Has iOS 4.2 made those nifty keyboard shortcuts we posted about a couple weeks ago just a little bit glitchy on your iPad? Being able to tap and slide to capital letters, numbers, symbols, etc. is a real time saver but several of our readers are telling us they’re either not working at all, working but resulting in random input instead of the right character, or sometimes working and sometimes not.

I had the problem at first but it seems to have stopped after a reboot. If you’re having the problem we have the usual advice to help you fix it, after the break.

If you’re not sure which keyboard shortcuts we’re talking about, check out the original tip and video. Unfortunately, there’s no secret to this one. Since it isn’t consistent it’s probably not a real bug in the OS but just a glitch for some of us who’ve updated. Here’s what to try, from easy to annoying:

• Restart the app.
• Reboot the iPad.
• Update the OS again in iTunes and restore from backup.
• Update the OS again and start clean.

Yes, the last one is the nuclear option but sometimes there’s a problem in the backup and no matter how many times you restore, you end up restoring that same problem again and again. Hopefully one of the first few solutions works for you and it doesn’t come to that — just know it’s always an option.

If you’re experiencing a glitchy keyboard on your iPad post iOS 4.2, and especially if you’ve found a work around, let us know in the comments!

iOS 4.2 bugs: Keyboard shortcuts glitchy on iPad? is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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There’s a crazy rumor floating around the web that Howard Stern, a popular radio personality who’s been in the business for 35 years, will be leaving Sirius Satellite Radio after his contract ends in January to pursue a possible deal with Apple. The rumored deal calls for a $600 million 3-year contract for an internet broadcast show distributed through iTunes, and could be made available to Apple TV owners as well.

We’d take this with a king of all media sized grain of salt, however, as @SIRI_STOCK isn’t the official Twitter account for Sirius. In addition, $600 million for 3 years seems a bit over the top. Then again, anything related to Stern is usually considered to be somewhat controversial, so your guess is as good as ours.

I know I’d be interested if this turned out to be true. Any of our readers feel the same? Sound off in the comments below!

UPDATE: It appears to be a hoax. Softsquach blogged about how they used the twitter account to mess with the community a bit.

I posted the below tweet on a friend’s Sirius Satellite News Twitter account earlier today [...] Don't believe everything you read people!

Although it’s just wishful thinking at this point, it would have been interesting to see how something like this would have played out. Move along, folks!

(Thanks for the tip, Art!)

UPDATE: Hoax! Howard Stern leaving Sirius for $600 million iTunes deal? is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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Just get an iPhone or iPad and curious how to better scroll your way around apps like the Safari web browser? Apple has built a whole lotta multitouch goodness into iOS to help you out, and let’s face it the faster and more accurately you can scroll, the better.

Thanks to SockRolid from TiPb’s iPhone Forums, we’ll show you a few quick tips to get you started… after the break.

Go to the top of a page

If you’ve flicked your way down a web page (or any long page), don’t bother flicking to get back to the top. Just tap the status bar and you’ll be instantly transported to the top of the page.

Unfortunately there’s no “scroll to the bottom” shortcut, but scroll to the top works in almost all iPhone and iPad apps so consider that a bonus tip!

Tap to stop scrolling

If you’ve flicked madly and inertia has zoomed past what you wanted to see, you can tap the screen anywhere to instantly stop the scrolling. And tapping to to stop scrolling won’t bring up the keyboard.

Scroll free or scroll constrained

If you start moving a page around diagonally you’ll be able to keep moving it any which way you like — up, down, left, right or any angle you please. If you start scrolling straight up or down, iOS will lock vertically so you can only keep scrolling up or down. This is handy for long text pages where you want to keep what you’re reading in the frame.

Jump through the alphabet in Contacts

You can use this tip with Contacts any app that has the alphabet in a column on the right (the “index” as Apple calls it). Tap a letter in the index to jump right to the items whose names start with that letter. Or drag your finger to rapidly scroll through the alphabet.

We’ve found that lifting your finger occasionally causes the list to jump to the previous or next letter in the alphabet. If this happens to you, you might try sliding your finger off-screen to the right instead of lifting it up.

Scroll inside a form field

Some web pages, especially content management systems, have form fields with tons of text in them. Using one finger you can only move the whole page around, which makes it impossible to get to any off-screen text. However, if you place two fingers on the text in the form field, you can scroll that text instead of the whole page. Check the video up top to see how it’s done.

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…)

Daily tip: Scrolling on iPhone and iPad is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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Amplitube 2 by IK Multimedia is an awesome little app that allows you to convert your iPhone into a full on guitar rig. Their iPad version was recently featured in one of the new Apple iPad ads. The app has 3 versions currently – Amplitube Free, Amplitube LE ($2.99), and the full Amplitube version ($19.99). We are using the full version for this review to give you a complete picture of what’s available.

