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The long wait is finally over as Apple has officially announced that iOS 4.2 will be available for the iPod, iPhone and iPad today at 10am PST, 1pm EST. The new update brings features such as folders, multitasking and a unified inbox to the iPad, as well as AirPlay and AirPrint to all devices. For a full rundown of all the new features make sure to check out the tutorials we posted last week.

Specifically in relation to the iPad, Apple head honcho Steve Jobs said “iOS 4.2 makes the iPad a completely new product, just in time for the holiday season. Once again, the iPad with iOS 4.2 will define the target that other tablets will aspire to, but very few, if any, will ever be able to hit.”

One of the less publicized but still incredibly important features is the fact that Apple is extending the Find My Phone service to all users for free. The feature, which allows users to track down lost iOS devices remotely, was previously restricted to MobileMe subscribers. The feature is great for those afraid of losing their device and having sensitive data exposed to the world, as Find My Phone allows you to locate your device on a map, lock it remotely and even wipe data if it's been compromised. Granted, most of us don't really need such a service, but it still makes our lives feel just a little more like a James Bond film, and that's always awesome.

At any rate, we're mere hours away from Apple's next big major operating system update! How excited are you? Are you planning a party to have all your friends come over and you'll all eat snacks and download the update together? We'll bring the dip, but if Susan makes that awful casserole again we're totally leaving right away and will just keep running 4.1 until we get home.

[via MacRumors and Apple]

Though most of us poor schmucks continue to wait around for Apple to release iOS 4.2 there are some media types who have had access to the update for a while now and have spent some quality time with the new tech. Thankfully, our friends over at TiPb have gone ahead and created a couple of videos to walk us through the new features that 4.2 will bring to the iPad and iPhone.

The iPad video goes in depth on a lot of new features, including AirPlay integration and multitasking. We're also happy that TiPb dove into the back-end a bit, showing off the new settings and other under the hood changes you might not have noticed had they not been featured in the video. Of course the iPad is also getting a few enhancements that have been on the iPhone for a while now, including Game Center and organizing apps into folders. While Apple's folder system isn't the most elegant solution in the world, it's still very space-saving and helpful to those who thrive on organizing their life.

The iPhone video is a bit shorter as iOS 4.2 is not quite as weighty of a change for Apple's smaller device. Some major inclusions are the introduction of MobileMe, as well as how to get to the volume and AirPlay controls via swiping the multitasking dock. There's also mention of AirPrint, though it is rumored this feature may be dropped or altered before iOS 4.2 actually launches. There are also a number of other small changes and improvements you may not have known about before.

So feel free to point your peepers at the video for your relevant iOS device(s) and prepare to amaze your friends when you're navigating the new system like a pro on launch day while they're still trying to figure out how to adjust screen brightness. For at least a brief time you can feel completely confident in the fact that you are better than them.

[via TiPb]

The 4.2 update for iOS devices is rumored to be launching this week, and perhaps no machine is getting more fun new features than the iPad. While many of the additions merely bring the iPad in line with capabilities already possessed by the iPhone and iPod Touch, no one seems to be complaining. Here's a quick rundown of what's coming in the update.

AirPlay - Owners will now be able to stream their pictures, videos and music directly from their iPad to their Apple TVs and AirPort Express, as well as to other AirPlay-compatible devices from third-party vendors.

AirPrint: With AirPrint you'll now be able to wirelessly print from your iPad by allowing iOS 4.2 devices to discover printers on the local network. The only catch is you seem to need the newest version of Snow Leopard to make it work.

Multitasking: Possibly the biggest new feature in iOS 4.2 is multitasking. Just like on the iPhone and iPod touch, a double click on the home button brings up a bar at the bottom of the screen with the last six apps opened. This allows users to switch between apps without having to go to the home screen first.

Folders: iPad users can now finally organize their apps into folders, with up to 20 apps in each folder.

Game Center: Now you can track Achievements and friends on any iOS device and brag about your amazing score regardless of what mobile device you're carrying. The app is pretty much the same as what's already available on other iOS machines.

Also just like on the iPhone, swiping to the right on the multitasking panel brings up screen brightness and volume. Apple turned the orientation toggle on the top right of the device into a mute switch, so this area of the multitasking bar now lets you lock your iPad into the desired orientation.

Safari: The '+' button for bookmarking sites is gone and has been replaced with a share button that includes the bookmarking functionality, but also allows you to compose an email with a link to the current page and to print the page with the help of AirPrint. The tab button now also shows how many open tabs you currently have.

Also new is the ability to search for text inside a page. The search feature in Safari now doesn't just display search suggestions but also tells you how often your search terms appear on the page you are currently looking at. After clicking on one of these results, a new bar appears at the bottom of the browser screen that allows you to jump to all the instances of this keyword and also to refine your search.

Unified Email Inbox: See all your email in one inbox, even if you sync multiple email accounts with your iPad. Gmail accounts can also archive messages rather than deleting them, but if you do want to delete a message it requires going through a couple extra menu screens in order to do so.

So plenty of new toys available for iPad users to check out, now we just have to wait for Apple to throw the switch and make the update live. Once 4.2 is in the wild we will be sure and let you know so you can download it immediately.

[via ReadWriteWeb]
[inbox image source: TiPb]

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