. Instead of turning the sound down or muting it completely, you can just disable the keyboard clicks.

• Start off by selecting Settings
• Then open up Sounds
• Scroll down to the bottom of the page
• Flick the toggle switch for Keyboard Clicks to Off

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…)

Starting with iPhone 3GS, Apple began including compasses (technically magnometers) in their iOS devices. To activate the compass and get directions that actually have a sense of direction:

• Open up Google Maps
• Double tap the location button in the bottom left corner of the screen

This enables the digital compass, and while active it will rotate the onscreen map to match the direction you’re facing. Again, this tip will only work with the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 and all iPads, as these models have a built-in magnometer.

Have any other tips or tricks for getting better navigation? Let us know!

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 email account with multiple aliases and curious how to send email from those aliases on iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad? While Apple made this easy on Mac by letting you simply type a comma and string the aliases together, iOS doesn’t allow you to enter commas, so no easy aliases. Luckily, however, we have a work around! To find out how to get your mail aliases working, follow along after the break!

In this example, leanna@smartphoneexperts.com is the main email address and leanna@tipb.com is the alias.

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Mail, Contacts, Calendars
3. Tap Add Account…
4. Select Other (Do not select Gmail! This is key.)
5. Select Add Mail Account.
6. In the Address field, enter the alias you wish to use and fill out the rest of your information. Tap Next.
7. Make sure IMAP is selected.
8. For the Incoming Mail Server, enter the following (if Gmail):
   • Host Name: imap.gmail.com
   • User Name: your main Gmail address (not your alias). In our example, that’s leanna@smartphoneexperts.com
   • Password: your password
9. For the Outgoing Mail Server, do not enter your Gmail information. You must use a different server in order for your sent emails to show as from your alias. I used my ISP’s (Comcast) outgoing server information.
10. Tap next.
11. Wait for account to verify.
12. Select if you want to sync mail and notes.
13. Tap Save.

Now you can send emails from your alias! However, with this current set up, you are not able to send emails from your main address. If you want that ability, follow these next steps.

1. Open the Notes app.
2. In a new (or existing) note, type a comma, followed by a space and your main email address. For example:
   • , leanna@smartphoneexperts.com
   • If you have more aliases, you can add those too.
3. Copy the text string.
4. Go back to Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars and tap on the account you just added.
5. Tap account.
6. In the IMAP Account Information section, put the curser at the end of the Address field.
7. Paste.
8. Tap done.

There you go! Now you can send emails from your alias or main address! Take note that whichever address you listed first in the Address field is the default address for this account; however, Mail will choose the correct address when replying to emails.

Let us know 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…)

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, @Sethran asks:

Do you know of any apps which will let me use my iPhone as an external keyboard for the iPad?

Unfortunately, due to the restrictions on the iOS SDK, there is no app that will let you use your iPhone as a keyboard for your iPad systemwide. However, we think we’ve found the next best thing. To find out, follow along after the break!

External Keyboard [$0.99 - iTunes link] is an app that will let you use your iPhone as a keyboard for your iPad via bluetooth or WiFi, but there’s a catch – you must have the app opened on both devices at the same time in order to do so.

This limitation is a bummer, but it works. On the iPad, External keyboard is web browser and on the iPhone, it’s just a keyboard. Just tap which fields in the browser you’d like to type and start typing away on the iPhone.

There is also a button for email. This opens a blank screen with an option to email what you type. If you choose to email, it pastes your text into a new email where you must use the iPad keyboard to complete. If you need to type text into a different app, you can copy it from this email section, close the app and paste into any app you wish.

Clearly, this isn’t the most elegant of solutions, but until Apple opens up the SDK, it’s as good as it’s going to get.

Anyone else have any App for That suggestions for @Sethran? Let him — and all of us — know.

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!

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…)

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…)

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!

Passcoded your iPad but still worried someone could access your personal pictures via the Photo Slideshow button on the lock screen? Luckily, if you don’t want to use the slideshow button, there is a very simple way to remove it. We’ll show you how… after the break!

Steps

Before you begin, you need to make sure you have a passcode set on your iPad, otherwise you can’t change the selection that turns it off.

1. Launch Settings
2. Tap General
3. Tap Passcode Lock.
4. Turn the Passcode On.
5. Once you have a passcode set, the “Photo Frame” option should become active.
6. Change the option to ‘Off’.
7. The button will not appear on your lockscreen anymore.

That’s it! Your private photos are now safer and more secure. Have any other photo tips for us?

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…)

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…)

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.

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…)

Have an iPhone 3G or original iPhone, no longer getting iOS updates from Apple, and wondering how to turn off location data tracking? Apple recently fixed the tracking issue in iOS 4.3.3 but devices that haven’t been updated were left out in the cold. While some people argue that jailbreak may make your device more vulnerable, there have been a few instances where jailbreaking closed exploits before Apple did.

Jailbreak dev Ryan Petrich has again came through with untrackerd. Anyone running an iPhone 3G (which stopped getting updates with iOS 4.2) or original iPhone (which maxed out at iOS 3.1.3) can install it and not worry about data tracking. Hit the jump for a quick step by step!

1. Jailbreak your iPhone if you haven’t already.
2. Open Cydia and tap on Search.
3. Type in “untrackerd”.
4. Install untrackerd.
5. You’re done! It simply runs a script in the background that will dump tracking information.

Again, anyone with an iPhone 3GS or iPhone 4 running iOS 4.3.3 does not need to use untrackerd as Apple addressed the issue in that firmware update. This is simply useful for those folks with an iPhone 3G or earlier that won’t receive the fix. If you have an iPhone 3G or first gen, try it out and let us know if you have issues in our TiPb Jailbreak forums or 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…)

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…)

Trying to figure out how to automatically dial an extension on your iPhone? If you’re anything like me, you have quite a few friends and colleagues that have extensions to their phone numbers. Luckily, Apple built this feature right into iOS, and the iOS 4.3 update made it even better!

As we all know, you’ll typically have to listen to some type of message or wait for the answering service to pick up before you can dial. Inserting a pause will allow the phone time to connect the call, then it will dial the extension. If you really want to, you could also add a few additional pauses if you’d like.

• Open your iPhone address book and click Edit on the contact you’d like to add an extension to.
• Tap the phone number you’d like to edit and the dial pad should pop up like the picture below

• After you’ve entered the regular phone number, tap the +*# key
• Tap Pause and you’ll see a comma is inserted after the number (you may insert more than one pause if you’d like the iPhone to wait a bit longer before dialing the extension)
• Type in the extension number and tap done

Bonus tip: If you tap Wait instead of Pause, you’ll get a hard break — shown with a semicolon — which means you need to hit the Dial button again for it to continue. This is handy if you don’t know how long you’ll need to pause for ahead of time.

You’re done! Your iPhone now dials extensions on its own without you ever having to remember one again! If any of you try this, let us know how it worked for you 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…)

Both the iPhone and iPad do phenomenal a job of displaying the photos you take with them, but how do you get your existing photos, the ones on your computer, onto your iPhone and iPad? iTunes is the answer, and we’ll show you how, after the break!

Syncing with iPhoto on Mac

Using iPhoto is my favorite choice for transferring photos from Mac to iPad because it offers the most options. You have the ability to sync all albums, events (dates), and faces (people based on facial recognition), or individually choose which combination of albums, events, and faces that you want to sync.

1. Organize your photos in iPhoto
2. Plug in your iPad or iPhone into your Mac via the USB to dock cable.
3. Open iTunes (if it doesn’t open automatically)
4. Click on the Photos tab
5. Check the box to “Sync Photos From”
6. Choose iPhoto from the drop down menu
7. Select which options you prefer
8. Click sync

Syncing with folders on Mac or Windows

If using you’re using Windows, or if you’re using a Mac but you prefer not to use iPhoto, you can sync iTunes with a folder on your computer. If you want multiple albums on your iPad, I recommend placing the individual folders into a larger folder. In this folder, you can have more subfolders than you desire to sync with your iPhone and iPad because you can individually select which subfolders you want in iTunes.

1. Organize your photos in iPhoto or folders
2. Plug in your iPad and open iTunes
3. Click the Photos tab
4. Check the box to “Sync Photos From”
5. Select “Choose folder…” from the drop down menu
6. Browse to the desired folder
7. Select which options you prefer
8. Click sync

Depending on how many photos you’re syncing, both methods have the potential to take some time.

There you have it! Now you can carry around those thousands of photos you have stored on your computer and show them off on your iPhone or iPad’s beautiful display.

If you have any other tips for transferring photos to your iPhone or iPad or 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 news@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Visiting the TiPb forums is a great way to spend some of your time leading up to Apple’s iPad 2 event that is coming up in a few short hours. In order to create a new thread of your own or reply to any of the existing threads, you must be a registered member. Becoming a member is easy and free so if you haven’t already, head on over and register now!

• Today’s event will more than likely be the debut of the iPad 2 but what else, if anything do you think Apple has in store for us?

• Speaking of the iPad 2 why not check out our forum dedicated to the iPad?

• New to the iPhone world? Check out this thread filled with neat tips and tricks for your new device!

• Want a chance to win a Steve Jobs action figure? Check out the details right here!

• One of the most popular questions we get asked is can I use custom SMS tones on my iPhone? Well you can but you will need to jailbreak. For the full rundown of how to get your custom SMS tones visit this thread here.

See you in the forums!

New to the iPhone and curious how to change your text message (SMS) tone? Apple is not overly generous when it comes to customizing alert tones on your iPhone. Ring tones are completely customizable but email tones can’t be changed from the default unless you jailbreak. Text messages are somewhere in the middle — you can personalize them but not customize them (yet). Read on after the break to find out how!.

Changing the default SMS/Text tone

To change the tone you hear for all incoming texts:

1. Open Settings
2. Tap Sounds
3. Tap Text Tone
4. Choose new tone (A preview of the tone will play when tapped)

That’s all there is to it. All new text messages will trigger the new tone when they arrive.

Changing an individual contact’s SMS/Text tone

To set a personalized SMS/Text tone 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 Text Tone
6. Choose a new tone

Now, when that specific contact texts you, you’ll get their specific tone. It’s a great way to differentiate family from friends, for example.

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 wondered how to send a text message to several people and have their replies reach the whole group? This feature is known as group messaging. To learn exactly what group messaging entails and how to enable it, follow along after the break!

