Jailbreaking

The word throwback takes on new meaning when color is replaced with black and white. iOS 8 users can switch to grayscale using built-in settings. Those with jailbroken iOS 7 devices can install the tweak Monochrome to remove color from iOS home screen icons. There are no options to configure.

Once installed, Monochrome overrides any WinterBoard icon colors that are configured. The SpringBoard becomes grayscale immediately once the package is installed and the iOS device resprings.

A major update to CallBar brings a complete redesign to the long-running jailbreak tweak. CallBar for iOS 7 makes multitasking while managing phone calls a breeze. The tweak is also fully compatible with FaceTime and FaceTime Audio calling.

When first installed, CallBar will be invoked by a long press on the status bar. Any Activator gesture can later be assigned to CallBar, to suit user preferences. When CallBar appears at the top of the display, the Notification Center is easily accessible by dragging down like normal.

The jailbreak tweak CallShortcut brings quick access to contacts directly to the home screen. With just one tap on a home screen icon iOS will start dialing the associated contact. Calling icons will be generated using the photos set in Contacts.

Setting up home screen shortcuts for contacts is straightforward. Once installed, CallShortcut adds a new option to the Contacts app. While viewing any contact, scroll to the bottom of the page and tap Add to Home Screen, right under Add to Favorites.

UPDATE: Saurik has added the iOS 8 version of Cydia as a downloadable .deb file to his website. You can download the new version of Cydia here or wait until the Pangu Team bundles it with a new version of their iOS 8 jailbreak.

Team Pangu, the Chinese team of hackers behind the iOS 7.1 jailbreak, has released a limited jailbreak for iOS 8.x devices to their website. The jailbreak is "limited" because it does not install Cydia to your device, making the jailbreak basically pointless for casual users. The main reason the new jailbreak doesn't come with Cydia is that the application hasn't been updated for iOS 8. However, Cydia creator Saurik is working on an update and you can follow his progress via Reddit.

According to the Pangu website the new jailbreak supports all devices running iOS 8 – iOS 8.1. This includes the fifth-generation iPod touch, iPhone 4s and later, iPad mini 1 - 3, and iPad 2 and later. While this is exciting news for the jailbreaking community, casual users should treat this as a developer version only. Not only is a jailbreak without Cydia pointless to casual users, this version is also only compatible with Windows computers and there is currently no English translation available.

There are many different ways to change the appearance of the stock Messages app on a jailbroken iOS device. The tweak Messages Customizer Pro adds a wide variety of options in one place to modify the look of message threads.

Besides pre-set themes to choose from, new themes can be created and completely customized using Messages Customizer Pro. Different themes can even be assigned to individual contacts or conversation threads. Bubbles for iMessage or SMS messages can also be independently customized.