How To

Amazon's Appstore for Android include apps that allow in-app purchases. In-app purchases may include items like premium content, subscriptions and game unlock codes.

To prevent a scenario in which your 3-year-old daughter accidentally makes an in-app purchase of an unlock code while playing Cut The Rope (true story), here's how to set the Amazon Appstore's parental controls :

Enable parental controls

Step 1: From within the Amazon Appstore, touch the menu key and select Settings.

Step 2: Select Parental Controls.

Step 3: Check the first box to enable parental controls and enter your Amazon.com password. This will more

One of the most powerful data sets on your iOS device is your list of contacts. Many of the amazing features the iPhone and iPad have are predicated on the information available from your address book. To help get the most out of your iDevice experience, you can use Twitter to beef up your contacts.

iOS 5 added quite a bit of Twitter integration, including the ability to automatically retrieve usernames and profile photos for any of your contacts who have Twitter accounts.

Essentially, if your contact has an e-mail address associated with a Twitter account, you can choose to

Whether you need to scan a document for signatures or you're prepping for tax season, this app is extremely useful.

There have been many attempts at document scanners on the Android Market. Most of the time these apps will utilize your camera and turn pictures you take into JPEGs or PDFs. Unfortunately, it's really difficult to take pictures of proportional rectangles in real life and have them look the same on your phone. 

That's why HandyScanner is so useful; it corrects the common issues with taking photos of documents, and even allows you to more

Syncing your iTunes library to an Android device is easier than you may think.

DoubleTwist is a two-part application that can allow your iTunes (Windows | Mac) library to journey into Android land (and back) with ease. One part of the application, including a media player for your convenience, runs on your Android device. The other runs on your computer and automatically locates your iTunes library and populates its own list for syncing. Read on to find out how to set this up.

These instructions will cover the Windows setup.

Step 1: Download DoubleTwist for Windows and DoubleTwist for Android.

Step

The new Google Docs update in the Android Market added offline viewing for Android phones and tablets.

Offline access is essential when you're not able to connect to the Internet, like on a plane or in a network dead zone. Here's how to use the new Google Docs offline feature for Android:

First, make sure you have the latest Google Docs app installed on your Android device.

Mark files for offline use

Android phone
On your Android phone, long-press on a document and select Make available offline.

Android tablet
On your Android tablet, you have three ways to more

Carry a bag with you everywhere you go just to carry every device and required charger? Find yourself traveling and constantly looking for an outlet to charge your phone or tablet? You may want to consider a Powerbag.

Powerbag is just what the name says: a bag that provides power to charge all of your gadgets while you're on the go. Whether a backpack or messenger bag, the bags have a battery built-in along with charging cables that allow you to charge your devices on the go, with no need for an outlet. There is even an extra USB more

Mobile device manufacturers still seem to think that adding a default signature, letting the world know what device you sent an e-mail from, is a good idea.

By default, the e-mail client on the Kindle Fire adds "Sent from my Kindle Fire" at the end of all messages you send. Here's how to remove it:

Step 1: From the inbox of your Kindle Fire, go to Settings.

Step 2: Under the "Sending mail" section, select Composition defaults.

Step 3: Remove or edit the signature from the text box. If you prefer to turn off signatures, uncheck the Use Signature more

Editors' note: This post was updated and republished on February 1, 2012, to bring you more awesome tips and tricks.

Grab your Kindle Fire, because to get you started with your new tablet, we've put together our best tips and tricks.

Begin with the basics (like transferring documents), then work your way up to tricks like streaming videos to the Kindle from your computer desktop. And bookmark this page, because we'll add more tips as we discover them.

If you have any requests for tutorials, leave them in the comments.

The basics
Four essential Kindle Fire tips and tricks

Our cookbooks are spending more time on the shelf. My laptop has fewer tomato stains. In place of these trusted recipe sources, our iPads and iPhones are becoming fixtures in our kitchen.

My wife and I are using iOS apps to discover new recipes and restaurants, shop more effectively at the grocery store, and keep track of noteworthy meals. Also, I found In-N-Out Burger's app, which I hope to use frequently on my next trip to the West Coast.

What you won't find here is anything in the way of a shopping list app. The cookbook apps below more