iDownloadBlog.com

Ex-Apple talent helping rebuild Facebook’s iPhone app, broader overhaul in 2013

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 25, 2012

A little less than a month ago, The New York Times reported that Facebook was working on a brand new version of its sluggish iOS client, re-writing it completely with speed in mind from the ground up in Objective-C, the preferred programming language for modern iOS applications.

The current version owes much of its sluggishness to the fact that it provides a web view through an embedded web browser. A new report out today asserted that the social networking giant tapped some former Apple engineering talent not only to help build a smartphone of its own, but also to re-write the official iOS app...

Facebook phone reportedly set for 2013 release

Cody Lee ∙ July 25, 2012

You know that crazy rumor that keeps bouncing around that Facebook is building its own smartphone? Well, a little more fuel was just added to the fire today.

A new report is out this afternoon claiming, once again, that the social network is pairing up with Taiwanese handset-maker HTC to develop its own mobile phone...

Apple finally fixes buggy Podcasts app

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 25, 2012

A month ago Apple removed Podcasts section from iOS 6 storefronts and posted a dedicated new app to let folks download, consume and manage audio and video podcasts on the go.

Apart from its skeuomorphic design mimicking a vintage tape recorder, the program was plagued with unreliable performance, unexpected quits and generally a bunch of bugs. These issues are clearly reflected in abysmal iTunes ratings that at the time of this writing barely hovered over two and a half stars out of five.

Our own Jeff Benjamin noticed as much, observing in his video hands-on that the radio-dial interface is interesting at first sight, but not very efficient and syncing often doesn't work as intended. Today, Apple pushed out a minor update that promises to squash these pesky bugs while bringing out a couple of new nice-to-haves...

RedSn0w is compatible with Mountain Lion

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 25, 2013

Good news for all of you Mac-using jailbreakers out there that updated to Mountain Lion today. The Dev Team has just confirmed that the new OS is compatible with RedSn0w.

The Team does have a few instructions, though, for the folks that updated. So if you have installed Mountain Lion, and you plan on using the utility, you should read this...

Create a shortcut for any app on your iPad’s Lock screen with Zeus

Cody Lee ∙ July 25, 2012

Unless you happen to use the Slideshow feature on your iPad on a regular basis, there's a good chance that you don't need that shortcut on your Lock screen. So what do you do with it?

Well, you have a few choices. You can either disable the shortcut in Settings, by turning off Picture Frame. Or, you can use a tweak like Zeus, and turn the shortcut into something useful...

LiveClock tweak updated with iOS 5 support

Cody Lee ∙ Updated February 25, 2013

As most of you know, LiveClock has been around the jailbreak scene for quite some time. The tweak replaces the Clock app's icon with an animated version that reflects the current time.

But over the years, LiveClock has gotten lost in the couch cushions of Cydia. Ignored by its developer, the package had not seen an update since 2010. Until yesterday, that is...

iPad grows lead over Android tablets

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated September 26, 2016

Apple's iPad continues to dominate the tablet market, accounting for more than two out of three tablets sold during the second quarter of this year, per market research firm Strategy Analytics. Specifically, the iPad rose from 62 percent in the year-ago quarter to 68 percent global market share, which the research firm says is its highest level for almost two years. So not only did Apple retain the iPad's sizable lead, it's also managed to grow by six percentage points...

iWork for iOS apps updated with iCloud support

Cody Lee ∙ July 25, 2012

iWork users will be happy to know that Apple has updated the iOS versions of Pages, Numbers, and Keynote today, to support the new Documents in the Cloud feature in OS X Mountain Lion.

The highly-anticipated feature keeps documents in-sync across both Mac and iOS versions of the apps in the iWork suite, and automatically keeps them up to date with the latest changes...

Samsung to Apple: our patents made the iPhone possible

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Continuing a string of accusations between Apple and Samsung ahead of the high-stake July 30 trial in the United States, the Galaxy maker asserted in court documents that the iPhone wouldn't have been possible if it weren't for Samsung's patented technology.

Specifically, Samsung wrote Apple would have sold zero iPhones if it hadn't been for its wireless technology patents that Apple relied heavily upon to enter the telecommunications space. The South Korean conglomerate also pulled an ace up its sleeve: dead-on prior art that allegedly invalidates Apple's patents...

Apple updates iTunes U with note-taking and more

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 4, 2018

In addition to the long list of other updates we're seeing today in wake of Mountain Lion's release, Apple has pushed out a new version of iTunes U. iTunes U, as you may know, is an iPhone/iPad app that gives users free access to college courses and other valuable resources.

Among the program's new features is a new note-taking option, which allows you to easily take notes while watching or listening to a lecture. Keep reading for a rundown of all the changes...

Broadcom outs new chip that could give 2013 iOS devices Gigabit WiFi

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 4, 2018

Broadcom today announced a new wireless chip that features support for WiFi 802.11ac standard, also known as fifth-generation WiFi and promising theoretical wireless transfer speeds of one gigabit per second.

The Broadcom BCM4335 module also includes Bluetooth 4.0, FM radio and software on a single chip using a 40-nanometer process. As Apple is extensively using Broadcom chips in iOS devices and Macs, this is a likely candidate for 2013 iPhones and iPads. The chip provides for some interesting possibilities...

Safari 6 hits Lion with Smart Search Field and Offline Reading List

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 4, 2018

Hot on the heels of the OS X Mountain Lion release that just hit Apple's servers an hour ago, Cupertino today unleashed Safari 6 for Lion, bringing some of Safari's features from Mountain Lion to Lion systems.

Most notably, Safari 6 now (finally!) features a unified field which acts as both the address bar and search field, akin to Chrome'c Omnibox. Also new is Offline Reading List, first introduced in iOS 6, which downloads entire webpages saved for reading later so you can access them when offline...