iPod Touch

The iPad mini and what it means for the iPod touch

As time has progressed of late, it has become increasingly clear that Apple will announce a new, smaller iPad at tomorrow's press event. Dubbed the iPad mini, the new device is, we believe, going to offer much of the current iPad experience, but this time in a more diminutive form.

This iPad mini has been rumored for what feels like forever, with the tablet almost as fabled in Apple rumor circles as that Apple-branded television we are still waiting for. With less than twenty-four hours to go, it seems we need not wait much longer. But where does it sit in Apple's product line?

If you're not someone who wants to buy an iPhone, then the obvious choice right now is an iPod touch. If you don't want something quite so large as an iPad, then the current choice is to plump for that same iPod touch, or something a little more Android-y. But what about post iPad mini? That's a whole different story indeed...

Apps Apple personally tested now appear in App Store’s Categories menu

In its never-ending quest to improve app discovery, Apple with iOS 6 added to its App Store on the iPad, iPhone and Mac something called App Collections, a curated section which lists apps that the company personally tested. As of recently, App Collections are now prominently featured on iOS devices and Macs via a dedicated section nested within the Categories menu of the App Store and iTunes. All of the apps featured in App Collections are basically recommendations by Apple's editorial team...

How to hide multiple app icons, no jailbreak required

A while ago we told you about StifleStand — an app for Windows or Mac that allows you to hide Newsstand without the need for a jailbreak.

Now there's another option for hiding Newsstand, along with a host of other default iOS apps. Again, like StifleStand, no jailbreak is needed for this method either.

In the following video walkthrough, we'll provide you with a demonstration of Rag3Hack, a new website dedicated to hiding stock iOS apps on any device, regardless of whether or not the device is jailbroken.

Need for Speed: Most Wanted live action TV commercial is totally dope

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ca-lV3LRxEY

You must watch this live action television commercial for Electronic Arts' Need for Speed: Most Wanted, an open-world racing game - it will totally make your day. The racing sessions have you fighting the cops and the trailer depicts that.

I instantly fell in love with the spaghetti western type soundtrack. And don't you just love how they pixelated the finger the driver gave to the cops? Thank actor/writer/director Jon Favreau for that, he's behind the ad.

Developed by Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts, Need for Speed: Most Wanted files as the nineteenth title in the long-running series, picking up on the Most Wanted IP rather than the Hot Pursuit reboot that Criterion developed previously...

New Angry Birds Star Wars trailer features Princess Leia

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOBFUksIU1k

Rovio's so far teased Angry Birds Star Wars twice (here and here). This brand new mashup resulting from a partnership with toy maker Hasbro could be a smash hit, if previous Angry Birds games are anything to go by. Today, the Finnish developer behind the franchise released a new trailer that features Princess Leia and the pig-ified Storm Trooper helmet, have a look.

I'm a big fan of both the Angry Birds series and Star Wars. It goes without saying that I cannot wait to see what Rovio's been up to with this one. The game arrives November 8 to iOS and Android, in addition to versions for Windows Phone, Kindle Fire, Mac and PCs running Windows 8. Say what you will, but Rovio sure knows how to milk the franchise, but not at the expense of gameplay creativity...

Poll: is your Apple gadget black or white?

I stumbled upon an interesting study the other day which got me thinking. Long story short, it claims nearly three out of four buyers prefer black Apple gadgets over white ones. It must be because Apple has branded the iPhone as a black device from the onset, I reckoned. The real-world supports survey findings: I bet you tend to meet far more people with black iPhones, iPads and iPods than white.

While the Italians and French seem to prefer their mobile devices in the more elegant white, the rest of the world predominantly opts for the more sinister (and just as stylish) black look. I myself am a white iPhone man. We're eager to learn what color our readers prefer for their iOS devices, so here's a quick poll as we head into the weekend...

The legendary carnage racing game Carmageddon hits iOS, free today only

Carmageddon, a classic arcade racing game inspired by the 1975 cult classic movie Death Race 2000, won many recognition and awards, earning its notoriety for graphical violence stemming from the carnage concept: the locals stay out on the streets at their peril and you run over or  smash into them with your automotive killing machine.

As you could imagine, Carmageddon was banned around the world, which only helped fuel its popularity. I was a little bit taken aback that Apple actually allowed such a title into its puritanic App Store environment (maybe because the concept calls for borderline comedy violence?). I've included a trailer, a video interview with developers and some screenies right after the break...

Rovio teases Angry Birds Star Wars

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

Angry Birds Star Wars the game is landing on November 8 for iOS and Android and Rovio just posted a nice-looking new trailer to promote the software. It doesn't reveal much in way of details, but sure as hell appeals to fans of Star Wars.

And as part of its broader partnership with toy and board game company Hasbro, Rovio and Hasbro pledged to release Star Wars and Angry Birds-themed merchandise and various mashups, including board games, costumes, plush toys and much more...

iMpulse: an iOS gamepad that fits on your keychain

It seems like iOS game controllers are a dime a dozen these days. There's the iControlPad 2, the iCade 8-Bitty and the Bladepad, to name a few. But we still haven't seen a single controller pull ahead of the pack.

And that's a good thing — at least for accessory-makers anyway. It means that the controller market is still anyone's game. That being said, we've got another one to show you today, and it's called the iMpulse...

Ostium adds a screen splitting effect to Notification Center

Ostium is a new jailbreak tweak that adds a screen splitting animation to Notification Center. The tweak works with a two finger pinch gesture, along with the more traditional slide from status bar gesture.

At first it appeared that the developer was only going to release Ostium for iPad, but iPod touch and iPhone support were added late in the game. I can definitely see the two finger pinch being more suited for the iPad's larger screen, but as you'll see, it works reasonable well on the small screen too.

How to use RedSn0w’s new Identify feature

As you know, RedSn0w 0.9.15b1 was a pretty significant upgrade over its predecessor. One of the new features that has sort of flown under the radar is the new Identify feature, which is buried in the Extras > Even more options.

The purpose of this new feature is to provide a verbose output of all device info in an easy to read and exportable format. This nice thing about the Identify feature is that you don't even have to be jailbroken to use it, and it works on pretty much every iOS device, including the iPhone 5.

Have a look inside as we go hands on with the new feature and showcase how easy it is to use.

Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour trailer shows off unbelievable mobile graphics

Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour is coming this fall on iOS and Android and Gameloft today posted this second trailer to highlight the visual aspects of this awesome-looking first-person shooter. This follows a gameplay trailer released on September 25. The high-definition graphics promises to really shine on the iPhone 5, giving us some indication what its speedy in-house designed A6 chip with three GPU cores is capable of, at least until Infinity Blade Dungeons lands. I've also included a few totally eye-candy screenies right past the fold...