Enabling group messaging is a simple task; but first, let’s make sure you understand exactly what group messaging is. Basically, this setting controls whether or not the complete address list is sent to everyone in the group.

• When OFF, each recipient will be unaware that anyone else received the same message.
• If you have group messaging set to ON, but your recipient does not, then that recipient will not see the group list.
• If both you and the recipient have group messaging enabled, then all recipients are displayed.
• When a recipient of the message replies, it is sent to all members of the group.
• All messages are included in a single thread and the senders’ names will be displayed above each message.
• If Group Messaging is enabled, messages sent to the group are billed as a single message.

Now that it’s understood what all that group messaging entails, how do you enable it? Simple:

1. Launch Settings
2. Tap Messages
3. Toggle “Group Messaging” to ON

There you have it! Now you’re ready to partake in group text conversations. Have fun and let us know if you have any questions!

UPDATE: Our commenters have pointed out that this feature appears to only be available on AT&T.

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 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!

Curious how to delete individual SMS Texts (or sexts, we’re not here to judge!) MMS from a conversation in your iPhone Messages app? It’s not obvious but it is simple, and we’ll show you how after the break!

Whether you’re a young celebrity trying to avoid the tabloids or just a regular user trying to stay out of trouble, it’s useful to know how to delete just certain SMS or even MMS messages without losing your entire conversation.

1. Launch the SMS application
2. Open the conversation you have messages you would like to delete
3. Select Edit in the top right on the screen
4. Select which messages you would like to delete by selecting them individually or all of them at once if you have multiple messages to delete
5. Select delete on the bottom left

It is that simple and you will have gotten rid of whatever you didn’t want visible and you will still have the rest of the conversation saved.

Bonus tip: If you decide you do want to nuke the entire conversation, go back to the conversation list in the Messages app and swipe your finger left to right. A red Delete button will appear. Tap it and the conversation will disappear entirely.

If you want to learn how to delete even more incriminating evidence personal information from your iPhone, check out our longer guide.

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…)

iPhone users on AT&T received an email filled with tips on how to manage usage and save money while traveling internationally. With access to email, Visual Voicemail, safari and data using applications, it doesn’t take much to rack up a very expensive bill while abroad. Instead of surprising you with a giant bill, AT&T has decided to give iPhone users some saving money strategies. Here they are:

• If you want to place calls but not use data, turn data roaming “OFF”. This will block email, browsing, Visual Voicemail and downloads, but it will not block SMS or MMS messages. But feel free to use wifi; you can do so without accumulating any data charges.
• If you want to use data but not receive email automatically, turn Fetch New Data “OFF”. This will allow you to have total control of your data usage because nothing will be synced or downloaded in the background without your solicitation.
• If you want to use data and track your usage while abroad, consider purchasing an International Data Package. The 20 MB package is $24.99 per month, the 50 MB package is $59.99 per month, the 100 MB package is $119.99 per month, and the 200 MB package is $199.99 per month. If you decide to purchase an international data package it is recommended to reset the usage tracker to zero so that you can estimate your data usage while abroad.

Any of you plan to travel abroad for the holidays? If so, which of AT&T’s tips are you planning to partake in?

Ever wonder how to get your digital booklets into iBooks? All of us probably have some sort of digital booklet we received as part of an album in iTunes, right? To be honest, I never really viewed them because I would typically be on the go when the mood struck, not necessarily sitting on front of a computer.

Well, did you know you can “convert” your digital booklets in iTunes to make them viewable in iBooks? This is so easy, it should be illegal. We’ll show you how after the break!

• First, find the digital booklet in your iTunes library
• Next, right-click to get to the “Get Info” option and click it
• Next, click on the “Options” tab
• Last, change the “Media Kind” to “Book”

In your device menu, go to books and make sure your booklet is check-marked and sync. That’s it! If you want to place the digital booklet back into iTunes, just change the media type back to “Music” from the Books section in iTunes.

That’s it. You’re done! If you have any questions or know any addition cool iBooks tips, leave them 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…)

Interested in how to make your own custom ringtones for iPhone? Ever since Apple opened the door, it’s been the popular thing to do. From soothing classics to to the latest hip hop tunes, you can setup the music you want for the contact you want, always know who’s calling you before you answer, and — depending on just what music you choose — turn a few heads while doing it. petey28 from our forums will show you how after the break!

Before you start, make sure you have a recent version of iTunes installed. The latest is always best.

• Select the Song you want as your ringtone and choose edit from the menu. (This procedure is similar for both Mac and Windows users. In iTunes, select the song you want to use, right-click on the track and hit ‘get info’)
• Select ‘Options’ from the menu along the top, then change the ‘stop time’ of the song to 15 seconds (I recommend using 30 secs) as its the max time available for the ring tone).
• In the advanced iTunes menu, select ‘create AAC version’. This will create a second version of the song.
• Go back into the original song’s ‘get info’ options and delete your ‘stop time’ setting, otherwise the song will end after 30 secs.

Mac Users

• Right-click on the new, 30-second version and hit ‘show in ‘finder’
• Change the file extension from .m4a to .m4r. (This can be done just by clicking on it and overtyping whats already there.)
• It’s best to make the file name as short as possible too, so rename this in the same way.
• Drag the .m4r file from Finder to your desktop and delete the version that is in iTunes.
• Now import the file back into iTunes. To do this, open the iTunes ‘File’ menu and choose’ Add to Library,’ find the song on your desktop and add it back in.

