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Be a virtual tourist: take scripted 3D tours of world’s major metropolises on Apple Maps

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated July 11, 2019

You knew about three-dimensional buildings and landmarks on Apple Maps—a feature they're calling Flyover mode. But did you know that Apple's mapping service includes virtual tours of more than a hundred major metropolises worldwide? If not, that's because Apple hasn't exactly gone to great lengths to advertise it front and center in the Maps interface.

These virtual tours are basically auto-playing animations in Flyover mode, complete with three-dimensional buildings, terrain and landmarks. They're quite useful if you're visiting a city for the first time, though virtual tourists who want a quick overview of a major city will also find them fun and entertaining.

Here's how you can explore and enjoy 3D Flyover Tours on Apple Maps for the iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Mac.

Google I/O 2016 is kicking off on Wednesday: keep tabs on it with official iPhone app

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 16, 2016

Google I/O, the search giant's version of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, is kicking off this year on Wednesday, May 18, at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, California and what better way to keep up with the conference than an iPhone app from Google.

The official Google I/O 2016 app, like Apple's own WWDC for iPhone app, lets you follow conference news, explore tracks and speakers, watch session videos, enjoy a live stream of the keynote and more, right on your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad.

Google to ditch Flash for HTML5 by default in Chrome come this fall

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 16, 2016

The slow death of Adobe Flash continues as Google preps to put another nail into the beleaguered technology's coffin come this fall. According to a draft proposal from the search giant, a copy of which was obtained by Venture Beat, Google's desktop browser will default to showing HTML5 content and video, falling back to Flash as a last resort.

Chrome ships with a built-in Flash Player which automatically kicks into action whenever a piece of Flash content is detected on a webpage.

Apple just shot down an app that could detect iPhone malware

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 21, 2018

Stefan Esser’s iPhone app, called System and Security Info, can no longer be downloaded from the App Store, as first noted by The Next Web. Esser’s software let iPhone users know if their device had malware that could be used to spy on them, and could detect a jailbreak, too.

The app was removed from the App Store earlier this morning. Esser was basically told that detecting weaknesses in a user’s device could lead to “potentially inaccurate and misleading diagnostic functionality for iOS devices.”

iQunix makes an affordable, high-quality stand for MacBook

Anthony Bouchard ∙ May 16, 2016

If you're looking for a durable aluminum stand for your Apple notebook, then don't count out iQunix. Although the popular brand names look appealing and are tried and true, we had the chance to go hands-on with the iQunix Edin, which is also a very high-quality stand for all MacBook models, all this at a lower price.

In this review, we'll show you how the iQunix Edin looks and touch on its build quality and features. Don't be shy; we think you're gonna like it!

Tim Cook talks Didi acquisition during China trip

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 16, 2016

Apple CEO Tim Cook visited an Apple Store in Beijing this morning with Liu Qing, president of Didi Chuxing, the company the iPhone maker invested an astounding $1 billion in.

Also called the Chinese Uber, Didi is a ride sharing service and Apple's investment comes at a time when the Cupertino firm is widely rumored to be secretly working on an electric car project. Cook said Apple and Didi both shared concerns for the environment.

He also revealed, according to China Daily, that app developers in China have now earned over $7 billion, half of which came in the past twelve months alone.

How and why to report spammy iMessages to Apple

Anthony Bouchard ∙ May 16, 2016

Sometimes your contact information ends up where you don't want it, and you end up with annoying spam iMessages from people, companies, or bots that try to scam you or steal personal information.

Fortunately, Apple's iMessage service comes with an abuse report feature that you can use to report senders who are misusing the iMessage platform and making it a less enjoyable thing to use.

In this piece, we'll talk about how and why you should be reporting iMessages that seem spammy.

Gradient wallpapers for iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and desktop

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Sunday arrives with a fresh set of device images for the Wallpapers of the Week section. One of the site's most anticipated weekly posts, aims to bring you new device-specific wallpapers. There are a myriad of images amongst the vast Internet, but we ensure they are photo quality and perfectly scaled for your iOS, and sometimes desktop, devices.

The section is completed with images found around the Web, submitted to us directly, or stumbled upon through Twitter. Today, we highlight a long-time iDB fan favorite wallpaper creator, Jason Zigrino. Step inside for his latest.

Jailbreak tweaks of the week: PersonalAssistant, & more…

Anthony Bouchard ∙ May 15, 2016

Every week, we do a recap on all of the jailbreak tweaks we show you. This Sunday will be no different.

Although Cydia isn't exactly kicking with new releases like it does after a fresh new jailbreak, the community is continuing to show its fortitude as new releases hit the Cydia store for current jailbreakers.

First, we will kick off by showing you our favorite releases this week, and then we'll show you the rest of them.

The 9 best apps for scanning documents on iPhone and iPad

Andrew O'Hara ∙ Updated May 28, 2024

Check out this list of the best iOS apps to convert a physical document, business card, receipt, letter, or photo into a PDF or image on your iPhone and iPad.

The top stories of the week on iDB

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated October 16, 2018

Like every Sunday, we get to take a look at some of the most popular posts that were published on iDB during the week that just ended. Whether it is a news item, a new jailbreak tweak, a tutorial, or an app review, we sum it all up in one convenient place for you.

As always, if you like what you're reading, please feel free 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+.

Don't forget to listen to the latest episode of our new podcast, Let's Talk iOS:

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Bring organization to your SMS & iMessage conversations with Message Groups [jailbreak]

Anthony Bouchard ∙ May 14, 2016

Message Groups is a new jailbreak tweak that aims to give you more organization in your Messages app, especially if you're like the developer and have many conversations going on at once, as shown above.

With this tweak, you can add and manage your own custom groups in the Messages app, making it easy to filter through certain contacts or conversations, and as a result, making it quicker and easier to text in general.

In this review, we'll talk about Message Groups and how it can help you.