iOS 7.1 is on its way, with the current consensus suggesting that the first major update to Apple's latest and greatest will be ready for prime time on 15th of March for public consumption. With regards to the features therein, we know that iOS in the Car will be the major addition, alongside some minor aesthetic tweaks and general performance enhancements, but while we've been told that there'll be little else of note, the rumor mill has thrown up an interesting new theory. Apparently, Apple is to make significant alterations to the Mobile Device Management mass deployment system, with a supplementary "Volume Services" Web client also set to launch alongside iOS 7.1.
Even though our smartphones and tablets continue to offer higher-spec cameras, more processing cores, increased RAM and displays that go way beyond the realms of high-definition, battery life improvements aren't nearly as impressive. The introduction of Intel Haswell's energy efficient tech has worked wonders for the MacBook range, and although battery retention on iOS is among the best in the mobile industry, you can still take steps to ensure you get the very most usage before the reserves dry up.
If, like me, you're constantly altering particular elements of your iOS device in order to keep things fresh, then I'm sure you'll be familiar with the rigmarole of applying a custom parallax wallpaper. Sometimes, it can be difficult to manipulate an image to fit or sit in the manner we'd like it to, and often, we've to make do with an out-of-position or otherwise distorted and unsightly backdrop. For better or for worse, though, we live in a culture whereby an app can solve almost any issue or ailment, and if you find the process of changing your iOS wallpaper to be a little more tedious than it perhaps should, then, well.. there's an app for that!
A little light-hearted mocking of rivaling companies and their products never hurt anybody in the tech industry, and as we've seen through numerous ad campaigns over the years, they're all at it. With MWC not too far away, Huawei has caricatured Apple's Siri voice assistant to rib both the Cupertino company and rival Samsung, while also promoting its new, to-be-announced smartphone and tablet. Check out the humorous clip right after the break!
Samsung is one of the most prolific carriers of Google's Android. Save a couple of half-hearted Windows Phone efforts over the past couple of years, the Korean company has consistently churned out swathes of smartphones running the ubiquitous software, and considering how many hundreds of millions of handsets out there are on Android, the $50 million Google paid to acquire Android nearly a decade ago looks a shrewd bit of business. But it has now emerged that in actual fact, Andy Rubin, one of the founding members of the Android team, actually pitched the product to the Galaxy maker out in Seoul, a proposition that Samsung unequivocally - and perhaps, regrettably - baulked at.
Limited editions of consoles often prove a real money-spinner. Not only does the vendor benefit, but the developer of the games to which the promotional bundles are usually attached often pocket a tidy sum, while the consumer also benefits from something quirky and unique. With the PS4 just about to launch in Japan, Sony has teamed up with Kojima Productions, the crew behind the also-upcoming Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, to deliver a special Fox Edition of the fourth PlayStation console, but unfortunately, it's not all that special.
Flappy Bird was recently pulled from the App Store and Google Play Store at the height of its popularity by developer Dong Nguyen, and although his reasons for removing the app appear to have been well-intended, folks have sought to cash in on the title's fame in a variety of ways.
Changing the look and feel of the iOS UI, swapping out interface assets for additional artwork and overhauling the lock screen Notification Center are just a few areas within the jailbreak world that are growing in popularity daily. Themes and Notification Center widgets are littered throughout Cydia, which is the main reason why it's always great when something like NCWeather comes along and injects energy and elegance into Notification Center.
It's a big year for Windows Phone, with the smartphone market hotter than ever before and Nokia reportedly on the verge of making Android a part of its family with the Nokia X Normandy smartphone. Microsoft's mobile version of Windows has long been rumored to be on the verge of becoming a real competitor for iOS and Android, and 2014 needs to be the year that Redmond puts Windows Phone into overdrive.
It's no secret that Apple is said to be working on entering new markets over the coming years, with CEO Tim Cook even saying as much in various interviews over the last few months. One of those new markets is believed to be health monitoring, with the rumored iWatch set to be at the center of such things. The unannounced iOS 8 has also been rumored to have a built-in app that will track a user's health over time, but with so few concrete facts knocking around, it's hard to predict just what is on the horizon.
