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The best skins for your iPhone, iPad, and other devices

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 25, 2016

I rarely get excited about accessories because I like to keep my devices simple. I've always thought that Apple has done a great job at designing beautiful products, so why would I want to stick my iPhone in a case or apply a skin to it, right?

There is a company out there that has slowly been changing what I think of skins though: iCarbons. I had never heard of them, but because they are also JailbreakCon sponsors, we started talking, and they offered to send me a few of their skins to check out. I've been in love ever since...

iPad text editing concept comes to life thanks to this jailbreak tweak

Jeff Benjamin ∙ May 4, 2012

When Cody posted about Daniel Hooper’s iPad keyboard demo, we had no idea that it would be as popular as it has turned out to be. Thousands of retweets later, the public has spoken out against how terrible the iPad's editing situation is. I think John Gruber summed it up best when he noted that the iPad was a great for typing, but poor for editing.

The iPad keyboard demo video was created with the hopes that Apple would respond and implement something similar in the upcoming version of iOS. There's even instructions included on the video for submitting a bug report to Apple.

Well, Apple may not listen, but someone else did. Indeed, the jailbreak community has responded in a big way. Introducing SwipeSelection — a usable realization of the original iPad concept video...

AT&T CEO talks the iPhone, unlimited data and iMessage

Cody Lee ∙ May 4, 2012

The New York Times points to some interesting comments, regarding Apple, made by AT&T's chief executive Randall Stephenson at the Milken Institute's Global Conference earlier this week.

During an on-stage interview, the CEO discussed a wide range of topics including his regret for initially allowing iPhone users to have unlimited data, and how it affected AT&T's bottom line...

You know you want it: Hacker News * for iPhone

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

Run by Paul Graham's funding firm Y Combinator, Hacker News has grown to become a popular destination for news stories about hacking, startup companies, interesting technologies and trending topics. Actually, the site attracts over 120,000 unique visitors on an average weekday.

Given the site's popularity, it really doesn't come as a surprise that there's no shortage of unofficial Hacker News clients for the iOS platform. Today, we bring the spotlight on Hacker News * (asterisk included), a clean, efficient and simple to use front-end to the Hacker News website...

Galaxy S III is cool, but official advert ignores marketing basics

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 25, 2016

As you've no doubt heard by now, Samsung has challenged Apple's smartphone dominance with yesterday's introduction of the third-generation Galaxy S smartphone at the Unpacked event in London.

Featuring an incremental bump up in specs and a host of software enhancements, you'd assume Samsung's marketing folks would proudly show off the device in official advertising.

Not so fast. A side-by-side comparison of the iPhone 4S and Galaxy S III commercials indicates Sammy's got a whole lot of learning to do: their 60-second advert features the flagship handset three times less frequently than Apple's commercial...

Hm, Apple okays iPad music player with Windows Phone Metro-style interface

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

Apple tends to yank apps over duplicate functionality, use of private APIs and those that look and feel very much like stock iOS programs. So it goes without saying I was surprised to learn that the company approved Track 8, a $1.99 music player program by Ender Labs. That Apple greenlighted an app resembling a rival platform's UI rather than flaltly reject it is news in and of itself, you'll admit.

Maybe the company just doesn't care because Windows Phone is failing? Be that as it may, people will wonder if a Metro-style interface makes sense on iOS...

Apple confirms OpenStreetMap data in iPhoto as own maps rumor persists

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 30, 2017

Giving credit where credit is due, Apple now properly acknowledgeds use of crowd-sourced map tiles from OpenStreetMap for its $4.99 iPhoto photo management program for the iPhone and iPad.

The proper attribution has been discovered in yesterday’s iPhoto 1.0.1 maintenance update, tucked away in legal text found under the Apps section in device Settings.

With that off our backs, we wonder when will Apple make an iOS-wide switch from the Google Maps backend to its own mapping solution...

Walmart denies dropping iPhone 4/4S prices dramatically

Cody Lee ∙ Updated June 13, 2016

Among the third-party retailers that sell Apple's handset, Walmart typically has some of the lowest prices. In fact, it's been selling 16GB versions of the iPhone 4S for just $188 since last November. And it looks like it's about to get a lot cheaper.

Cult of Mac has learned that Walmart is dropping the price of Apple's latest smartphone (AT&T model) down to $114 with a 2-year agreement. It also appears that the retail chain is lowering the price of its 8GB iPhone 4 as well, down to $34.

Unfortunately, discounts were a glitch in the system, Walmart confirmed in an official statement...

iTunes user files lawsuit against Apple over refund policy

Cody Lee ∙ May 4, 2012

Although Apple has created one of the strongest (likely the strongest) digital content stores in the world, it's far from perfect. The iTunes Store has a number of fundamental problems, including the lack of a proper refund system.

Perhaps no one is more aware of this than Robert Herskowitz. The iTunes user was recently billed twice for the same song — Adam Lambert's "Whataya Want from Me" — and was denied a refund by Apple. So he's suing them...

New chipset gives revised iPad 2 longer battery life

Cody Lee ∙ May 4, 2012

When Apple announced that it was going to continue selling the iPad 2 for $399 alongside its new tablet, the company never mentioned any changes. After all, it's the same iPad 2 that it's been selling for more than a year. Right?

Not exactly. The folks over at AnandTech uncovered a minor, but perhaps significant, change in the discounted tablet's A5 processor that gives the slate nearly two hours of added battery life. Keep reading to find out how...

pod2g now running iOS 5.1 untethered jailbreak on iPhone 4

Cody Lee ∙ May 3, 2012

Things are starting to pick up regarding the iOS 5.1 jailbreak, as we've just received word that pod2g has hit another major milestone in his efforts to hack the latest version of Apple's software.

The security expert just tweeted "Heya! My iPhone 4 running iOS 5.1 is now untethered :-)" This is good news, considering the only jailbreak currently available for iOS 5.1 is tethered...

Samsung unveils its new flagship handset: The Galaxy S III

Cody Lee ∙ May 3, 2012

Even though iDB is primarily an iPhone-focused blog, we like to keep tabs on what the competition is up to. Earlier this week we told you about RIM's all-new BlackBerry 10 platform, and today we've got some news regarding Samsung's latest handset.

The Korean manufacturer unveiled the Galaxy S III earlier today at a media event in London. Packed with a 4.8-inch Super AMOLED display and a host of other high-end components, the device certainly looks impressive on paper. But is it?