Tablets How-Tos

How To: Reverse the Scrolling Direction on Your Microsoft Surface's Trackpad in Windows 8.1

If you had the original Microsoft Surface with Windows 8 and a Type or Touch cover, you know how big a pain in the ass it was to change the scrolling direction of the trackpad.

How To: Resize the Browser Windows on Your Samsung Galaxy Tab 2

Since the release of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, many of its features have been replicated by Android developers for other devices. The most popular feature, aside from Smart Rotation, on the Note 2 has been the multitasking multi-screen/multi-window feature, which allows you to run several apps at the same time.

How To: Build a Tablet Mount for No-Hands Reading and Movie Watching in Bed

Reading in bed with a book and bedside lamp is so 1990s. As tablets get smaller and content continues to be digitized, reading on an electronic device is pretty standard.

How To: Get Unlimited Free Magazines from Google Play on Your Android Device

While the Google Play Store is filled with big name magazines like Time, Forbes, Sports Illustrated and Maxim, it also panders to smaller audiences, like with Coin Prices, Soap Opera Digest, Watch Journal and Quilter's World (which yes, is all about quilting). If you have a select few that you enjoy reading, prices aren't usually a problem; issues range from $1.99 to $4.99 for each one, or from $19.99 to $39.99 for yearly subscriptions. If you're someone that is a magazine connoisseur, prices...

How To: Design Your Own Custom Foldable Papercrafts on Your iPad

In the papercraft world, nothing is beyond its reach. Anything from a Rolex watch to PSY doing his famous Gangnam Style horse dance has been converted to papercraft. That's great and all, but what if you want to make your own custom papercraft? Foldify, which releases next week in the iTunes App Store for the iPad, allows users to create their own custom foldable papercrafts in real time 3D.

How To: Turn Your iPad Mini's Box into a Free Stand and Charging Dock

You can make a dock for an Apple device out of almost anything, even the box it comes in. People have been turning Apple's product packaging into DIY docks for a few years now, including the iPod nano, iPod touch, and iPhone 4. So, it's no surprise that the newly released iPad mini already has one, too. Obviously, if you ever anticipate selling yours, modifying the box probably isn't a good idea since you get more money for used devices with original packaging. But, if you plan on keeping it ...

How To: Add Extra Storage Space to Your Microsoft Surface That Your Apps Can Actually Use

Microsoft's first venture into the tablet market, the Surface RT, combines many of the capabilities of a normal Windows 8 laptop into a super compact tablet, whose super-thin touch cover and kickstand can transform it into a functional mini-laptop, small and light enough to go anywhere you want. But like most tablets, the Surface comes with a rather limited amount of storage space. The tablet comes in either 32 GB or 64 GB, but we all know that's not the actual amount of storage space you can...

How To: Preserve Battery Life on Your Apple iPad Mini

Apple has begun selling their new iPad mini at stores around the world starting today. The mini, a smaller and cheaper alternative to the larger iPad, has a starting price of $329 and is expected to sell around 1 to 1.5 million units in the first weekend, far below the 3 million iPad 3s sold last March (who all probably want their money back). Something that's sure to be brought up in the following days, as with most new devices, is the battery life. As we previously provided you tips on savi...

How To: PlayStation Gaming, Dual-Booting, and 6 Other Cool Ways to Get More Out of Your Nook eReader

If you have a Barnes & Noble Nook, you may be surprised to find that your eReader can do a lot more than just display ebooks, which makes it a great alternative to those more expensive all-in-one tablets that do everything (seriously, everything). If you want to get more bang for your buck, here are a few ways you can hack your own Nook.

How To: Transfer photos to an iPad with a camera connector kit from Apple

The camera connector kit from Apple is a great accessory if you want to instantly edit and interact with photos that you take on your portable digital camera. This tutorial will show you how to make use of the iPad's camera connector so that you can adjust those photos on the go.

How To: Change how the slide switch works on an iPad

Try this trick to customize the functionality of the side switch on the iPad. With it, you'll be able to make the side switch do other things, such as lock the orientation of the screen in one direction so that it doesn't change when you move it into landscape or portrait mode.

How To: Configure a Wi-Fi connection on an iPad

If you're trying to learn how to use Wi-Fi on your iPad, take a look at this tutorial on connecting your iPad to a wireless network so that you can access the internet. You'll need to use the settings and know the name of the wireless connection you want to use. Make sure you have the password handy, too!

