News

Looking for a one-stop solution to change the colors of the built-in iOS user interface? Accentify makes it possible to select from a list of 15 colors to change the default light blue tint found throughout the iPhone operating system. No respring is required for changes to take effect, only a jailbroken device running iOS 6 or later.

Under Settings -> Accentify there's even an option to create a custom color for the UI using red, green, and blue element sliders. Beware, color selections will change the color of different UI accents across applications, not just stock apps. If something doesn't quite match you can tell Accentify to use the default iOS color for specific apps, by toggling the app under Settings -> Accentify -> User Applications.

Unlocking the iPhone, navigating to Settings and burrowing down into several menus just to switch something off can waste a lot of time. Developer Samball has released the jailbreak tweak LockscreenToggles to circumvent the entire process, making settings toggles accessible directly from the lock screen.

Once installed, LockscreenToggles has no settings to configure, simply swipe left on the lock screen clock to reveal five toggles. To see the rest of the toggles, swipe down. Toggles can be rearranged by dragging and the top 5 in the list are the ones that will appear in the horizontal bar at the top. Tapping a toggle will switch the setting ON or OFF.

Reports first cropped up last summer that pre-paid iPhones were coming to several carriers in the US, starting with Cricket and Boost Mobile. Boost was expected to start sales of the iPhone 4 and 4S models starting in September 2012, however the rumor never came true. Now instead of being the second carrier to offer a pre-paid iPhone, a new report from AppleInsider says Boost may be the fourth in line with sales starting during the third quarter of this year.

One reason why iPhone fans are watching Boost closely is the carrier currently offers an unlimited talk, text and data plan for only $50 per month. If Boost, which utilizes the Sprint network, offers this plan for iPhone owners it would be highly competitive and could save subscribers significant amounts of money over the life of their iPhone.

After almost six years of service, the original iPhone is set to be labeled "obsolete" by Apple retail stores starting on June 11, 2013. So what does this mean for owners of the first iPhone? Devices classified as obsolete are no longer eligible for parts replacement or repairs, even if the owner would like to pay for Apple to provide this service. So is it game over for the original iPhone?

Not entirely. Although in Apple retail stores, Asia-Pacific, Europe and other regions around the globe the original iPhone will be classified as obsolete, in the United States the device will officially be "vintage". Vintage status means the original iPhone can still be serviced by an Authorized Service Provider who is contacted directly.

Ever notice when Mobile Safari gives you suggestions to complete a search query that tapping them initiates the search immediately? Other browsers such as Google Chrome don't have the same behavior, the search query can be completed and reviewed before actually searching. Now thanks to the iOS jailbreak tweak Platinum, Safari can complete search queries, too.

Once installed from the Cydia app store, Platinum has no options or settings to configure. The tweak simply adds circular blue arrow buttons to the right of auto-complete suggestions when typing in a Safari query. To complete the words in the query field with one of the suggestions, tap the blue button. If you prefer to initiate the search immediately then touch the words themselves.

Google has updated the iOS Google Search app to version 3.0. The biggest change adds Google Now capabilities to the app, providing information on the go in customized cards that are automatically generated. Instead of performing multiple searches for specific information throughout the day, Google Now can feed you the information you need at the right time or place.

22 cards are now available on iOS, including traffic, weather, sports scores, appointments, flight schedules, transit schedules and more. Swiping up in the Google Search app is all it takes to bring up current cards to find information. Although Google Now on iOS does not feature push alerts at the current time, these are under development for a future version of Google Search.

Fans of the Angry Birds franchise will be happy to know that Rovio's popular Facebook game is coming to iOS on May 2nd. Angry Birds Friends is the next installment in the Angry Birds series of games available on the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. The Facebook version of the game was launched one year ago and attracts over a million daily users.

It's not clear whether or not the Angry Birds Friends app will require Facebook Connect to play. Since the game is designed for social interaction, players can create bird avatars, gift power ups to friends, and invite friends to play the game. In addition, many other features will be incorporated into the game including in-app purchases to enhance the experience.

A document has surfaced on the French site NWE that could point to a summer iPhone 5S release. The details are found in an internal carrier publication purportedly circulated to sales staff at the Japanese carrier KDDI. Assuming the document is authentic, Apple will announce the iPhone 5S in June followed by a July release, with pre-orders coming on June 20.

The leaked information doesn't stop there, however. Employees are briefed on the differences between the iPhone 5 and iPhone 5S, with several new features highlighted. The 5S will include a 13 megapixel camera, built-in fingerprint authentication and iOS 7. These items have all been rumored by analysts and from leaks in the component supply chain.

Donald Trump thinks Apple is making a big mistake by not releasing a larger iPhone. The Celebrity Apprentice host publicly warned Tim Cook, that Apple would lose a lot of money if the company does not release a new device that is "slightly larger than the Samsung screen". Trump did not specify what Samsung device he is talking about, but the recently launched Galaxy S4 features a 5-inch Full HD display.

Many analysts and Asian suppliers agree with Trump, and think Apple is missing out on a huge chunk of change by not releasing a larger device. However, Tim Cook has said Apple would never compromise screen quality for the sake of releasing a phablet-sized device.

"We always strive to create the very best display," said Cook in a recent conference call with analysts. "Some customers value large screen size. Others value other factors such as resolution, color quality, white balance, reflectivity, power consumption, compatibility of apps, portability."

"Our competitors have made some significant tradeoffs in many of these areas to ship a larger display. We would not ship a larger display iPhone while these tradeoffs exist."

Swype virtual keyboard technology not only speeds up the process of typing on a mobile device, it holds the Guinness World Record for fastest time to type a text message. Although the software is now available on Google Play for Android devices, the feature never made it into an official iOS release.

Swype is owned by Nuance, whose voice recognition technology has been incorporated into the Siri personal assistant. Now word has it that Apple has communicated with Swype, according to a thread on Reddit from Nuance Vice President of Swype Aaron Sheedy. The revelation came in the following exchange: