You can now wake up to your fav Pandora station

Pandora, the popular streaming-music service and one of the rare few Internet radio apps that saw a surge in listening following September's iTunes Radio debut, has been updated this morning with a pretty useful alarm clock feature which lets you start your day to your favorite music with your own choice of Pandora stations. Pandora 5.1 for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad includes refreshed iOS 7 design and other improvements "to make your listening experience even better".

Jump past the fold to learn more about the alarm clock feature...

Argus picks up support for Fitbit imports, Bluetooth heart rate monitor for activities and more

Azumio's Argus fitness software was the first App Store app to gain low-power motion tracking via support for the dedicated M7 motion coprocessor inside the iPhone 5s.

Today, the developer has refreshed the app with a bunch of fixes and a couple new features, including the new Close Friends social capability, the ability to import Fitbit data, support for Bluetooth heart rate monitor for activities and other goodies.

The updated item is now live in the App Store and free for everyone who've previously purchased the program...

Where do video game characters go when they die? Find out in this game

There is that moment, just before your game ends, when the world stops for a fraction of a second and you realize that all of your hard work and sore thumbs are about to be lost forever.

continue?9876543210 is a cerebral adventure game that explores the idea of what happens to your character after it dies. In this game, hitting the “continue” button doesn’t take you back to the point where you left off. Instead, you are wandering through limbo, trying to find a way back to life…

WSJ: China Mobile to start taking iPhone pre-orders this Thursday

The long-enduring game of cat and mouse between Apple, the maker of the world's most popular smartphone, and China Mobile, the world's top wireless carriers with more than 700 million subscribers (the equivalent of over twice the US population), looks to be ending as the carrier is expected to start taking pre-orders for the iconic device later this week, reports The Wall Street Journal.

As the carrier is gearing up to launch its long-expected high-speed fourth-generation network services on December 18, China Mobile Shanghai’s website on Monday invited potential customers to pre-order the iPhone 5s and other smartphones from Samsung and Sony that support China Mobile's new 4G TD-LTE mobile network...

Tank Domination rumbles through the App Store

When I was a little kid, I “played tanks.” That is, I drew a picture of a tank on one side of a blank piece of paper, and then drew another tank on the other side. Then, I’d “pew, pew, pew” as I drew dotted lies across the page, finishing with a nice, scribbly “ka-ploosh” as my Crayola-based ammunitions struck the armored vehicles.

Tank Domination is sort of like playing tanks. Except the paper is an iPad, the Crayola drawings are high-definition graphics, and the “pew, pew, pew” is awesome explosions that look so real it will melt your face off…

Apple joins major U.S. tech giants in NSA surveillance reform push

The U.S. government's mass-scale surveillance program which has compromised the security and privacy of millions of domestic and foreign online users, the secret PRISM initiative, did not sit well with Apple and other technology giants. In response to the scandalous revelations by the NSA contractor Edward Snowden that also put the blame on Silicon Valley giants for bowing to NSA's request and providing the agency with hassle-free access to its users' data, the iPhone maker chastised the practice and published how it handles government requests to give up private information belonging to its users.

And now, in the aftermath of the ongoing snooping scare, The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Apple along with seven other U.S. technology giants is making a joint appeal to reform government surveillance activities...

The 10 best weather apps of 2013

As 2013 inches closer to its last days, we take time to reflect on everything that we have experienced over the past year. With 365 days of apps and games to sift through, it is hard to figure out which ones are the best. Don’t worry, you are off the hook. We took care of it for you.

Take a look at our list of weather apps that the writers of iDownloadBlog consider the best of this year’s releases. Don’t forget to vote for your favorite one for the Best Apps of 2013 list…

Wallpapers of the week: sunny clouds and Steve Jobs

We are back again, with another great offering for the Wallpapers of the Week section. There are always great images from which to choose and this week is no exception. Today, I cannot say the options are seasonally specific, but great wallpapers are great wallpapers.

Make sure to keep submitting your wallpapers for consideration as the section is maintained by the readers. The only way for this section to continue running is for readers to keep submitting their works of art. Download the wallpapers inside and find out how to get your images featured on iDownloadBlog...

This week’s top stories: best photo apps, Whatsapp update, and more…

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+.

Show Us Your Setup: Sebastien Page’s work space iPad Air keyboards: 12 models to consider The 10 best photography apps of 2013: vote for your favorite Apps of the week: Double Dragon Trilogy, Space Hulk, and more… iPhone 5s prices around the world Wallpapers of last week: winter wallpaper pack New website solicits crowdfunded reward for an iOS 7 jailbreak Some users finding Touch ID’s accuracy fades with time WhatsApp iOS 7 update is out with new design, broadcast lists and more Assassin’s Creed: Pirates now available in the App Store How to keep your MacBook awake while its lid is closed Keep your menu bar clutter free with Bartender How to record direct feed footage from iOS to a Mac or PC Amazon Prime Air service will use drones to deliver your packages Google’s Eric Schmidt has the nerve to shoot down Amazon’s drones over privacy worries Slope review: magical tablet stand for Apple’s magical iPad President Obama says he’s not allowed to use an iPhone

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

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!

Good deal: 91% off Mac software bundle

Whether you're planning on getting a new Mac for the holidays, or you're just looking for some new apps to increase productivity on your current one, you'll want to check out this big Mac software bundle from Stack Social.

The deal site is currently offering a suite of 10 Apple computer applications, which includes AfterShot Pro, Vitamin-R, skEdit and Compartments, at a steep discount. More details and a full rundown of the apps after the fold...

T-Mobile using MetroPCS spectrum to bolster its LTE network

Good news this weekend for T-Mobile customers. The carrier is finally taking advantage of its recent MetroPCS merger, and has begun rolling out higher-speed LTE service by tapping the airwaves it acquired as part of the acquisition.

According to a report from AllThingsD, T-Mobile quietly turned on the faster service in parts of North Dallas just before Thanksgiving. The higher speeds come by combining the spectrum from both T-Mobile’s and MetroPCS' networks...

There are now 1 million apps available in the US App Store

During its October iPad event, Apple announced that it had crossed the 1 million app milestone in its worldwide App Store. This meant that, not counting duplicates, it had over 1 million apps available around the globe at that time.

This week, Apple passed the same milestone here in its US App Store. According to data from app discovery firm Appsfire, there are now more than 1 million live apps in the App Store. 1,006,557 to be exact at the time of this writing...