How To: Use a volume rocker shortcut to mute the speaker on your iPad

If you need to quickly silence your iPad, accessing the volume options on screen can be tedious and lengthy. You can also use the volume rocker, but if you have to press the button several times before the sound is finally muted, it can take several seconds. Instead, try long-holding the lower volume button on the side of the iPad so immediately mute the audio coming from your tablet.

How To: Add an email account in webOS on the HP TouchPad

One of the many features of the webOS tablet, the HP TouchPad, is a full featured mail app. Before you can use the app however, you will need to setup your email account on the tablet. Take a look at this guide to learn how to setup an account using the automatic method, or the more customizable manual mode.

How To: Overclock the hardware in your HP TouchPad for a faster tablet

In this two part segment, we learn how to properly overclock the HP TouchPad. One of the few complaints about the tablet was the occasional slow reaction time of the processor, but now you can speed up your TouchPad for a faster webOS. This guide walks you through everything from downloading Novacom drivers to inputting the Konami code.

How To: Jailbreak your HP TouchPad by installing Preware

Jailbreaking your HP TouchPad allows you to install third-party software and features on the webOS device. Before you can jailbreak the tablet, you'll first need to go through the steps necessary to install preware on it. Take a look at this walkthrough and use the download links below when necessary.

How To: Update an HP TouchPad tablet to the latest version of webOS

This guide will help you learn how to find out what version of webOS your TouchPad is running by checking the settings area of your tablet. If you find that your software is out of date, it will also help you upgrade your HP TouchPad to the latest version so that you always have the newest update!

How To: Use apps and features in webOS on an HP TouchPad

If you're interested in learning all the features and functions of webOS 3.0, look no further than this walkthrough on a HP TouchPad tablet. The video shows you how to switch between apps, configure settings, use the default programs on the device, and more!

How To: Search for and install apps on the HP TouchPad using the HP App Catalog

The HP App Catalog features thousands of apps ripe for downloading and installation on HP's webOS tablet--the TouchPad. Take a look at this guide to find out how to search for apps using HP's version of the app store. The walkthrough will even teach you how to install them, so get ready for a few rounds of Angry Birds!

How To: Setup your HP TouchPad using the initial webOS wizard

If you were one of the lucky individuals to score a TouchPad before HP discountinued them, you will need to proceed through the initial setup wizard when you turn on the device for the first time, or after performing a data wipe and reset on the tablet. This guide will walk you through everything from accepting the terms & conditions, connecting to a Wi-Fi network, and creating a webOS account for the first time.

How To: Configure the settings on an HP TouchPad tablet

The HP TouchPad is a webOS tablet capable of displaying media, browsing and connecting to the web, downloading and accessing apps, and more. This guide walks you through the process of configuring a number of settings on the device. Learn how to adjust the time, location services (GPS), screen lock, privacy features, and more.

How To: Add widgets to your Android Nook Color home screen

Want to add some widgets to the home screen of your Android enabled Nook Color tablet? Watch this video to learn how to do it. If you need one, you can order a pre-configured microSD here. Watch this video and learn.

How To: Attach a wireless Xbox 360 controller to your Android Honeycomb device

Check out this video to learn how you can play games on your Android Honeycomb device with an Xbox 360 controller. Looking for a better way to enjoy your tablet? This is it. This video will show you how to use an adapter to attach an Xbox 360 controller to your Android 3.1 device.

How To: Install Ubuntu on your Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Android tablet

If you are interested in installing Ubuntu on your Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 Android tablet. You can download Ubuntu and ADB here. Root Ubuntu Linux on top of your Android OS with Ubuntu running like a virtual machine.

How To: Play NES games on a Dropad A8 tablet with a Wiimote controller

Check out this video to learn how you can play all of your favorite NES games on your Dropad A8 tablet. With Android version 2.3.1 you can run Nesoid emulator, and with a bluetooth dongle you can connect a Wiimote as your controller.

How To: Play N64 games on your Dropad A8 with N64oid emulator and a Wiimote

Using Android apps like N64oid, Wiimote Controller, and Bluetooth OnOff, you can configure your Dropad A8 to play N64 games using a Wiimote at the controller. Watch this video to see how it works. Hook up your Android version 2.3.1 Dropad A8 tablet with a bluetooth dongle and start gaming.

