iOS

Concept imagines how Apple could implement Home screen widgets in iOS

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 30, 2014

Ah, the widgets. Among the defining Android features, widgets regularly find themselves on top of many people's wish list for iOS. Apple does not provide iOS widget functionality, though it's a non-issue to folks who are jailbroken thanks to literally hundreds, if not thousands, of widgets in Cydia.

I guess you could go as far as saying widgets are one of the prime allures of jailbreaking. While no one outside Apple can't really tell whether or not the company will ever allow widgets into the App Store, we can always speculate: there's (some) hope for widgets in iOS as Tim Cook alluded to opening up iOS a little bit more for third party developers in the future.

Until that day comes, non-jailbreakers are stuck with a bunch of concepts. Enter Jay Machalani, the brains behind this remarkable concept envisioning widgets in iOS. 'iOS Blocks', as he calls them, resemble Live Tiles in Windows and can be moved around and placed anywhere on the Home screen with a simple gesture...

Apple now makes it clear you’re not allowed to update or redownload refunded apps

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 26, 2014

If you've ever asked for a refund on a Mac, iPhone, iPod touch or iPad app you purchased in the Mac App Store or the App Store, Apple somewhat unexpectedly did allow you to update your existing installations - even reinstall previously refunded apps.

That's no longer the case. According to multiple reports, users who try to update or reinstall refunded iOS and OS X applications are now greeted with a prompt informing them that Apple no longer supports the practice...

MBLOK is a wireless flash drive for iOS that fits in your pocket

Joe Rossignol ∙ May 20, 2014

May appears to be the month of Kickstarter campaigns featuring products that eliminate the need to use iTunes for transferring files between a Mac or PC and iPhone or iPad. Last week it was the iStick flash drive with a built-in Lightning connector, and this time around we're taking a look at the MBLOK wireless storage and flash drive by a team of students and entrepreneurs from Waterloo, Canada. Take a look…

Amazon offering Logitech’s PowerShell iOS 7 controller for $50 with free shipping

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 20, 2014

Logitech's PowerShell iOS 7 controller has been heavily criticized for its high launch price ($99) and there have been some complaints about build quality and features. But if you're serious about iOS gaming, you should consider this accessory as a worthy first entrant into the iOS 7 controller market.

Gamers who have been on the lookout for a nice deal on the PowerShell are in for a treat as Amazon is currently offering the accessory for just $49.99, with free shipping included. That's a nice 29 percent discount over the online retailer's normal asking price of $69.99 and a cool $50 savings from its suggested (and rather insane) retail price of ninety-nine bucks...

Pioneer video shows off aftermarket CarPlay kit

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 16, 2014

Pioneer last month announced five aftermarket options aimed at enabling CarPlay on older vehicles, with Apple confirming both Pioneer and Alpine aftermarket CarPlay integration coming later this year.

Today, the Japanese company has shown off how Apple's in-car solution works in tandem with its NEX dash systems and we have a video right after he jump. Just like native CarPlay integration, customers simply plug in their handset and the NEX hardware then takes over and displays CarPlay interface on a built-in capacitive touchscreen (still a rarity in aftermarket systems)...

Fleksy keyboard breaks Guinness World Record for fastest texting

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 16, 2014

Fleksy, the popular Android keyboard and alternative to Apple's stock iOS keyboard, has broken the Guinness World Record for fastest texting. A longtime user named Marcel used Fleksy's Android keyboard app to break Microsoft's Guinness World Record for fastest texting with a final time of 18.19 seconds.

He bested Microsoft's previous Windows Phone WordFlow keyboard record by 0.25 seconds, Fleksy said. Celebrating the award, Fleksy has updated its keyboard software for iOS and Android with core engine improvements focused on accuracy...

Student research project brings native iOS apps to Android devices

Cody Lee ∙ May 14, 2014

This is pretty interesting. A group of six PhD students from Columbia University's Department of Computer Science have developed 'Cider,' an OS compatibility architecture capable of running iOS apps on Android.

The research project utilizes binary compatibility techniques to run both domestic and foreign binaries on the same device. So essentially it can trick an app's code into thinking it's running on Apple's XNU kernel...

LG releasing Lifeband Touch Activity Tracker and Heart Rate Earphones this Sunday

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 9, 2017

This coming Sunday, May 18, LG will release a pair of new wearable products. Designed to work with iOS and Android, the Lifeband Touch Activity Tracker, as the name implies, is a wrist-worn fitness band which measures your physical activity performance - stuff like speed, steps taken, calories burned and covered.

And LG's new Heart Rate Earphones with built-in sensors will measure your heart rate as you listen to your music, make calls or just chill.

Used together, these two products promise to help you reach and maintain your fitness goals while fusing advanced activity tracking, biometric data, Bluetooth app connectivity with easy access to your music and iOS device and what not. Both accessories can be pre-ordered now through Best Buy prior to launch...

Report: Apple building split-screen multitasking into iOS 8

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2016

Soon there may be no need to gnash your teeth at Microsoft whose anti-iPad television commercials always highlight the Surface's split-screen multitasking, a feature iOS currently does not support. But Microsoft will want to rethink those ads as an exclusive report by a reliable blogger claimed Tuesday that Apple is building split-screen multitasking functionality into iOS 8.

If the report is anything to go by, it should be akin to the iPad jailbreak tweak called OS Experience that our own Jeff Benjamin highlighted recently. Details are right after the break so read on for the full reveal...

iOS bug leaves email attachments unencrypted, Apple working on a fix

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 9, 2016

Do you access sensitive document attachments on your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad, stuff like contracts, invoices, bank statements and what not?

If so, your security and privacy could be compromised because iOS is storing email attachments in the clear - that is, in the unencrypted form - thus making stored attachments easily readable by using a piece of software to browse a person's on-device email folder for an IMAP account.

A researcher who claims to have discovered this security flaw has found that iOS 7.0.4 and later - including the latest iOS 7.1.1 - do not encrypt email attachments...

Reuters: Apple creating full-blown health and fitness services platform akin to App Store

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 5, 2014

We "know" from rumors that Apple with iOS 8 is planning to introduce a new application called Healthbook said to aggregate health and fitness data pulled from a variety of sources, be it third-party fitness/health apps found in the App Store, dedicated tracking accessories or more.

But that could be just the tip of the iceberg.

According to a mobile health executive who spoke to Reuters, the iPhone maker is looking to create a full-blown health and fitness ecosystem inspired by the App Store...

Apogee MiC review: the mic for people serious about audio on the go

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 17, 2018

Have you ever tried to record audio from your MacBook on your iPhone or iPad's built-in microphone? The result is audio that's serviceable—you can hear it—but the sound is pitiful. Built-in microphones on pretty much every hardware device, whether it be computers, tablets, or even cameras, are sorely lacking from a sound quality perspective. With a minimal investment, you can significantly upgrade the quality of your sound with a decent external microphone.

There are some awesome external microphones for a variety of applications out there, but if you're primarily concerned with recording on your Mac or iOS device while on the go, there is one mic that should be squarely at the top of your consideration list.

The Apogee MiC is an extremely minuscule external microphone that can make your recordings sound great while traveling. Have a look at our Apogee MiC review and video walkthrough + sound test.