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Leaked schematics reveal iPhone 5S and cheaper iPhone design?

Jason — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:49:40 +0000

A case maker has created design schematics and 3D renders of iPhone 5S and the cheaper iPhone, showing the expected dimensions for the two devices. The schematics are based on the blueprints the company has received from its sources in Apple’s supply chain. The blueprints, unsurprisingly, show the iPhone 5S having the same shape and size as the iPhone 5, but what’s revealing are the schematics for the “iPhone Lite,” a name given to the cheaper iPhone by the case maker. The iPhone Lite is expected to be slightly wider and taller than the iPhone 5S. It is shown to have a thickness of 8.5mm, which is 0.8mm more than the iPhone 5’s thickness of 7.7mm. Unlike recent models, the cheaper iPhone would reportedly have rounded edges, as seen on the iPod touch. If you have a look at the designs closely, you’ll notice that the volume buttons on the “iPhone Lite” are longer, pill-shaped, and not circular. A few months ago, we had posted an image of the budget iPhone’s alleged rear shell, which shares the same features shown in the designs here. The LED flash on the iPhone 5S is pill-shaped, as opposed to circular, possibly hinting at a dual LED flash. Case makers like to be prepared for new Apple hardware, so that they can have their accessories available for the new devices on launch day. It’s however important to note that case makers have been wrong on previous occasions about future iOS devices. Rumors suggest that both these devices would be launched in the September-October timeframe. Via: Apple Insider Continue reading →

Analyst backtracks on retina iPad mini again, now predicts early 2014 launch

Jason — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:15:58 +0000

Display Search analyst Richard Shim is back tracking on his earlier claim of the retina iPad mini going into production by June or July this year. The earlier claim he made was, again, a reversal of what he stated a day before that. Here’s an excerpt from Shim’s blog post: Apple is expected to refresh its iPad mini in the second half of the year. The new iPad mini will continue to use a 7.9-inch display with a 1024×768 resolution, but it will use the iOS 7 operating system and an A6 processor, in a slimmer design than the current generation. Another iPad mini is also planned for production but not until early 2014. That device is expected to feature a QXGA (2048×1536) resolution display and the iOS 7 operating system. Shim adds that the full-size iPad will be released in 3Q with an A7 processor that runs iOS 7. Other rumours have noted that the full-size iPad will get a much needed design overhaul, sporting slimmer bezels and having less bulk. An earlier report claimed that the iPad mini might not be updated with the iPad 5 due to production delays and concerns over the mini eating into the full-size iPad’s sales. Via: MacRumors Continue reading →

Auto-generated passwords for iPhone’s Wi-Fi Hotspot can be cracked in 50 seconds

Jason — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:59:58 +0000

iPhone’s “Personal Hotspot” lets you share your cellular data connection over Wi-Fi by creating a network that other devices can join. If you want to connect to the Wi-Fi Hotspot, then you may have noticed that you need to enter a password that is auto-generated by iOS. A group of researchers have noticed that these auto-generated passwords are too weak, and can be cracked in less than a minute. Apple uses a combination of standard dictionary words and a sequence of random numbers to generate these passwords, which ensures that all hotspots won’t have the same password: “This list consists of around 52,500 entries, and was originated from an open-source Scrabble crossword game. Using this unofﬁcial Scrabble word list within ofﬂine dictionary attacks, we already had a 100 percent success rate of cracking any arbitrary iOS hotspot default password.” It took the researchers nearly 50 minutes to try all possible combinations of words and numbers to find the correct password, but with a few more bits of information, they drastically cut down this time to 50 seconds. What they found was that Apple uses just 1,842 words out of the 52,500 entries, which means that the number of possibilities came down by a huge number, thus reducing the number of tries needed. Now an average person won’t be able to crack your hotspot password within a minute since it requires some high end hardware — a GPU cluster consisting of four AMD Radeon HD 7970s — to iterate over all the possibilities rapidly. However, until Apple amends its password generating algorithms, it’s better if you set a secure password on your own. Direct link (PDF) to research paper via ZDNet Continue reading →