Windows Users

For Windows users -now you have the AAC version of the song, you need to find it on your computer. You’ll probably have to take this path to the file – my documents, my Music, iTunes, iTunes Media, music and lastly the artist’s folder. When you’ve found it:

• Change the file extension from .m4a to .m4r by clicking on it and overtyping the name.
• If you can’t find the file extension type then you need to change how you view the file
  • go to your control panel and click ‘folder options’
  • untick the option that says ‘hide extensions for known file types’
  • Go back into the iTunes folder and you now you’ll be able to see the extension you want to change.
• Import the renamed file back into iTunes through the ‘add to library’ option under file menu.

Getting the ringtone onto your phone

• Plug your iPhone into your Mac or Windows PC
• Wait for your iPhone to become available in iTunes
• Find your newly made ringtone file under the ‘ringtones’ category in the left hand column within iTunes.
• Enable ringtone sync and make sure your newly made ringtone is checked off
• Hit sync

Turning on your new ringtone

OK now for the the best bit:

• On your phone go to settings, then sounds and your very own ringtones created by you should appear just above the standard ones
• Tap it to select it as your default ringtone
• If you want to use it for just a few of your contacts, go to Phone, Contacts
  • Find the contact(s) you want to use it for
  • Hit edit
  • Repeat the procedure above to select the rington
• Enjoy!

Thanks again to petey28 for the tip! If only Apple would let us customize text tones as well…

As always, if you try it out let us know how it works 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 dailytips@tipb.com. (If it’s especially awesome and previously unknown to us, we’ll even give ya a reward…)

Curious how to restore your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch when it’s acting funny and nothing else will work?  Need to install a beta or custom firmware?  Whether you’re experiencing freezes, crashes, or your iPhone or iPad is just doing other crazy things – a restore will fix most of your woes.  Restores are also something developers need to know about to test beta firmware, and jailbreakers should become very familiar with, as sometimes it can make your phone a little less stable than it is stock.

To restore, whether on a Mac or PC:

• plug your iPhone, iPod, or iPad into your computer. 
• If iTunes doesn’t automatically launch, go ahead and launch it. 
• To the left, you’ll see a sidebar, click on your device.
• You’ll see a restore option. 
• (Make sure you backup your phone first. A sync can do this, or you can right click on your device name in the sidebar and select backup.)
• Then simply click that and let iTunes do it’s thing for a few minutes. 

When the restore has finished you’ll be asked to either set up as a new iPhone or restore from a backup.  If you choose to restore from a backup and your device still acts funny afterwards (i.e. the problem returned with the backup), I’d recommend doing the restore again and this time setting up as a new device. Then re-sync your content. 

To install different or custom firmware (say you need to test iOS 4.2 GM or say you’re on 4.0.2 and you don’t want 4.1 for some reason), hold down Option (Mac) or CTRL (Windows) while you click restore, then navigate to your then navigate to the firmware you want.

This is a pretty basic function of iTunes but one anyone that owns an iOS device should learn how to do.  Always make frequent backups and sync your phone regularly to ensure you won’t lose your content if something should go wrong with your device.

Let us know how it works for you and if you have any questions, ask 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…)

LockInfo is a great app available to jailbreakers that once again fills a functionality gap — this one making up for the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad’s poor notification system. Until Apple implements a better solution, David Ashman has done an incredible job supplementing notifications with LockInfo.

Even though LockInfo is an extremely intuitive and powerful app, the setup can be a bit tedious. But when you get it right, you’ll be in notification heaven! Hit the jump for a quick guide and a video with some tips for optimally configuring LockInfo.

*As a side note, LockInfo is $4.99 right now, as of November 7, 2010 – that price will go to $7.99, so if you’ve been contemplating, you may want to jump on the current price. There is also a 14 day trial if you would like to test it out first.

First you’ll need to purchase LockInfo from Cydia. After you’ve done that, you will configure it through your main iPhone settings panel. You’ll see two sections you will use. The general LockInfo settings section and the Activator settings section.

Activator is a universal app that’ll appear on its own once you have an app that supports it. It allows you to customize gestures to activate different apps. For example, I have Activator set to launch Infoshade for LockInfo when I hold down on the status bar. If I slide up from the bottom of my screen, it’ll launch a QuickSend window for iRealSMS. So once you’ve got LockInfo configured, go ahead and set whatever gestures are comfortable for you.

LockInfo also has several plug-ins you can install via Cydia, which most if not all come at no additional cost. Everything from weather widgets, twitter, to do apps, RSS feeds, and more. I typically bypass a lot of plug-ins and here’s why: battery life. The general notification plug-ins is pretty universal. If your apps push themselves, why install a separate plug-in to fetch info and sacrifice precious battery?

