iPhone

Stay up-to-date on the latest iPhone news and learn new tips and tricks with our comprehensive tutorials. From software updates to new features, we’ve got you covered.

Rovio releases Angry Birds Transformers globally

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2016

Following its soft-launch in New Zealand, Australia, Canada and Finland on September 25, Rovio's Angry Birds Transformers is now available globally as a free-to-play download for the iPhone and iPad, the Finnish mobile games maker announced Wednesday morning.

Featuring cars, trucks, tanks and planes and a plethora of heroes and villains with unique attacks and abilities, the movie tie-in challenges your Autobirds (I chuckled) to save Piggy Island from the crazed robots on a mission to nuke it out of orbit.

Microsoft launches Skype Qik, its own ephemeral video messaging app

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 30, 2018

Tuesday, software giant Microsoft launched a brand new ephemeral messaging app, Skype Qik, in a bid to take on the likes of Snapchat and other applications in the increasingly crowded ephemeral messaging space.

“Imagine if you could reinvent the Skype experience, taking into account how messaging, selfies and app culture have changed the way we communicate,” reads the blurb.

The free of charge iPhone app is based on Microsoft's $100 million acquisition of the mobile video provider Qik three years ago. Microsoft retired the original Qik app soon after, clearing the way for a re-introduction of the reimagined Qik software for iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

As the name suggests, Skype Qik is being promoted through the Skype brand, itself owned by Microsoft. Matter of fact, Qik runs alongside Skype to provide an ongoing form of video chat allowing you to share laughs, and chat with groups of friends.

Stop what you’re doing and grab Cycloramic for iPhone 6, free for a very limited time

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 13, 2014

Chances are you've heard about Cycloramic, a stupendously amazing iPhone photography software which allows you to capture stunning, accessory-free 360-degree video using custom vibration patterns in your device and an Apple power adapter.

If you haven't taken the plunge yet, please don't pass on this opportunity as Cycloramic has just gone free for the first time ever.

A $1.99 saving, only the iPhone 6 edition of the app is free, and for “a very limited time”, according to developer Egos Ventures. The iPhone 5/5s version, which hasn't been discounted and is available for $1.99 a pop, relies on the handset's squared base and the vibration motor to spin the device around its axis.

Mailbox optimized for iPhone 6 screens, Mac beta client now available to everyone

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 30, 2018

Fans of the popular Mailbox email client, rejoice! A compatibility update became available Monday, bringing native display support for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus that lets you see more of your emails rather than be limited by a blown-up interface.

Mailbox 2.3.1, a free download, also brings the ability to customize your swipes further and includes a pair of fixes, one resolving issues with rendering of some emails and the other squashing a bug affecting delivery of Push Notification for new messages in iOS 8.

Jonathan Mann’s new song has lyrics written by an iPhone, using iOS 8’s autocomplete feature

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2016

Jonathan Mann, a musician, songwriter and unabashed Apple fan, has been churning out one song a day for nearly six years straight.

You may remember his iPhone Antenna song, posted to YouTube on the eve of the Antennagate presser.

Apple actually used it to open the event and Steve Jobs even danced to it. The song-a-day man also created a Siri duet not long after the iPhone 4s was released and another one to wish Siri a happy birthday.

He's back today with an entirely different experiment that somehow manages to sound catchy and listenable, which is remarkable given the meaningless lyrics were actually written by an iPhone using iOS 8's autocomplete function.

Poll: how often do you use Reachability?

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 13, 2018

So I've finally managed to snag an iPhone 6 Plus this past weekend and boy does that 5.5-inch form factor take some getting used to.

Just ahead of the official announcement I, along with many other bloggers, was wondering whether a bigger iPhone might force Apple to rather unceremoniously abandon its unwavering principle of one-handed use.

Fortunately, Apple's smart engineers soothed our collective fears by creating a smart software feature dubbed Reachability, which lets you double tap the Touch ID button to slide the top half of the screen to the bottom half so you can reach touch targets in iOS positioned at the top, like Safari's address bar.

I've been loving Reachability a lot and using it on a daily basis. How about you?

Apple announces iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus expansion in 36 more countries

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 13, 2014

Apple announced in a media release Monday that its iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus handsets are coming to an additional 36 countries and territories across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa by the end of October.

Both new handsets will be available in a total of 69 countries and territories by the end of the month as Apple reiterated it's self-imposed goal to deliver the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus in more than 115 countries by the end of the year, calling it “our fastest iPhone rollout ever”.

iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus pre-orders reportedly top 20 million in China

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 13, 2014

During a three-day period since the start of pre-orders for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus on October 10, Chinese carriers and e-commerce site Jingdong Mall (JD.com) have collected a combined total of an estimated 20 million units, according to a Tencent report [Google Translate] Monday relayed by Digitimes.

The country's three leading wireless operators — China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom — have collected about ten million pre-orders while Jingdong Mall processed about 9.5 million pre-orders, of which 4.66 million are for the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 model and 4.82 million are for the bigger 5.5-inch handset.

Video shows how to access hidden settings in Instagram’s Hyperlapse

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Instagram's recently released Hyperlapse app, built for recording time-lapse videos, has received a lot of praise for its UI design and function, but there's no denying that it's a bit short on features—or so we thought. Apparently the app has a hidden menu with several options, including 1080P video capturing and more.

Chinese carriers take in 1 million iPhone 6 pre-orders in 6 hours

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Pre-orders for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus officially began in China today, and it sounds like sales for the two handsets are doing well thus far. Tencent reports that the country's three major wireless carriers recorded more than 1 million pre-orders during first 6 hours of availability.

There's been no word on what sales looked like throughout the rest of the day, and the 1M figure doesn't include orders taken directly by Apple, or its 6,000 authorized resellers. It also doesn't account for the 9+ million iPhone 6 and 6 Plus reservations that were made last week.

Boost Mobile to begin offering iPhone 6 and 6 Plus next week with $100 discount

Cody Lee ∙ October 10, 2014

Boost Mobile will begin selling the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus next week. CNET reports that the two handsets will become available at the carrier starting Friday, October 17, with a $100 discount on full retail pricing offered on all models.

For those unfamiliar with the provider, Boost Mobile is a prepaid division of Sprint that offers no-contract service for a low monthly fee. So users pay full price for their devices, and in return get cellular plans starting at $35 per month.