Year: 2014

iDB is ready for Apple’s iPhone 6 event tomorrow, are you?

Cody Lee ∙ September 8, 2014

Apple's iPhone event is now less than a day away, and anticipation couldn't be higher. Two redesigned iPhones with larger displays and NFC, a new mobile payment service, and the iWatch, Apple's first major product unveiling since the iPad, are just a few things on the menu.

Apple has said that it will be streaming the festivities to its website and various iOS devices, but for those who won't be able to watch the keynote live, iDB has you covered. We will be here all day, providing coverage of all announcements made before, during and after the event.

China Mobile’s claimed iPhone 6 specs: waterproof, dustproof, sapphire-protected and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 2, 2017

Having started taking pre-orders for Apple's unreleased and still unofficial iPhone 6 a good five days ago, carrier China Mobile has now posted to its official website what it claims are official hardware specifications of the 4.7-inch version of the handset, GforGames reported Monday afternoon.

Some of the more surprising hardware and design features of the handset reportedly include water and dust-resistance and sapphire protection for the display, allowing for a virtually unbreakable device.

However, it's impossible to determine whether China Mobile is making an educated guess or if the firm is in fact relaying Apple-sanctioned information. In case of the former, China Mobile could easily get reprimanded for leaking out its partner's secrets ahead of tomorrow's big reveal.

This tidbit comes after rival China Telecom said recently that a single iPhone 6 model supports all the major wireless standards in the 1.33 billion people market.

In a not-so-smart PR stunt, their post was accompanied by a set of pretty iPhone 6 renderings which creators Tomas Moyano and Nicolàs Aichino posted on Bēhance. It's worth keeping in mind that China Mobile is the world's largest mobile operator by market capitalization, its subscriber base dwarfing AT&T and Verizon combined.

Control your music from anywhere in iOS with Clex

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ September 8, 2014

We've seen quite a few tweaks that provide system-wide access to music controls such as the popular iTunes-inspired MiniPlayer and the Musiex tweak. Clex is yet another addition to the group that aims to achieve the same goal but comes with additional features.

Created by the popular developer Gabriele Filipponi, Clex provides a quick access to a list of all the songs available on your device as well as the music controls by swiping from the left or right side of the screen. Doing so opens a new sidebar-like interface which sports a design similar to Control Center.

Apple said to be working on rewards program for mobile payment service

Cody Lee ∙ September 8, 2014

Apple is working on a rewards program for its upcoming mobile payment service, according to a new report from Bank Innovation. Citing sources familiar with the matter, the site says the company has been talking with the InterContinental Hotels Group (Holiday Inn, Crown Plaza, etc.) about a possible loyalty partnership.

Additionally, the outlet points out that Apple has recently posted a job opening for a Senior World Wide Partner Marketing Manager. While the title seems ambiguous, the person in this position would be tasked with creating training materials for external partners with the purpose of aiding customer adoption of "new features."

Google adds offline support, accessibility improvements to Play Movies & TV for iOS

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

Google has just updated its Play Movies & TV client for the iPhone and iPad with offline support, accessibility improvements and bug fixes, the Internet giant announced in a Google+ post Monday morning.

“With Google Play’s updated iOS Play Movies & TV app, you can download movies and TV shows then take them with you wherever you go, no Internet connection required,” reads the post.

Released this January, the free application (which now sits at version 1.2) continues to lack the ability to purchase movies and television shows on Google Play due to Apple's rules for iOS development.

Unprecedented security precautions for tomorrow’s event, live-stream page takes over Apple.com

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 10, 2017

With less than 24 hours until Apple's press event, security precautions at the Flint Center for the Performing Arts in Cupertino, California have been taken to “unprecedented levels,” reports Cult of Mac editor Leander Kahney who's secretly snagged a few interviews with unnamed staffers at the venue.

The iPhone maker is also ramping up anticipation for the upcoming presentation by forwarding visitors to the Apple.com homepage to a special webpage it set up last week to live-stream the show to the web at large.

