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One Man Turned Jailbreaking iPhones into a Full-Time Job

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

For most of us, we jailbreak because we want to. We do it to get customized apps, tweaks, or to give our iDevices a complete makeover. Even though the process has become extremely simple, we still feel a sense of accomplishment after our device reboots and that Cydia icon is glowing off of the screen.

I've jailbroken friends devices for them, and showed them how to use Cydia to download things. While software like PwnageTool and RedSn0w do most of the iPhone hacking for you, it still isn't recommended for the not-so-tech savvy. One Virginian college student has capitalized on that fact by turning jailbreaking into his full time job...

Apple Orders 12 Petabytes for Cloud-Based iTunes, MobileMe?

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 25, 2017

Apple's plans for their MobileMe revamp and cloud-based media services are starting to take shape. Although no official announcement regarding either of the services has been made, we are almost positive we will see them at some point this year.

Apple's been relatively quiet about the purposed functions, but tech blogs are happily churning out rumors and speculation on the upcoming features. The latest gossip is that Apple has ordered as much as 12 Petabytes, which is equal to about 1000 Terabytes, from a global leader in scale-out storage services. What could they be planning?

Top 5 Reasons to Jailbreak Your iPad

Cody Lee ∙ Updated January 30, 2016

Earlier this week, the jailbreak for Apple's latest iOS 4.3.1 was released. Anyone with an iPad on the latest firmware, couldn't even attempt hacking it until last Sunday night. It was then that the Dev Team finally released a much-awaited jailbreaking solution to the masses.

But why on earth would anyone want to hack their iPad? This is a question I get asked a lot by friends and family members. In all honesty, I could go on for hours on why I have my iDevices jailbroken. Everything from my iPhone to my Apple TV2 has received the jailbreaking treatment, and everything in between.

But in the interest of time and space, I figured I would just put together a top 5 list of reasons why you would want to jailbreak your iPad. Hopefully it benefits some of you that may still be on the fence about the whole idea.

1. It's super easy

Although hacking iOS software is extremely complex, programmers like the Dev Team develop software to make the process extremely simple. These programs make jailbreaking as easy as following a few on screen instructions. If for some reason you do mess up, you can generally just restore in iTunes and start the process over.

2. Cydia

For those of you who aren't familiar with jailbreaking, Cydia is an app store very similar to Apple's App Store. It is generally the only icon that is initially added to your home screen once you have jailbroken. It contains everything from apps to iOS tweaks. Every other item on this list comes from Cydia.

3. Customizable Themes

Apple didn't build a lot of customization options into iOS. It's only been in the last year that they've allowed you change the wallpaper on your iDevice home screen. Customizable themes, allow you to give your iPad a complete makeover.

4. Tweaks

Tweaks can enable extra features, or build on old ones. Their overall purpose is to make using your iPad simpler. SBSettings is a popular tweak in the jailbreak scene. It enables a drop down menu, accessible from your iPad's top status bar, with shortcuts to Wi-Fi and bluetooth. You don't have to open Settings and go through menus to enable bluetooth, you can just tap the shortcut in SBSettings.

5. Cast Out Applications

Everything from productivity apps to full featured messangers are available in the Cydia store. Many of these were denied entry into Apple's App Store for violating one of their submission rules. Without Apple's strict limitations, developers are given the opportunity to be truly innovative.

Like I said the list could have gone on much longer than that, especially if it were broken down into specific tweaks and apps that I liked. If this interested you enough that you would like to give jailbreaking a shot, try our easy step by step guide here, or here if you have Windows.

What are the top 5 reasons you jailbreak your iPad?

iKeyGuard – The First and Only Key Logger for Your iPhone

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 2, 2018

The purpose of key loggers has always been kind of cloudy to me. I suppose if you wanted to monitor your computer covertly while you were away, a key logger would make sense.

If you were a parent wanting to keep tabs on your kid's online activities, you could certainly use a key logger to record their ventures. I've even heard of people using key loggers on their spouses.

While, key logging on a computer still doesn't seem useful to me, key logging on a smartphone does.

You could have archives of text messages and emails you've sent from your device. If you have been looking for something similar, the application iKeyGuard makes key logging easy on your iPhone or other iDevice...

