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Netflix and YouTube working on an open AirPlay alternative

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 23, 2013

AirPlay, a wireless media technology from Apple featured on the Apple TV, iPhones, iPads, iPods and newer Macs running OS X Mountain Lion, is a major selling point because it allows users to seamlessly beam their photos, music and video from their computer or iDevice to a TV set via an Apple TV set-top box. However, Netflix teamed up with Google's YouTube on an AirPlay alternative and today the two have released official details.

DIAL, as it's called (an acronym for DIscovery And Launch), is an open second screen protocol which automatically discovers compliant devices to stream media. The new standard has impressive support from key content owners and consumer electronics makers, including the likes of BBC, Sony, Hulu and of course Samsung...

How Verizon almost made Siri an Android exclusive

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 23, 2013

Apple's digital secretary, Siri, arrived as an iPhone 4S exclusive in October 2011, but the feature almost ended up being exclusive to Android devices on the Verizon network. According to a new report, Verizon in the fall of 2009 managed to sign a deal with the startup to make Siri a default app on all Android phones set to launch in the new year. It's interesting that the agreement was signed several months before Apple approached Siri and that the carrier even created unreleased ads highlighting Siri on Android.

Several months later, Apple came into full view to acquire the startup outright, effectively making the feature exclusive to its devices and narrowly escape seeing Siri falling into hands of the Android camp...

Steve Jobs threatened Palm with patent suit over employee poaching

Cody Lee ∙ January 23, 2013

By now, you've probably heard of the anti-poaching civil suit that's been brought against Apple, Google, Intel and others. Former employees are suing the companies for allegedly conspiring to keep each other from recruiting out of each other's firms, which is definitely illegal.

The evidence in the case before hand was already pretty damning. But looking at these court documents that were just made public yesterday, it might now be open-and-shut. The filing features emails, between executives, openly discussing an anti-poaching agreement...

The future of jailbreaking is very bright

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Last month, I posted a slightly controversial article entitled: 3 reasons why jailbreaking is waning in popularity. In it, I highlighted several points as to why jailbreaking was on a downturn. In hindsight, although I still stand by the post, I probably should have qualified my reasoning a bit better.

The real reason that jailbreaking is "waning" if you will, is because there simply is no jailbreak available for new devices. The recent bar graph showing jailbroken devices proves as much. I tried to say that, but I don't think it came across that way. Whatever the case may be, it looks as if that primary reason will soon no longer apply.

Hackers pod2g, planetbeing, and others have been working diligently on the iPhone 5/iOS 6 jailbreak for quite some time now. They've made great progress, as highlighted in Mike's post about the collaborative effort.

In fact, things are going so well, that one famous hacker in particular has just proclaimed that the future is looking bright for jailbreaking...

More developers spotted in the iOS 6 jailbreak effort

Mike Schnier ∙ January 22, 2013

You're probably familiar with two developers by the name of David Wang and Cyril Cattiaux, also known as PlanetBeing and pod2g. If you're reading this, you're likely waiting for them to release an untethered jailbreak for iOS 6 and the iPhone 5. The good news is they're not working on the jailbreak alone.

The iOS 6 jailbreaking effort seems to be picking up speed as other developers have begun contributing their own expertise to the movement. Here are the recent developments...

This beautiful iPhone 5 theme does not require a jailbreak

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 11, 2018

Lately I guess you can say we've been on a kind of non-jailbreak kick. With that in mind, we're happy to show you how you can get this awesome looking theme on your iPhone 5 without jailbreaking. The theme is called Black Orbs, and it features 31 different app icons that link to some of the more popular apps on the iPhone.

Obviously, since we have no iPhone 5 jailbreak yet, some compromises had to be made. Unlike WinterBoard, you can't outright replace the look of an app icon with that of another. Instead, the developer of Black Orbs strategically used web clips and an easy to install profile to pull it off. It's certainly not the perfect solution for a true iPhone 5 theme, but you have to admire the work here. Take a look inside as I show you how to install Black Orbs on your iPhone 5.

How to quickly respring your iPhone without jailbreaking

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

It may seem kind of obvious when you think about it, but did you know that you can setup a quick respring shortcut using the Newsstand glitch that we showed you? Basically it involves adding a folder to a folder, which causes the device to crash and respring when trying to open the folder inside the folder.

By establishing this setup permanently, you'll create an easy way to respring at any time. This is despite the fact that the device is not jailbroken. Check out our video tutorial for the full how-to.

Concept video shows what a 4.8-inch iPhone could look like

Cody Lee ∙ January 22, 2013

Amidst growing speculation that Apple is working on a larger handset, a Russian site has created this mockup of what it believes a bigger iPhone could look like. Created from details in the recent 'iPhone Math' rumor, the device has a 4.8-inch display and 12MP camera.

Contrary to other iPhone concepts, which typically travel outside the realm of possibility, this one opts to stay within the lines of Apple's current design schemes. It looks like the iPhone 5, but its footprint has been both lengthened and widened to support the larger display...

Google posts Q4 results, comments on iOS apps, better batteries, impact-resistant phones

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated August 26, 2017

Google has just posted its fourth quarter earnings for the calendar year 2012. The Internet giant raked in $14.42 billion in consolidated revenue (versus estimates of $12.3 billion), up 36 percent annually and eight percent sequentially. Excluding traffic acquisition costs and Motorola Home, quarterly revenue was $11.34 billion, up from $8.13 billion. The firm earned 54 percent of the revenue outside of the United States, or $6.9 billion.

Quarterly net income came in at $2.9 billion, a 6.7 percent increase (non-GAAP profit was $3.57 billion, up from $3.13 billion a year before). The company surpassed analysts' expectations on EPS, which was $10.65 on a non-GAAP basis versus the $10.54 consensus. So, even though revenue climbed substantially, profit was only up slightly.

Of note, Google's Motorola subsidiary (excluding the home biz) lost "only" 353 million, or 23 percent of the unit's quarterly revenue. Better batteries and impact-resistant design could be in the works for Motorola handsets. A live stream of the earnings call is included right after the break alongside other tidbits related to Apple, Maps, Nexus devices and more...

GrouPlay brings democracy to your iOS party playlist

Mike Schnier ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

Settling on a good party playlist can be difficult. Say you've got friends with different tastes in music, and your music library doesn't have enough danceable tracks on its own that everyone can enjoy. If it's a big party, you don't want just anyone touching your iPod, and you also don't want someone with questionable taste to hijack the music for the party.

With the GrouPlay app, anyone with access to your Wi-Fi network can contribute songs from their own music library to your temporary party playlist, provided they have an iPhone 3GS, 3rd generation iPod touch, iPad, or later. Once the songs are uploaded, the real fun begins...

Microsoft’s Surface Pro to land on February 9 with $899 price tag

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 27, 2017

After a bit of a delay, Microsoft today announced launch details for its new Surface Pro tablet. The device will become available for purchase on February 9, and will run $899 for the entry-level 64GB model.

The Pro's release comes more than three months after its less-capable sibling, the Surface RT. And with reports suggesting that it didn't do so well over the holidays, Microsoft is hoping the Pro will be a hit...

Munster (again) sees Apple shipping iTV and new remote in 2013

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

You gotta give it to Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster, arguably for years the most vocal proponent of a full-fledged Apple television set. Speaking to Bloomberg today, Munster re-iterated his belief Apple is working on releasing a standalone television set in 2013. His thinking is apparently based in checks with Apple's suppliers and he also sees the Cupertino firm shipping an intelligent remote that, in his mind, should be an important part of the rumored iTV...