iPhone News

Obama Administration vetoes ITC’s US sales ban on Apple products

Cody Lee ∙ Updated August 9, 2013

Huge news out of Washington this afternoon, as reports are coming in that President Obama has stepped in and vetoed the ITC’s decision to place a US import ban on a handful of Apple's older iOS devices. The ban came after the International Trade Commission found some of Apple's products infringed on 2 Samsung cellular patents.

The ruling was handed down on June 4, and exclusion orders were sent to the White House, giving Obama's Administration 60 days to veto the ban based on "public policy." And that 60-day deadline would've ended soon, but it looks like the President has heeded to the requests of Verizon, AT&T and others to overturn the ITC's decision...

How to create stop motion animations with your iPhone and Google+ Auto Awesome feature

Justin Balog ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

If you're going to understand this post, you'll first need to see my Auto Awesome in action. This might be a bit of a departure from a traditional lesson in iPhone Photography, but I always feel it's important to experiment with new technologies. I went so far down the Rabbit Hole trying to figure this out, I just had to share it!

If you're a Google+ user, you probably already know this. If not, they actually have some very cool things going on over there. One of those things is the 'Auto Awesome' photo tools. In short, 'Auto Awesome' can do very awesome things with the images you upload and like the name implies, it does it automatically. Things like 'auto enhance', 'auto HDR', 'auto panorama', and for this example, 'auto motion'!

All you do is upload several photos and Google automatically determines the appropriate awesomeness to apply. For example, if they are different exposures of the same scene, it will auto HDR them. If there is overlap in the scene from one image to the next, it will auto panorama them. If it's the same scene with subtle motion differences, it will do this...

Following ‘Dungeons’ cancelation, new evidence suggests Infinity Blade 3 in the works

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Following months of silence, Chair co-founder and Creative Director Donald Mustard announced last month that 'Infinity Blades: Dungeons' had been canceled. Rumors about the game had been bouncing around since it debuted onstage at Apple's iPad 3 event.

But it doesn't look like fans are going to have to mourn the title's demise for very long. According to a Senior QA Tester’s LinkedIn profile, Infinity Blade-creator Chair looks to be in the middle of either development or beta testing a sequel to the popular game...

Apple calls DoJ e-books settlement proposal ‘draconian’ and ‘punitive’

Cody Lee ∙ August 2, 2013

Earlier today, the Department of Justice filed new court documents, offering Apple a settlement for its e-book price fixing case. The iPad-maker was found guilty last month of conspiring with 5 major book publishers to raise e-book prices.

In the filing, the DoJ essentially asked that Apple completely restructure its e-book business model. And unsurprisingly, it filed its own brief this afternoon, calling the proposal a "draconian and punitive intrusion into Apple's business..."

Bob Mansfield detached himself from executive duties to focus on chips and wearables

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 2, 2013

Apple haters had a field day learning SVP of Technologies was stripped of his executive title this past Sunday. Nevermind that Technologies was created specifically for Mansfield last August by combining Apple's wireless and semiconductor teams and that he actually wanted to be relieved of executive responsibilities.

The org change was confirmed in a SEC filing and Apple cryptically said Mansfield will remain with the company to work on special projects, reporting directly to Tim Cook. Now, some watchers were quick to jump ahead of themselves and interpret the move as a bad sign for Apple and its celebrated hardware guru, who was un-retired at Tim Cook's request just a year ago.

Some even went as far to speculate Mansfield had fallen out of favor with Cook, which couldn't be farther form truth. That's certainly not what I've been hearing, along with other pundits who insist Apple engineers are loving the chubby executive a lot.

Other sources in the know have stepped forward, too, underscoring you could hear the same sentiment echoed throughout the corridors of 1 Infinite Loop. Yes, Mansfield was crucial to development of Apple's biggest hits, including the iMac, iPhone and iPad, but don't fret - he's not really going anywhere. Jump past the fold for the full reveal...

