iPhone News

SVP of Technologies Bob Mansfield no longer on Leadership team, Apple confirms

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Bob Mansifeld, Apple's Senior Vice President of Technologies, has been removed from the company's Leadership web page without explanation.

This is newsworthy because rarely does it slip Apple to pull corporate description of a high-ranked executive without announcing a leadership change beforehand.

Hopefully, Apple wouldn’t just take his description page down without an announcement so this could be some sort of a slip up, though the chances of that are very slim.

Update: a Reuters reporter has an official statement from Apple...

HopStop adds real-time incident reporting and more in first update since Apple acquisition

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 23, 2018

Earlier this month, Apple confirmed that it had acquired yet another mapping software company. Its name is HopStop, and it's behind the highly popular smartphone app of the same name that provides subway schedules, maps, and a slew of other useful transit data.

And this weekend, the app gets even better with its first update since word got out about Apple's acquisition. The update brings the app to version 2.6, and includes a handful of new features and improvements such as real time delay and incident reporting, and more...

Huge collection of forgotten 80s Apple ads surface on YouTube

Cody Lee ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

If you're looking for a way to kill your Sunday afternoon, you might try checking out the YouTube channel EveryAppleAds. The channel, as the name implies, hosts a massive collection of TV commercials for Apple products from the past few decades.

These guys have been steadily posting ads over the last several months. But just within the past week or so, they've started adding vintage Apple television spots from the 1980s that you've either forgotten about, or more likely, never knew existed...

Sketchy photos claim to show budget ‘iPhone 5C’ packaging

Cody Lee ∙ July 28, 2013

A new set of photos hit the web this morning, showing a number of boxes with the label 'iPhone 5C' on the side. Our first instinct is, of course, that these boxes belong to one of the many iPhone clones circulating about Asia. But on the off chance that there's more to it than that, we've posted them.

The images come courtesy of Nowhereelse.fr, who has posted accurate photos of leaked parts in the past, and their theory on them is actually quite interesting. The site suggests that it's possible that these plastic boxes are the packaging for Apple's rumored budget iPhone, expected to debut this fall...

The iDownloadBlog top news stories of the week

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated April 25, 2017

Like every Sunday, we bring you the stories that were the most popular on iDB during this past week. Whether it is a news piece, an editorial, a tutorial, a new jailbreak tweak, or an accessory review, we sum it all up in one convenient place.

If you like what you're reading, please make sure to spread the love by sharing our posts on your favorite social network.

We're usually hanging out a lot on Twitter and Facebook, more rarely on Google+.

Dev Center is back! New in iOS 7: smart ‘send from’ in Mail Apple makes its blockbuster Fall kind of official Beat Jony Ive at his own game using this interactive iOS 7 design tool Rumor: Apple to discontinue iPhone 5 alongside budget, 5S launch Plastic iPhone shell compared to 3GS, iPod touch in new hi-res video ‘UnthreadedJB’ untethered jailbreak released for CDMA iPhone 4 on iOS 5.1 New Nexus 7 vs iPad mini comparison [Video] Over 700 million phones could be vulnerable to SIM card flaw Would you pay again for iOS 7 versions of apps you already own? Instagram users hacked by smoothie spammer Apps of the week: djay 2, Iron Force, rithm, and more Wallpapers of last week: flat toned and brilliant wallpapers

Of course, don't forget to listen to the latest episode of our podcast, Let's Talk Jailbreak:

We’re social! Find iDB on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, App.net, YouTube, and in your RSS reader. Also make sure to subscribe to our new podcast!

Viber attack may have been more broad than initially thought [updated]

Cody Lee ∙ Updated August 24, 2016

Internet companies beware, hackers are out in full force this month. In the past two weeks, we've seen Apple's Dev Center hacked, several Instagram accounts hacked, and the popular voice and messaging service Viber attacked.

Viber claims, though, that the damage it suffered from its breach was minimal, saying the attacker only gained access to two minor support systems. But a quick glance at its App Store description suggests that wasn't the case...