Create Custom Badges For Apps with AppTag

Guest Author ∙ April 6, 2011

Another day, another new jailbreak tweak released in Cydia. The latest jailbreak tweak is called, AppTag.

You know the little "badges" on applications on the home screen that notify you with the amount of new notifications you have? Well, AppTag is a cool new tweak that will allow you to create custom badges on your iDevice without the use of a computer.

White iPhone 4 Once Again Pulled From Apple’s Inventory

Cody Lee ∙ April 6, 2011

White iPhone 4 rumors are a dime a dozen these days. But because of the device's mysterious non-existence, we all still seem to pay attention. At any rate, if you tried to visit the online Apple Store late last night, chances are you saw the above message.

It's been back up and operating for a while now, but why did Apple take their store offline? Typically this is just a sign of site maintenance, and sometimes it can mean that Apple is preparing to launch a new product. A Mac news website is claiming that this time, Apple took the store offline to remove white iPhone 4 SKUs...

‘ManualCorrect Pro’ Adds More Options to Maneuver Around Auto Correct’s Blunders

Jeff Benjamin ∙ April 6, 2011

Oh auto correct, how we all do loathe thee.

A couple of months ago I walked you through a jailbreak tweak entitled ManualCorrect -- a tweak that aimed to tame the iPhone's native auto correct and make it functional.

The tweak was met by rave reviews by yours truly, and even garnered a few votes on Nick's Top Five Jailbreak Apps post.

Now a new version of the tweak -- ManualCorrect Pro -- has been unveiled that seeks to further subdue the iPhone's nefarious auto correction; but is it worth paying for?

Fring Announces that Group Video Chat is Coming to the iPhone

Alex Heath ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

The popular video chat app called fring has announced that it will bring the world's first group video chat functionality to iOS and Android. The fring app offered video chat on the iPhone long before Facetime, and it's exciting to see such an innovative team bringing group video chat to the mobile space.

The group chat feature will allow you to have simultaneous video chat with up to four friends at once. Check out the demo video below...

Apple’s 30-Pin Dock Connector Could be Getting a Huge Upgrade

Alex Heath ∙ April 6, 2011

A new and interesting patent reveals a very interesting possibility for future iDevices. Apple's current proprietary connection technology has been in need of an update for a long time, and technologies like MagSafe have been considered as a replacement.

The current 30-pin connector is present on all of Apple's mobile devices. And, apparently, Apple is looking to upgrade the 30-pin architecture with multiple connection technologies...

FaceTime Bug Shows Random Pictures, Raises Privacy Concerns

Guest Author ∙ Updated January 24, 2016

A topic over at Apple's Discussion Forums has a few users reporting an unusual glitch with the FaceTime app on their iPhone 4 handsets. iPhone 4 users are reporting that when using FaceTime, the screen shows a random picture frozen on the screen.

It seems several iPhone 4 owners are experiencing this FaceTime glitch, which is increasing privacy concerns among the community. According to several users, the camera seems to be keeping random images that have not been taken before and don’t seem to originate from past FaceTime calls.

Dock 2.0 Gives You One Touch Access to All of Your Apps

Cody Lee ∙ April 6, 2011

If someone were to ask you why they should jailbreak their iPhone, what would you say? For me, the list of reasons could go on for days. The themes, the tweaks, it seems like there are a million ways to customize your iPhone once it's been set free. These tweaks can remove Apple's limitations on things like the amount of sprin gboard pages you can have, or the amount of icons allowed in each folder.

The coolest hacks, in my opinion, are the ones that make multi-step processes on your iPhone less complicated. Don't get me wrong, iOS is so simple a 2 year old could use it. But there are apps like SBSettings that will give you home screen access to settings for Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.

Dock 2.0 also falls in this category, as it makes browsing multiple pages for applications a thing of the past...

Federal Grand Jury Investigates Information Sharing Processes in iOS Apps

Cody Lee ∙ April 6, 2011

For once, it's not Apple facing litigation, but developers of apps in its popular App Store. BGR reported yesterday that New Jersey Federal Prosecutors are starting to get serious about their investigation with popular smartphone applications. The inquisition is looking to determine whether some app developers are in breach of Federal Law.

The post claims that a criminal investigation is underway by a federal grand jury on certain mobile applications. These apps are suspected of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act with their methods of collecting and transmitting user's personal data...