Year: 2012

DownloadMove: Adjust the position of the download progress bar

DownloadMove is a new jailbreak tweak that allows you to adjust the position of the download bar that appears when downloading apps from the App Store.

There are several positions included with DownloadMove; they include: Middle, Top, Bottom, Up, and Down. Sure, it's not the most impressive tweak from a functionality standpoint, but DownloadMove is a decent choice for those looking for this sort of change.

Why Foxconn must ensure survival of cash-strapped Sharp

Though the world's largest product assembler Foxconn is taking advantage of Sharp's financial woes, the company will want to offer a lifeline to the struggling Japanese giant, not just because it's one of the suppliers of mobile displays for iPhones and iPads, but also because Apple is seeking to reduce its dependency on Samsung, the world's largest maker of flat displays. That's the crux of today's report by Bloomberg, which also mentions the inevitable Apple television set rumor...

Is this a Nano SIM tray for the next iPhone?

Hot on the heels of recent news that European carriers were stocking up on a 40 percent smaller Nano SIMs as they got to test the new SIM card standard extensively ahead of the next iPhone's release in September, a French blog this morning posted a series of image depicting a purported Nano SIM tray for the iPhone 5. Also leaked, a slightly reworked and a bit smaller home button thought to be making an appearance on the next iPhone. More pics right after the break...

Nuance unveils Nina, the virtual assistant for iOS and Android apps

Nuance, the voice recognition engine that powers Siri, today announced a new kind of digital personal assistant aimed at mobile customer service apps. Called Nina, she "transforms iPhone and Android mobile apps into powerful engagement tools that allow customers to serve themselves". Nina promises to cover everything from paying your bills to getting answers to your questions to changing or adding service on the fly.

Built on the same voice recognition engine from Nuance that Apple licensed for Siri, Nina can be added to iOS and Android apps via a software development kit (SDK) issued today as part of the announcement. What's best, Nina doesn't require that you tediously type in your password for various services and instead recognizes your voice to provide secure authentication...

Introducing Bladepad, the detachable iPhone gamepad

A few days ago we asked the question, "Should Apple build a game controller?" It was a pretty fair question, considering that the graphics in iOS titles are getting closer and closer to console-quality, but the gameplay isn't.

We've seen several accessory-makers try to remedy this problem by building physical gamepads, but none of them have managed to gain consumer traction. The new Gamepad, however, is hoping to change that...

BrowseInApp: open links in-app without switching to Safari

When the developer for BrowseInApp contacted us, asking us to do a review of the tweak, I was a bit skeptical. I hadn't tried it before, and I feel like I've tried most of the jailbreak packages out there that are worth trying.

But boy was I wrong. After playing with BrowseInApp for a couple of days, the tweak has quickly become one of my favorites. It's well-built, convenient, and integrates seamlessly into iOS. Keep reading for my full review...

Apple gave hackers access to user’s iCloud account

As we continue to upload more and more of our lives to the web, the dangers of being hacked multiply. Our credit card numbers, our home addresses — they're all there for the taking. That's why so many security experts preach using a complicated password.

But sometimes, using a strong password isn't enough. Just ask former Gizmodo writer Mat Honan. Mat's world was turned upside down this weekend when a hacker gained access to his iCloud account, wiping his Mac, iPhone and iPad, thanks to Apple...

The top 10 iOS news of the week on iDownloadBlog

A new week is coming, but that doesn't mean you have to miss out on what happened last week. If you think you may have missed a few of the top stories from last week, don't sweat it, we've got you covered.

We've gathered the top 10+ most popular stories from iDB last week for you to check out. As always, make sure that you're friends with us on Facebook, Google+, and that you are following us on Twitter...

Apple reportedly looking to acquire The Fancy social commerce site

The ink hasn't even dried on Apple's agreement to buyout AuthenTec yet, and the company is already rumored to be looking to make another purchase. According to a new report, Apple is in talks to acquire The Fancy social network.

For those that haven't heard of the site, The Fancy is essentially part store, blog, magazine and wish list. Similar to Pinterest, users can discover cool stuff, share it, and if they really like it, they can buy it. And apparently, Apple wants in...

Sprint heavily discounts the iPhone 4S ahead of iPhone 5 launch

We just got words that Sprint was currently selling the iPhone 4S 16GB at a $50 discount, for a total price of $149.99. According to a Sprint retailer who reached out to us, the company has been notifying stores that this new pricing would be in place until September 14th.

The timing seems very appropriate as the iPhone 5 next iPhone has been rumored to be announced at an event on September 12th, and will supposedly be available for sale on September 21st...

Question of the week: Should Apple develop a dedicated gaming controller?

As we all know, Apple has found itself in the desirable position as one of the leaders in gaming industry. This wasn't something Apple planned to do; as iOS popularity increased, it just sort of fell into its lap.

With that in mind, do you think that it's time for Apple to take gaming more seriously? Further, should Apple develop a dedicated gaming controller and increase its presence in the industry?

Emails show Apple was interested in a clickwheel iPhone

Earlier this year, ex-Apple engineer Tony Fadell mentioned something interesting during an on-stage interview. He said that among the handful of prototype iPhone designs that Apple originally considered, one of them was actually built around the infamous iPod clickwheel.

That prototype came up again yesterday during the Samsung-Apple trial. Samsung brought up an email exchange between Steve Jobs and Jony Ive discussing a Samsung phone with a wheel-like interface, hoping to prove that Apple too found inspiration in its competitors...