iPhone News

Download the new iOS 8 beta 3 wallpaper

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

With every new major version of iOS, Apple releases a new wallpaper, or set of wallpapers. More rarely, Apple will include a new stock wallpaper in a beta release. Today, with Apple's launch of iOS 8 beta 3, user's uncovered a simple, but new wallpaper.

There is some back-and-forth over wether the wallpaper is new, or not, but after comparing beta 2 and iOS 7 to the new stock images, there is one additional. A simple white wallpaper with gray dots is included. This new wallpaper can easily be mistaken for a slightly grayer version included with iOS 7...

iOS 8 beta 3 enables Wi-Fi Calling for T-Mobile iPhones

Cody Lee ∙ July 7, 2014

Last month, T-Mobile confirmed that it will support iOS 8's new Wi-Fi calling feature when the update officially launches this fall. And today, the feature went live for developers with T-Mobile iPhones in the just-released iOS 8 beta 3.

For those unfamiliar with Wi-Fi calling, it allows users to place phone calls [natively] from their device over a Wi-Fi network, instead of their cellular network. Benefits of the feature include better call quality and improved battery life...

Major Target promo offers gift cards with select iPad, iPhone and iPod touch purchases

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated July 24, 2017

American retailing company Target has launched a new sale offering free gift cards with the purchase of an iPad Air, iPad mini with Retina display, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c and the iPod touch media player. If you're in the market for an iPad Air or iPad mini with Retina display, the retailer will treat you to a $100 gift card.

Furthermore, Apple's latest iPhones are on sale, too, and now come with a $20 gift card. As for the iPod touch, buying a 32-gigabyte version will net you a $30 gift card...

EasyJet deploys iBeacon support to select airports

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 7, 2014

iBeacon, an indoor micro-positioning service by Apple, is among the technologies in their ascendancy. Like Passsbook, iBeacons are being slowly but surely rolled out by the ever-growing number of retailers, merchants, theme parks, sporting venues, festivals and so forth.

A number of capable turnkey systems for easy iBeacon deployment exist today and the tiny transmitters are dirt cheap, removing an important barrier to iBeacon adoption.

You can now put European airline easyJet on your list of iBeacon-friendly businesses.

The British airline carrier based at London Luton Airport is operating domestic and international scheduled services on over 600 routes in 32 countries and now customers can download its freshly-updated iPhone app and opt in to receive in-app iBeacon notifications at select locations “to enhance the in airport experience”...

WSJ: iWatch due in Fall, Tim Cook actively looking to add fresh faces to Apple’s board

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

Tim Cook's recasting of Apple is in full bloom as the CEO pushes executives to be more collaborative while broadening the firm's legendary laser focus, as per a new report by The Wall Street Journal. The story also mentions that Cook is very much looking to add new directors to Apple's eight-person board.

That's hardly a surprise given that six board members are aged 63 or older. It's also worth mentioning that Cook has inherited the board from Apple's late co-founder Steve Jobs so these people may not be necessarily 100 percent loyal to Cook in the long run.

Moreover, people familiar with the Apple's plans told WSJ that the firm will introduce its rumored iWatch with "advanced sensors to track a user’s fitness and health" alongside new iPhones in the Fall, matching up with previous reports...

Google Play Music now supports gapless playback, playlist downloading and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 7, 2014

Google's Play Music client for the iPhone and iPod touch recently picked up some useful new capabilities such as the ability to filter Downloaded Only tracks, edit playlists on the go, Shuffle Artist and more. Today, Google has pushed another update making the application even more useful than before.

The new Google Play Music version 1.3.0.2190 includes a few bug fixes and improvements, as well as three new features. For starters, you can at last enjoy albums such as Pink Floyd's "The Wall" precisely the way they were meant to be heard - with gapless playback...

New Apple TV, Find My iPhone and Find My Friends betas also available

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 7, 2014

As Apple seeds a third beta of both iOS 8 (build 12A4318c) and OS X Yosemite Developer Preview (build 14A283j) to developers, we're dutifully updating our articles with a running list of changes.

In the meantime, new betas of the accompanying Apple TV firmware - as well as Find My iPhone and Find My Friends betas - are now available to Apple's registered iOS developers through the company's Dev Center...

Acute: a new voice control tweak for jailbreakers

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated June 20, 2018

Acute is a brand new and highly anticipated voice control tweak for jailbroken iOS user. We've been playing around with it for a day or so, and we really like what we see thus far. This tweak has potential.

Acute allows users to create custom phrases that can be uttered from anywhere within iOS. Once Acute detects a phrase, it will launch a pre-configured action, or a custom action based on your custom phrases. Actions can be linked to any Activator action, which makes this tweak extremely versatile and powerful.

Apple releases OS X Yosemite Developer Preview 3

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

In addition to seeding the third beta of iOS 8 this morning, Apple has also released the third Developer Preview of its new OS X Yosemite operating system. The update comes three weeks after Preview 2, and over a month after Apple announced Yosemite at WWDC.

The update is labeled as build 14A283o and can be downloaded via an update in the Mac App Store, or as a full download from Apple’s online developer center. It does not, however, appear to be out in Apple’s recently-launched public Yosemite Beta Seed program yet…

Apple seeds iOS 8 beta 3 to developers: here is what’s new

Cody Lee ∙ July 7, 2014

Nearly three weeks after releasing the second beta of iOS 8, Apple has this morning seeded the third beta of iOS 8 to developers. The beta is labeled as build 12a4318c, and is available for compatible iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices.

If you're a registered iOS developer, you can grab the new beta from either the online dev portal as a standalone download, or via your device's OTA (over-the-air) update mechanism. You'll find all the details on beta 3 after the break...

Video: limited bending stress test of iPhone 6’s claimed sapphire cover

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 7, 2014

Our favorite parts leaker, Australia-born Sonny Dickson, is back at it again with a new video that seems to offer a look at an alleged sapphire-strengthened cover glass, presumably for Apple's next iPhone.

As you know, all iPhones models incorporate Gorilla Glass designed and produced by U.S.-based company Corning.

That being said, pundits have been calling for a sapphire iPhone ever since Apple earlier in the year confirmed prepaying over half a billion dollars to GT Advanced to secure multi-year supply of sapphire glass on an exclusive basis.

For those unfamiliar with sapphire, Wikipedia is your friend. In a nutshell, the precious gemstone's hardness is second only to diamond, making it a no-brainer for the 4.7 and 5.5-inch iPhone 6...

Google’s Page and Brin think Apple is doing too few products

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 7, 2014

Apple's late co-founder Steve Jobs used to offer a nice word of advice to Google co-founder and boss Larry Page. "You guys are doing too much stuff," he'd tell Page.

Today, Page thinks Google's multi-pronged approach to product development is paying off big time as the search monster now has its tentacles in a number of lucrative businesses. Contrast Google's approach to Apple, which only does a few things at the time.

This is part of Apple's DNA, but Page is unimpressed.

He didn't heed his mentor's advice and think Apple's laser-sharp focus on things that matter the most is limiting its ability to compete. “It sounds stupid if you have this big company and you can only do, like, five things,” Page said during a fireside chat with venture capitalist Vinod Khosla...