As far as Twitter notifications go, I use Boxcar. I also use it for Facebook. This way, I have one app that pushes for two. I’ve set Boxcar to launch my chosen Twitter client and to launch the Facebook app. So if I click any of these notifications from the homescreen, Boxcar will quickly put me right into my chosen client. Whether you use Boxcar, Notifo, or any other push notification app, it should work the same. Notifications will also be instant instead of polling at set intervals, like most plug-ins will require. LockInfo’s default notifications feature will also aggregate IMs from Beejive and any other application that allows notifications, even games like Words With Friends. It’ll simply suppress the default pop-up notifications and present them under the LockInfo notifications tab instead.

Within LockInfo, you’ll be presented with 3 main views for information – lock screen, spring board, and Infoshade. While the first two are pretty easy to understand, Infoshade may not be. I find it best to compare it to an Android-style notification system. You can set a gesture in activator for Infoshade and it will simply drop down whenever you call it from the springboard gesture. So if you hear your e-mail chime in and you don’t want to exit out of what you’re doing, simply use your chosen gesture and Infoshade will drop down and present you with all your information. You can then quickly dismiss e-mails or notifications, or simply delete them. Mail also supports a quick view if you tap on an e-mail. If you’d like to respond, you can click the respond button and it’ll launch your mail app. Or you can trash it from the quick view screen.

However you decide to set up LockInfo is up to you, these are just some helpful hints I’ve learned using it. If you’ve got more, be sure to share them in the comments for in our Jailbreak Forums!  Also, if you’d like to see something in future updates or have a feature request (or need technical help), check out David Ashman’s webpage for LockInfo as well.

What’s the best way to get Apple to do a non-warranty repair on your bricked or broken iPhone or iPad? Simple: tell the truth.

I have seen all kinds of schemes cooked up by people who have done something ill-advised to their devices. They have a strategy. They know how to fool the liquid sensors. They have a story for the dent they couldn’t pound out. They play innocent when their product is mysteriously bricked. They have a plan for every contingency.

When all else fails, they make noise, complain to the manager, write angry letters to SJ and the media. Finally, they post on internet forums and try to win in the court of public opinion. Well, I’m here to tell you, there is a better way.

Last night, I called the local Apple store to tell them I had bricked my iPad. I made it clear that it was my fault. They told me to go ahead and bring it in anyway and made an appointment for that night.

When I was called, I repeated that it was bricked because of something that I did, and just hoped they could reset it. They gave me no guarantees, but promised to try, and try, they did. After about an hour, they told me that it was as good as fried. I thanked them and did my best to hold it together.

The rep was not done talking. She said they would consider it a warranty repair, and simply gave me a brand new, 32 GB 3G iPad. I was shocked. I told her I couldn’t accept it, as they owed me nothing. It was not a warranty issue and I didn’t want anyone to get in trouble over my mistake. She told me that Apple was more interested in making me happy. She also told me not to ever do that again.

My wife was also floored by the generosity of service. I know that if I had gone in with some lame story, I would have been out of luck. No need. This was not my first, such experience, but it was the most dramatic.

If you damage your device, don’t try to hide the evidence, or make up a story. Just tell the truth. There is a reason why Apple keeps getting the highest scores for customer satisfaction.

This is an official entry by dandbj13 in TiPb’s next top blogger contest. Think you have what it takes to join Team TiPb? Bring it!

Looking for some tips on how to get quicker caps, more rapid numbers, and instant apostrophes (or single quotes) on your iPad? Well, Apple being Apple they built them right into the iPad keyboard — even as they left them for us to discover on our own. Many of these are the same as on the iPhone and iPod touch, one is all new and quite nifty. Here are a few of our favorite iPad typing tips:

• If you fast access to accented characters, for example [é], just tap and hold the base character you want and the accented variations will pop up for easy entry. This also works on specialized keyboards, for example you can press and hold [.com] to get [.net] [.org] etc.
• To get quicker caps, instead of tapping shift and then the letter, just touch shift and then drag you finger to the letter and release. The closer the letter is to the shift key, the faster it is.
• Rapid numbers work the same way. Just touch the number key [.?123], slide up to the number or punctuation/symbol character you want, and let go. It’s great if you just want a single number or character in between typing a lot of letters. (If you want to type a series of numbers you’re still better off tapping the number key, then typing your numbers, then tapping the letters key [ABC] to go back to the alphabet.
• At first glance it looks like Apple forgot the apostrophe/single quote ['] on the first level of the iPad keyboard. You don’t have to hit the number key to get it, however. Just touch the [!,] key and hold for a second, and the ['] magically appears above it. Tap for your apostrophe, or to combine these tips, just touch [!,] and swipe up and boom, instant apostrophe.

Try them out and let us know how the work for you, and if you have any iPad typing tips of your own to share, leave them in the comments and we’ll update!

YouTube link

So you say you have some time to kill before the big Apple Keynote today? Why not spend it chatting in our forums! All you need to do is register and you are on your way. Once registered be sure to check out some of the following threads!

• Everyone is expecting iPhone OS 4.0 to be shown off today, feel free to discuss that in this thread right here: Discuss the iPhone OS 4.0 software.
• With the rumors flying regarding the iPhone on Verizon be sure to check out our forum dedicated to carrier talk: iPhone Plans and Carriers.
• Currently on Windows 7 and having difficulties with your iPhone? This is the thread for you: Official Windows 7 iPhone Help.
• Time after time folks complain about their iPhone battery life, check out the following thread to get some tips that just might help your device survive the day: iPhone Battery Tips.

