Year: 2012

New iCade Models Shown Off at CES 2012

We're big fans of the Ion Audio iCade here at iDB, so when we heard that the company had announced three new models, we took notice!

Building on the huge popularity of the original iPad-supporting iCade, these three new models build on what has already been done, while bringing the magic of iCade to the iPhone and iPod touch at the same time.

If you're a fan of arcade games and own an iOS device, then Ion Audio has you covered with an arcade stick solution...

5 Great Jailbreak Tweaks to Enhance the iOS 5 Mail App

A couple of week ago we told you about six great jailbreak tweaks for Safari. Today, we're showcasing five additional tweaks that can help supercharge your iPhone's email experience.

Jailbreaking is a great way to get more out of your iOS device, and as you'll see, one of the best ways to leverage jailbreaking is by applying its benefits to core functions, like email...

SpringPod: Add Individual Music Controls to Your Springboard

Adding individual music controls to your Home screen in the form of app icons is nothing new in the world of jailbreaking. But SpringPod brings a slightly different approach, and few more customization options to the table than previous tweaks.

Along with play/pause controls, SpringPod brings previous, next, rewind, fast forward, and volume functions directly to your iPhone's Springboard. But is it worth the $0.99 asking price?

Recludo Takes You Straight to The Music App When Unlocking Your Device

Recludo is a jailbreak tweak that's a bit hard to describe, but simple in function. Its purpose is to force your iPhone straight to the Music app whenever the lock screen music controls are invoked and you unlock your iPhone.

Since there's a good chance that you will want to use your Music app when the music controls are being used anyway, Recludo can usher in a seamless music listening experience to jailbroken iPhones...

Microsoft Admits that Windows Phone 7 Was a Response to the iPhone

Microsoft has for the first time admitted that it completely redesigned its Windows Phone 7 smartphone operating system because of the way Apple had changed the market with the iPhone's release back in 2007.

Speaking to The New York Times, Microsoft's Jim Belfiore admitted that Apple "created a sea change" when the iPhone was introduced, and that Microsoft was forced to come up with something unique in order to compete with Apple's new smartphone.

In December 2008 a team at Microsoft sat down and, after a marathon seven-hour meeting, decided that the only course of action was to complete redesign their mobile OS from the ground up. The result is the Windows Phone 7 we see today...

Top Jailbreak Videos of the Week

This week's top videos feature an untethered jailbreak for the Apple TV, a guide for preserving your iOS 5 untethered jailbreak for life, some nifty tweaks to launch apps from the Lock screen, clear Lock screen notifications, and more.

As always, please be sure to share our iPhone, iPad, and iOS video guides by spreading our posts on Twitter and Facebook.

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

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...

Netflix Goes Live in the UK App Store

The revolution has begun, and this time it will be televised. Well, more streamed than anything, but why let accuracy get in the way of a good opening line?

Netflix today launched its video on-demand service in the United Kingdom, which in turn means that Brits can now watch movies and TV shows via the service on their iPads, iPhones, iPod touches and Apple TVs, along with the myriad other solutions that US users have been enjoying for years.

UK customers can receive a free trial for one month, and then they are expected to stump up £5.99 ($9.30) per month after that, which compares favorably with the $9.99 fee for Americans...

Developer Shows How iOS Handles Multitasking [Video]

Everyone seems to be talking about iOS and how it handles it's own particular brand of multitasking right now, and things have gotten rather heated.

With many high-profile developers and commentators reiterating that iOS handles multitasking fine just by itself, and some Apple Geniuses seemingly adamant that running apps should be closed manually in order to free up memory, one developer has been particularly outspoken. Fraser Speirs has already written a lengthy blog post on the subject, but now he has released an even longer video explaining just how iOS handles memory usage when multitasking.

The upshot? It turns out that iOS is actually pretty darned clever...

The iPhone 4S Jailbreak: What We Know So Far

In collaboration with pod2g, both the Dev Team and the Chronic Dev Team released untether exploits for iOS 5.0.1 at the end of last year. The release was great news for A4 device owners, but left iPad 2 and iPhone 4S users in the dark.

However, as most of you know, pod2g is currently hard at work on a full jailbreak for A5 devices. And with the help of some of the jailbreak community's biggest names, it looks like the infamous iOS hacker is making some real progress...

These Awesome X-Ray Wallpapers Let You See Inside Your iOS Device

If you're the type of person who is always on the lookout for interesting and unique wallpapers, we've found some doozies for you. These x-ray wallpapers for the iPad and iPhone provide a glimpse into your iOS device's internals.

The images come from iFixit, the well-known masters of taking apart and rebuilding iOS hardware. The group grabbed the high resolution photos during one of their device tear-downs last year, and they just happen to make cool backgrounds.

Apple Accused of Providing Backdoor iOS Access to Indian Military

ZDNet has just published an interesting report claiming that Apple, along with both RIM and Nokia, has built in backdoor iOS access for the Indian Military, leaving text messages, voice calls, and data trails completely exposed.

As you can imagine, after the recent CarrierIQ scandal, this information is making some waves around the internet. And what's even worse, it sounds like the hidden trapdoor has been used in some not-so-kosher situations...