Month: February 2011

Is FaceTime HD on Its Way to the iPhone?

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

If you’ve been keeping your ear to the street, you've probably heard about all the ramblings concerning Apple's new MacBook Pro refresh.

That refresh is due tomorrow, so I wasn't surprised to see some of the official box shots leak out.

Contained on the box of Apple's latest mobile swag is a new "FaceTime HD" option; presumable 720p video via the MacBook's built in webcam.

Considering that the iPhone 4, and to a lesser extent, the iPhone 3GS, are technically capable of handling HD video, does this mean that we should expect FaceTime HD on our iPhones?

The $500 ZAGGsparq Giveaway

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

Following our review of the ZAGGsparq yesterday, the folks at ZAGG decided to give 5 of them away to iDB readers. That's a total value of about $500. Not bad, not bad at all.

So who are the 5 lucky winners going to be? The rules are pretty simple. Just leave a comment below and explain us why you should win a ZAGGsparq. But that's not all, you can score some extra points and increase your chances of winning...

Apple iPad Event to Take Place on March 2nd

Alex Heath ∙ February 23, 2011

Apple will be holding a press event next week at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Fransisco. The event is supposed to be focused on the iPad 2.

There have been reports that Apple's iPad announcement would be delayed, but multiple sources (including Apple) have recently confirmed that Apple will in fact hold an event next Wednesday.

Not much information has been leaked about the approaching Apple event besides specs for the next version of the iPad. Apple might update iOS as well, but there is no hard evidence to support that claim.

Pretty Up Your iPhone SMS App with ChatPic

Sébastien Page ∙ February 23, 2011

Here is an app that shouldn't even exist in the first place as Apple should have implemented it in iOS. ChatPic is a new jailbreak app that will show address book photos next to text messages in the SMS app.

For ChatPic to work, you obviously need to add a photo to your contacts, then whenever they text you, you will see their face next to the chat bubble...

‘Pirates vs Ninjas vs Zombies vs Pandas’ Gives Angry Birds a Fun for Their Money

Guest Author ∙ Updated February 17, 2018

If you loved Angry Birds, you'll definitely love Pirates vs Ninjas vs Zombies vs Pandas (PvNvZvP) (iTunes Link) by PAN Vision AB. This physics-puzzler is an "inspired" version of the popular Angry Birds Series. The mechanics and gameplay are essentially the same but PvNvZvP offers fans of the genre an interesting twist with loads of fun.

PvNvZvP will feature six exceptional campaigns packed with challenging levels. The campaign will pit Pirates, Ninjas, Zombies, or Pandas against each other in a delightful duel to the end. Similar to Angry Birds, you are armed with a cannon and must launch the poor little characters at rickety structures to eliminate all the enemies from the screen...

Apple Mulling Over Higher Quality Music For iTunes

Jeff Benjamin ∙ February 23, 2011

If you want fast food, you're going to sacrifice on the quality of said meal; the same applies to music. Over the years the digital music revolution has indeed made digesting tons of good music easier, but it came at the expense of quality.

Apple is looking to rectify some of the quality issues by potentially allowing the use and download of 24-bit audio files; the current industry standard is 16-bit audio.

What does this mean for users like you and I? Does this mean we'll end up paying more for our music? Check inside as we mull over the possibilities...

ZAGGsparq Review: the Best Portable Battery Available

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

As a frequent traveler and an iPhone addict, I always worry to run out of batteries in an airport or worse, in the middle of a flight. I've tried various options for making sure I would never run out of juice but I never found the right accessory that would fulfill my needs: convenience, ease of use, light weight.

That was until the peeps at Zagg sent me a review copy of their ZAGGsparq, a 2-in-1, or maybe I should say a 3-in-1 accessory for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and virtually any smartphone out there, but we'll obviously focus on the iPhone part...

iPad 2 to Be Unveiled on March 2

Sébastien Page ∙ February 22, 2011

We've heard our fair share of iPad 2 rumors lately, the craziest one being that its release was going to be postponed until June.

Today comes another rumor that I believe to be true. Kara Swisher, one of my least favorite tech writers, announced today on her blog that it seemed clear Apple would announce the iPad next week in San Francisco.

According to several sources close to the situation, the Wednesday date in a little more than a week is firm and will take place in San Francisco, the scene of many such Apple events.

Steve Jobs currently being on a leave of absence, I doubt he will be introducing the new iPad.

Man Hates AT&T So Much He Uses a Plasma Cutting Robot to Destroy His iPhone

Sébastien Page ∙ February 22, 2011

We'd seen iPhones being destroyed by blenders, baseball bats, and microwaves, but this one sets a new standard.

How much do you have to hate AT&T to go that far out of your way to make a point? I guess you have to hate them very very very, very much. The sad part of this video is that the poor iPhone being destroyed has nothing to do with AT&T's service...

Facebook Messenger for iPhone Allows You to Chat And Make Free Audio Calls Through VoIP

Alex Heath ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

A new app called Facebook Messenger has been receiving a lot of attention in the press lately. It is the premiere app from the CrispApp developers.

I was a tad skeptical of Facebook Messenger when I first started reading about the app. There are a great deal of Facebook-related apps in the App Store, and I was curious about what made Facebook Messenger stand out.

Facebook Messenger is a clean and well-designed chat application for Facebook, but that's not all. The app also allows you to make free audio calls to your Facebook friends straight from your iPhone.

New Report Suggest Verizon iPhone Not Creating Many New iPhone Users

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

I've seen it, and no doubt you've seen it. A new iPhone is released and people get excited; people line up hours in advance just to get their hands on the latest goods from Apple.

Then there are the folks that have never even owned an iPhone before; many of them are excited as well because this new release will be their first taste of the iPhone.

My point is, if there's one thing that the introduction of a new iPhone does, it's bring excitement to the mobile phone landscape, and guarantee a heaping helping of first time adopters.

Unfortunately, it looks as if the Verizon iPhone 4 didn't quite accomplish that...

Make Your iPhone’s iPod Look Just Like Windows Phone 7 with Muzik

Alex Heath ∙ Updated February 17, 2018

Awhile back, we showed you a jailbreak theme called "OS7" that replicated Windows Phone 7's interface on the iPhone. Some of you installed the theme and played around with it. The theme's attention to detail and resemblance to Windows Phone 7 was striking.

An app called Muzik, by Dr. Wilson Gaming, allows you to play your iPod music in the style of Windows Phone 7 and the Zune. Muzik recently received some major updates to make it a more formidable clone of the Zune experience.

If, for some reason, you want the ability to replicate the Zune interface on your iPhone, Muzik is about as good as it gets.