See you on the forums!

There have been a lot of rumors lately about the next generation of iPhone hardware having a 3.2 megapixel camera, but right now we have to deal with what has been given to us: a decent 2 megapixel camera with zero features.

That brings us to a great post that we noticed today on PCMAG.com, 22 Ways to Make Your iPhone a Better Camera. One of the most useful apps they list has to be Photogene. [iTunes Link] This app allows you to:

• Enhance photos with multiple color adjustment options and a sharpen filter.
• Crop and straighten.
• Add fun effects like text balloons, frames or special filters

Be sure to check out PCMAG.com’s article for a boatload of tips and apps to make the best with your iPhone’s camera!

The secret to making your iPhone feel like a 160GB iPod Classic juggernaut is just a few mouse clicks away on your iTunes. Just click on “File” in iTunes, then New Smart Playlist. See where this is going? When you select New Smart Playlist, you can customize a playlist and instruct your iTunes about what music to look for and then keep your iPhone updated with a constant flow of fresh material. It’s a bit like rotating your entire music collection through your iPhone a 100 songs (or whatever you want) at a time.

You can get quite specific with your selection of music. You can instruct iTunes to seek out and load music that has been most recently played or least recently played. You can set the rules for iTunes to follow – like using the rating system in iTunes to select only music that you have given a 1 – 5 star rating. What, you mean you haven’t rated your music?

Well, if you’re like me, you haven’t paid much attention to the rating system or even cared to know why it’s there. If you take the time, though, and rate your favorite music, then your Smart Playlist can become much more meaningful as iTunes searches your music library for songs that you have rated. To rate your music, just click in the Rating column next to the songs you want to rate and then give them a rating, anywhere from one to five stars. In the Smart Playlist, if you set the range to include only your most favorite songs, then you can expect your Smart Playlist (and thus your iPhone) to always rotate your favorite songs each time you sync.

Smart Playlists aren’t just limited to songs. You can instruct iTunes to select all kinds of media, like podcasts, to be added to your Smart Playlist and then synced with your iPhone for your enjoyment. In this manner, you can rotate your media from the vast reservoirs of storage on your desktop or laptop to the limited space on your iPhone, always keeping it fresh. If you haven’t played around with your Smart Playlist, give it a try today and post your feedback in Comments. You might find a way to use this feature that works well for you and then feel free to share it with the rest of us!

If the iPhone is your first smartphone, then you won’t fully appreciate the lack of a means to send contacts or files via Bluetooth or IR (infra-red). What if you want to send your Google map to a friend to show him or her the way? What about sending a website link of your winning team to your buddy to rub it in? The iPhone is lacking in some of the more conventional methods of sending data to someone else, but the built-in screenshot capability can do wonders! Read on for more!

If you haven’t tried it already, just hold down the power button and home button at the same time and presto, your iPhone will capture a screenshot and send the image to Photos. Just about every other smartphone I can think of requires a third-party app to pull off this neat little trick, but fortunately the iPhone makes it easy as pie. There’s a lot of things you can do with this feature, and here’s just a few.

Send Contact Information

If you haven’t noticed, there’s no button or tab to send contact information to someone else via email or otherwise. Therefore, you have to be creative. Use the screenshot feature to snap a photo of the contact you want to send, go find it in Photos, and email that sucker to the one you want to have it. Easy peasy!

Send SMS Conversation

Maybe you have some important information in a text message that you need to send to one or more people, like movie times, an address, directions, etc. Since the iPhone has no copy/paste and no means of forwarding a text message, take a screenshot and email it. Starting to get the picture? Pun. Ugh.

Send Your Stock Quotes

Yeah, I know, why would you want to send the bad news to anyone? But hey, if there’s a reason to send stock quotes, it’s easy to do with screenshot and email. Maybe you want to send some stock ideas to a family member or friend. Maybe someone you know doesn’t have an iPhone (gasp!) with it’s easy access to stock quotes, so you can be helpful and send the bad news via email!

Send A Web Site Screenshot

Did your Celtics take your friend’s favorite team to the woodshed? Now you can do a little taunting of your own by taking a screenshot with your iPhone and emailing it to your friend to rub it in a little. Yes, it’s gloating. But hey, you have an iPhone – license to gloat, baby!

There are lots of possibilities – take screenshots of Google Maps, your new high score on a favorite iPhone game (again, send to a friend for some gloat-ness), and just about anything else that you can display on your iPhone. Be creative!

If you have a tip or how-to that you would like to share, drop by the forums and/or email us atbrian.hart@tipb.com.

The iPhone is a great phone and an awesome entertainment device, but it’s also a great tool for a variety of things, including an excellent travel companion. Ana Ortiz at LaunchSquad dropped me a line and suggested I check out Best Western’s site, which also happens to be iPhone-friendly as a web app. Best Western, partnering with Usablenet, brings their site to the iPhone for your traveling convenience. What features are available via the web app? Read on after the break!

If you enter www.bestwestern.com into your iPhone’s Safari, the site detects you are mobile and will bring you to the web app version. From here, you can check the status of your reservation on the fly, reserve a room for the night, get directions to the hotel, and more – all accomplished from your iPhone.

