iPlayer app adds iPad, iPhone downloads for BBC on holiday

You can now take Doctor Who on holiday, Top Gear on the Tube and EastEnders anywhere you like. The BBC iPlayer app for iPad and iPhone now downloads new episodes to your device to watch without an Internet connection.

That means you can watch BBC programmes when you're out and about even if you don't have a 3G iPad, or when you're on holiday, on a plane or anywhere without a data signal. You can keep a download on your phone or tablet for a month, and once you've watched the episode it'll hang around for seven days.

To save a show on your phone or tablet, just tap the download option on the bottom left of your chosen episode. Episodes join a queue and download one at a time. They only download when the app is open -- so no starting the download then using other apps while you're waiting, which is annoying.

At the moment you can only download over Wi-Fi, but a 3G option is in the works. You can also choose higher quality downloads in the app's settings menu.

iPlayer downloads hit the iTunes app store for iOS devices today, with an update to the Android iPlayer app to follow. Android owners may have to wait, but at least iPad and iPhone owners are just in time for the new series of The Thick of It, among other delights from Auntie Beeb.

Now you can download iPlayer shows, will you bother buying TV from iTunes or elsewhere for your commute? Is this even more bang for your licence fee buck or is the BBC just another unfair tax? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or on our Facebook page.