How to set up and use Find My iPhone

David Gilson — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:42:38 +0000

Losing one’s phone is a common nightmare scenario, and no matter how careful you are, something can always go wrong. That’s why it’s advantageous to have something in place to get your phone back if the worst happens. Fortunately, Apple provides the Find My Phone feature to do just that. Here’s our guide. I am paranoid about keeping track of my devices, and with writing about tech, I carry around a lot of devices. Only just week, I visited a country pub, left to buy some food, and it wasn’t until I was waiting for my bus home that I realised my iPhone wasn’t with me. Fortunately, I was given my phone back after running back into the pub, some honest patrons had handed it into an honest land lord. Had things not worked out that way, I’d have needed to use iCloud to find where my phone had gotten to. Failing to prepare is preparing to fail The first thing to do is go into the Settings app, then into your iCloud settings and simply flip the switch for Find My Phone. This will activate your iPhone’s or iPad’s system to report its location and accept remote commands from your iCloud account. The next step is to install the Find My iPhone app (direct iTunes link) on your other iOS devices so that you can track it down with your other iOS devices. The Find My iPhone app shows all of your registered devices, and their location on a map. The interface is similar to the iCloud desktop client that you can run from your browser. So as we move forward, the instructions will apply to both the Find My iPhone app and the iCloud.com website. To track and command your iPhone from a desktop or laptop, you need to have the iCloud suite installed. It’s available on OS X and on Windows. In the latter case, the iCloud control panel should have been added along with a recent iTunes update. Assuming that you turned on the Find My iPhone feature (hint: If you didn’t, do it now) and that the iPhone has maintained a connection to the Internet, you should be able to see its position on a map. If you cannot locate the phone at this point, there’s little you can do but wait until it reconnects to the Internet. Ping my iPhone! Before we continue, you may have even misplaced your iPhone in the same building, or even in your own home! If that’s the case, then Find my iPhone can still help by means of the “Play Sound” option. This will cause your iPhone to play a high-pitched ringtone. You’re probably thinking you could simply call your phone without resorting to iCloud. However, what if you, or practical joker, had put the phone on silent? Fortunately, the iCloud Play Sound command overrides the silent setting on your iPhone, so it’s worth going through this measure. You’ll also get an email from Apple confirming that the sound was played too. This is useful if you are in a different area to where the phone is, and you want to make the phone grab someone’s attention to pick it up. Having the email confirmation lets you know the sound worked. Lock down One of the great risks of losing your phone is not so much losing the device itself but letting the information stored on it fall into the wrong hands. Your first step at defending against this is to lock your device. iCloud (or the Find My iPhone app) will ask you to input a four digit code that will be needed to unlock your device. Following that it will ask you to supply a phone number on which you can be contacted. The iPhone will display its lock screen with a pop-up box displaying a message asking whoever is reading to call the number you provided. Anyone attempting to use the phone will be challenged for the code you sent via the Find My iPhone service. The nuclear option If all else fails and there’s no hope of retrieving your phone, all that’s left is to make sure nobody accesses your personal data. This is done via the “Erase iPhone” option. When you click this, a confirmation screen will appear whether you seriously want to do this. Note that once the phone is erased, you will no longer be able to send any commands to it because your iCloud account will be removed along with all of the other data on the phone. This really is the final option. If you are at the point where you have to write off the phone, you should also contact your network provider and have them cancel the SIM card in the iPhone too. You will not be getting that back either, and someone could use it in another phone. Thankfully, iOS 7 comes with new security features such as Activation Lock, which should make it even more fool proof. Continue reading →

Get an awesome audio editing experience with DSP-Quattro 4 [Deals Hub]

StackSocial — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:07:19 +0000

Whether you’re putting together a podcast, creating new music, or simply want to brush up on your audio skills in other areas, this iPhone Hacks Deals offer is definitely going to strike the right chord with you. DSP-Quattro is the do-it-all audio editing program for Mac. Simple yet powerful, this program is great for novices and professional musicians alike. This most recent version – DSP-Quattro Version 4 – is the best yet. It can handle everything from standard audio editing and recording to more advanced audio mastering. And iPhone Hacks Deals has it for just $39.99 – but only for a limited time. Here are a few of the key features of DSP-Quattro’: Audio mastering and burning capabilities Built-in digital effects (chorus, delay, reverb, filters, 4 and 7 band equalizers, and many more) Customizable audio editing key commands High-quality suite of audio editing tools Most audio software is either too difficult to use or too weak to enhance the music, but DSP-Quattro is easy to master and yet still packs a powerful punch. It’s the perfect combination of power and ease rolled up in an audio editor. In addition to all the editing capabilities, DSP-Quattro helps musicians create. It comes packaged with several processors so you can mix and shape your audio until it’s perfect. So get your hands on this excellent piece of software for only $39.99 while you can from iPhone Hacks Deals – which won’t be for long! Subscribe to our mailing list Continue reading →

Feedly launches Cloud sync service and new standalone web version ahead of Google Reader shutdown

iPhoneHacks — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:06:36 +0000

With just two weeks to go for the shutdown of Google Reader, Feedly has just rolled out its Cloud Sync Service, which will help in seamlessly replacing Google Reader. It is a major milestone for the service, which is one of the best alternative to Google Reader currently. Feedly has also released a standalone web version, which will work on all major browsers, without the need to install a browser plugin. If you’re an existing user then you have to make sure you’ve the latest version of Feedly installed, and they will migrate your Google Reader subscriptions to feedly cloud over the next few days. If you are new to feedly, just head to http://feedly.com and select “Import Your Google Reader”, for a simple one-click migration from Google Reader to feedly cloud. Feedly has also disclosed that it is currently processing 25 million feeds and crunching through billions of articles published everyday. Feedly has also announced the launch of the first feedly cloud applications, which include IFTTT, Sprout Social, NextGen Reader, Press, and Newsify. Do you still use Google Reader? Which service do you plan to switch to when it shuts down? Via Feedly Continue reading →

