The iPad mini had only been officially in the wild for 24 hours before we were treated to a picture of the failbreak jailbreak running on the tablet. Although it has been jailbroken using the developer only method that we have been hearing about in the last month or so, it shows that progress is being made behind the scenes. In addition to the iPad mini jailbreak and iPhone 5 jailbreak, Grant Paul - a.k.a. chpwn - has now taken the opportunity to show off Cydia running on the gorgeous Retina display of the new fourth-generation iPad.
Apple's Siri may never shrug off that 'beta' moniker, but what it does mean is that the company can continue to add features to the voice-powered digital assistant, seemingly on the fly.
Although the Apple TV is still officially classed as hobby project for Apple that takes its place behind the likes of the iPhone and iPad, it is a piece of kit that is growing in popularity and prominence with more units shipping each quarter. Apple have showed recent signs of taking the Apple TV more seriously with the addition of streaming content such as the iTunes Festival and their own media event keynotes but until they add some powerful extensions and features, it may continue to live as the company's hobby creation. Thankfully, the jailbreak world loves to pay attention to unloved iOS devices and it now seems possible to control the Apple TV using basic voice commands.
Apple's Lightning to Micro USB Adapter can now be purchased by those residing in the United States. Hitherto, only Europe has seen the connector, which, as the name quite overtly suggests, allows one to connect an iPhone, iPad, or iPod with Lightning connector to a micro USB cable, for purpose of syncing with a computer or simply charging.
The “Apple products are cool” saga only reached a conclusion last week when the fruit company made its apology, and today, Apple’s UK website has now clarified the original issue, along with ads in several UK newspapers.
With the iPad mini now officially available in the first wave of supported territories, it is inevitable that the reviews will start pouring in from every angle as early adopters inspect every nook and cranny of the gorgeous little tablet. One of the most talked about areas of Apple's new mini creation will undoubtedly be the 7.9-inch display, a screen that already seems to have split opinions right down the middle. In an attempt to add some clarity to the display debate, RepairLabs have put the company's iPad range under the microscope to compare the received screen quality.
The iPad 3 has had the shortest shelf life of any Apple tablet in existence. Having arrived only in March in a blaze of glory, it's quickly been replaced by the fourth-generation iPad, and although the aesthetic changes are negligible (the Lightning cable has replaced the 30-pin job), internally, the newer of the two is said to be "twice as fast."
The iPad 4 took everybody by surprise when Apple announced it towards the end of last month, but perhaps less surprisingly, when teared-down to the bare bones, there's not a lot of difference between it and its predecessor - the iPad 3.
Skeuomorphism within the design of iOS is something Apple's designers have squabbled over for a good while. The fake glass dock, plastic background of the calculator, beech wood effect of the Newsstand - these are all examples of ornamental elements throughout Apple's mobile OS, and although former SVP of iOS Software, Scott Forstall, was quite a big fan of the look, he has now surrendered his post. Jony Ive will be one of the Apple execs said to be overseeing tasks formerly manned by Forstall, and is reportedly planning to rid both iOS and OS X of the tacky designs.
Any new device worth talking about is, as a matter of protocol, subject to numerous public tests, with the drop test being by far the most popular. As well as enjoying the perverse pleasure that is watching a brand-new device sustain serious damage, viewing such a test does have its practical benefits, since if a gadget performs particularly poorly, perhaps we'll think twice before parting with our cash.
