Year: 2012

Sprint confirms plans to acquire 100 percent stake in Clearwire for $2.2 billion

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 17, 2012

Confirming last week's rumor, carrier Sprint Nextel Monday morning announced plans to buy out the minority of shareholders of Clearwire in a transaction valued at approximately $2.2 billion. The acquisition will give Sprint, which in October acquired a controlling stake, a 100 percent ownership stake in the Bellevue, Washington-headquartered provider of mobile and fixed wireless broadband communications services. The deal also bodes well for Japan's Softbank, which in October bought a 70 percent stake in Sprint. Softbank has also been eyeing Clearwire since then and with this transaction it will basically control Clearwire through Sprint...

How to get directions in Google Maps via Siri, no jailbreak required

Cody Lee ∙ December 17, 2012

After months of rumors and speculation, Google finally launched its standalone Maps app for iOS last week. And it's been pretty popular thus far. It's currently the top free app in the App Store, and it's also listed first in Apple's featured 'Maps' section.

The app does have some caveats though. Perhaps most notably, unlike the built-in Maps app, you can't get directions in Google Maps via Siri. Luckily, a workaround popped up over the weekend that takes care of that. And it doesn't require a jailbreak...

Apple: China iPhone 5 sales top 2 million during opening weekend

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Apple's stock price fell to a 10-month low on Friday on the back of analysts' reports that Apple has been cutting supply orders to balance out excess inventory, and a reportedly quiet iPhone 5 launch in mainland China.

But apparently analysts weren't talking to the right sources. This morning, Apple announced that it has sold over 2 million iPhone 5 in China, setting a new record with the best first weekend sales ever in the country...

Smule’s Strum app adds music and Instagram-like effects to your videos

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 12, 2018

Even if you don't recognize the name Smule, chances are you've still heard of one of their apps. The Palo Alto-based mobile developer has delivered some pretty big iOS hits in its day such as Ocarina, which turns your phone into a flute-like instrument, Magic Piano, and I Am T-Pain.

This past week, Smule introduced its latest creation: an iPhone app called Strum. Unlike the aforementioned titles, Strum doesn't help you create music, but rather it allows you to create and edit short movie clips with Instagram-like video filters, digital audio filters, and more...

Google Maps app could violate European data protection law

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 28, 2019

I read an interesting article the other day by Evan Wiener on why Apple dropped Google from Maps in iOS 6. Wiener suggested that Google was withholding features, like voice-guided navigation, as a negotiation tactic to get Apple to agree with deeper Google integration, and Apple finally said enough's enough.

The well-connected John Gruber confirms that he's heard a similar story from numerous sources — more specifically, that Google was wanting to collect user data for serving up targeted ads, and Apple said no. And wouldn't you know it, it seems Google's trying to do the same thing in its new Maps app...

The iDownloadBlog top news stories of the week – Dec 16, 2012 edition

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated April 24, 2017

Like every Sunday, we bring you the stories that were the most popular on iDB during this past week. Whether it is a news piece, an editorial, a tutorial, a new jailbreak tweak, or an accessory review, we sum it all up in one convenient place.

If you like what you're reading, please make sure to spread the love by sharing our posts on your favorite social network. We're usually hanging out a lot on Twitter and Facebook, more rarely on Google+...

FreedomPop tempts with no-commit 1GB of free home Internet each month. Interested?

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

The way things are now, fourth-generation cellular networks already match - and often top - data speeds offered by your home's typical DSL broadband connection. So why not just replace your broadband line with a wireless 4G router?

Enter FreedomPop, a startup backed by Skype founder Niklas Zennstrom, whose new device dubbed the Freedom Hub Burst ups the ante by giving away one gigabyte of 4G data free of charge, each month. Those needing more data will pay fair prices.

Plus, it’s a no-contract device and it supports up to ten wireless or Ethernet devices simultaneously, which should cut it for a typical Apple-branded home comprised of a few Mac or Windows PCs, iPhones, iPads and iPods...

Chitika: iOS 6 adoption only rose 0.2% after Google Maps release

Cody Lee ∙ December 15, 2012

Judging from the comment sections on our Google Maps posts, and other feedback from around the web, it seems like quite a few people were holding out for a Google Maps app release before upgrading to iOS 6. And it makes sense, given some of the horror stories we've heard.

But according to Chitika, a large mobile ad network who regularly tracks iOS adoption rates and other mobile trends, iOS 6 adoption only rose 0.2% after Wednesday night's debut of the Google Maps app, suggesting it had no immediate impact on the number of iOS 6 users...

Google dropping Exchange ActiveSync support for Gmail next month

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 21, 2013

Brace yourselves, Gmail account syncing is about to get a lot less convenient for iOS and other non-Android devices. The Mountain View company just announced that as part of its 'Winter Cleaning' initiative, it will be ditching support for the Exchange ActiveSync protocol next month.

What's Exchange ActiveSync? Well it's an XML-based protocol, developed by Microsoft, that allows the synchronization of email, calendar, contacts, and other data between servers and mobile devices. And at this point, it's the only way to get native Gmail push notifications on your iPhone...

The Daily Recap – Dec 14, 2012 edition

Jeff Benjamin ∙ December 14, 2012

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=223fP5QAp9s

Welcome to The Daily Recap for December 14th, 2012. Watch our video for a quick look at some of the top stories from the day in less than two minutes. If you missed out on any of today's big news, this is a great way for you to get caught up fast.

For your convenience, you'll also find links to all of the stories listed in today's recap inside...

‘MapsOpener’ makes Google Maps the default Maps app on iOS

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

Google Maps is back on iOS, but there's just one problem -- Apple's stock maps app still remains default, so all of your maps links will open in Apple's version instead of Google's.

Thankfully, we knew it was only a matter of time before a jailbreak solution appeared to skirt around this issue. That solution is called MapsOpener -- a brand new jailbreak tweak that forces maps links to open up in Google Maps...

Undercover journalists take video inside Foxconn iPhone 5 factory

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

The walls around Foxconn's larger manufacturing facilities are infamously well-guarded. The factories have been the source of a large amount of media criticism due to unfit working conditions, and they rarely, if ever, let press in.

So the folks of Envoyé Spécial, a French 60 minute-like TV program, had to go undercover to get into the Zhengzhou iPhone 5 factory to get the answers to their long-standing questions, like: are things really improving at Foxconn?