A new case mold leaked out of Japan may just have given us a glimpse of the iPhone 6's eventual form factor. According to numerous reports, inside info and analyst conjecture, the next-gen Apple iPhone will arrive in two separate size configurations, both of which will be larger than anything that the Cupertino company has hitherto released. As well a phablet-sized device boasting a display of around 5.5 inches, Apple could also drop a 4.7-inch model, and it is this smaller of the two models that has emerged as a case mold.
iOS 7 has brought quite a few obvious new features, designed to have an instant impact on the functionality and usability of Apple's mobile OS. Yet, as is the case with CarPlay, for example, not everything that the Cupertino has thrown into its latest software is for its immediate benefit, and even though you probably haven't heard about it, Apple added a little something called Multipeer Connectivity Framework into the fold. The intriguing technology allows multiple devices - which needn't be connected to the Internet - to interact in a manner known as mesh networking, and by utilizing connectivity in the form of Wi-Fi networks, peer-to-peer Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, users can connect in a daisy chain-like manner, to various ends.
You can always trust the jailbreak world to come up with something interesting, and we find that some of the better ones fly somewhat under the radar. A tweak that's still very much in its infancy but doesn't seem to be getting much attention is Appellancy.
Even though, at stock level, the general appearance of iOS isn't all that customizable, Apple's mobile operating system has long since supported personalized backgrounds. But while the introduction of dynamic wallpapers have added an extra dimension to proceedings, a new tweak in Cydia called springPage takes things a step further. As its name vaguely implies, springPage allows you to set your wallpaper on a per-page basis, so while the rigmarole of scrolling through pages of icons and folders can often be a tedious one, this tweak will let you inject a little variety.
Following the release of iOS 7 and the subsequent untethered jailbreak from the Evad3rs team, the Cydia community seems to be exuding an air of professionalism and creative thought, and having covered iOS tweaks for a number of years, I have been generally taken aback by the marked improvement in the quality and thoroughness of tweaks this time around. Rather than releasing tiny alterations that deal with one small feature or snag, developers have sought to completely modify the way entire apps and features behave for the better, and Aria, a new tweak over at the BigBoss repo, gives the Music app something of an overhaul.
Apple’s recent introduction of iOS 7.1 plugged jailbreak exploits that made the previous Evasi0n untethered jailbreak possible, and as such, jailbreakers have had to either stick with a preceding iOS 7.0.x release, or upgrade and forgo their access to Cydia. However, even though the pre-iOS 7.1 efforts by the Evad3rs team were commendable, it doesn’t mean that the hard work has ceased, and seasoned hacker Winocm has just posted a video of iOS 7.1 booting untethered.
Save the Sony Smartwatch and the rather disastrous launch of the Galaxy Gear from Samsung, Pebble has had a fairly easy ride in the smartwatch industry, but with Google announcing Android Wear recently, the company knows that it has a big fight on its hands in order to remain relevant. Already this year, though, Pebble has made several key announcements and releases, and allied to the big software update and roll-out of the Pebble appstore, introduced the very stylish Pebble Steel. Now, those looking for the higher-end finish but who aren't too bothered about the fittings can pick up the Pebble Steel - sans the metal band - for a reduced price.
Back in January, an interesting infographic emerged comparing the actual amount of storage space our smartphones offer versus the quoted capacity, and it showed that Samsung's Galaxy S4 was the biggest culprit for filling devices up with bloatware. Conversely, the iPhone 5c offered the most storage for a 16GB device, and the release just yesterday of a new 8GB iPhone 5c has thrown up the fascinating statistic that in terms of actual storage, the 16GB Galaxy S4 is a mere 3.7GB ahead of Apple's new 8GB iPhone 5c.
With every new software update, particularly a semi-significant one like iOS 7.1, there's always a chance that the numerous changes implemented will leave a few lingering bugs, and with Apple having just released the first major bump to its mobile OS since September, it would appear that some users are encountering problems with the Personal Hotspot function.
For the first couple of months of this year and some time prior, Flappy Bird had taken a stronghold on many iOS and Android users looking for a casual game to keep them entertained. Consumed by the tricky physics involved, the title was both challenging and frustrating in equal measure, but with the game seeming to leave players reeling in anger rather than feeling any kind of accomplishment, developer Dong Nguyen took the decision to remove it from the iOS App Store, as well as Google Play. After recently hinting that Flappy Bird might make a dramatic return, though, he has now confirmed that it will be re-entering the fold at some point in the future, although "not soon," according to his Twitter feed.