New jailbreak tweak FaceHalt brings Samsung’s Smart Pause feature to iOS devices

Cody Lee ∙ Updated December 29, 2016

Samsung's Galaxy S4, released back in the spring of this year, is loaded with a number of unique software features. And one of them that has been getting a lot of attention is Smart Pause, a mechanism that auto-pauses a movie when you look away.

While I myself have never lusted after such a feature, I can see how it would come in handy in a variety of situations. So I was happy to find out that you no longer have to buy a Samsung device to get it. You just need the new 'FaceHalt' jailbreak tweak...

Google unveils Android Device Manager, its own version of Find My iPhone

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 2, 2013

Google has just filled another missing link in its Android software by introducing a feature which allows users to find their misplaced or stolen device on a world map, wipe its contents remotely, send alerts and more. If the announcement sounds a lot like Apple's Find My iPhone app, you're right, it does - though you'd be hard-pressed to argue against giving Android users the ability to track down their precious gear.

Called Android Device Manager, in true Google fashion it's a web-based tool that works much like the Find My iPhone iOS app + iCloud web interface combo from Apple...

Stargazers, Night Sky 2 has arrived

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 23, 2018

I've spent the better part of my teen years taking astronomy classes, tracking a bunch of celestial objects and exploring the planets of our Solar system using my amateur telescope. Later on, I decided I liked computers better. But as old passions die hard, I've never gotten around to quitting astronomy altogether.

Nowadays, my iPhone is the closest approximation to the telescope I once owned and you can imagine I keep a folder full of dedicated apps for stargazers.

For those wondering, SkyView, Star Walk, Sky Guide and Night Sky are my go-to astronomy guides for the iPhone and iPad. The Night Sky app by iCandi Apps has received a substantial update and is now available on the App Store, re-released as Night Sky 2.

There's no comparing Night Sky and its successor, really: Night Sky 2 features rich and lush visuals, super smooth sky tracking, weather information, push notifications, detailed database and advanced community features available via optional in-app upgrades.

I've include more tidbits and a nice promotional video after the jump...

Get ready to rumble: Apple, Samsung face off in death match before ITC

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

It's not exactly the thrilla' in manilla, but a heavyweight fight is set in the otherwise staid patent courts. Apple and Samsung, which both comprise most smartphone sales, are looking for a knockout, hoping to grab more market share and force rivals to pay up.

Over the next several days, both companies are set to argue why sales of each other's smartphones should be blocked as both companies continue to point fingers. What's in it for Apple? Potentially the loss of its most-popular handsets and throwing a roadblock in front of the Android express...

Purported next-gen iPad mini backplate shows no design change

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Yesterday, we passed along a set of images depicting a backplate part the rumor-mill adamantly insists to be the rear case of Apple's upcoming fifth-generation full-size iPad. The same publication which provided those high-quality shots is back at it again, having published on Friday another batch of photographs, this time around showing off a smaller backplate in silver and made from aluminum, ostensibly for the upcoming second-generation iPad mini...

Netflix launches ‘Profiles’ feature, will roll out to iOS devices over next few days

Cody Lee ∙ Updated March 19, 2019

Netflix users should keep an eye on their iOS devices this weekend. The streaming service has officially launched its new Profiles feature, and says it will be rolling it out to iPhones, iPads and Apple TVs (and other devices) over the next few days.

The news comes after several users, who had been given access to Profiles early, reported that the feature was showing up in the Netflix app of their Apple TVs. Now it looks like everyone is going to be able to get in on the fun in the near future...

Verizon introduces new 500MB shareable data plan

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

The actions of major US wireless carriers are fairly easy to predict—particularly with AT&T and Verizon. If one does something, you can bet the other is going to follow suit, and vice versa. Just recently it happened with the device upgrade plans, and now this.

Hot on the heels of AT&T announcing its new 300MB share plan, Verizon has introduced a similar option for its customers. Starting this month, Big Red subscribers will be able to snag a new 500MB shared data plan for their smartphone, for $40 per month...