Tips

Here’s the scenario: it’s a critical moment in the iOS game you’ve been playing for weeks. Just as you approach the end of the final level, the game stops mid-action and a pop-up tells you the battery is at 20 percent. So much for any momentum in the game, at least the iPhone battery status is clear.

This issue can be avoided with the free tweak PowerBanners on a jailbroken iOS device. PowerBanners is a simple solution to the problem of low power app interruptions. Once installed, low power alerts at 20 and 10 percent battery life will display as a banner notification without stopping the current app.

App switcher cards are convenient, but what if they could be accessed directly from the iPhone lock screen? RocketLauncher makes this possible on jailbroken devices, adding app previews and icon access to the lock screen in style.

Once installed, RocketLauncher works using tap an hold gesture on the lock screen. This will bring up the app icons and preview cards, which will launch upon selection. Of course, if a passcode is enabled the passcode lock keypad will appear before the app is launched.

Looking for a way to keep iOS app icons in their place on the home screen? The jailbreak tweak IconLock7 updates this tool for iOS 7, making it easy to prevent unauthorized app deletions or movement of app icons on the iPhone. These actions are verified with a password, supplied to IconLock7 before the tweak allows apps to start wiggling.

Once IconLock7 is installed from Cydia, simply hold down on a home screen app icon to enter a password. This will be required moving forward for any app layout adjustment or app deletion. The password can be changed later from Settings -> IconLock7 -> Change Password. Of course, to access the tweak's settings the current password must be entered first.

You can keep your browser and search history secret by enabling "private" browsing on Mobile Safari. This feature does not keep your browser history safe from third-parties like your internet provider, employer, or websites that track user data, but it does save you time from having to clear your Safari web browser cache every time you visit a page that you want to keep private. Here's how to enable private browsing on Safari:

1. Open the Safari app from your Home screen
2. Tap the double square icon on the bottom left-hand side of your display
3. Tap "Private"

You will know you are in private mode when the search / navigation bar turns black.

Quick access to the dictionary, thesaurus and encyclopedia is now possible directly from the iOS Control Center. Developer ravirajm has updated the original Define widget, which can be installed from Cydia on jailbroken devices. Define for iOS 7 uses CCLoader to add slick, convenient reference access to the Control Center.

Once installed, Define must be moved to the Enabled Sections in CCLoader. This will add a Dictionary shortcut to Control Center, which can be placed anywhere on the panel. When tapped, a dialog box pops up with the enabled references listed under a text box. Enter the word or term and select Dictionary, Wikipedia or Thesaurus.