Use iFile to beef up your iPad’s media storage

A lot of us are digital hoarders. We have to take everything with us. Sadly, the iPad has one serious flaw. Similar devices allow you to expand storage via memory cards. Apple users are stuck with built in storage. They’ll sell a 16gb iPad for $500, but they know that’s not enough. What if you could skirt this limitation? Thanks to jailbreak app iFile, it’s easier than you think.

iFile tickles open the darkest corners of your iPad. It allows you to view the file system, access previously closed off information, and select files like you would on OS X. Once you start thinking outside the box, you can expect big things from this app. Those big things being extra storage space for all your media files.

For it to work, you’ll need to buy the Apple Camera Kit and jailbreak your iPad. Load up some media onto an SD card and slot it into the adapter. Fire up iFile and you should see it mounted under devices, labelled “Flash Drive”. Click the file you want to play, select the app you want to play it in, and enjoy.

iFile’s interface browsing an SD card with media files.
The OS X-like interface is easy to use.

iFile opens up your device to unlimited storage space for media files. It also works with other files, including documents. You can also use third party card readers via the USB camera dock. There are some caveats though. iFile will not work with USB thumb drives due to the iPad’s power limitations. The iPad doesn’t seem to like powered hubs either. Nor does it support hard drives. If you can get them to work, more power to you. You also cannot store apps on flash media.

With flash cards so cheap these days, iFile is well worth the $4 entry fee. With double the storage or more, you’ll have plenty of room for all your music, movies, photos, and documents. Add more cards and capacity becomes limitless. Perfect for those of us who travel, or just like to lug our giant film collections around. Download iFile from Cydia.

Score: 9 out of 10

What works:
-Opens the door to limitless media capacity for your iPad.
-Allows you to choose what apps you want to open the file in
-Works with all file types supported by both first and third party apps
-Mac OS X like interface for easy navigation

What doesn’t work:
-No support for USB thumb drives, though this is a hardware issue
-No support for external hard drives
-Price a bit high