White balance: the iPhone photographer’s little secret

I hope you have enjoyed the last few weeks exploring the creative possibilities of exposure. I wanted to continue on our adventure back to the basics of photography. Something I'm sure you have seen at some point in your photographic pursuits is a dial, slider, or some other control annotated with a cloud, sun, flash, shade, and light bulb. Although, camera companies have done a great job researching the iconography that best represents 'it', they really don't explain what 'it' is. In today's lesson we will quickly learn what 'it' is and then explore creative ways to use 'it' to our advantage!

Microsoft’s Wordament lands on iOS with Xbox Live integration

Good news Xbox users, there's finally a way for you to pad your Live stats from your iPhone or iPad. Microsoft has just released its popular Wordament word game, which has been on Windows Phone for a while now, for iOS, and it has full Xbox Live integration with friends lists and achievements.

For those not familiar with it, Wordament is a highly addictive word game. Players get two minutes to find the most words in a 4x4 grid of letters, competing in real-time, on the same board, against everyone else currently playing. Each board is unique and bonuses are given for longer words...

Best Buy taking 20% off all iTunes gift cards today

Believe it or not, Christmas is this Tuesday, meaning you have less than 72 hours to finish up your last-minute holiday shopping. Unfortunately, it's too late to order gifts like the iPad mini or iPhone 5, as they won't ship on time.

But there's still plenty of time, though, to pick up an iTunes gift card. And wouldn't you know it, national electronics retailer Best Buy is having a sale on them today, knocking 20% off all denominations between $15 and $100...

The Daily Recap – Dec 21, 2012 edition

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dL41d1RSLMI

Welcome to The Daily Recap for December 21th, 2012. Watch our video for a quick look at some of the top stories from the day in less than two minutes. If you missed out on any of today's big news, this is a great way for you to get caught up fast.

For your convenience, you'll also find links to all of the stories listed in today's recap inside...

Apple airs new “I’ll Be Home” iPad commercial

Apple has tonight starting airing a new holiday-themed iPad commercial entitled "I'll Be Home." With Christmas now just a few days away, the Cupertino company is obviously hoping to snag a few last-minute shoppers. As usual, we've got the video embedded for you after the break...

Nielsen publishes list of top 10 iPhone apps for 2012

Nielsen, a highly regarded information and measurement firm, released its "Digital Tops of 2012" lists yesterday, which included topics like the top 10 Internet brands, and the top 10 iOS apps for the year.

The apps were picked based on average unique users from Q1 of 2012 to Q3, and as you might have guessed, four of the top 10 chosen are (were) native iOS apps like Maps and YouTube. We've got the full list after the fold...

Apple alters MFi guidelines following Kickstarter project fiasco

Earlier today, we told you about the unfortunate story of POP, the portable power station. In just a few short months, the accessory went from a popular Kickstarter project with over $100,000 in funding, to essentially deadweight due to Apple denying their request for a MFi license.

The problem was, the POP's use of other charging cables in conjunction with the new Lightning connector violated Apple's Made For iPhone terms, thus leading to the license rejection. Well today, following the story, Apple has updated its MFi guidelines and released a statement...

Google reportedly building ‘X Phone’ to rival Apple and Samsung

Android may be winning the smartphone war right now against Apple due to the sheer number of mobile devices available using the open-sourced OS, but Google's not content with that. It wants to take the Cupertino company and its popular iPhone head-on.

A new report is out today claiming that engineers from Google's recently purchased Motorola Mobility arm have begun work on what is being called the 'X Phone,' a sophisticated handset due next year whose sole purpose is to annihilate the competition...

Fuzel Pro brings snail mail back in style

It is the holiday season and, inevitably, you will be snapping lots of photos at the dinner table, the bar, and your favorite aunt Suzi's house. Truly, the best of times and the worst of times are captured digitally and you need to share that giant family portrait everyone loved by the Christmas tree. Aside from the usual, Facebook, Twitter, and everyone's favorite social app to hate, Instagram, you can try sharing photos the old school way, with snail mail. Blending tech and print, Fuzel Pro, App Store Best of 2012, creates picture collages and mails them straight from your iPhone...

New Facebook Poke app now available in the App Store

Facebook is building up quite the app library on Apple's mobile platform. There's the official app, and then there's several subsidiaries like Camera, Pages, and Messenger. And today we're adding another one to the list.

This afternoon, Facebook has announced the release of Facebook Poke, an app that, as you might have guessed, allows you to 'Poke' your friends, by sending them a quick message, photo or video. More details after the fold...

IMDb iPad app updated with new features and look

Great news movie buffs. Popular online film database IMDb has just released a major update to its iPad app, bringing some new features and an all-new design to the tablet software.

You can still use the app to research your favorite actors, watch movie trailers, or look up your favorite TV and film trivia, but version 3.0 lets you do it all in style...

This jailbreak tweak allows you to fake certain statistics on your iPhone

I've been known to give jailbreak developers a pass when it comes to developing what many deem as "worthless" tweaks, because I know that there is always someone who will find a tweak to be useful. The latest such item to teeter upon this fine line is Fake iOS 6 About — a jailbreak tweak that allows you to fake statistical information about your device.

If you've ever wanted to pretend that your device could hold a million songs, or that you reside on a carrier not available in your country, then Fake iOS 6 About is the tweak for you. In most cases, many will feel that such a tweak is worthless. I'll be totally honest with you; this time, it's hard not to agree with those sentiments.