Those looking for an alternative to iTunes for browsing and managing the contents of their iPhone and / or iPad may want to look into 4Media iPhone Max, a utility that facilitates file transfer, conversion, management of files on Apple portables, and even backups.

“Looking for a quicker, better and smarter alternative to iTunes? 4Media iPhone Max is just the iPhone manager tool you need,” says 4Media Software Studio, the maker of this Windows-only utility.

According to 4Media Software Studio, iPhone Max enables users to transfer videos/music/images between a computer, iPhone and Apple’s iTunes.

The application also supports Apple’s tablet computer, the iPad.

“Now you can easily backup and transfer movie, music and image files in just about any format between iPhone, computer and iTunes,” the developer says on its web site.

Users can rip and convert CDs/DVDs, DVD folders and ISO images to iPhone supported formats, and ultimately transfer them to the Apple device.

Managing an iPhone as a portable hard disk is also possible with 4Media iPhone Max installed, the company says.

4Media Software Studio seemingly aims to capitalize on Apple’s iTunes 10 release.

Recently updated to add iTunes 10 support, iPhone Max also comes with a free iPhone ringtone maker -limited time offer.

Apple’s iTunes 10 is known to have dropped a ringtone-making ability.

Additionally, version 3.0.15.0902 adds a photo album function to create, edit or delete photo albums easily, and support for iPhone 4 and iOS 4.0.2.

In addition to the aforementioned benefits, 4Media Software Studio explains, the software “can help you create new playlists, check and search files, edit song tags, play music and preview movies, amongst other great abilities.”

The flagship feature of the software, however, is the ability to access your iPhone content in Windows Explorer.

Although the application costs $49.99, the makers advertise it saying “Download 4Media iPhone Max for FREE and manage your iPhone without iTunes.”

System Requirements include Microsoft Windows XP (SP2 or later), Windows Vista, Windows 7, a 1GHz Intel/AMD processor or above, 256MB RAM (512MB or above recommended), 100MB space for installation, a graphics solution capable of Super VGA (800×600) resolution (16-bit graphics card or higher), iTunes 8.2 or above, and a DVD-ROM drive.

On its web site, 4Media Software Studio offers up a number of tips and tricks for those looking to employ its utility, covering topics like “How to copy DVD to iPhone”, “How to backup iPhone without iTunes”, and “How to transfer files between iPhone and your computer.”

Download 4Media iPhone Max for Windows (Update / Trial / Buy)