Supposedly private photo sharing service Snapchat has proven hugely popular, especially amongst teenagers and anyone wanting to share images that they want to be automatically deleted once viewed. The technology lends itself to sending and receiving photos that contain sensitive information - self destructing messages if you like - but is largely used to send much less important things.
Apple may have enjoyed a successful 2013 with the iPhone 5s in particular, smashing first-weekend sales records for a smartphone, but even with the impressive number of units shifted, the Cupertino company only has to look at BlackBerry or Nokia for a reminder of where complacency can lead. Thus, with the dust having settled on that major smartphone release, Tim Cook's men are out to discover how iPhone buyers feel about their purchase, specific features like Touch ID, as well as rivaling products like Android. Taking the form of a rather long survey, it looks as though the fruit company is seeking thorough, enlightening feedback in its quest for an even more fruitful 2014.
The jailbreak scene is one long cat-and-mouse battle between Apple and the hackers that make the exploits possible, and whenever a jailbreak does become available, such as the Evasi0n7 untether, the onus is then upon Apple to plug the holes. Whereas once upon a time, we'd see an update within the week to patch the jailbreak, things haven't been quite like that this time around, but although the third beta of iOS 7.1 firmware came back negative, so to speak, it looks like Apple has begun patching the exploits with the just-released fourth beta.
It may have been somewhat forgotten in the big iOS 7 furore, but that doesn't mean that 'iOS in the car' isn't a real thing. In fact, Apple has had given the thing a place on its own website so it was always going to put in an appearance at some point. Some motoring companies like Acura, Honda and BMW have even said that they will be taking advantage of the feature, but things have been rather quiet of late, with little coming out of either Apple or its partners.
Wireless charging may be a standard feature with many of the mobile industry's top smartphones, but if you happen to be in ownership of Samsung's Galaxy S4, you'll know that the device does not support it out of the box. But if you are happily wielding your Galaxy S4 and would love the option / convenience of wireless charging, you'll be pleased to learn that the official S-View Flip cover has your back. It costs $69.99, which isn't bad for a stylish all-rounder, and the added extra of inductive charging is simply the icing on the cake.
Whenever a new console hits the scene, it's almost a given that teething issues and early bugs will arise. However, while both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One launched late last year without too much incident, the former seems to be suffering save-game errors with certain titles. Those encountering the "CE-34878-0" error will be somewhat pleased to learn that Sony has identified this coded error as being problematic, and is currently launching an investigation in order to find a solution.
I use the HTC One and iPhone 5s on a daily basis, and although there are other nice-looking handsets on the market, the general consensus is that these are two of the most beautiful currently available. But while the Apple flagship is merely four months old, the One is heading towards the latter stages of its tenure, and consumers are already eagerly waiting to see what's next from the Taiwanese company. A few rumors have been floating about with nothing really set in stone as yet, but a new HTC One M8 concept dreamt up by Google+ user Nikolai Prettner has well and truly blown us away. Check it out after the break!
iOS 7 has brought the most significant list of changes to date, and while we've been impressed with most of them - in particular, the convenient new Control Center - the most obvious alteration has been the overhaul of the UI. Jony Ive, lead hardware designer at Apple and all-round cult figure, was tasked with the revamp, and so far, most users and commentators seem united in their praise and acclaim for the new look. But like any previous edition of the famed mobile OS, customization is still at a premium, but thanks to the jailbreak, along with tweaks like Fancy, you can change the way things look throughout your device's interface.
After being originally teased back in October of last year, the Beats Music app is now available to download for iOS, Android and Windows Phone through the relevant app stores. Beats, a company who take their music very seriously, are describing the new service as a place being "curated by people who believe music is emotion and life". The differentiating factor that exists within Beats Music appears to be the fact that the app and service is built around musical customization that exists to try and present subscribers with a perfectly curated playlist of music based on their current tastes and moods.
By now I'm sure you all know the drill; Apple releases a new beta version of its iPhone and iPad operating system and I download it, use it for a few hours and then report back with what's changed, both good and bad. I've been doing this for a while now, and through the process of writing about changes in betas both big and small I've come across some great improvements as well as some alterations that, looking back, probably weren't the best idea Apple's iOS team ever had.