Apple TV Software Update 5.3 brings HBO GO, WatchESPN and more

iPhoneHacks — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:00:07 +0000

Apple has just released a major software update for the 2nd and 3rd generation Apple TV. Apple TV Software Update 5.3 brings HBO GO and WatchESPN to Apple TV. The update also brings Sky News’ 24/7 news feed and on-demand news library, Crunchyroll, the leading global video service for Japanese Anime and Asian media and Qello, a leading on-demand streaming service for HD concerts and music documentaries. Apple has also issued a press release to announce the availability of HBO GO and WatchESPN on Apple TV. “HBO GO and WatchESPN are some of the most popular iOS apps and are sure to be huge hits on Apple TV,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “We continue to offer Apple TV users great new programming options, combined with access to all of the incredible content they can purchase from the iTunes Store.” HBO Go on Apple TV requires a subscription to HBO through participating television providers. WatchESPN on Apple TV is available to users who receive ESPN’s networks as part of their video subscription from affiliated providers. Sky News on Apple TV is available to users in the US, UK and Ireland. You need a subscription for Crunchyroll and Qello, which you can sign up for directly on Apple TV. Crunchyroll offers a 7-day free trial, after which you have to pay $6.99 per month. Qello also offers a 7-day free trial, after which you have to pay $4.99 per month. The Apple TV update is available to all 2nd and 3rd gen Apple TV devices right away. Apple has also disclosed that iTunes viewers are now purchasing over 800,000 TV episodes and 350,000 movies per day, and they have downloaded more than one billion TV episodes and 380 million movies from iTunes to date. Continue reading →

Check out this interactive iOS 7 demo

iPhoneHacks — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 12:47:53 +0000

Few days before Apple unveiled iOS 7, folks at Recombu, the product comparison site created an interactive demo of iPhone 5S and iOS 7 based on the rumors and speculations. Now that Apple has unveiled iOS 7, they have updated the interactive demo with some of the iOS 7 features to give you a feel of Apple’s next generation mobile operating system for the iPhone. Here are some of the things you can do with the interactive simulator: Turn on or turn off the iPhone by clicking on the Power button. Drag the slide to unlock slider button to unlock the iPhone. Click on the status bar to access the Notification Center with the Google Now-like Today feature. Access iOS 7′s all-new Control Center by clicking and dragging up at the bottom of the screen. Double click on the Home button to access the redesigned app switcher. Access the spotlight feature on the Home screen by clicking and dragging down just below the status bar. Launch the redesigned Messages, Camera, Calendar, Reminders, App Store, iTunes Store, Notes, Phone, Music, Safari and Mail apps. You can navigate back to the Home screen by clicking on the Home button. So head over to Recombu’s website to check out the interactive iOS 7 demo and let us know what you think. You can install these Winterboard themes to give your jailbroken iPhone an iOS 7 makeover. Continue reading →

Apple reintroduces 16GB iPhone 4 in India [Report]

iPhoneHacks — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:32:20 +0000

According to NDTV, an Indian news publication, Apple has reintroduced the 16GB iPhone 4 in the country. NDTV claims that they’ve received a confirmation from multiple sources. However, Apple doesn’t seem to have officially announced it. Its website in India also hasn’t been updated to reflect the new storage option. NDTV reports that 16GB iPhone 4 is available for Rs. 31,800 (approx. $540). It is already available on online retailers like Ezyby. The 8GB iPhone 4 has been available for Rs. 26,500 (approx. $450). Black and White 16Gb iPhone 4 listed on Ezyby’s website If the report is accurate then it is an interesting move by Apple as it would be the first time the company has offered a storage option for its older generation iPhone. iPhone 4 was first launched in 2010 with 16GB and 32GB storage options. However, Apple discontinued the 16GB and 32GB iPhone 4 when it launched the iPhone 4S in 2011 and launched the 8GB iPhone 4. It has continued to offer the 8GB iPhone 4 after the launch of iPhone 5 last year and is the entry level model. The 16GB iPhone 4S is available for Rs. 33,500 (approx. $570) and the iPhone 5 starts at Rs. 45,500 (approx. $765). Apple has seen a significant jump in iPhone sales in India in the last few quarters thanks to cash back, trade-in offers and agressive marketing. It would have been logical if Apple had offered the 16GB iPhone 4 below the Rs. 30,000 price tag, but offering the 3-year old iPhone for just Rs. 1700 (approx. $30) below the iPhone 4S seems like a strange move in our opinion. Let us know what you think in the comments. Via: NDTV Continue reading →

Facebook 6.2 allows you to add icons to status updates

iPhoneHacks — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:05:49 +0000

Facebook has released a major update for its iOS app, which brings the status icons to the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. Facebook had introduced status icons in the web version in April. Facebook status icons are like emoticons, which show what you’re feeling, watching, reading, drinking, listening to, eating, or playing. Here’s what’s new in Facebook 6.2: • Add icons to status updates to show what you’re feeling, reading, watching and more (English only) • Easily change who can see something you’ve shared • Start a new conversation with photos you receive in messages • Bug fixes To access the status icons, tap on the smiley button next to the camera button while composing the status update. You can download the update via the App Store app or download the app for free using this direct iTunes link. Let us know what you think of the new version in the comments below. Continue reading →