Dandelion is a new jailbreak tweak available on the BigBoss repo, which promises to bring automatically adjusting brightness to your device on a per-app basis. This means that in theory, you should be able to configure your brightness to a specific level while in app, and have the brightness always adjust to that set level when the app is launched.
Unfortunately, in my experience with the tweak, the results weren't quite that simple.
Like every other facet of iOS, Notification Center received a significant visual overhaul in iOS 7 when compared to iOS 6 and below. Gone are the opaque linen textures in favor of a simple and clean semi-transparent overlay.
If you're running a jailbroken iOS 6 installation, then it's possible to gain some of Notification Center's new visual cues. SevenCenter is a new jailbreak tweak that brings the iOS 7 Notification Center experience to iOS 6, and iOS 5 devices. Have a look inside to see what I mean.
SideSettings is a recently released tweak that lets you open up the settings for any app as a sidebar. Instead of having to exit the app, go to the Settings app, and access the app’s preferences, SideSettings immediately takes you to the settings of whatever app you have open using a simple swipe gesture.
Of course, all apps don’t have preferences to configure. In cases such as these, SideSettings will open up the stock Settings app instead.
I really enjoy SideSettings based on its originality alone. It’s a must see tweak that you have to witness on video to appreciate its ingenuity. Have a look at our full video walkthrough inside.
In this week's episode of Let's Talk Jailbreak, we discuss all things jailbreak first, including the iOS 7 jailbreak, the iOS 6.1.4 jailbreak, and three awesome new jailbreak tweaks that you must see. We also share our thoughts about Samsung's new Galaxy Gear smart watch, the prospects of a larger iPhone, and we have an insightful discussion about the future of gaming.
I know what you're thinking. "But Jeff, we don't need any more walkthroughs of Lock screen launchers, we've already been inundated with them."
To be honest, I thought the same thing.
We went through a period where it seemed like there was Lock screen launcher, after Lock screen launcher, after Lock screen launcher. And it's not that any of the releases were bad, the niche just got a little too crowded.
Well, you'll be happy to know that Simple Mode, although it falls firmly within the genre, adds an original flavor to the typical Lock screen launcher. Simple Mode will actually learn your app usage patterns, and adjust the apps available on your Lock screen automatically.
Arco is a recently release jailbreak collaboration between Jack Willis and Sentry. The release, which falls under the A3tweaks umbrella, places a visual music timeline indicator in your device's status bar.
The design of Arco is very much akin to the download animation that happens in the App Store in iOS 7. In iOS 7 there's a round circle indicator that wraps around a button, which is indicative of the download progress. In the case of Arco, the "progress" is in relation to a currently playing song.
Although it's a solid tweak, the best thing about Arco isn't about design or functionality. The great thing about Arco is where the money goes when you purchase a copy. A3tweaks has generously decided to forward all proceeds to Kyle Matthews' Because of Ezra charity, which helps to fund research for neuroblastoma, a terrible form of pediatric cancer.
One of the best jailbreak tweaks to touch down in some time is now available for purchase on the Cydia Store. I'm referring to Apex, the new jailbreak tweak collaboration from A3tweaks.
Apex is an innovative new release that allows you to group sets of app icons together, and reveal each individual app using a swipe up or swipe down gesture. This means that you can have what appears to be a single app on your Home screen, when in all actuality, it's hiding up to four additional apps.
Apex is a great way to get by without using folders. It allows you to quickly group items together, and launch them just as fast using intuitive gesture commands. Have a look inside at our full video walkthrough, as I explain why this is a must have jailbreak release for you.
For all of you folks buying gifts in secret for your loved ones, beware; Chrome's incognito mode has a flaw that allows users to recover searches performed in private. A new video has surfaced showcasing the flaw in action, and iDB has independently verified, that indeed, Incognito mode on the iOS version of Chrome ain't so incognito.
The problem occurs when searching in incognito mode and then exiting incognito mode and performing a web search on Google.com. The issue doesn't occur when exiting Google.com and searching using Chrome's Omnibox.
Incognito mode has never been exactly fail proof on iOS, but this is still a pretty embarrassing gaffe for Google.
The fine folks over at AgileBits have outdone themselves with the latest update to their awesome password management application. 1Password 4, a release countless months in the making, is now officially available for purchase in the Mac App Store. To celebrate, the team behind it is offering it at $39.99 — a 20% discount.
I've been a 1Password user for a littler over a year now, and I have to tell you, it's the best thing since sliced bread. To be honest, I wasn't much a believer at first. I used another password management tool called LastPass, and that seemed to work fine for me.
That was until I gave 1Password a real shot. Since then, I haven't looked back. There are just so many different facets of this application that make it the gold standard as far as password management apps are concerned. And 1Password 4 has so many subtle upgrades and painstaking attention to detail, that I feel comfortable labeling it the best password management app of all time.
Netflix has updated its popular video streaming app with some much wanted features that are sure to make its users happy. First, the app now supports iOS 7, which means it brings more of the iOS 7 inspired design language to the table. You'll see that reflected in the fonts, the drop down menus, status bar, etc.
The next big thing you should notice is support for streaming HD content, if the content you wish to play has an HD feed available. To differentiate HD content, Netflix has added an "HD" symbol below the title of its shows. To go along with the new ability to stream HD, support has been added for proper AirPlay streaming to an Apple TV device.
All in all, it's a pretty huge update for fans of Netflix. It also means that you no longer have to look to workarounds when it comes to streaming your favorite shows to the big screen.
As I discussed in the recent episode of Let's Talk Jailbreak, I've been feverishly refreshing Apple's iPhone 5s order page looking for a 32GB gold edition. Yes, I already have a Space Grey iPhone 5s, and I'm happy with it, but the rapper in me is secretly dying to get his paws on a gold version.
Going to Apple's website and constantly entering in my zip code to find in stock 5s' in my local area gets to be a bit tedious. Thankfully, one smart individual has created a website that's solely focused on retrieving iPhone 5s stock in your local area.
Before I started blogging about Apple, I used to work on a number of different gaming websites back in the late 90's and early 2000's. The E3 gaming conference was one the highlights of my year, and I regularly ventured out to Los Angeles to cover all of the new releases that were revealed at this touchstone of an event. I even made sure to fly out to Tokyo to cover the Tokyo Games Show before it turned into the shell of its former self that it is today.
Those days were the heydays of gaming coverage. Websites (they weren't called blogs back then) were thriving, and even print mags were still relatively popular. Publishers used to spend an absurd amount of cash throwing parties and constructing huge booths for the major conferences throughout the year. Open bars were the norm, not the exception. And booth babes. I'll just leave that one alone.
Of course, a lot of that has now changed. Some things for the better, and a lot of things for the worse, depending on who you ask. Gone are the days of the massively popular trade events that we used to flock to every year. Yes, they still exist, but they're nothing like the used to be back in the day. During this transition period, we've seen gaming staples like Nintendo struggle to remain relevant, while Apple, inadvertent as it may be, rises to dominance.