Review

YTMiniBarX rounds the corners of the mini bar in the official YouTube app

The official YouTube app is a must-have for many iPhone owners, whether they’re jailbroken or not. But if you do happen to be jailbroken, then you just might enjoy the freedom of customizing the YouTube app experience beyond what’s possible on a stock device.

A new free jailbreak tweak dubbed YTMiniBarX by iOS developer Wh0ba serves as a great example of this. As depicted in the screenshot examples above, this tweak applies a rounded corner mask to the YouTube mini bar to make it more aesthetically enjoyable.

Blurbe puts a darker spin on some of iOS’ blurred interfaces

Apple accentuates several interfaces throughout iOS with a blurred background to help bring the overlaying interface into focus; key examples include Control Center, Folders, and Spotlight search, just to name a few.

Albeit aesthetically attractive, Apple could bring these blur effects into the modern age with the help of a darker color scheme. Fortunately, that’s something that a new free jailbreak tweak dubbed Blurbe by iOS developer dpkg_ brings to the table.

NCFancy replaces the ‘No Notifications’ text in iOS 10’s Notification Center with storage info

While most of the jailbreak community migrated to iOS 11 several months ago, those still rocking the iOS 10 jailbreak will be excited to learn of a new free jailbreak tweak in town called NCFancy by iOS developer Wh0ba.

NCFancy was explicitly designed for iOS 10 users, and as depicted in the screenshot example above, it replaces Notification Center’s useless ‘No Notifications’ text with something you might appreciate more – a pair of widgets that display your handset’s storage capacity usage.

Good Morning: A tweak that launches your favorite app before you wake up every morning

Many people, including myself, reach for their iPhone after waking up every morning to check their missed notifications and catch up on their favorite app(s). But how would you like it if your iPhone knew what you wanted to do every morning and prepared that information before you ever woke up?

A new jailbreak tweak dubbed Good Morning by iOS developer Justin Proulx is a brilliant first step in this direction.

A look at the beautiful Reclaimed Wood Stand Up Desk from UPLIFT DESK

The tough part about writing a review for a standing desk is feeling the need to first convince you that you need a standing desk. Standing is good for your health, sitting is the new smoking, blah-blah-blah-blah. But for the purpose of this hands-on look, let’s pretend you’ve already decided that you’re interested in a standing desk, that way I can get straight to telling you why this one from UPLIFT DESK is worth checking out.

Launchtron is a side-oriented quick app launcher for jailbroken devices

iOS is an outstanding mobile operating system, but it often leaves a lot to be desired in the multitasking department, especially on the iPhone. Luckily, the jailbreak community usually has some sort of remedy for problems of this nature.

A new free jailbreak tweak called Launchtron by iOS developer Nepeta is just one of such remedies; it’s fundamentally a quick-access app launcher that you can summon from just about anywhere with a swipe. Furthermore, it can help you access apps more quickly than you could with iOS’ native App Switcher.

MessageBubbles brings a new look and feel to your messaging notifications

If you own an iPhone, then a significant percentage of your usage likely comprises of text messaging. Notifications for incoming messages typically stack up on the Lock screen until you acknowledge them, but if you fancy something that looks nicer, then you might appreciate a new jailbreak tweak called MessageBubbles by iOS developer Kurrt.

As the name implies, MessageBubbles replaces the Lock screen’s standard notification system with a unique message bubble-centric animation. In the screenshot example above, you’ll see how the background stays black as message bubbles from various apps roll into view. You’ll also notice how the message bubbles are color-matched to the app they originate from. This particular combination looks great on OLED displays, but also works on LCD displays.

Jailbreak tweaks of the week: FullMusic11, Harpy, Serene, and more

Jailbreak Tweaks to check out

Anyone with a jailbroken device will want to customize it outside of Apple’s stock parameters, and that means installing jailbreak tweaks to modify its stock behavior.

In this roundup, we’ll talk about all the jailbreak tweaks released from Monday, January 7th to Sunday, January 13th. As usual, we’ll discuss our favorite releases first and then outline the rest afterward.

Harpy: A new jailbreak app that lets you rule your local Wi-Fi network with an iron fist

After refreshing my Cydia sources this week, I happened upon a peculiar package dubbed Harpy by iOS developer midnightchips. But more importantly, I was pleasantly surprised after tapping on the package to learn more about it.

As it would seem, Harpy is a lightweight networking app that can help you control the users on your local Wi-Fi network or Personal Hotspot. Right out of the box, Harpy provides users with the following features:

Apply a custom color palette to iOS’ official Twitch app with Serene

Twitch is one of the most popular ways for people to share their gaming experiences with the rest of the world. On the other hand, the mobile app doesn’t provide any options to customize the user interface out of the box; love it or hate it, you’re stuck with how it looks.

Fortunately, those with jailbroken devices can bend the rules a little bit with a new free jailbreak tweak called Serene by iOS developer Revulate. This tweak gives Twitch users access to colorization options that can help you achieve the look and feel you aspire for.

FullMusic11 makes the Music app’s Now Playing interface look nicer on iOS 11

If you use Apple’s Music app to enjoy music on your iOS handset, then you’re likely familiar with how the app’s Now Playing interface doesn’t fill the entire display. Instead, it shows what some might describe as a Now Playing ‘card’ over the top of another interface.

If you fancy more of a full-screen experience while listening to music, then you might take a liking to a new jailbreak tweak called FullMusic11 by iOS developer Soh Satoh. Just as the name implies, this tweak does away with the so-called ‘card overlay’ effect and gives the Music app’s Now Playing interface a full-screen makeover to make it more consistent with other apps in iOS.