How To Change The Apple ID On Your iPod Touch/iPhone

An Apple ID allows you to obtain apps, iTunes downloads and more, which is required to get the full mobile experience if you own an iPhone or iPod Touch. After all, how can you not?

There are a plethora of goodies on the App Store that you shouldn’t miss out. On this page, you’ll effectively see 108 of the best (most are free!), hand-picked by our very staff, and broken down in 14 categories.

A lot of times when you’re purchasing loads of apps, you may run into issues with your Apple ID. You may discover that a cool and exciting app, for example, turns out to be offered only in another country. But worry not. Jeffry posted a detailed article on how to create a US iTunes account without a credit card to access US-only items (and judging from the comments in that post, the method seems to work for many people around the world).

How to Set Up Your New iPhone

The holidays are here and you know what that means? A lot of you will be the proud new owners of a new iPhone from Apple. For some of you, this will be your first experience with iOS and the iPhone.

Others may be coming back from another operating system or just be plain old upgrading from an older version of the iPhone. Whatever the case may be, we want to help make your experience with your new gadget as seamless as possible.

Here, you will find a ton of useful factoids that will not only help you set up your new iPhone but get the most out of it from day one and onward.

How to Unlock the iPhone on AT&T

AT&T changed its policy in regards to unlocking off-contract iPhone devices. Translation, it now offers to unlock these iPhones free of charge. The process is a relatively simple one but we wanted to share just how one might go about unlocking their iPhone on AT&T.

Unlocking an iPhone will allow users to insert any microSIM into the device so long as the microSIM’s carrier frequencies are supported. This is useful when traveling abroad where a user can use a foreign SIM card to make and receive voice and data calls.

Before we get to the actual process though, there are a few caveats to the deal.

How to Install the iOS 6 Beta for Free

If you don’t have a developer account, but you want to install the iOS 6 beta on your iPhone or iPad, we have the solution.

Normally users need to register the iPhone UDID with a developer account for $99 or through a service like IMZDL for $7 to $8, but someone found a hole that lets anyone install the iOS 6 beta without paying to register their UDID.

Read: How to Install iOS 6 Beta on the iPhone 4S

This method tricks Apple into verifying the iPhone or iPad so that iOS 6 can be installed. Several commenters on Absinthejailbreak confirm that it is working, but it’s possible that this hole will be closed with the iOS 6 beta 2, so we still think it’s worth paying $7 to get iOS 6.

How To Install iOS 6 Beta on the iPhone 4S

If you can’t wait for the fall 2012 iOS 6 release date, you can download iOS 6 and install it on the iPhone 4s, iPhone 4 and iPad right now.

Apple only makes the iOS 6 Beta available to developers, but if you aren’t willing to plunk down the $99 for a Developer License you can still get the iOS 6 beta for $7.

The process is easy to follow, but keep in mind this is beta software so not every app will work with iOS 6 and your iPhone might behave badly.

How To Scroll to the Top of Any iPhone App Fast

From your twitter feed, to your messages to even your music all of these tasks involve scrolling.

Scrolling on the iPhone is much easier than using blackberry roller balls, but it is still a pain if you need to get to the top of an app fast.

Thankfully Apple includes a simple trick for scrolling to the top of any app on the iPhone. This is a definite time saver and you may have already accidentally bumped it in the past without realizing it.

This simple trick will take wherever you are in an app and send you back to the top of the page.

Mobile site vs apps

Ever since mobile devices really started becoming a primary method of surfing the internet and performing various online tasks, experts have debated over whether businesses and organizations need mobile websites, mobile apps, or both to help their presence online. In many ways, it comes down to goals – is it bulk exposure or user stickiness that’s important?

This infographic breaks down the statistics surrounding the two types of mobile engagement styles. Click to enlarge.

I can roam the world with a Galaxy S3. So why not the U.S.?

Samsung's latest flagship phone, the Samsung Galaxy S3, is about to launch in the US. I'm excited! But I'm also confused. Is this my dream phone, one that I can use with both AT&T and Verizon? Getting a straight answer has proven tough.

In the past, swapping a phone between the two major networks had been hard because they use different technologies for their 2G and 3G networks. Verizon uses CDMA (as does Sprint), while AT&T uses GSM (as does T-Mobile).

But in the full 4G world, both are using LTE, right? Sure, but they're broadcasting those signals on different parts of the radio spectrum, as CNET writer Maggie Reardon explained recently. That would seem to rule out the idea that a Verizon phone could work with AT&T.

Rdio’s Android Player Gets a Much-Needed Update

If you’re an Rdio fan with an Android phone, you’ve been on the losing end of things for quite some time — stuck with a clunky mobile app and waiting around for a long-promised refresh. Meanwhile, Rdio’s players for iPhone and iPad are slick and pretty, and have been for many months.

Well good news for you: The streaming music service has just released a completely redesigned Android app that fixes all of the little annoyances.

As of Monday, the new version of the free Rdio player is available in the Android market and as an update for existing users. If you’re an Rdio

Clip-on lenses from Gizmon enhance camera on your iOS device

Enhancing your iPhone camera isn’t easy always easy, but luckily for you, today we have few handy gadgets that will somewhat enhance your iPhone’s camera.