To use this app, you’ll need to purchase an iRig, which are currently priced at $39.99. You’ll simply plug your guitar or bass into the iRig which then plugs into your iPhone or iPad. The 3rd outlet allows you to plug into the audio output of your choice. We just used a standard surround system (receiver) for this review. You’re also free to use an amp or headphones, which can be great if you’d like to practice quietly. And hey, it’s a lot easier to carry around the iRig than an entire guitar rig.

iTunes Link

When you first launch Amplitube, you’ll see a plethora of different options. You can choose between different cabinets as well as add effects pedals. The full version of Amplitube comes with most of the effects pedals and tons of extras. You can also purchase more gear via an in-app purchase. We also purchased the four track recorder, which is not included in any version. We tested the iRig and Amplitube 2 with not only a surround sound system, but headphones as well. The results really were quite pleasing. In-app purchases are easy enough and add even more features to the app. They are also extremely reasonably priced when you look at what a new physical effects pedal would cost, for example.

This app is great for anyone who wants to learn to play guitar but doesn’t want to invest into a major setup right off the bat. It’s also great for professionals who may travel a lot and don’t want to always carry a full rig with them. The app also features basic tools like a built-in tuner and metronome as well. The song feature allows you to drop in songs from your iTunes library through file sharing. Then when you launch the app, you can play along with your favorite songs within the app. This is a great feature for wearing headphones and practicing when you don’t want to disturb anyone else.

The only down sides we noticed when testing this app was the cramped layout. I pulled my brother in on this review, as I do not pretend to be a master guitar player. He really enjoyed playing with this app and using it, but he was sometimes frustrated by the cramped layout. If you have an iPad that you carry around with you frequently, I’d suggest using Amplitube with the iPad over the iPhone. The layout is much more spacious and it’s harder to press buttons on accident. He would frequently hit the wrong tab along the top when trying to toggle between effects pedals or other settings. This is one thing I’d like to see some improvement on in the next iteration. Other than that, this is a great app and one I’d suggest any guitar player to look over. If you aren’t sure about buying an iRig just yet, check out the free version of the app and browse through what’s available first. It’s definitely a decent investment for anyone who wants to be more portable with their guitar or bass.

Pros

• Easy setup with iRig
• In-app purchase makes it simple to buy more effects on the go
• iRig and app are reasonably priced for what they offer
• The Songs option is a great feature that takes advantage of file sharing

Cons

• The layout on the iPhone version is a bit cramped
• The four track recorder is not extremely easy to learn, but once you figure it out, it’s a nice feature to have

Amplitube 2 for iPhone – App Review is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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From the expert theme designers of Xhd and iNSPIRED comes iNitsua Z Twilight HD for the iPhone 4. Zausser and K. Nitsua have created a breathtaking Retina quality theme that skins every UI element of the iPhone 4 from the keypad to the SMS messaging interface. This full featured theme is to be used on Jailbroken iPhones with the Winterboard app and comes with numerous weather widgets, animated lock screen themes, pin entry skins, and even comes with a non Retina port for the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS. iNitusa Z Twilight HD is available on Cydia for $2.99.

As with all of Zausser and K. Nitsua’s themes, most of the fun is derived from customization. iNitsua Z Twilight HD comes with PSDs to easily customize different aspects of the theme and to make your own custom icons. There is already a large library of user made add on packs that allow you to change the color schemes, install different weather widgets and lock screens, iAccess keyboard skins, or add custom icon and SBSetting packs.

Check out the stunning pictures after the break but keep in mind that Retina quality themes look much better on a Retina display than on your computer screen. Excited about all the HD theme’s coming to the iPhone 4? Questions about Winterboard and theme customization? Leave us a comment or visit our Jailbreak forums!

Theme artists Zausser and K. Nitsua present iNitsua Z Twilight HD for iPhone 4 [Jailbreak] is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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It looks like the 16GB 3G variant of the iPad is now being offered on T-Mobile for UK customers. Depending on what plan you choose, you can snag a bit of a discount on the actual iPad.

New customers can get 1GB of data + 1GB of quiet time data (data used between midnight and 10am) for £27.00/month which will bring the actual iPad cost to £199.00. Existing customers can get the same data plan for £25.00/month and receive the same £199.00 deal on the actual device.

If you’d prefer to go no contract, there are 3 pay as you go plans you can choose from -

• 500MB/day for £2.00/day
• 1GB/week for £7.00/week
• 2GB/month for £15.00/month

If you choose one of the pay as you go plans, the iPad will cost you £529.99. You can also add insurance to your iPad for £12.99/month.

Anyone out there on T-Mobile UK thinking about snagging one of these plans?

via T-Mobile UK

T-Mobile UK Now Offering 16GB Wifi + 3G iPads is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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Air Video, a fantastic app that can transcode and stream video content from your Windows PC or Mac straight to your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad, has just been updated to include support for multitasking and Retina display. 

Your Windows PC or Mac needs a small piece of software installed to communicate with your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad but once setup you can stream native iOS video content (MP4 and M4V) instantly to your device (rather than having to sync it over first via iTunes). Air Video will convert non-supported video formats (AVI, MKV, etc) and either store them for later viewing or stream them on the fly so you can watch now rather than waiting for later.

This is done with one click on your iOS device; no other software is needed for the conversion. You can also setup specific folders for the converted videos to be stored in and choose what order they appear on your device.

Air Video is an excellent app that gives me instant access to over 2TB of media on my Windows Home Server. Do you use it? Let us know what you think in the comments!

[$2.99 - iTunes Link]

Air Video for iPhone, iPad updated with multitasking and retina display support is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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