iPad, iPhone, Macbook sync??

Hi,

Sorry for the rookie question, but I'm new here and I'm wondering what the easiest way is to keep my apps and iCal calendars synced between my Macbook Pro, New iPad, and iPhone. What I have been doing is keeping my 'master calendar' on my Macbook Pro, then hooking up my iPad and iPhone via USB to the Macbook every month or so and syncing them. It works, but it is tedious. Is there an easy, wireless way to do this?

Also, when I hook up my iPad to my Macbook and sync it to 'the cloud' or to my Macbook, it seems that it automatically syncs and backs up my apps to my Macbook iTunes. Once again, this works, but it is tedious to have to do this weekly.

Can anybody help a newbie?!

Thanks so much!

Pahs

Apple's free iCloud service syncs your iCal calendars, and turning on "automatic download" on the right devices will sync any new apps (or books from iBookstore, or anything else you buy from the iOS stores) to your devices as you like. You can use iTunes to do the initial sync.

As of iOS 5 all, iOS devices can sync wirelessly to the Mac or to iCloud (again as you like) so you don't have to plug them in, you just have to open iTunes periodically and the rest happens automatically. The only thing it doesn't sync is app updates, you still have to do those either from iTunes or on each device, but manually.