Dropbox updates iOS app, will phase out public folders

Cloud storage startup has kept extra busy as competition is growing stronger with the launch of Google Drive and Microsoft’s SkyDrive getting dedicated desktop apps as well as a revamped feature set. Today, they are announcing a follow up to the photo upload feature that debuted on Android and reached the desktop recently, enabling automatic photos and video uploads on iOS over 3G/4G or Wi-Fi.

The new feature allows for uploads of any size. Once your media files are copied to Dropbox you can skim through photos and videos in a gallery view, delete and move sets of files or individual files. There's also the option to earn up to 3GB of extra free space for uploading photos, in 500MB increments.

ABI: Apple and Samsung have over 55 percent of the smartphone space, 90 percent of its money-making

Tech finance sleuth Horace Dediu was clearly astute when he determined that it's really Apple and Samsung's smartphone world, and we just live in it. ABI Research just estimated that, combined, the iPhone

iPhone 5: What we think we know

As the fifth anniversary of the original iPhone's launch approaches later this month, the Apple rumor mill has been particularly active and everything from a larger screen, radical case design and all-new dock connector have been cited as forthcoming alterations to Apple’s flagship mobile device. While nobody outside Apple’s inner circle can be sure exactly what the famously tight-lipped company has planned for the iPhone, a skeptical reading of rumors makes it possible to build up a picture of what we know, or rather what we think we know, so far.

iOS and Android app helps you get more from your battery

Don’t you wish there was an app that you could download to your iOS or Android device that could actually help you get more from your built-in battery? Now there is.

Called Carat, this is the first app that can give you personalized battery life-saving recommendations. The app works by collecting metrics from your device and periodically sending them to the cloud in anonymized form.

There they are combined with data collected from other users and what’s described as “cutting-edge algorithms” are used to number-crunch the data and come up with personalized steps to help you use less power.

Idea introduces ID 918 dual-SIM Android smartphone for Rs. 5,994

Competition in the budget smartphone segment continues to heat up, as Idea Cellular launches its dual-SIM Android touch phone – ID 918. The device is already available at online retailers such as Flipkart with a price tag of Rs. 5,994.

Speaking of specifications, the Idea ID 918 runs on Android 2.3 operating system. It comes with a 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen with 480 x 800 pixels resolution, 3.2 MP primary camera and a 1,300 mAh battery, which is rated to deliver 4 hours of talktime and 200 hours of standby time. The device has 150MB built-in storage and supports up to 32GB microSD card. The device comes loaded with a 2GB card. For connectivity, the Idea ID 918 smartphone supports 3G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Check out the full specifications of the new Idea ID 918 here.

Cloud music is still the future for Apple, Amazon -- really

Given recent headlines about cloud music, you might be forgiven for thinking that the feature is huge with consumers.

Word came Monday that Apple has finally caught up to Google and Amazon and begun to stream songs from the company's cloud. The following day, CNET broke news that Amazon is very close to reaching agreements with the top four record companies that would let it run a licensed cloud music service. Music industry sources also told CNET that Google and the labels continue to discuss cloud licenses.

Interesting news. Now here's the reality: Consumer adoption of cloud music has been lackluster, multiple music industry insiders tell me. The cloud has not yet led to a spike in interest or music sales, the sources told CNET. Data from The NPD Group supports that conclusion, said Russ Crupnick, the research's company's senior vice president and industry analyst.

Apple going for changeable iPhone lens?

A US patent application made public on Thursday hinted that Apple may be toying with the idea of letting picture-loving iPhone users change lenses for the smartphone cameras. 

Apple's application for a "back panel for a portable electronic device with different camera lens options" included a diagram reminiscent of an opened iPhone with labeled parts. 

The application described a design to let users change lenses that typically are fixed in the backs of smartphones to act as eyes for cameras. 

Focus Squarely On Europe, Mobile Payments Startup iZettle Gets $31.4M From Greylock, MasterCard & More

Just days after releasing an API to integrate its payment platform into third-party apps, iZettle, known as the “Square of Europe” for its dongle-based iOS mobile payment system, has even more news: it has just completed a  €25 million ($31.4 million) Series B round of funding as part of its bid to become the biggest mobile payments platform in the region. The round was led by new investors Greylock Partners and Northzone, with participation from other new backers, including the payment giant MasterCard and SEB Private Equity, and previous investors Index Ventures and Creandum.

The funding takes the total investment in the company to $46.7 million, and Jacob de Geer, iZettle’s co-founder and CEO, says it will be used for product development, and to continue to build out its mobile payments service in Europe — currently available in Scandinavia and trialling in the UK. “Our priority is to get the UK fully launched, and then look at other major markets like Spain, Italy, France and Germany to continue building up our transaction volume,” he told TechCrunch in an interview. “We’re not interested in the U.S. They’re doing really well with Square and others.”

iPhone 5: 15 most-wanted features

Still waiting for iPhone 5

• New slimmer, lighter design.
• Better battery life.
• Larger screen.
• Support for high-speed 4G data network.
• "Wireless" charging.
• A6 processor with faster graphics chip.

First, an apology to those who've read this article before in its various iterations, you probably have a bad case of deja vu.


Truth be told, I originally published this column shortly after the iPhone 4 came out back in June 2010, which is why you see a lot of dated comments -- but they are fun to read.
Hopefully, this will be the last update, but you never know, considering how long this whole waiting-for-iPhone-5 saga has gone on.