Month: June 2011

‘iNetUsage’ Makes it Easy to Discern Which Apps Are Data Hogs

Are you having problems with phantom data charges on your wireless bill? Interested in which apps are causing you to always go over your data cap? If so, I have the perfect jailbreak tweak for you.

It's called iNetUsage, and it is a tweak available on Cydia that allows you to monitor your data usage on an app-to-app basis.

There's even a provision to break it down over Wi-Fi and cellular usage, along with setting up specific data ranges for your analysis.

Overall, iNetUsage is an extremely robust tweak that will have you pinching every kilobyte of data out of your monthly plan. Unlimited data users need not apply...

50% of iPhones Don’t Currently Get Backed Up – iOS 5 to the Rescue

Sometimes it's easy to forget that we in the geek world aren't like normal people. We spend our lives connected, and backing up our data is just one of those things we do as a matter of course. Until iOS 5 arrives in the coming months, the only way to back up an iOS iDevice is to plug it into iTunes and let it sync. But does anyone actually do it?

According to a little birdie, only 50% of the customers who take iDevices into Apple Stores for repair have their apps, settings, contacts and the like, backed up.

That's right - around half of iPhones, iPads and iPod touches don't find themselves plugged into iTunes after that initial set up - a set up that won't even need to be done after iOS 5 lands...

iOS 5 Provides Free Tethering to Verizon iPhone Users

Here is a new iOS 5 feature that hasn't been documented yet, most likely because it's probably a bug that will be taken care of in the next beta release. If you own a Verizon iPhone (aka CDMA version of the iPhone) and you go to Settings > General > Network > Internet Tethering, and turn the toggle ON, you will be able to tether your device for free, turning it into a Wi-Fi hotspot at no charge.

I don't have a Verizon iPhone so I couldn't verify this myself but I asked several people on Twitter and they were all able to turn tethering ON, without having to pay anything to Verizon...

14 Reasons the Editor in Chief of PC Mag Should Never Write About Apple

We told you there is a rumor going around that Apple might start selling factory unlocked iPhones in the US, starting this Wednesday. The rumor was started by @ChronicWire, a "side account" of fame jailbreak developer Chronic.

Today, PC Mag Editor in Chief Lance Ulanoff wrote a piece titled "Unlock iPhones: Why Apple Won't Do It" where he explains his point of view on the rumor. And boy his point of view is screwed. Let's dissect it and analyze...

Poll: Would You Buy a Factory Unlocked iPhone for $649?

We reported a couple days ago that Apple might start selling factory unlocked iPhones in the US, just like it has been in many countries for over a year. Obviously, there would be an additional cost to that.

Looking at what the iPhone 4 sells for in Canada, both locked and factory unlocked, I assume that if the iPhone 4 is available, unlocked, in the US tomorrow, it will probably sell for $649 for the 16GB version or $749 for the 32GB...

Dialer Shield: Stop Accidental Screen Presses While Talking on Your iPhone

It's no secret that jailbreaking has made owning iDevices more enjoyable. If there is something that you don't like about your iPhone or iPad, chances are that the jailbreak community has a utility or app that'll help.

Dialer Shield is certainly a testament to that, as it provides an easy solution to a fairly annoying problem. Have you ever been talking on your iPhone and accidentally pressed End Call or another function with your cheek? Dialer Shield solves this by locking your iPhone screen during phone calls...

New in iOS 5: Use Your iPhone While Syncing with iTunes

One more feature to make our ultimate list of new iOS 5 features is the ability to now use your iPhone while it is syncing with iTunes. Until now, you couldn't use your iPhone or iDevice while it was syncing. This is now a thing of the past.

As you can see on the image above, the new "syncing" icon is running in the status bar, but I can still "slide to unlock" to use my iPhone. Jailbreakers might already be familiar with this feature as it was first made possible with Synchronicity...

How to Jailbreak Your Older iPhone or iPod Touch Using Whited00r

Earlier today we did a post about Whited00r, a custom firmware built for older Apple ARM6 devices. It includes built-in tweaks and gives you the option to remove unwanted features like Spotlight to make your device faster.

Whited00r has been out for a while, but it's kind of flown under the radar. There's still millions of these older devices floating around, so we figured we'd give folks an easy walkthrough on how to install Whited00r on your older iPhone or iPod touch...

Whited00r Firmware Provides Jailbreak and Unlock for Older iDevices

We've gotten some complaints in the past that we don't give older iPhones any lovin'. The truth is, we try to keep up with innovation in the jailbreak community and there just typically isn't much of that going on for devices older than the 3GS. Especially since Apple stopped supporting them.

But for folks with older iDevices that really want to join in on the jailbreaking festivities, check out Whited00r. If you haven't heard about this cool little project, it's essentially a firmware file that has been modified to include multitasking, video recording and oh yeah, it's jailbroken...

Want to Know What Apple’s New Campus Will Really Look Like? [Infographic]

Uh oh, looks like someone has a bad case of the Mondays. Well, what better way to start off your week than with a charming infographic? By now you've probably all heard of Apple's new spaceship-looking building that will be built in Cupertino.

The new structure was introduced by Steve Jobs himself at a recent Cupertino City Council meeting and is slated to open by 2015. The completely circular building will house around 12,000 employees and will be created without using a single piece of straight glass. So, what will the new campus be like on the inside?

Next iPhone in Final Testing Stages for September Release

After the next generation iPhone was a no-show at Apple's WWDC conference last week, the previous reports of an iPhone release in September gained more credibility. Now, according to some Apple intelligence from 9to5Mac, the next iPhone has reached final testing stages (or "AP" stage) with high-level Apple and carrier executives.

All signs point towards Apple being on track for a September release of the next iPhone, but some problems with Verizon could restrict FaceTime over 3G on the carrier's CDMA network.

New in iOS 5: Tone Store to Download Customized Email and SMS Tones

Apple's iOS software design strategy is interesting, to say the least. For example, many people wonder why it took the company nearly a year to implement the App Store after launching the iPhone. It took another year after that to add copy/paste and picture messaging features.

Apple excluded unnecessary items in early builds of iOS, demonstrating a quality-over-quantity sort of approach to adding new features. Luckily, iOS 5 seems to be finally bringing many of those omitted functions to the iPhone. Who's been dying to change the email tone?