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Apple’s long-awaited universal iOS update is available today to everyone using an iPad or post-3G iPhone or iPod Touch. The big features have been well-known and the release candidate’s been out for a while, but Apple still managed to add a few surprises to the official release.

The biggest upgrade is for iPad users, who get their first crack at some of the new features first introduced for iPhone 4: application multitasking, the ability to organize apps into folders, a unified e-mail inbox, Apple’s Game Center for social gaming and AirPrint for remote printing from the iPad to selected printers.

The most hotly awaited feature is probably AirPlay, which is all-new to iOS 4.2. AirPlay allows for video and audio streaming from iOS handheld devices to new iOS-powered versions of the Apple TV set-top box. Apple TV is also getting a 4.2 firmware update; you need to update both your iOS device and Apple TV in order to get AirPlay to properly work.

One nice surprise is that Find My iPhone, which used to require a paid MobileMe subscription, is now free for any iOS 4.2 device, including iPad and iPod Touch. It will be available as a separate download from the App Store; log in with either your MobileMe or Apple ID, and you can locate your missing device on a map and have it display a message, play a sound, or even remotely lock/wipe it if it’s gone for good.

Strangely, setting up free Find My iPhone support for early iPhone/iPod Touch models can only be done indirectly. You need to update to iOS 4.2 and download the new 1.1 version of Find My iPhone (which is only compatible with iOS 4.2). For some reason, by default, the service can only be activated on current-model iOS devices: iPad, iPhone 4 and the new iPod Touch. But once the service has been activated on one of these newer devices, it can then be used on any device running iOS 4.2, even an iPhone 3G. It’s a very strange workaround, but it does work.

If you expect AirPrint to automatically work with your network’s computer, you’ll probably be disappointed. Apple scrapped drivers supporting AirPrint for any printer attached to a Mac as part of OS X’s official 10.6.5 software update. So for now, the only printers supporting AirPrint are a handful of HP devices that have the network printing software built-in. You can use AirPrint Hacktivator to reinstall the missing drivers for Mac. Other workarounds are available as well.

Stay tuned for more iOS 4.2 coverage as the updates for all of the devices roll out. Meanwhile, I’m off to see whether 4.2 might finally make my iPhone 3G workable, or if it’s iOS 3 for me forever.

Apple’s iOS 4.2 Available Today for iPad, iPhone & iPod touch [Apple Press Release]

See Also:

• iOS 4.2 Goes Gold Master, iPad Gains New Multitask Bar
• iOS 4.2 First Look: iPad Gets Multitasking, Printing
• IOS 4.2 Beta Adds Tethering to iPad
• IOS 4.2 Update 'Delayed,' Despite No Official Launch Date
• IOS 4.2 Changes iPad Screen-Lock Switch to Mute Button
• Apple Announces New Versions of iOS
• Rumor: Apple's iOS Printing Crippled on Release
• Apple's 'Find my iPhone' App Almost Impossible to Use
• IPhone and iPad Lost in the Trash, Found With MobileMe

If you’re an iPad owner, you’ve probably been on pins and needles lately. That’s because back in September, Apple announced that a full-scale update to the tablet’s OS would be coming in the form of iOS 4.2, bringing a slew of new features to the device. Included in that laundry list is proper iOS 4-style multitasking, folders, major mail improvements, Game Center integration, and Safari enhancements (like find-in-page text searches). Besides those features, the company has been touting two other big changes that could cause a major shift in the way you use your iPad — namely, AirPrint and AirPlay. Both additions leverage your WiFi network, certain connected printers, and the new Apple TV in an attempt to make the company’s slate less like a distraction and more like the center of your digital life.

When the update was originally announced, we took you on a walkthrough of the early developer beta. Though 4.2 will roll out to the iPhone and iPod touch, we wanted to focus on the iPad version, as it represents a major change for the platform. We’ve had a chance to spend time with the final version of the OS (which is actually 4.2.1 now), and put it through its paces. We’ve updated our original guide and given the finished product a critical once over, so read on for our full review!

Continue reading iOS 4.2 review (for iPad)

iOS 4.2 review (for iPad) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Nov 2010 08:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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