I like the fact that if I’m out and about and without access to a computer or laptop, I can still confirm my reservations, make a reservation, use the Trip Planner, or get directions to Best Western so I can crash for the night. Since there are thousands of Best Westerns across the globe, this can be a useful web app for the frequent and/or unexpected traveler. If you wish, you also have the option to view the full web site, but that usually isn’t necessary when you have full functionality using the web app. 

According to Ana, Usablenet makes this possible with their comprehensive mobile-web platform, which also works with numerous other hotels, like the Hilton, Starwood, Four Seasons, etc.

As an added bonus, check out Urbanspoon in the App Store. Once you’ve settled in to your Best Western, you might want to grab a bite somewhere and Urbanspoon uses the GPS of your iPhone to help you locate a restaurant near your location for some good eats. Just shake your iPhone and let Urbanspoon do the rest. Keep shaking until the slot machine dials up something you fancy.

That’s it for this time. Thanks, Ana, for the Best Western tip!

If you have a tip or how-to that you would like to share, drop by the forums and/or email us atbrian.hart@tipb.com.

It’s rare that I place much stock in the “stock” headphones that are included with my devices. Even though the headphones provided with my iPhone 3G are decent, I’ve graduated to a noise-cancellation type of headphone with rubber ear tips. Even so, the stock headphones and many third-party headphones are equipped with both a microphone for phone calls and a “clicker” button to control your audio. The clicker is a fantastic feature because it makes operating your iPhone or iPod Touch as simple as you want – no need to risk flying off the treadmill because you just can’t stand to listen to THAT song even ONE more time!

Along with the many new updates in firmware 2.1, there was also an update for audio features, specifically concerning the “clicker.” The clicker already handled triple-duty with play / pause / skip to the next song. A single click pauses your music, then a single click again will play your music. Two quick clicks will forward to the next song. Now, there is a FOURTH option. With a triple-click, you can go to a previous song. Remember, you can keep moving backward or forward through your playlist if you click in rapid succession, then pause momentarily for each clicking command to register, then proceed.

Many of you may have already been aware of this feature, but if you aren’t, it’s a handy thing to know. Now, if you are exercising or just don’t want to have to look at your iPhone’s screen to manage your music, just make a favorite playlist of everything you like. Then, you can click, double-click, and triple-click your way through your music without ever looking at your iPhone. This feature works also with third-party headphones. For example, I’m using the Maximo iMetal isolation headset (to be reviewed later), and it is also equipped with a clicker button and it works just fine. So if you haven’t already, it’s time to get your “click-groove” on!

If you have a tip or how-to that you would like to share, drop by the forums and/or email us at brian.hart@tipb.com. 

[Ed: Many of you know Jeremy as the most Bad Ash moderator this side of Cupertino. Well, we've finally convinced him to tear it up here on the TiPb front page as well. What's he going to choose for his debut post? Heh. Like there was ever any doubt...]

Since you can usually find me on the iPhone Blog Forums I figured I may as well make my first post about some of the happenings over there. So what’s going on?

Firmware 2.0.2 tips and tricks thread is a good place to check out if you are looking for some nifty pointers in the TiPb forums.  SM12 wants to know  what phones did you replace with your iPhone?  Another discussion that is going on is from Scottdoc and he needs help deciding what is the best software for converting DVD’s for use on the iPhone.  Can you help him out?  

Also be sure to check out the new section to our forums that Dieter just added, other devices and gadgets.  Are you a Windows Mobile fan?  How about Blackberry?  Android?  Join our community and mix it up then!  What are you waiting for?! Go ahead and join our community and get in on the conversation!

Following up our Exchange Activesync for the iPhone 2.0 walkthrough, and some FREE/cheap Hosted Exchange solutions for users without Megacorps, here’s an official “welcome!” from biggest Megacorp of them all, Microsoft. More specifically, from the Microsoft Exchange Team Blog:

If you’ve not heard; Apple released iPhone 2.0 today which includes a software update to the existing iPhones in the market (yes, we mentioned it when it was announced as well). We’re thrilled to add them to the family of Exchange ActiveSync licensees that enable all sorts of devices to connect to Exchange Server. For those of you that manage Exchange Servers this means you may see some new devices connecting and we wanted to give you a few notes about what to expect.

Via

People buying an iPhone for the first time are waiting until July 11 or after. In some ways, they are the lucky ones.  They don’t have the conundrum of figuring out what to do with their iPhone 2G.  Sell it on eBay for pennies on the dollar?  Donate it to charity?  Drop it in their “old icky outdated technology drawer” from where there is no return?

I was an “early adopter” — translation: I was suckered into paying $599 (still hurts to type it to this day) for my little slice of techno-nirvana. Given the new iPhone 3G is just around the corner, this week’s Tip is a timely one regarding what YOU can do with your old iPhone!

In no particular order, here are some ideas:

1)  Use your old iPhone as an iPod (a really expensive iPod, but hey, it has a pretty multi-touch screen!)

2)  Hand-me-down: give it to your spouse, significant other, child, friend, boss (possible bribe potential), etc.  I’m sure the beneficiary will LOVE it (especially if they have not experienced an iPhone before) and AT&T will love it too ($$$)!  Besides, the tax write-off may be higher than what you’d get on eBay.

