iPad

From the latest news to the most comprehensive tutorials, learn how to get the most out of your iPad with our step-by-step guides and expert tips.

Boeing rolls out iPad app suite for airplane maintenance crews

Up until now, airlines mostly tapped iPads to either shrink the size of flight bags carried by pilots and other flight crews or relax restriction on how passengers can use tablets. Tuesday, aircraft maker Boeing announced a suite of iPad apps designed to help maintenance crews find, fix and get airplanes back in service with the least delays. Yes, there are now iPad apps to service those huge jumbo jets.

How cool is that?

Microsoft introduces the Surface 2, Surface Pro 2

As expected, Microsoft held a media event in New York this morning where it unveiled the successors to both of its Surface lines—the Surface 2 and the Surface Pro 2—in a new effort to make inroads into the tough tablet market.

Both slates have received significant updates this time around, with better processors, USB 3.0 support, and Microsoft promising better battery life. But will the hardware upgrades be enough to turn the Surface brand around?

BlackBerry to sell itself in $4.7 billion deal

Canadian phone maker BlackBerry - once the undisputed enterprise giant that used to be synonymous with smartphones and whose iconic BlackBerry handsets with their clickety-clack keyboards and real-time, secure push email were considered the real work machines - is now entertaining a $4.7 billion offer from its largest shareholder, a move that would take the free-falling phone company private.

Fairfax Financial Holdings, which already owns 9.9 percent of the Waterloo, Ontario firm, would pay $9 per share, a 3.1 percent premium over last week's share price. According to a statement by Fairfax CEO Prem Watsa, the private company will "focus on delivering superior and secure enterprise solutions to BlackBerry customers around the world."...

Pricier iPhone 5s’s popularity triple that of iPhone 5c

We've already heard field reports suggesting the iPhone 5s was outselling the colorful iPhone 5c. Now comes hard after the first weekend of sales for Apple's two new iPhones. The new flagship 5s smartphone is more than three times as popular as the less expensive 5c, according to one analytics firm Monday.

While both of the handsets represent 1.36 of all activated iPhones in the US, the lion's share goes to the iPhone 5s, with 1.05 percent of all Apple smartphones activated by the country's top four wireless carriers. By contrast, the iPhone 5c is far behind in adoption, representing just 0.31 percent of activated US iPhones...

New in iOS 7: use Siri to access app settings

Apple has not only made Siri more intelligent and capable in iOS 7, but it's also stopped referring to it as being in 'beta.' We've noted a number of the digital assistant's improvements over the past few months, but here's a cool little trick that was just pointed out to us...

Good deal: 30% off Touchfire Keyboard for iPad

If you're in the market for a keyboard accessory to help you type more efficiently on your iPad, you might want to check out the Touchfire. It's a silicon insert that fits over your iPad's display, offering tactile feedback as you type.

And right now, the folks over at Stack Social are running a promotion on the Touchfire KeyBoard, enabling you to pick one up at a nice discount. For a limited time, the deal site is knocking 30% off the accessory's retail price tag...

Apple no longer signing iOS 6.1.3/4

Bad news this evening for anyone hoping to downgrade from iOS 7 to a lower firmware. It appears that Apple is no longer signing iOS 6.1.3 and 6.1.4 for a majority of its devices, effectively terminating their ability to downgrade.

This is significant for a few reasons. For one, folks who upgraded to iOS 7 and don't like the redesigned UI are now essentially stuck with it for the foreseeable future. And more importantly, word is a 6.1.3/4 jailbreak is coming...

Logitech teases first iOS 7-compatible game controller

In addition to its new design, and new features, iOS 7 includes a number of new tools for developers to take advantage of. And one that we're really excited about is support for third party game controllers.

Games in iOS 7 will be able to tie into Apple's Game Controller framework, allowing for the universal use of authorized 'MFi' devices. And today, Logitech and others began teasing their first MFi gamepads...

Apple now requires medical apps to provide sources of the information included

Would you follow a treatment plan outlined in a medical app? The increasing popularity of apps which diagnose and treat medical issues is causing Apple to enact stricter guidelines. Apple wants developers of medical apps which give consumers drug dosages to cite references. The new requirement is designed to reduce medical misdiagnosis, as well as potential plagiarism, according to a news site Wednesday...

Angry Birds Star Wars II now available for download

Good news for those looking for a good way to kill some time while iOS 7 downloads, there's a new Angry Birds game out. Rovio has just released Angry Birds Star Wars II, and it's now available for download in the App Store.

Like the first installment, the game is based on the "Star Wars" movies, and allows players to join either the Pork Federation or the "Pork Side." There's more than 30 playable characters here, including Yoda, Jango Fett and more...

A running list of major iOS 7 app updates

With Apple releasing iOS 7 today, a number of popular apps have posted updates in order to make sure they work properly with the new firmware. Some are just minor compatibility updates, and others are complete redesigns.

Instead of trying to do individual posts about each of these updates, we've decided to keep a running list of all of them so that you can get an idea of which applications have been updated and what the new versions look like...