How to use your iPhone as a pedometer

Some of you may know that I am the creator and sole member of what I call the 10,000 steps a day challenge, a self-imposed goal of walking at least 10,000 steps per day. I started with a goal of 6,000 steps per day back in 2015, and increased that goal by 1,000 every new year, a goal I reach every single day, no matter how busy my schedule may be, no matter what the weather is like outside, and no matter my health condition.

When I talk to people about the 10,000 steps a day challenge, a question that often comes up is how I track the amount of steps I take. Surprisingly, most people don’t know this is something newer iPhones can do straight out of the box.

iDB readers are probably aware of that feature, but for those that might not be, or those who want to share the existence of this feature with friends and family, we will go over this today as I talk about how you can use an iPhone as a pedometer.

Apple’s vision of a streamlined clarification process for when Auto-Correction makes mistakes

There probably isn't a single iPhone user on this planet that hasn't experienced the “joys” of the Auto-Correction feature interfering with their messaging. Auto-Correction mistakes often produce hilarious miscommunications (there's a website for that).

Whether or not you're a heavy typist, you'll appreciate that Apple's been researching ways to improve Auto-Correction, according to a patent application that surfaced yesterday in the United States Patent and Trademark Office's (USPTO) database.

Cryptically titled “Device, method and graphical user interface for visible and interactive corrected content,” it envisions highlighting auto-corrected words in an iMessage for the recipient and a built-in Messages feature for streamlining the process of clarifying what the sender meant.

Tip: find tons of messages you didn’t know existed inside Messenger’s secret folder

What if I told you that you most likely have tons of messages you didn't even know existed, stowed away in a little-known folder on Facebook?

While messages from your Facebook friends and Messenger contacts are delivered straight to your inbox, the system filters out those it deems spam and tucks them away into a hidden vault.

Some of those filtered messages could be from a distant family member trying to re-connect with you. Others might be vitally important. If you suspect Facebook is hiding messages you should've been aware of, this tutorial will teach you how to access a treasure trove of messages that you never knew you had.

Spotlight Suggestions hit Denmark, Norway and Sweden, new Flyover and Transit data on Maps

Another day, another content expansion for Apple Maps. Less than 24 hours after bringing TrainLink and bus routes to commuters in New South Wales, Australia, Apple's mapping service has expanded its footprint with new three-dimensional Flyover content for Akron, Ohio and Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Apple's also brought Spotlight Suggestions to the iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Mac customers in Europe's Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

Last but not least, traffic information on Maps has gone live in Thailand, bringing the total number of markets where this feature is available to 34 countries, as per Apple's iOS 9 Feature Availability webpage.

Changing your router’s DNS settings to increase speed and security

At times, you may experience slow hiccups while trying to use the internet from your home. Sometimes, these problems can be attributed to your router's DNS settings because your ISP may not always have the best DNS server speeds.

Your DNS server settings can also affect your security as you use the internet because some DNS servers come with built-in firewalls and security measures to prevent you from opening malicious or phishing websites, while others don't do anything at all to protect you.

In this tutorial, we'll show you how you can edit the DNS settings on your wireless router if you're experiencing slower internet speeds than you should be.

Phil Schiller gives fans a grammar lesson: never pluralize Apple product names

You use your iPhone every day, but how many iPhones do you actually own? That simple question would never pass a grammar check by Apple's boss of worldwide marketing, Phil Schiller.

Responding to a debate on pluralizing the iPad Pro name, which ensued between Andreessen Horowitz partner Benedict Evans and analyst Michael Gartenberg, Schiller tweeted that “One need never pluralize Apple product names”. But what then does he propose as the correct way of saying that Evans used two iPad Pros?

Apple updates iMovie for Mac with various visual and speed improvements

Apple on Thursday pushed out a solid update for iMovie for Mac, bringing the popular video-editing software to version 10.1.2. The release brings about several improvements, including faster project creation, easier clip selection and more.

The focus of the update seems to be visual cues and speed. Apple added a New Project button in the Projects Browser and Larger project thumbnails on the visual side, and the ability to begin editing a project with a single click on the speed side.

Get Instagram’s new flat UI redesign now with this jailbreak tweak

Earlier this week, we had shared with you what appears to be a redesign for the Instagram app for iPhone that may soon be rolled out to all users.

The new interface utilizes an iOS 9-esque flatter design with white UI elements and black button highlights.

However, if you're jailbroken, then you don't have to wait to unlock this new interface for yourself right now. There's a new jailbreak tweak in Cydia called IGExperiments that will let you do this, and more.

How to stop iPhone from tracking your location

Location Services and Privacy settings on your iPhone, iPod touch and iPad certainly provide a very detailed breakdown of the apps and system services that have requested access to your location, or are motoring your location in the background.

Options in Location Services are incredibly complex so average users may be tempted to not bother and simply leave everything on. Others may disable Location Services altogether, which isn't a very good idea either (from a usability standpoint).

Suppose you want to stop an iOS device from tracking your whereabouts, but without disrupting essential features or sacrificing much of the device's functionality.

But how precisely does one accomplish that?

There's no master switch in iOS that'd tell the device to stop monitoring your location. Plus, things get more complex if you don't know exactly which switches in Settings need flipping and which ones must be left intact.

This easy to follow step-by-step tutorial will lay out exactly the features on your device that you must disable in order to limit or prevent unwanted location tracking.

Dragon Hills goes free as Apple’s App of the Week

Apple on Thursday updated its App of the Week promotion in iTunes with Dragon Hills. This means that from now through next Thursday, you’ll be able to pick up the action-packed adventurer for free—a solid savings of $2.

In Dragon Hills, players take control of a dangerous dragon to help the furious princess on her revenge mission. You'll slide down the hills jumping into and out of the ground, crashing and destroying everything on your way.