Alex Heath

Third Party Widgets Coming to iOS 5, Thanks to Jailbreak

Alex Heath ∙ June 11, 2011

When the iOS 5 Notification Center was unveiled by Scott Forstall at WWDC, the possibility of third party widgets was also teased to developers. Although no public SDK for widgets was announced by Apple, the first, non-Apple widget has been successfully added to Notification Center, thanks to the RedSn0w tethered jailbreak that recently got updated for iOS 5.

Developer WillFour20 was able to dig into a jailbroken version of the iOS 5 SDK. He uncovered the ability to add his own widget, and he demonstrated it with the above: "Hello World." Thanks to this discovery, developers with jailbroken iDevices will be able to start developing and testing widgets for iOS 5...

Gevey SIM Will Unlock iPhone 4 on iOS 5

Alex Heath ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

Following the news that RedSn0w will jailbreak iOS 5, an unlock solution for the iPhone 4 on iOS 5 has also been uncovered. The Gevey SIM is a TurboSIM-like piggy back SIM card that will unlock iPhone 4 basebands.

On iOS 5, it appears that the Gevey SIM will still unlock the iPhone 4. Be warned: the Gevey SIM is technically illegal, so we do not recommend this method for unlocking the iPhone 4 on iOS 5.

MathAlarm Jailbreak Tweak Makes Sure You’re Actually Awake in the Morning

Alex Heath ∙ June 10, 2011

We've all been there: You've had a late night, but you still have to get up early in the morning. You set your iPhone's alarm for the usual time to get up and go to work, and you're greeted by your alarm in the early hours of the morning. You've got the option to snooze the alarm or turn it off. Which option do you choose?

MathAlarm is a new jailbreak tweak, by Ryan Petrich, that makes sure you're actually awake in the morning. You have to solve a simple math equation before you can hit the Snooze or Deactivate button.

1080p Video Playback Finally Coming in iOS 5

Alex Heath ∙ June 10, 2011

An interesting tidbit has been uncovered in the iOS 5 beta relating to HD video playback. It appears that iDevices will finally be able to playback HD video at a full, 1080p resolution.

Specifically, the iPad 2 has been confirmed to have the ability to playback full, 1080p video in the Videos app. In the past, iTunes wouldn't even allow the syncing of 1080p video to an iDevice.

SliderBar Jailbreak Tweak Makes Scrolling on the iPhone Faster

Alex Heath ∙ June 10, 2011

As part of the TweakWeek initiative, SliderBar is a free jailbreak tweak developed by Ryan Petrich. SliderBar makes vertical scrolling in iOS a breeze. Instead of scrolling by swiping up and down with your finger, SliderBar allows you to scroll through a vertical page in a more traditional way.

The tweak is very simple, and you may actually miss it in iOS if you don't know what it look for.

iOS 5 Beta 1 Tethered Jailbreak Now Available

Alex Heath ∙ June 10, 2011

RedSn0w, the popular jailbreak tool by the Dev Team, has been updated with support for a tethered jailbreak on the iOS 5 developer beta. It's been less than a week since Apple got iOS 5 Beta 1 into the hands of developers at WWDC and across the world, and a tethered jailbreak is already available.

The news was announced by Dev Team frontman, MuscleNerd, and version 0.9.8.b1 of RedSn0w is now available to download for those with access to the iOS 5 beta. To get the iOS 5 beta legally, you must have a registered developer account with Apple.

Apple Owes the Jailbreak Community an Apology

Alex Heath ∙ Updated November 26, 2016

The relationship between Apple and the jailbreak community has always been an interesting one. Ever since the first, public iPhone jailbreak was displayed in 2007, Apple and jailbreakers have been fighting in a secret, underground war. Fast forward to 2011, and you can do a lot more with a jailbroken iPhone than just add custom ringtones.

On Monday, Apple unveiled iOS 5. Version 5 was called Apple's most "revolutionary" iOS release to date. Oddly enough, many features that have been in the jailbreak community for years are now present in iOS 5. In fact, Apple has borrowed (some would say stolen) ideas from jailbreak developers for years, and iOS 5 is the most current, blatant example.

Apple, you owe the jailbreak community an apology.

iPhone Now Available on 200 Carriers

Alex Heath ∙ June 10, 2011

The iPhone just won't quit. After five years of being on the market, Apple's smartphone is now available on 200 carriers worldwide. Sales are estimated to stay strong, and Apple should be on track to unveil a new iPhone this fall.

Since March of this year, Apple has gone from 186 carriers to 200 worldwide. The iPhone is available on the two largest carriers in the United States, AT&T and Verizon, as well. Apple is making aggressive moves to get the iPhone on as many carriers as possible across the globe.

New in iOS 5: Flagging Email in Mail App

Alex Heath ∙ June 9, 2011

If you've been looking for a more elegant way to mark your email in Apple's Mail app, iOS 5 may have what you're looking for. In iOS 5, you now have the ability to "Flag" messages in the Mail app as important. The flags can be used to access certain emails for quick reference, or show you what messages are the most important to you.

New in iOS 5: Save and Read Webpages Later with Reader

Alex Heath ∙ June 9, 2011

In iOS 5, Apple has taken services like Instapaper and Read It Later head-on with a new feature called "Reader." Like the similar feature that has existed in Safari on the Mac, Reader for iOS 5 will strip a webpage in Mobile Safari of unneeded images and ads for a more enjoyable reading experience.

Articles can also be saved for reading later on any iDevice that's set up with your iCloud account. Bookmarking is a thing of the past.

Nuance Voice Integration Not Currently in iOS 5, But There’s Still Hope

Alex Heath ∙ June 8, 2011

Apple unveiled a truckload of iOS 5 features at WWDC on Monday, but one major thing was missing: Nuance voice integration. There was a strong series of rumors leading right up to the keynote that claimed iOS 5 would boast huge improvements in voice integration.

Unfortunately, no voice-related features were previewed during Monday's keynote, and the first iOS 5 developer beta has no voice additions to speak of.

Has Apple abandoned their partnership with Nuance in iOS? Or will we still see deeper voice integration in iOS 5 before it's released to the public in the next few months?

Apple Didn’t Tell Carriers About iMessage, Watch Out SMS?

Alex Heath ∙ June 8, 2011

Apple's wireless carrier partners were apparently just as surprised as we were when Apple unveiled its new messaging client, iMessage, at yesterday's WWDC keynote. Reportedly, Apple didn't bother to give carriers a heads up that they were introducing a new, media-rich messaging client before the actual presentation to the public.

Wireless carriers are the ones that will actually be handling the transfer of messages/photos/videos in iMessage over 3G. Apple demonstrated its classic attitude by not even bothering to give carriers a heads up about iMessage. What Apple wants, Apple gets.