Upcoming jailbreak tweak lets you unlock your iPhone with virtual NES controller

Cody Lee ∙ July 27, 2013

Over the years, we've seen some pretty cool jailbreak tweaks that allow you to unlock your device in unique ways. There's PatternUnlock, which allows you to unlock your device by drawing a pattern, and Piano Passcode, which lets you do it by playing a tune.

And today we're adding a new one to the list, which might just be the coolest of them all. It's called NESUnlocker, and it's a new jailbreak tweak that allows you to unlock your iPhone by entering in a custom sequence of button presses on an NES controller...

How Samsung is beating Apple in China

Sébastien Page ∙ July 27, 2013

Reuters:

Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook believes that "over the arc of time" China is a huge opportunity for his pathbreaking company. But time looks to be on the side of rival Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, which has been around far longer and penetrated much deeper into the world's most populous country.

Some great insights in this article where the authors break down how Samsung is outdoing Apple in China. In shorts, it all comes down to the different strategy Samsung adopted in China: multiple devices with low to high prices, creating "perceived innovation", a large retail presence, and maintaining good relationships with carriers.

Instagram users hacked by smoothie spammer [update]

Cody Lee ∙ Updated December 4, 2013

If you've been having trouble logging into your Instagram account this morning, or have noticed any strange photos posted to your stream, you're not alone. Several users are reporting that they've been hacked on the popular photo sharing network.

Reports first started surfacing about the issue on Twitter around 11PM last night, according to a report by The Verge. Users who suffered attacks complained that unauthorized photos along with strange URLs had been posted to their accounts...

‘UnthreadedJB’ untethered jailbreak released for CDMA iPhone 4 on iOS 5.1

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Make sure you read that title very carefully before you get too excited. Yes, there's a new jailbreak out, and yes, it's untethered. But odds are, you're not going to fit its compatibility requirements. It only works for CDMA versions of the iPhone 4, and the app only runs on Linux.

It's called UnthreadedJB, and it's developed by a group of people under the same name. To be fair, this is the first untethered jailbreak we've seen for iOS 5.1—I believe Absinthe 2.0 was for iOS 5.1.1—so it doesn't come without acclaim. And several users have confirmed that it works...

New Nexus 7 vs iPad mini comparison [Video]

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 12, 2018

The new Nexus 7 has touched down in stores, and it's a pretty compelling little device at $229 for the base 16GB Wi-Fi unit. It's much improved over its predecessor in nearly every facet, and will likely become a thorn in Apple's side as time goes on without a significant iPad mini (Retina) refresh.

With that all said, the iPad mini still has a few distinct advantages over Google's latest offering. Its main advantage is readily apparent, as its screen size completely dwarfs the smaller screen of the Nexus 7. Interestingly enough, the bezel on the older iPad mini is still smaller on all four sides when compared to the Nexus 7. Lastly, the iPad mini is still thinner than the Nexus 7. By themselves, all of these advantages may not amount to much in the eyes of consumers, but when compared side by side, they all add up for a pretty intense debate regarding which is superior.

Make no mistake though, in terms of sheer power and screen prowess, this is no competition. After comparing the two, running benchmarks, playing games, etc, it's evident that Apple has a legitimate competitor on its hands when it comes to the low end of the tablet market. Check inside as I compare both the new Nexus 7 and the iPad mini in our hands-on video walkthrough.

Apple says Motorola asked for more than 12 times going rate to license its patents

Cody Lee ∙ July 26, 2013

As Apple continues to hold unfruitful settlement talks with Samsung, it seems to have reached an impasse with Motorola as well. The iPad-maker has submitted a new court filing, accusing the Google-owned company of overcharging for its standards essential patents.

The complaint lodged against Motorola was filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit today, as part of Apple's opening brief in an appeal effort. Apple wants the court to force Motorola—which is Google at this point—to license its technology at a fair price...