iOS

Give notification badges a custom aesthetic with BadgeMe

Anthony Bouchard ∙ November 6, 2019

The infamous notification badge has looked almost the same on the iOS platform for more than a decade. The single most significant transformation befell with the release of iOS 7 when Apple nixed skeuomorphism from the bulk of iOS’ user interface, but even then, it didn’t change much.

The circumstances are absolutely astounding, but they aren’t hopeless. Those lucky enough to have a pwned handset in their possession can change how their notification badges look right this very second with the help of a newly released jailbreak tweak called BadgeMe by iOS developer Sirius24.

Apple unsigns iOS 13.1.2 and 13.1.3, thwarting downgrades from 13.2

Anthony Bouchard ∙ November 6, 2019

Apple closed the signing window for two different iOS versions for various handsets Wednesday evening, including 13.1.2 and 13.1.3.

It’s regular practice for Apple to stop signing older versions of iOS after a newer release has been available for some time. Doing so both prevents software downgrades by the jailbreak-savvy and encourages software updates for everyone else to ensure users take advantage of the latest features and security patches.

Video: connecting a magneto optical disk to an iPhone, but will it work?

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 6, 2019

If you've liked Niles Mitchell's "Will It Work" video series in which he attempts to make his iOS devices work with all sorts of retro computer equipment, like an Iomega Zip drive, you're going to love this one showing connecting a magneto optical disk to his iPhone.

VA Health Records come to iPhone Health app

Peter Cohen ∙ November 6, 2019

Apple and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced Wednesday that U.S. veterans now have access to the VA's Health Records feature in the Health app on the iPhone.

ScreenSafe protects your iPhone’s display from burn-in with screensavers

Anthony Bouchard ∙ November 4, 2019

Handsets equipped with OLED displays are particularly adept at displaying high-contrast colors due to the true blacks they exhibit, especially when compared to handsets sporting traditional LCD displays. On the other hand, OLED displays are also notorious for screen burn-in issues, and that’s where screensavers come in.

Modern iPhones such as the iPhone X, XS, and 11 Pro (including their larger counterparts) come standard with OLED displays, and while Apple has already done plenty to mitigate screen burn-in with these devices, they haven’t yet adopted screensavers on the iOS platform. With that in mind, a new jailbreak tweak release called ScreenSafe by iOS developer Kushy comes off as particularly interesting.

Add haptic feedback to the Instagram app with HaptiGram

Anthony Bouchard ∙ November 4, 2019

If you’re a jailbreaker that uses the Instagram app and also happens to enjoy subtle vibrations when performing actions (better known as haptic feedback), then we think you’ll take a particular liking to a newly released jailbreak tweak called HaptiGram by iOS developer iCraze.

As you may have inferred already from the context clues above, HaptiGram integrates haptic feedback into various actions performed in the official Instagram application for iOS. According to the developer, haptic feedback can be felt when doing any of the following things:

Pwn20wnd issues advice for potential jailbreakers using A12(X) and A13 devices

Anthony Bouchard ∙ November 3, 2019

Things have been getting very real in the jailbreak community in the past several weeks. One of the most significant tidbits of news has been the development of the A5-A11-based checkra1n jailbreak by Luca Todesco and others, which rides on the back of a brand-new bootrom exploit from @axi0mX called checkm8. But the captivation isn’t stopping there.

With all the exciting information (and drama) that we’ve seen recently, one might be inclined to say it’s breath of fresh air to see unc0ver jailbreak lead developer Pwn20wnd touting potential work on something new. The hacker took to Twitter Sunday morning to share pertinent information for A12(X) and A13 device users who might be in the market for a jailbreak:

Jailbreak tweaks of the week: IconTweak, PureFocus, SafariElectro, and more

Anthony Bouchard ∙ November 3, 2019

Having a jailbroken iPhone or iPad means that you can modify that device outside of Apple’s stock parameters, but it’s not always easy to know where you should start.

This convenient week-end roundup will encompass all the latest jailbreak tweaks released from Monday, October 28th to Sunday, November 3rd. As always, we’ll kick things off by discussing our favorites and then wrap things up with an outline of the rest afterward.

CoolStar says Chimera and Electra jailbreaks will soon ditch Substitute for libsubstrate

Anthony Bouchard ∙ October 31, 2019

The Electra Team’s Chimera and Electra jailbreak tools have long utilized Substitute for native tweak injection, but it now seems that this could be on the verge of changing.

Electra Team lead developer CoolStar took to his jailbreak-oriented Discord channel on Thursday to share that his team would no longer maintain Substitute due to its incompatibility with certain jailbreak tweaks and hooking limitations:

Luca Todesco teases Installer on upcoming checkra1n jailbreak

Anthony Bouchard ∙ October 31, 2019

The upcoming checkm8 exploit-based checkra1n jailbreak has been making rounds in headlines over the last couple of weeks, with some of the most exciting news involving tweak injection on iOS 13. But as you might recall, a recent teaser also showed that the checkra1n jailbreak would support several package managers, including Cydia and Zebra.

People were particularly excited to see support for Zebra in addition to the tried and true Cydia package manager, but it begged the question about compatibility with other popular package managers, including Installer and Sileo, just to name a few.

Tweak injection teased on iOS 13 with upcoming checkra1n jailbreak

Anthony Bouchard ∙ October 31, 2019

Things are getting particularly interesting in the world of jailbreaking since the official public release of @axi0mX’s checkm8 bootrom exploit for A5-A11 devices. One of the most intriguing work-in-progresses involving checkm8 has been checkra1n, a jailbreak tool spearheaded by renowned hacker Luca Todesco and others.

While we’ve witnessed quite a few teasers involving the checkra1n jailbreak to date, none have been quite as exciting as one shared just this morning. Jailbreak developer Sam Bingner, well-known for his popular TetherMe jailbreak tweak for enabling native Personal Hotspot on jailbroken handsets with or without carrier consent, teased the tweak functioning on iOS 13 by way of checkra1n:

This tweak forces the Twitter app to show the ‘Latest’ Tweets at all times

Anthony Bouchard ∙ October 31, 2019

Twitter users who use the social network via the official app will notice that it seems to favor “Top” Tweets over “Latest” Tweets in your News Feed. In some cases, it even switches you from Latest to Top without your consent. It’s easy to switch back, but it can be annoying to deal with nonetheless.

I’ve always disliked this about the Twitter mobile app, and for that reason in particular, I’m excited to show you a newly released and free jailbreak tweak dubbed AlwaysLatestTimelineTwitter by iOS developer aesthyrica.