Mittens by Disney pounces onto iPhone and iPad [review]

By Jim Gresham on Apr 11, 2013

Disney made quite the name for themselves in the iOS app world with hit titles like Where’s My Water?, Where’s My Perry?, and more recently Monsters, Inc. Run. Christian previously mentioned Disney’s new physics puzzler Mittens would be a good one to keep your eye on. After spending a bit of my weekend with my new favorite feline friend, alley cat Mittens, I am happy to report that Disney has done it again.

The physics based puzzler is everything I have come to expect from my preferred iOS games. I’m not one to sit on the couch and plow through games on my iPad mini, but I do really like the pick up and play nature of this particular genre. It seems Disney may be perfecting this style game as it continues to develop quick, fun, and pleasing games anyone can immediately play with a small learning curve… Read More

 

The iTorch, a portable iPhone charger that lights the way

By Jim Gresham on Apr 10, 2013

Since my visit to CES 2013, a quest for a backup portable iPhone charger began. Running around the world’s largest trade show peddling for power was pretty ugly. New Trent was kind enough to send one over for review and it fitted the bill for my charging woes. A simple, travel size device, the iTorch IMP52D provided a full charge in just under 2 hours for my iPhone 5… Read More

 

A beautiful verbal clock for your Lock screen

By Jim Gresham on Mar 4, 2013

Continuing our Lock screen modding series, we take a closer look at an elegant verbal clock. Having an affinity for well-designed typographical imagery, this verbal clock is a perfect addition for my iPhone. A sleek black, gray, and white interface, I am impressed with the elegance of its minimalism. Follow us beyond the fold to find out how to set your iPhone up similarly… Read More

 

The Etre Fivepoint gloves add a touch of tech to touch tech

By Jim Gresham on Feb 27, 2013

Inevitably, we all need to use our iPhones in the cold and our tiny little fingers hate the cold. Thankfully, technology entered the clothing world and taking off our gloves to use the phone is a thing of the past. Etre entered the scene after successfully establishing themselves as a web design company. Turning toward fashion, they promise “each piece is lovingly crafted in the British Isles, using responsibly sourced, time-honoured British materials.“ There are many implementations of the “connected” glove and some companies get it right, others do not. Today, we take a look at the Etre Fivepoint gloves, and thankfully, these guys got it right…. Read More

 

A simple Lock screen that displays the local weather forecast

By Jim Gresham on Feb 25, 2013

The iPhone Lock screen has not changed since 2007 and it is certainly boring, even outdated. Everyone loves a good Lock screen and we wanted to give a quick how-to for a simple tweak. Getting things looking fresh on your iPhone can be a jumbled mess while plowing through Cydia, looking for the right packages. A few days ago we had users submit their favorite Lock screens, screen shots, and tweaks, which led to this post. While this initial posting is simple, we hope it inspires you to construct your own beautiful Lock screens… Read More

 

Accented characters make iOS passwords stronger, not enough to keep your data secure

By Mike Schnier on Jan 24, 2013

There’s a suggestion floating around on tech blogs for setting ‘unguessable passcodes’ in iOS. The idea is to use alternate accented characters, which are hidden but easily accessible by holding down letters on the virtual keyboard. The thinking is these accented characters could be especially effective at thwarting guesses, as English speakers might not even realize that there are accents beneath the keys… Read More

 

What would you say if you met Jay Freeman, the developer behind Cydia?

By Mike Schnier on Jan 23, 2013

For most people, Jay Freeman isn’t exactly a household name. Neither is Saurik, his online alias. That said, if you’ve used a jailbroken iPhone since 2008 then you’ve definitely seen both names frequently. Saurik is the developer behind Cydia, the package manager we use to easily install tweaks, themes, and other software that Apple won’t allow developer to distribute through iTunes.

You might know his name, but would you recognize Jay Freeman if he was walking down the street? If you did, would you approach him? Would you ask him questions? Would you pose for a picture with him and post it on Reddit? Well, that’s what the first stranger who recognized him did… Read More

 

Macworld takes a look at Apple’s pricing strategy

By Cody Lee on Jan 14, 2013

Marco Tabini of Macworld takes an interesting look today at how Apple manages to keep the prices on its products, and subsequently its profits, so much higher than other manufacturers. It turns out, the company uses a unique, two-pronged pricing strategy.

The first part of it has to do with wholesale pricing. Apple, unlike most hardware-makers, doesn’t offer resellers much of a discount on products like the iPad or iMac, even if they’re buying in bulk. This doesn’t give retailers much incentive to carry the products, but with the kind of foot traffic they produce, it doesn’t really have to… Read More

 

T-Mobile to start selling the iPhone in ‘three to four’ months

By Cody Lee on Jan 9, 2013

Good news for T-Mobile subscribers looking to get their hands on the iPhone. In a new interview, the carrier’s CEO John Legere says it will begin offering Apple’s popular handset sooner rather than later.

Legere first confirmed that his company would be becoming an official iPhone partner, as well as eliminating device subsidies, this year, back in December. And now he sees both happening in the next 3-4 months… Read More

 

Straight Talk: the silent iPhone partner

By Cody Lee on May 3, 2012

Carrier options for US iPhone customers have dramatically multiplied over the past two years. The handset, which was once only available from AT&T, is now offered on nine wireless providers across the country.

Actually, 10 carriers if you count Straight Talk. You may or may not know this, but the nationwide prepaid provider is compatible with the GSM iPhone. You don’t even need to unlock your handset to switch to it… Read More

 

The best business card apps

By Michael on May 2, 2012

Digital technology has enhanced socializing and business to an incredible extent, and nowhere is this more noticeable than when the two overlap.  So it stands to reason that the days of paper business cards, while not quite over, are most certainly numbered. Digital business card apps for iOS are on the rise, and we’ve tested many of them to present this list of five of the very best.

Business card apps fall into two main categories: those that focus on a digital business card format which you can use to share contact information wirelessly within a professional format which promotes your business, and those that focus on creating a database of your paper business card collection. You know, that pile in your filing cabinet that you’ve picked up at conventions and meetings and keep intending to sort into a Rolodex or manually enter into your contact list? Some apps are equipped with the ability to glean the information from the card for you after you take a photo of it and store the information digitally or transfer it to your phone’s contact list.

In terms of the future of digital business cards, we favor the first category. After all, one expects that paper business cards will eventually be a thing of the past, so methods for transferring their information for a digital format will themselves eventually be unnecessary. But they’re not unnecessary yet, so we’ve included two gems from this category in our list as well… Read More

 

Awesome Calendar: when you can do it all, anything’s possible

By Michael on Apr 16, 2012

Yunasoft’s new productivity/utility entry in the iTunes App Store, Awesome Calendar, boasts big about its capabilities. As well it should. After all, one of the first things smartphones were supposed to do, and do well, was help us balance busy schedules.  Time management apps have to go the extra mile to impress us, and the all-in-one tool Awesome Calendar looks like it might just outpace the competition.

Feature set meets interface is the name of the game when multifunctional is the main requirement, and Awesome Calendar does a beautiful job of marrying the two. Its calendar, notepad, and to-do list modules work in concert to bring users lives into productive harmony.  Each of these aspects feature some extra functionality to make them shine, with Awesome Calendar’s superior design balancing form and function along the way… Read More

 

Thoughts on the 4-inch iPhone theory

By Cody Lee on Apr 11, 2012

Yesterday, an intriguing theory on how Apple could build an iPhone with a 4-inch screen made its way around the tech world. The idea is based on the fact that Apple could make the display larger, without drastically increasing the size of the handset.

Judging from the feedback I’ve gathered from our readers, on Twitter, and on other websites, the consensus seems to be that this theory is way off base; Apple would never do anything like it. But to me, it feels like everyone is overlooking a few things… Read More

 

Apple airs new “Harmony” iCloud commercial

By Cody Lee on Feb 26, 2012

As noted by 9to5Mac, Apple has started airing a new commercial this weekend starring its new iCloud service.

The advert, which does not include any spoken words, does a great job of demonstrating iCloud’s capabilities to the not-so-tech-saavy general public… Read More

 

Apple working on iTunes and App Store redesign

By Zech TesfaYohannes on Feb 20, 2012

According to 9to5Mac‘s Mark Gurman, Apple is going to overhaul the iTunes Store and App Store designs later this year.

The new design of the iTunes Store and App Store is going to be easier to use and be simpler. The ways of finding new content such as songs, videos, and apps is apparently going to be faster and more efficient… Read More

 

This is Why iPhones Are Made in China

By Zech TesfaYohannes on Jan 22, 2012

In a recent report from the New York Times, the newspaper gives us great detail about why Apple outsources iPhone manufacturing to China, and how Steve Jobs changed the iPhone 2G weeks before the release.

The report features many short stories from Apple employees who give first-hand accounts of why Apple decided to move their manufacturing overseas. The article also gives a very interesting look of President Obama’s Silicon Valley Dinner back in February of last year . At the dinner, many Silicon Valley executives attended, including Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg.

Many executives were able to ask President Obama questions. While Steve Jobs was talking, President Obama interrupted him and asked him “what would it take to make iPhones in the United States?” Steve Jobs simply replied with “Those jobs aren’t coming back”. Read More

 

iPhone 4S Users Planning on Unlocking Should Remain on iOS 5.0

By Guest Author on Jan 18, 2012

Although multiple warnings have suggested that iPhone 4S users update to iOS 5.0.1 before it’s too late, a new report from iClarified claims that these users should actually remain on iOS 5.0 to ensure the greatest possibility of unlocking their device in the future, should they ever need to unlock.

The news came from MuscleNerd who confirmed that an untethered jailbreak for iPhone 4S running iOS 5 will be released soon after the iOS 5.0.1 jailbreak… Read More

 

Mini Apple Stores Coming Soon to a Target Near You

By Zech TesfaYohannes on Jan 14, 2012

Target has announced that it will be adding “Mini Apple Stores” to 25 of its retail locations. Last week rumors were circulating that Target was going to be adding Apple stores to its locations throughout the US, and those rumors have been confirmed.

When Target adds the Apple stores, it will very similar to the Best Buy layout customers there currently experience.. Read More

 

Fight Breaks Out at Apple’s Flagship Beijing Apple Store Over the iPhone 4S

By Zech TesfaYohannes on Jan 12, 2012

Today the long awaited iPhone 4S was supposed to go on sale in China. A lot of people crowded Apple Stores hoping to get an iPhone.

M.I.C. Gadget is reporting that a huge fight broke out between scalpers, shutting down the Apple Store in Beijing. It even got to a point where it was so bad that Beijing SWAT team had to be called in to help control the angry scalpers and customers. Read More

 

Why I Picked the iPhone 4S: It’s All About Sacrifices

By Cody Lee on Jan 9, 2012

I’m the son of a former Nokia employee, an ex cell phone salesman, and current connoisseur. So I guess you can say that I’ve played with my fair share of smartphones.

And in my several-year quest to find the perfect handset, I’ve tried everything from the Nokia 7650 to the latest Android and WP7 devices. But I’ve only found one phone capable of being my everyday driver.

As you’ve probably already guessed by now, that phone is the iPhone. No, I’m not an Apple “fanboy” that blindly buys whatever the company releases. I just want the best handset available. And for me, that’s the handset that requires me to make the least amount of sacrifices… Read More

 
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