For most people, the iPad has become their de facto device to watch movies and television programs while on the go. To help facilitate this, services like Netflix and Hulu offer iOS apps to run on the device.

Today, in an effort to enhance that experience further, Hulu updated its app for the iPad. Here’s what the update gives you:

• Easier navigation. Simply tap or swipe as you navigate to find shows and discover great new content.

• Discover Panel. Tap the image of a new show, movie or episode, and we’ll give you a summary and more info instantly.

• Minimized Player. Want to multitask? Keep watching your desired video in a minimized player while you browse.

• New Series Pages. Includes both the most entertaining clip and the most relevant episode at your fingertips.

• Improved Search. Faster, more intuitive search bar.

For Android users who’ve had a chance to experience just how good the Google Now service can be, this article won’t interest you as much. However, for the iOS users out there, this should be of great interest.

Not that we have anything against Apple’s Siri, but the Google Now service just gets the job done a bit better. Fortunately, Google Now has arrived for iOS.

It’s not a stand alone app but is, instead, part of the updated Google Search app for iOS. If you haven’t already downloaed it, you can grab it right here.

In case you’re somehow not familiar with Google Now, it’s an intelligent assistant that automatically presents users with information based on location, search history and more, without any action required by the user. It’s also really good at finding things like the nearest food when users asks specific questions like “I want tacos” or similar. Yes, that’s what Apple’s Siri is supposed to do, and it does. . . prety well.

Google Now just does it better. Sorry Apple. As with Maps, you’ve got some work to do in this area. Fortunately, competition is a good thing.

For more on Google Now, check out the official video after the break.

With Google’s Maps app for iOS pretty much dominating the scene, the company has released another app for iOS that could be almost as useful. Or, at least, potentially more fun.

The new app, called Field Trip, had previously been Android-only and is a location-based augmented reality app that displays information on your screen or into your Bluetooth headset when you are near an area of interest.

Here are some of the apps main features from the iTunes Store description:

• Discover thousands of interesting places/experiences that fall under the following categories: Architecture, Historic Places & Events, Lifestyle, Offers & Deals, Food Drinks & Fun, Movie Locations, Outdoor Art and Obscure Places of Interest around you.

• Choose from three different modes to set frequency of Field Trip notifications. See “Field Trip”-worthy places around you on a map, by tapping on cards in map view to pull up enthralling points of interest around you.

At one time or another, we’ve all needed to go somewhere, but didn’t know how to get there. Back in the old days, that probably meant a paper map and trying to plan a route or, in extreme circumstances, asking directions. And sometimes, things went wrong or didn’t work, and we ended up getting lost. Embarrassing to say the least.

Fortunately, those times pretty much ended with the advent of modern GPS navigation systems you could bring along with you in the car to make sure you didn’t end up someplace you didn’t want to go. Of course, the undisputed king of modern navigation and maps is Google. Sorry Apple.

And today, Google has given we iOS users a gift and updated its Maps application for iOS with several new features that make the app a bit more “personal.” The biggest change is in search, which now integrates with your Google contacts. Once you sign in to your Google account with Google Maps, the app will pull in the names and addresses from your contacts. These addresses will appear when you search for your friends or family members by name.

Google also added a new local feature that lets you search for nearby businesses by selecting categories such as restaurants, bars, gas stations and more. There’s also a new setting that lets you toggle between kilometers or miles. You can also leave that on automatic and it will choose for you depending on where you are.

Get the latest version of Google Maps for iOS in iTunes.

Yes, even Apple has security problems sometimes. They also have problems with other things, like maps. Still, that hasn’t stopped them from becoming one of the biggest tech companies in the world and one of our favorite companies too.

Even if we do love all-things Apple (well, most of us anyway) that doesn’t mean we won’t tell you when the company has a problem. Case in point this time is a security vulnerability recently discovered in iOS 6.1.

This vulnerability allows an iPhone’s unlock passcode to be bypassed, giving unauthorized users access to the device’s Phone app, contacts, voicemail and photos. Yeah, that’s not cool.

Recognizing that they have a problem, an Apple spokesperson confirmed to the website AllThingsD that the company is aware of the issue and plans to release a fix in a future software update.

And yes, there’s also video of this vulnerability in action. If you want to see it, check it out after the break.

As is often the case with software, it needs to be updated. Apple’s iOS is no exception. So, with that in mind, we’ll let you know that Apple release an update to iOS today and it’s now available for download.

Apple’s iOS 6.0.1 update contains, as is usually the case, the infamous “various bug fixes. It also contains a patch which fixes the iPhone 5’s inability to update itself over the air. That’s a bit embarassing to be sure.

If you have an iPhone 5 you will need to download a patch update first, then iOS 6.0.1 update. Other iOS devices can just update over the air normally.

In what most will consider a bold, decisive move (and a few will think of as a simple attempt to save face), Apple CEO Tim Cook sent out a letter of apology today to all users of Apple’s new Maps application. In the letter, Cook admitted that Apple “fell short” on its commitment to customers.

In addition, he recommended that while the company works to fix its maps, users should check out other options for iOS including MapQuest and Microsoft’s Bing app. No mention of Google Maps, however. Shocking, I know.

The full letter is after the break.

Whatever your experience with Apple’s new Maps application in iOS 6 (some people hate it, others are less critical) it is now part of the equation. If you update to iOS 6 or buy an iOS device with it already installed, you’ve just got to take the Apple Maps application and use it, right?

Well, maybe not. One enterprising iOS hacker by the name of Ryan Petrich has taken matters into his own hands and on Sunday posted a video that demonstrates the original Google Maps program from iOS 5 running on iOS 6.

Now before you get too excited the hack isn’t available to the public yet as, according to Petrich, it isn’t stable enough yet to do so. Also, and you should have seen this coming, you will have to jailbreak your iPhone running iOS 6 for this hack to work.

Still, if you just can’t get iMaps in iOS 6 to work for you and you’re willing to go through the steps necessary, relief for you may be in sight. That is until Apple closes this hole in the next iOS 6 updaate. Until then, go nuts!

Check out the video of this in action after the break.

It seems the people who actually make parts for many of our shiny toys (like the iPhone 5) are up in arms again. This time, they decided to riot and, of course, there’s video. Approximately 40 people were injured and 20 were arrested and so far nobody is really sure (or they aren’t saying) what caused the riot.

Preliminary reports suggested the incident began after a security guard struck a worker during anti-Japan protests. The plant, which manufactures magnesium alloy components and LED lighting products, has been closed following the incident.

Other reports say as many as 2,000 workers were involved and according to Foxconn the incident was triggered by “a fight among workers from different production lines,” but the company noted it is “still investigating the cause of the fight and the number of people involved.”

I wonder if we’ll ever know what really happened? Our guess is probably not. Check out the video after the break.

Well, surprise surprise. It seems Verizon has decided that if you’re willing to pay for an iPhone 5, you should be able to use it on other carriers besides theirs if you wish.

What am I talking about? Well, according to a report, the iPhone smartphones coming from Verizon are unlocked and can be used with any GSM carrier in addition to Verizon’s network.

I’ll let that sink in a minute. Okay, but what does it mean? Well, it means you can slap in a SIM card from AT&T or, most likley T-Mobile or another GSM carrier in Europe or wherever, and use the iPhone 5 on their networks as well.

Unfortunately, you won’t get 4G LTE due to the differences in the way the carriers work, but you will get 3G and the ability to make calls, text, etc.  Not bad. Not bad at all.

Now if only AT&T would do this too.