Message Scheduler for Whatsapp does what its name suggest…

Alihassan Mahdi ∙ September 8, 2014

If you frequently use Whatsapp, you might have noticed that the social messaging app doesn't allow you to schedule messages to be delivered at a specific time. Message Scheduler for Whatsapp is a jailbreak tweak developed by Mohamed Marbouh that enables this feature on your jailbroken iOS 7 device.

The tweak allows you to schedules a specific time and date when you want a particular message to be sent to a specific recipient. This can be useful when you want to remind someone of an upcoming event at the right time.

WhatsApp updated with a slew of new features

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 8, 2014

Facebook-owned WhatsApp this morning received a substantial update, bringing out a slew of new features to the popular messaging and soon-to-be VoIP platform.

Available as a free download for the iPhone, the new WhatsApp version 2.11.9 now makes it a lot easier to capture and send photos with a new fast camera access button in the interface.

Moreover, the refreshed software lets you archive chats and groups, add captions to media and share iPhone 5s-only Slow-Mo videos at 120 frames per second while introducing new location-sharing features, wallpapers, notification tones, media auto-download preferences in settings and more.

First Ferrari FF models with CarPlay hit the roads

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 8, 2014

Ferrari on Monday started delivering its new Ferrari FF model with CarPlay integration to early adopters, becoming the first commercially available vehicle on the roads with native support for Apple's in-car system, previously known as 'iOS in the Car'. CarPlay is also available for older vehicles as an aftermarket solution from the likes of Alpine and Pioneer.

The $300,000 sports car with a 6.3-liter V12 engine provides a cool 651 horsepower and takes you from zero to 60 miles per hour in 3.4 second (top speed: 208 miles per hour). CarPlay integration in the Ferrari FF includes the familiar features like voice-guided navigation, Siri, music playback, voice controls, messaging, phone calls and more.

Both 4.7 and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 models said to launch simultaneously on September 19

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 8, 2014

Contrary to a flurry of reports stating otherwise, both 4.7 and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 models will in fact hit store shelves at the same time, on Friday, September 19, ten days following tomorrow's announcements. This information reported by the French blog iGen.fr [Google Translate] came from the same source who in the past accurately predicted other Apple launches.

It remains to be seen whether this is just an educated guess or the real launch date. The rumor-mill's been saying for months that the 5.5-incher would hit later due to alleged manufacturing challenges. For what it's worth, Apple typically starts selling new iPhones 7-10 days following the introduction, or the Friday the week after the announcement.

For instance, the iPhone 5s/5c went on sale on September 20, 2013 following its September 10 unveiling. And before it, the iPhone 5 reached retail stores on September 21, 2012 after it had been introduced on September 12.

What’s in a name? 5.5-incher is ‘iPhone 6 Plus’, 4.7-inch model called ‘iPhone 6’

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 8, 2014

According to the Japanese blog MacOtakara [Google Translate] Monday morning, Apple will use 'iPhone 6' and 'iPhone 6 Plus' monikers with respect to a 4.7 and 5.5-inch edition of the upgraded smartphone.

The French blog NowhereElse.fr said last week that the bigger iPhone 6 model will be marketed under the 'iPhone Air' moniker. Unlike 'Air,' Apple's never used the 'Plus' suffix to market an iPhone, or any other product for that matter. If true, this'll be a first.

Spotify promises 30 minutes of uninterrupted music if you sit through 13-30 second video ad breaks

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 13, 2018

Spotify, the popular music-streaming service with 40 million strong user base, on Monday announced a new way to stream music for free.

Leveraging its video ads for mobile and desktop that have been in limited testing since mid-June and are now rolling out, free Spotify streamers who opt-in to view short 15-30 second videos on their device will receive 30 minutes' worth of uninterrupted, ad-free music. Spotify, which hails from Sweden, opened its mobile service to non-paying users in December.