3)  Keep it.  Don’t upgrade.  It’s humanly impossible to resist the siren song of the iPhone 3G, but if you are super-human and manage to stick to your 2G, then at least be comforted in knowing that you will keep your same rate plan and you can point your finger and mock all the 3G’ers that are paying more for their data (see tidbits.com).

4)  Doorstop, paperweight, pond-skipping, coaster, or all the above.

Thanks for dropping by for this week’s Tip about what you can do with your old iPhone 2G.  What will YOU do with yours?  Leave a comment and share!

Disclaimer:  Tip o’ the Week makes no guarantee, express or implied, that any tip found herein will be new or particularly useful to the reader (except for #4 above – I suspect that even the iPhone 2G’s sleek design would beat just about any flat rock in a pond-skipping contest).

Although the current iPhone does many things, it does fall short in some glaring ways.  Managing tasks, for example, has been discussed both in forums and in TiPB podcasts.  Perhaps Apple refuses to provide a means of managing tasks because they believe an iPhone user will have little time left for anything else in life other than surfing the web on Safari, watching movies and listening to tunes in iPod, Google Mapping, etc.?  Speculation for this exclusion may abound, but fortunately, we’ve got you covered with this week’s Tip.

If you haven’t been checking out the new Web Apps lately, then you may have missed a little gem called Getting Tasks Done!, available here!  Read more about managing your tasks on the iPhone following the break!

Getting Tasks Done!, by Volodymyr Sergeyev, is one way that you can manage your tasks (‘to-do list’, if you will) on your iPhone.  With the ability to accept unlimited tasks and projects, you can probably list more things that you need to do than you can get done!  To get started, just go to the site and set up an account for free.  Once you have an account set up, you can login and start tasking!

Some great features are included in this web app:  sharing tasks with family, friends and co-workers; archiving of tasks and projects; accessible 24/7 via the internet; even a daily motivational quote or phrase to inspire you to get your tasks done!

One of the criticisms of web apps are the requirement of having an internet connection; no connection, no app.  This is one reason why resident apps are more appealing to many — if you have juice on your iPhone, you can use the app.  However, Getting Tasks Done! will also work offline.  If you don’t have an internet connection, you can still work on your tasks offline and they will sync with the server when you are online again.  Sweet!

As you can see on the left here, you can “Add task”, “Archive” your completed tasks, “Work offline”, “Hot tasks”, and even “Share tasks” with others.

Once you’ve completed a task, just check the box and move on to the next one.  I always find the checking-of-the-box part to be very rewarding because it gives me a sense of accomplishment.  There are few things better than completing a task, checking the box, and getting back to some Safari surfing, YouTube’ing and iPod’ing!

Check out Getting Tasks Done! and start getting things done!  

That’s it for this week’s Tip.  If you have a tip of your own that you would like to share with the rest of us, please leave a Comment or you can email me at: brian.hart@phonedifferent.com.

Disclaimer:  Tip o’ the Week makes no guarantee, express or implied, that any tip found herein will be new or particularly useful to the reader (and now that you have a Tip about a good task manager for your iPhone, we certainly can’t guarantee you’ll get things done.  Just remember this: Nothing makes you more productive than the last minute.  Try that out on your boss!).

Hold +, and press Right, Right, Left, Left, 2, 2.  Do this quickly.  Oh, and by the way, do this at the “Chapter Select” screen.  Sounds simple enough, right?  What does this mean, anyway?  A new dance step?  Marching orders?  Or a way to unleash your weapons mojo playing Call of Duty 3 on your Wii?  You may not be able to hook up your iPhone to your Wii and use the accelerometer (yet), but your iPhone + a handy web app may make your Wii experience more lively (and give you the power to beat your kid’s high score).  Press Right, Right, then click Left on your mouse button to read on!

Buying a Wii is like catching a leprechaun.  If you are one of the lucky ones (I suggest filling your pockets with four-leaf clovers before shopping) and already have a Wii, then you may be interested in a web app that I’ve selected for this week’s Tip o’ the Week!

Wii Cheats is an iPhone-optimized site filled with cheats, tips, hints, and codes for your enjoyment while playing on your Nintendo Wii.  The site is laid out alphabetically by game titles.  A bar just above the first titles permits you to jump ahead in the list, i.e., if you need a hint for overcoming a difficult level in “Prince of Persia Rival Swords”, just tap on “N-T” and you will be whisked far down the list to titles starting with “N”.

Aside from having to put up with advertising, this is a great little app for your iPhone that can give you hints on tips anytime, anywhere when playing games on your Wii.

The general layout for games you access on the site includes various codes for the game, step-by-step instructions for entering the code, and the effect or result of the code entered.

Tips and hints are provided when a code is not necessary.  For example, if the game you are playing has certain programming glitches that can be exploited to your advantage, Wii Cheats is a good place to find this information and it’s FREE to use.

So whether you want to be able to go into the office on Monday and brag about your prowess as a Guitar Hero, or impress your little brother or nephew, the Wii Cheats web app for your iPhone may come in very handy.

Disclaimer:  Tip o’ the Week makes no guarantee, express or implied, that any tip found herein will be new or particularly useful to the reader (and in all likelihood, your little brother and his friends have already found the cheats and codes from “other sources” and you’re dreaming if you really think you can compete on their level).