Alihassan Mahdi

Alihassan is currently pursuing his degree in Computer Science at the University of Wollongong in Dubai. He has an utmost passion for all things tech and is a tech-savvy person. In his spare time, you’ll either find him messing with his iOS smartphone or working-out at his local gym. He is a proud owner of an iPhone 5s and a close follower of Apple. As for his future, he’s looking forward to securing a Master's degree in Software Engineering and start his own software business. You can follow Alihassan on Twitter.

LockSpeed adds your favorite contacts to your Lock screen

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 23, 2014

One of the useful features of the Phone app is the 'Favorites' section which I frequently us to quickly make calls to some of my contacts. LockSpeed is a new jailbreak tweak that goes a step further and allows you to quickly reach your favorite contacts directly from the Lock screen without even unlocking your device.

Developed by Alexandru Laurus, LockSpeed adds the first 9 favorite contacts from the Phone app to the Lock screen on a separate page which can be accessed by swiping the screen from right to left. Doing so displays a new page with the all the favorite contacts added, which are presented by a circular icon with initials or picture if the contact already has one.

Saurik releases updated version of Cydia for iOS 8 to be installed manually

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 22, 2014

In a move that caught us by surprise, the Pangu Team released the jailbreak tool for iOS 8 today, although it doesn't install Cydia, but rather provides SSH access so that developers can update their tweaks and make them compatible with iOS 8.

Earlier we reported that Saurik has already started working on updating Cydia to make it compatible with iOS 8 and 8.1. The good news is that he has now released the updated version of Cydia compatible with iOS 8 and comes in the form of a .deb file. You can now download the file from his website, and install it manually on your device.

QuickMusic provides quick access to music controls with a stylish interface

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 21, 2014

We've seen quite a number of tweaks on Cydia that provide system-wide access to music controls including Musiex and the popular MiniPlayer tweak. QuickMusic is yet another similar tweak by developer Gabriele Filipponi, but this one features a unique functionality and stylish interface that I'm quite fond of.

With QuickMusic, you can swipe up the Music icon to bring up an awesome looking interface containing the album artwork as well as the music controls including the play/pause button enclosed by a circular progress bar, skip and previous buttons.

EQUAlarm requires you to solve a math equation before snoozing the alarm

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 19, 2014

Do you snooze your alarm in the morning hoping to get up a few minutes later, but end up waking up late? If yes, you should definitely check out a new jailbreak tweak known as EQUAlarm that ensures you wake up on time.

Developed by PAL Labs, EQUAlarm requires you to solve a math equation before you can disable it, which is a good way of sharpening your brain before getting up from your bed. When the alarm starts to ring, you'll view a math problem along with number keys that allow you to enter the answer.

Flurry lets you change the blur and tint level of iOS 7

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 15, 2014

Along with having an all around flatter design, iOS 7 heavily uses blur effect across the whole interface. If you ever wanted to adjust the blur level of various aspects of iOS 7, you should probably check out a brand new jailbreak tweak known as Flurry.

Developed by dantesieg, Flurry allows you to easily configure and adjust the blur and tint level of iOS 7. Any changes that you make will be applied to various interfaces such as the Notification Center, Control Center, Lock screen passcode, Home screen dock and way more.

In addition to the above mentioned interfaces, the tweak also blurs the Navigation Bar, Tab Bar, buttons as well as the Action and the Sharing menu.

Impulse lets you control the music playing on your iPhone while it is locked

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 12, 2014

Impulse is a brand new jailbreak tweak dedicated to music lovers as it brings a new functionality many have been waiting for. Developed by Noeliel, Impulse allows users to control a currently playing song even when the device is locked. Yes, with Impulse, you no longer need to unlock your device just to control a song that is playing. Simply perform a gesture on the screen to perform a desired action.

Bring your iOS 7 keyboard to life with ColorfulKBD Pro

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 12, 2014

iOS 8 is no short of third-party keyboards and we've already reviewed the noteworthy ones that bring many new features and provide more customization options. If you ever wanted to gain more control over how the keyboard looks in iOS 7, you should probably check out a new jailbreak tweak known as ColofulKBD Pro by ipon3g.

As its name implies, the tweak allows you to colorize the stock keyboard and bring a new look to it. By now, you must be thinking how this tweak is different from the remaining ones on Cydia that also allow you to customize the color of the iOS 7 keyboard.

How to use Reachability on older devices

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 7, 2014

Due to the larger screen of the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus, Apple introduced a new feature in both the devices called Reachability. Basically, what this feature does is that it moves the top half of the screen to the bottom half when you double tap on the Touch ID. The reason behind this is to make it easier for users to continue one-handed use even on the new iPhones and to reach the top contents of the screen more easily.

If you ever wanted to enjoy the same feature on older iOS 7 devices, you should probably check out a jailbreak tweak called Reachability7 by developer Mohammed Marbouh.

CallShortcut lets you add your favorite contacts to the Home screen

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 7, 2014

Just recently, an updated version of CallBar was released for iOS 7 that makes it a whole lot easier to manage your incoming calls. CallShortcut is yet another jailbreak tweak that provides a quicker way to call your contacts, directly from the Home screen.

Developed by Gertab and David Glinski, CallShortcut allows you to add any of your contacts to your Home screen. These appear as icons on the Home screen just like other app icons and when you tap on any of them, the call will be placed immediately. This provides a quick shortcut to your favorite contacts without ever opening the Phone or the Contacts app.

Ascend brings a gorgeous look to your iOS 7 Lock screen

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 5, 2014

A few weeks ago, we showed you ClassicLockScreen, a tweak by CoolStar and Phillip Tennen that provides over four different styles which you can apply to your Lock screen. Ascend is a somewhat similar jailbreak tweak by Ben Rosen that brings a gorgeous look to your Lock screen.

The tweak brings back the popular iOS 6 Slide to Unlock slider with an iOS 7-esque style along with a blurred background and top bar. Additionally, it gets rid of the round passcode buttons and replaces it with a flatter interface and a transparent background. The same applies to the notifications that appear on the Lock screen.

Monochrome applies shades of grey to your app icons

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ October 5, 2014

If you ever wanted to bring a classic look to your Home screen icons, you should probably check out a new jailbreak tweak called Monochrome that squeezes out all the colors from the app icons on the Home screen and brings a simplistic look to them.

Developed by Ron Thakrar, the tweak applies shades of grey to all the app icons on the Home screen, just like the classical black and white movies, bringing a more simplistic look to your Home screen. The wallpaper color will remain as is, but if you want to take it a little further, you can use a black and white wallpaper to better suit the grey icons, although it would have been a nice addition if the tweak already came equipped with this feature.

Customize the look of the Messages app with Messages Customizer Pro

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ September 29, 2014

One of the many reasons that users jailbreak their iOS device is to customize it. If you're looking for a tweak that allows you to customize the stock Messages app, you should definitely consider checking out Messages Customizer Pro.

The tweak has been produced by Charlie Hewitt, the same developer who created the Messages Customiser tweak earlier this year. The successor comes packed with additional new features and allows you to customize and theme the stock Messages app the way you want.