UPDATE: Colin Robinson pointed me to a discussion on Apple’s discussion forum where people talk about this feature. Turns out: not everybody can activate those gestures! Instead, it looks like the setting is only available on iPads that were (once?) used for iOS development. So you have to have Xcode installed AND be a registered developer with Apple (that’s $99 per year). Sorry, folks! I didn’t know that and didn’t meant to make your mouth watering.

UPDATE 2: Good news! It looks like you don’t need to be an official iOS developer (which will cost you $99 per year). cultofmac.com published step-by-step instructions on how to activate the gestures.

UPDATE 3: WOW! tuaw.com credited me!

Just a short one this time. I haven’t read much about this particular new feature in iOS 4.3 on the iPad (and it’s ONLY available on the iPad, not on iPhones or iPod touches with iOS 4.3) so I thought I write a few lines about it here.

You can enable or disable those three gestures in the Settings app under General. They’re just below the new “Use Side Switch to:” feature and they’re called “Multitasking Gestures” – because all three gestures are connected to multitasking. They all work with four or five fingers and are:

1. Pinch to the Home Screen
2. Swipe up to reveal multitasking bar
3. Swipe left or right between apps

 

They all work very well and I’m getting used to them rather quickly. Almost no need to use the Home key anymore. Plus: if you’re lazy (like my) and have your iPad on your lap (landscape, Home key left like Apple’s skin case suggests) and just use your right hand you can stick to using it for the multitasking stuff, too. Left hand free for cuddling the cat!

Here a the screenshots for the english & german setup screen: