iPhone News

Tim Cook, Turkish president to attend opening of Apple’s Istanbul store on April 4

Cody Lee ∙ March 5, 2014

Earlier this year, Tim Cook traveled to Turkey to meet with the country's president, to reportedly discuss the opening of a retail store in Istanbul, research and development and other matters. The store opening is of particular significance, as it would be Apple's first in the region.

Well it looks like the talks were successful. According to Turkish Apple blog ElmaDergisi, Apple is set to open a retail store in Istanbul's Zorlu Center on April 4. And as proof of the gravity of the event, both Cook and Turkish president Abdullah Gül are expected to be in attendance...

Apple to bring full-screen video iAds to iOS apps this year

Cody Lee ∙ March 5, 2014

AdAge is reporting this afternoon that Apple is looking to roll out new video iAds for iPhone and iPad later this year. Citing people with knowledge of the company's plans, the outlet says that these 'interstitial' ads will automatically play in full-screen on iOS devices.

The way it works currently, iAds are much less obtrusive: a user must click on a mobile banner for a brand's ad video to play. Under the new format, developers could opt to display TV commercial-like ads during moments of transition, like in between game levels...

This free Mac util lets you open iCloud Tabs in any web browser

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 5, 2014

Apple's iCloud is a great way to keep your content synchronized across any number of Macs, iPhones, iPads and iPod touches.

It keeps your photos, calendar items, contacts, passwords and more up to date across devices, including Safari items like bookmarks and open tabs.

This useful feature, called iCloud Tabs, unfortunately is limited to the Apple ecosystem and only works with the company's own Safari browser for the Mac and iOS. As a result, people who rely on a non-Apple browser such as Mozilla's Firefox or Google's Chrome are unable to access the tabs they have open on their other devices.

That is, unless they consider CloudyTabs, a nifty little utility by Josh Parnham that puts iCloud Tabs right in the Mac’s menu bar...

Flipboard buys news reader app Zite for $60 million

Cody Lee ∙ March 5, 2014

Flipboard has announced this morning that it has acquired popular news reader app Zite from CNN. The company didn't disclose pricing details, but word has it that it went for $60 million and part of the deal is that Flipboard will begin syndicating CNN content inside its apps.

For those unfamiliar with the app, it's billed as an 'intelligent magazine' that helps you discover interesting things to read. Almost like a Pandora for RSS feeds, Zite analyzes millions of articles each day to offer you content on over 40K topics based on your habits and preferences...

TSMC allegedly started producing A8 processor for iPhone 6 last month

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

A new story published by Taiwan's Commercial Times (Google translate) and relayed by Agence France Presse has it that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world's largest independent foundry, has begun churning out A8 chips that will likely serve as the engine for the coming wave of iOS devices, namely the iPhone 6 and the next iPad.

TSMC also builds Touch ID sensors for the iPhone 5s. The firm is understood to account for the bulk of A8 chip manufacture as Apple's been attempting to decrease its reliance on Samsung, which up until recently used to exclusively build mobile processors for iOS devices based on Apple's blueprints...

Vertex is now available on Cydia

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 16, 2018

Vertex, the awesome jailbreak tweak that combines app switcher and control center into one convenient page, is now available for download on Cydia's BigBoss repo. The tweak, developed by Ian Burns and Timon Olsthoorn, and is based on Bill Labus’ popular Mission Control concept.

The team bills Vertex as a sort of one-stop-shop for all of your app-switching, music-controlling and Settings-toggling needs. The tweak is well-designed with customizable aesthetics, and in our initial walkthrough, Jeff said it's 'definitely worth trying.' Check out our hands-on video below...

Gmail updated with iOS 7 Background App Refresh, streamlined sign in experience

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 5, 2014

Google's free Gmail app for the iPhone and iPad is being continuously improved and that's a good thing.

Now, I myself am a Mailbox convert so the only reason for keeping Gmail on my device is to occasionally check out new features. If anything, today's Gmail update gives me two new reasons to reconsider handling my email in Gmail more frequently. Now available, Gmail 3.0 brings out two major improvements.

Firstly, the app now uses Background App Refresh, a new iOS 7 technology which lets apps ask the operating system to retrieve new content even if they're not running. As a result, switching from one app back to Gmail immediately serves up-to-date inbox, negating the need to manually refresh content.

And secondly, it improves the experience by signing you in automatically using the same Google Account defined in Google's other iOS apps, such as Maps and Google+...

Apple rumored to open up Siri to 3rd party apps with iWatch in mind

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 28, 2018

According to a new report by The Information, a technology blog former WSJ writer Jessica Lessin started recently, Apple will open up Siri to third-party developers.

Such a move would let folks use the smart personal assistant to control their favorite apps. The development is believed to be closely tied to Apple's work on its rumored wearable project, the iWatch.

This would mark a significant advancement for Siri, which since its October 2011 inception has been expected to allow for spoken commands and interactions in third-party iPhone and iPad applications...

Apple said to phase out non-Retina model from MacBook Pro lineup

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 5, 2014

After reportedly making the decision to axe the iPad 2 "in the near future", now comes word that Apple's non-Retina 13-inch MacBook Pro model is next on the chopping block. If true, this would streamline the company's notebook offering after the non-Retina production winds down in the second half of 2014, in time for a refresh around Intel's forthcoming Broadwell processors.

The move would reduce the Mac notebook lineup to non-Retina MacBook Airs (which may or may not get a Retina treatment later this year) and all-Retina MacBook Pros, potentially leaving future MacBook Pro buyers without a built-in CD/DVD optical drive...

Apple’s M7 motion coprocessor caught tracking movement after battery dies

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 5, 2014

Apple's M7 motion tracking chip found inside the iPhone 5s, iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina display is apparently able to track a user's motion activity even after the battery dies. According to a post by Reddit user Glarznak, his iPhone 5s was able to track his every movement even after the battery died on him. He was able to confirm this by using the Argus fitness app which showed a number of steps for the four days that his phone was dead...

Let’s Talk Jailbreak 47: That escalated quickly

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated March 28, 2023

Episode 47: It's been a big week for the jailbreak community as highly anticipated tweaks like IntelliScreenX 7 and Vertex are reviewed. We also discuss the upcoming release of Auxo 2, along with our observations from Sentry's recent teaser videos. Finally, we chit-chat about Polus, PowerBanners, and Unread.

Users complain of Lightning cable issues due to corrosion

Cody Lee ∙ March 5, 2014

Apple has been taking criticism for its new Lightning connector since it was introduced alongside the iPhone 5 in 2012. The change instantly made millions of cases and other accessories incompatible, forcing users to either buy updated products or do without.

Those complaints have since spilled over into the Lightning cable's durability, with the Apple Store showing a 1.5 star rating of the cable on over 1,200 reviews. Apparently the cable is vulnerable to breakage, fraying, and according to a new report, corrosion as well...