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New map graphic shows how massive Apple’s supply chain really is

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

When you think about Apple's supply chain, the first—and only, for some—place that comes to mind is China. Images start propagating in the mind of oft-reported impoverished plants with thousands of factory workers building iPhones and iPads. But there's much more to it.

The truth is, Apple's supply chain is far more expansive, reaching all the way around the globe. As this new interactive map shows, the company receives components from suppliers, and production support, from the United States, Australia, Brazil and several other places...

Authorized Service Provider 101 and other internal Apple videos leaked

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Apple's penchant for secrecy extends far beyond the black cloaks and locked doors inside its R&D labs. Nearly every facet of its business is a mystery—from the way it chooses which new markets to enter, to its retail strategies. Unless of course, leaks happen.

And a big one happened this morning. Sonny Dickson, a self-proclaimed iOS consultant, has posted several Apple training videos and other internal materials including in-store repair guides for the iPhone 4 and a demo of its iPad diagnostic software...

The onE Puck coaster let’s you charge your iPhone with a cup of coffee

Cody Lee ∙ February 16, 2013

I've covered a lot of Kickstarter projects in my day, but I have to say that this is one of the most interesting I've ever come across. The Epiphany onE Puck, by Epiphany Labs, is a drink coaster that can actually charge up your iPhone (or other device) using 'heat disparities' from a hot or cold beverage.

That's right, there's no outlet or batteries involved. Just set your drink down on the coaster, plug in your smartphone, and watch the magic happen. The coaster uses a shrunken down stirling engine to harness the aforementioned disparities into charging power. And the creators say this is just the beginning...

Conceptualize your compositions to improve your iPhone photography

Justin Balog ∙ Updated January 8, 2016

In today's lesson in iPhone photography, we will be digging a bit deeper into the mystical ideas of composition. Remember, before you consider the post processing of an image you need to expose and compose properly. In previous lessons we examined the Rule of Thirds. It is pretty straightforward and a great creative technique to have in your tool box. However, we never explored why, or how, it works. In this lesson, to better understand it, as well as other compositional guidelines, we will explore the idea of static vs. dynamic compositions.

Before we explore the ideas of composition, it's important we understand the concept of 'visual weight' (or strength). Every elements in our compositions have varying weight/strength associated with them. It could be heavy, light, dark, strong, soft, etc. Obvious properties that influence a subject's weight (or strength) are its size and position. Is the element in the background or in the foreground? Is it big or small?

Haze: a gorgeous gesture-controlled weather app for minimalists

Cody Lee ∙ February 16, 2013

Taking a look at some of the more popular titles in the App Store—Clear, Mailbox, Tempo—it's clear that minimalism and multitouch gestures are in right now. Developers are ditching heavy graphics in favor of much simpler interfaces.

For the most part, people seem to like the new trend. And if you fall into that category, you might want to check out Haze. It's a new iPhone weather app that exudes these two qualities. It's gesture-controlled, and has a very minimal UI...

Save battery life at night with AirplaneScheduler

Mike Schnier ∙ Updated February 25, 2013

Airplane mode is a setting in iOS that allows users to disable wireless radios while the mode is active. This includes all cellular reception, Wi-Fi, GPS and Bluetooth (Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are initially disabled but can be re-enabled with Airplane mode still active). It's intended to put the device in a state where it is safe to use on a plane, but some users have taken to the feature as a power-saving mode.

AirplaneScheduler is a very comprehensive timer tweak that presets toggles for Airplane mode, allowing users to toggle Airplane mode on and off automatically on a recurring basis...

id America brings creativity and style to your iPhone skins

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated February 8, 2016

iPhone skins have been around, well, since the iPhone and iPod touch were released years ago. Most of the skins are simple, clear, non reflective strips of plastic or sometimes glass. However, none of them offer a particularly stylized design, until now. id America released the Cushi Plus at CES and I spent some time with one over the past week. It is a padded and highly designed iPhone back skin that is a perfect case substitute, with a few hitches...

Use 3G Unrestrictor to enable streaming over cellular in Tweetbot

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 30, 2017

Tweetbot, my favorite Twitter client by a country mile, takes well advantage of Twitter's streaming API for instant timeline updates with no manual refresh. It works very well, but unfortunately Tweetbot requires you to be connected to Wi-Fi in order to use the feature. What to do now? Fake a Wi-Fi connection, of course!

3G Unrestrictor has many uses, and one such use is to enable Twitter streaming in Tweetbot over a cellular connection. Check out our brief video inside.

Google to open standalone retail stores this year

Cody Lee ∙ February 15, 2013

Once a highly valued partner, Google has spent the last few years moving in on Apple's territory. It's done it in the computer space, with its Chromebook OS, and in the smartphone space with Android. And now it looks like it's preparing to do the same thing in retail.

A new report is out this afternoon claiming that the Mountain View company is in the process of building standalone retail stores in the United States, in an effort to get its products into more hands. And its flagship locations could be ready by the holidays...

iOS 6.1.2 coming soon to fix Exchange, Lock screen vulnerabilities

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 15, 2013

Official fixes for both the battery-draining Exchange bug and the potentially dangerous Lock screen vulnerability that lets anyone bypass your passcode are likely to arrive as part of iOS 6.1.2, a maintenance update that should be released for public consumption before month's end, according to a German blog with a somewhat accurate record of Apple reporting...

Third party apps may finally land on the Apple TV this fall

Cody Lee ∙ February 15, 2013

I know, I know. There's so many different Apple rumors these days, going in so many different directions, it's hard to keep track. There's the 4.8-inch iPhone, and the budget iPhone, and let's not forget about the iWatch, which has become extremely popular as of late.

But try to block all of that out for a second, and focus on the Apple TV. A new report is out today from Tech Crunch's well-connected MG Siegler, who says that talk of Apple’s broader television plans is picking up, and we could see something happen as early as this fall...

AirFloat turns any iOS device into an AirPlay receiver

Mike Schnier ∙ Updated February 25, 2013

Not sure what to do with your old iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch? Instead of throwing it out or selling it for a fraction of its original value, what if you could get some more use out of the device by turning it into an AirPlay streaming box?

AirFloat is an open source tweak that's been in development for a while, but hasn't been released on Cydia until now. (It was actually removed from the iTunes store last year.) With AirFloat, you don't need to buy an Apple TV or an AirPort Express to stream music through your house. All you need is Wi-Fi and a spare iOS device...