UI

Iris unlocks powerful new features in Apple’s Messages app

Anthony Bouchard ∙ June 10, 2020

Apple meticulously designed its Messages app to be one of the most straightforward standard text messaging platforms on any modern handset, and the company’s built-in iMessage service only augments your messaging capabilities, as long as your recipient is an iOS or macOS user too.

But despite the bevy of creature comforts that Apple implemented into Messages to make iMessage as great as it is today, there’s no question that a number of high-demand features are still missing, and iOS developer JacobCXDev has done a wonderful job of bringing those to the Messages app without Apple’s seal of approval in the form of a newly released jailbreak tweak called Iris.

Haptify adds more forms of haptic feedback to iOS

Anthony Bouchard ∙ June 10, 2020

Haptic feedback is something that many smartphone owners like to have, but for whatever reason, is only sparingly used by the native operating system for niche and specific actions. Personally, I enjoy haptic feedback in moderation, and I think that Apple has been rather skimpy on its implantation out of the box.

If you’re anything like me and wish haptic feedback occurred more frequently while performing other common actions on your iPhone, then you might come to appreciate a newly released jailbreak tweak called Haptify by iOS developer Caleb G(kWaB), as it incorporates haptic feedback into several more of iOS’ native interfaces and performable actions.

Kai adds persistent battery indicators to the Lock screen for connected devices

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated November 8, 2021

Just last week, we showed you a free jailbreak tweak dubbed WatchBuddy that would persistently display your Apple Watch’s battery level on your iPhone’s Lock screen. Albeit simple and effective, some users demanded more, and so a new release called Kai by iOS developer Burrit0z was conceived.

As shown in the screenshot examples above, Kai expands upon the WatchBuddy concept by persistently displaying your connected devices’ battery levels on the Lock screen. You’ll also notice that the indicators include, but aren’t limited to the iPhone itself, connected Apple Watches, and connected AirPods where applicable. Furthermore, the indicators are customizable whether you prefer smaller subtle solutions, or bigger and bolder ones.

App Firewall open beta lets jailbreakers seize control of their apps’ connections

Anthony Bouchard ∙ June 7, 2020

Veteran jailbreakers may remember a time in the distant past when you could install literal software firewalls in the form of jailbreak tweaks. Fast-forward to today when these tweaks a lot less common, and innumerable privacy concerns relating to camera snooping, location tracking, microphone eavesdropping, and the likes have sparked new interest in blocking outbound data communications on our handsets.

If you’re in the market for an increased say in the data that leaks out of your handset to the world wide web, then you’ll probably want to know about a newly released and free jailbreak tweak called App Firewall (iOS 10-13) by iOS developer Brayden Traas, as it can purportedly help you take control of your apps’ network access.

Add a splash of color to the Home Screen’s contextual menus with Color3DIcons

Anthony Bouchard ∙ June 6, 2020

Whether you’re new to or experienced with jailbreaking, one thing that remains true about most users of pwned iPhones is that they love personalizing the native user interface in ways that makes it stand out from a crowd of vanilla handset users.

If you’re moderate when it comes to personalization and you like adding custom colors to existing interfaces as opposed to replacing them with something different outright, then you just might appreciate a newly released and free jailbreak tweak called Color3DIcons by iOS developer CydiaGeek.

Take notification suppression a step further than Do Not Disturb with NotiBlock

Anthony Bouchard ∙ June 6, 2020

I’ll be the first to admit that I think push notifications are both a gift and a curse. It can be convenient to have real-time notifications when someone’s trying to get in touch with you, but it can also be annoying having a device that integrates your personal entertainment with seemingly endless streams of notifications that hijack your focus away from what matters most to you.

If you can relate, then we think you’re going to love a newly released and free jailbreak tweak called NotiBlock by iOS developer ShemeshApps.

AlwaysOnHeadphones can improve the call-taking experience on Apple Watch

Anthony Bouchard ∙ June 6, 2020

Having an Apple Watch is convenient for a bevy of reasons, but one of my favorites is having instantaneous access to messages and phone calls from the comfort of my wrist, even when my iPhone isn’t within arm’s reach.

As wonderful as it is, it’s not without its quirks. Perhaps one of the most annoying processes has to do with how you would take Apple Watch-centric phone calls when you have a Bluetooth headset or headphones connected to your iPhone, and a newly released jailbreak tweak called AnswerOnHeadphones by iOS developer CardboardFace aims to fix this once and for all.

Bubble Apps is a highly configurable app launcher for jailbroken iPhones

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated April 13, 2022

App launchers are popular among jailbreakers, mostly because they can make accessing your favorite apps from anywhere easy when you’re just out of reach of your Home screen. But what makes an app launcher perfect? The answer varies from one person to the next based on personal needs, which is one reason why we enjoy seeing different developers’ takes on the idea.

Enter Bubble Apps, the latest of such jailbreak tweaks created by iOS developer 0xkuj that provides users with a highly configurable app launcher interface that can be accessed from virtually any interface in iOS.

Ares is the Siri interface you’ve always wanted on iPhone

Anthony Bouchard ∙ June 3, 2020

Siri can be a useful way of accessing information both on-device and via the internet, but one thing that Apple could have made better is the virtual assistant’s user interface, which at the time of this writing, takes up the entire real estate of your iPhone’s display.

A newly released jailbreak tweak dubbed Ares by iOS developer Phoenix Dev aims to make the Siri interface substantially more compact by compressing its contents into a floating view tantamount to the size of the AirPods pairing interface.

Evil Scheme unlocks default app management on jailbroken devices

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated August 30, 2023

If there’s one thing most iPhone and iPad owners can relate to, it’s the dissatisfying inability to set default applications outside of Apple’s own. Sure, you can delete some of Apple’s native apps, but what good is that if iOS doesn’t link to third-party apps afterward?

Enter Evil Scheme, a newly released and free jailbreak tweak by iOS developer Lorenzo that aims to be your convenient one-stop shop for configuring default apps of your choosing on your pwned iPhone or iPad.

ExactTimeMail upgrades the timestamps in iOS’ Mail app

Anthony Bouchard ∙ June 2, 2020

Just yesterday, we showed you a well-received jailbreak tweak named NotesCrationDate13 by iOS developer gilshahar7 that displayed more detailed timestamps in iOS’ stock Notes app, but wouldn’t it be nice if we could have improved timestamps elsewhere throughout Apple’s mobile operating system?

Gilshahar7 appears to share this popular opinion, as a newly released jailbreak tweak called ExactTimeMail seems to do this exact thing in the native Mail app. ExactTimeMail is part of a family of tweaks intended to make timestamps more intuitive in iOS, and we’d say it succeeds on every level, with other members of that family being ExactTime (for notification banners) and ExactTimeMessages (for the Messages app).

WatchBuddy is a persistent Apple Watch battery widget for your iPhone’s Lock screen

Anthony Bouchard ∙ June 2, 2020

Jailbreakers that also don an Apple Watch may take an interest in a newly released and free jailbreak tweak dubbed WatchBuddy by iOS developer paddycodes, as it can help users keep better track of their wearable’s battery level throughout the day.

As depicted in the screenshot example above, WatchBuddy puts a persistent Apple Watch battery widget on your iPhone’s Lock screen in a way that’s always visible, ensuring that you never neglect your Apple Watch’s battery again.