How To: Use an Xbox 360 contoller wirelessly with a Motorola Xoom Android

Take your Motorola Xoom Android gaming experience to the next level. Watch this video and follow these instructions to learn how to set up an Xbox 360 controller to work with your tablet wirelessly. Play all of your favorite emulator games.

How To: Use a PS3 controller with a Motorola Xoom Android

Get more out of your Motorola Xoom Android tablet. Hook up a PS3 controller and enjoy all the games you can play with emulators on your tablet. Follow these instructions to make your Motorola Xoom Android a superior gaming machine by hooking up a PS3 controller.

How To: Stream Hulu on a Nook Color or other Android device

Watch this video to learn how to get Hulu streaming video on your Nook Color or other Android device. To do this, you'll need to download a modified Adobe Flash player and Dropbox. Turn your Nook Color or Android device into a full service entertainment machine.

How To: Restore a Nook Color to the original out of the box settings using a Mac

If you're feeling rooter's remorse, check out this video to learn how to restore your Nook Color to its original firmware version 1.0.1. You'll have to download ClockworkMod Recovery and this Nook Color restore file. These directions are for unrooting/ restoring/ unbricking a Nook Color using a Mac.

How To: Mod a Nook Color to run the Netflix app

The Nook Color is great for reading books, but wouldn't it be nice if you could watch movies on it? This video will show you how to run the Netflix app on a rooted Nook Color. You can mod Netflix into playing on your rooted eReader.

How To: Install Gingerbread on a Samsung Galaxy Tab

If you are interested in installing Gingerbread on your rooted Samsung Galaxy Tab, check out this video. You'll want to download Stock GB as well as Overcome and the ROM. You'll use Odin to install Gingerbread on the Android tablet.

How To: Use Heimdall to flash firmware to your Samsung device

If you are looking for an alternative to Odin, you can try Heimdall, a third party software designed for flashing firmware to Samsung mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets. Watch this video to learn how to use Heimdall to install firmware on your Samsung Android devices.

How To: Use a mouse and keyboard with the Asus Eee Pad Transformer

The new Asus Eee Pad Transformer tablet can do it all. It's so powerful you can hook it up to a mouse and keyboard and use it as your primary computer. Check out this video to learn how to use a mouse and keyboard with the Asus EeePad Transformer.

How To: Run iPad-only apps on your iPhone or iPod touch (for Macs)

With OpenSSH installed on your device, you can run your iPad-only apps smoothly on your iPhone or iPod touch. You'll need to download iTelePad2Pod on your Mac to get those iPad apps working on your other iOS devices. Then follow the instructions in the video to make sure you always have your favorite apps on you, no matter what the Apple device. Take your iPad everywhere, even when you leave it at home!

How To: Upgrade Your Nook Color's Software to Android 2.2 Froyo

Before, eReaders were only used to read eBooks. Not anymore. As tablet computers become more and more advanced, eReaders like Amazon's Kindle, Sony's Reader and Barnes & Noble's Nook are forced to expand their capabilities beyond the basic bibliophilic needs. And the first to make significant headway is B&N's Nook Color.

How To: Download Tons of Free eBooks Online for Any eReader Device

Remember those old vinyl records? Remember jumping on the 8-track bandwagon? Switching over to cassette tapes? How much money you spent converting your music collection to compact discs? To MP3s?

How To: Track Down an Apple iPad 2 (All Models) in Stores or Online

If you're a diehard Apple fan, chances are the new iPad 2 caught your eye, stole your heart and emptied your wallet. Who couldn't resist the sophisticated slim-body design or its fascinating new Smart Cover? Well—it seems nobody could. And if you were late to jump on the bandwagon, you're still probably cleaning that dust out of your mouth because it took off without you—leaving the latest and greatest Apple gadget out of your reach.

How To: Hack the New Apple Smart Cover to Fit the Original iPad

When the iPad 2 was released earlier this month, as to be expected there was a whole lotta buzz. And for good reason—while the the newest version shares the same price tag as the old, it boasts some significant new features. In case you missed it, here's a quick overview:

How To: Hack Your Nook Color into a Full (But Cheap) Android Tablet

Thanks to online music services like eMusic and iTunes, compact discs are becoming a far distant memory, turning local music shops around the country into desolate wastelands. The once mighty movie rental store Blockbuster is now bankrupt because of online streaming services like Hulu and Netflix. And Borders and Barnes & Noble are closing stores left and right thanks to eBooks available on eReaders, like the Amazon Kindle. Everything is moving to the digital world, and everything is finding ...