Microsoft says Windows 10 will be a free upgrade, with a caveat

Realizing Windows has long been losing its momentum ever since that Vista train wreck in 2005, the Redmond-based software giant surprised attendees of its press event this morning by announcing that Windows 10 will be a free upgrade from Windows 8.1, Windows Phone 8.1 and Windows 7.
But how on Earth is Microsoft going to make money from the forthcoming operating system? Well, in a typical Microsoft fashion Windows 10 upgrades will be free for just one year.
Kicking off the press event at Microsoft headquarters, Terry Myerson, executive vice president of the Operating Systems group, said that “for the first year after Windows 10 is available, we will be making available a free upgrade to Windows 10 to all devices running windows 8.1.”
In addition, Microsoft will keep users’ Windows 10 devices consistently updated throughout the “supported lifetime for the device.” The new operating system will be available across many different form factors, including phones and gaming devices.
Back by popular demand, the familiar blue taskbar sits in the right left corner of the Windows 10 desktop. The Start menu is more polished, better animated and available in the full screen mode as well.

A new Action Center gives you quick access to commonly used options like turning off Wi-Fi and it doubles as a Notification Center with actionable alerts.
Windows 10 automatically transforms from desktop to tablet mode after you remove a mouse and keyboard. The Start button and taskbar remain on the screen in this mode, even on tablets.
“It works like a tablet while you’re out and about, and then it works exactly like a PC when you bring it back and dock it,” said the firm.
Microsoft’s virtual assistant, Cortana, is part of Windows 10 (the logo is in the search bar at the bottom on the taskbar), as are many other new features that will be coming over the new few months.

Offering users to upgrade to Windows 10 is a smart move that could boost the software’s adoption among the faithful.
Also, developers will be able to “target every single Windows device” when they build apps because no longer will Windows customers be spread across many versions.
Eagle-eyed readers could point out that Apple famously ended the era of paid operating systems with the release of Mac OS X 10.9 Mavericks.
During the October 22, 2013 press event, Apple promised to offer free upgrades for life on its operating system and business software going forward.
“The days of paid operating system updates are gone for good,” boasted the company that October.
Some questions regarding Windows 10 are still left unanswered. It’s unclear, for example, how free upgrades will work or if they’re going to be subject to any hardware requirements.
You can watch a live-stream of Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and other executives delivering the briefing over at the Microsoft website.
Source: The Verge Liveblog

Microsoft unveils 84-inch touch display and augmented reality headset

In addition to officially unveiling Windows 10 at its, Microsoft made a number of other interesting announcements at its Redmond, Washington event this morning. Windows 10 will be a free upgrade for the first year, will play a lot nicer with Xbox One, and has a new web browser on the way.
But two of the most interesting announcements involved products that most people had no idea Microsoft was working on: the Surface Hub and the HoloLens. The former is an 84-inch 4K touchscreen display, and the latter is a futuristic visor that overlays holographic imagery onto your view.

Surface Hub

The Hub is a large 4K touchscreen display, that will be available in both 55-inch and 84-inch flavors, and is aimed strictly at the enterprise market. It runs a customized version of Windows 10, and is outfitted with a slew of cameras, microphones and “advanced sensors,” which will allow users to interact with the device in various ways.

The display offers multi-touch and multi-pen support, and quick access to Skype video conferencing, OneNote whiteboard for drawing and annotation, and several other Hub-specific applications. It can also easily connect to nearby Windows 10 devices, so users can participate in the collaboration from their laptops, tablets and mobile phones.
Microsoft hasn’t mentioned the Surface Hub’s price yet (it’s likely to be very expensive) or when it’ll be available, but there is a growing consensus that the Redmond firm has beaten Apple and others to the punch. Apple has for years been rumored to be working on a 50″+ television set that plays nicely with iOS devices, but such a product has yet to materialize.

HoloLens

As crazy as an 84-inch touchscreen display is, the HoloLens is even more out there. Developed in secret with folks from NASA, the device features see-through lenses that project interactive holographic images into the view of the user. There are no wires or external connections, and there is no need to connect a PC or phone. The headset itself contains a high-end CPU, GPU, a dedicated holographic processor, and a variety of sensors.

The HoloLens runs a version of Windows 10 called Windows Holographic. Microsoft says that all universal Windows 10 apps can work as holograms, but obviously experiences from app to app will differ. During the presentation today, it was shown running everything from virtual maps and todo list apps, to a holographic 3D version of Minecraft. Microsoft thinks it’s “the most advanced holographic computer the world has ever seen.”
Again, there’s no word yet on when the HoloLens will launch or how much it will cost, but Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says it will be available in the Windows 10 timeframe (so possibly this year), and priced so that both enterprise and consumers can use it.

Twitter launches ‘While you were away’ to the Home timeline

Twitter is no stranger to launching new features within is iOS app first, before bringing it to other apps, and that’s no different with a new feature it’s unveiling today.
On Wednesday, January 21, Twitter unveiled via a public blog post a new addition to the Home timeline, called “While you were away.” As one can imagine from the title of the new feature, Twitter will now find some of the more popular or newsworthy tweets that normally would have been found in your timeline had you been sifting through it, and bring them to your attention when you return to the app at a later point.
Depending on how often you’re on Twitter going through your timeline, the new feature will either show up quite a bit, or not nearly as often:

“A lot can happen while you’re on the go. To fill in some of those gaps, we will surface a few of the best Tweets you probably wouldn’t have seen otherwise, determined by engagement and other factors. If you check in on Twitter now and then for a quick snapshot of what’s happening, you’ll see this recap more often; if you spend a lot of time on Twitter already, you’ll see it less.“

Twitter says it’s all about keeping up, or catching up, with the information out there and making sure that you’ve got it all when you need it, or want it. This new addition to the Home timeline is meant to make sure that the real-time nature of Twitter isn’t broken, while making sure that the information is still provided to users.
The update is now rolling out to the iOS app. It’s coming to other platforms, including the web client, soon.
[via Twitter]

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The best way to setup Gmail on your iPhone or iPad

If you use Gmail or Google Apps for email, then there are few ways to access your email account on your iPhone or iPad. Even if you’ve already setup your Gmail account on your iPhone or iPad, I strongly recommend to read this article, as you may be doing it wrong.
So what is the best way to use Gmail or Google Apps on your iPhone or iPad. Before I answer that question, let me first go through the various options. Read the entire post before you start configuring Gmail on your device.

How to setup Gmail using the Google option in the Mail app (FETCH)

• Launch the Settings app

• Scroll down and tap on Mail, Contacts, Calendar

• Tap Add Account

• Then tap Google from the list of options.

• Enter the Name, Email, password and a description for your Gmail or Google Apps email address, and tap Next to continue.

Note: If you’ve enabled two-step verification for your Gmail account then you need to use an application-specific password instead of the regular password in the password field. You can generate the application-specific password by going to the Accounts section of your account, and clicking on App Passwords.

• After your account has been successfully verified, you will get an option to select the Google services you want to sync. Tap on Save when you’re done.

Now launch the Mail app, which will download the mails from your Gmail account.
This is one of the most commonly used options, but it is not the best way to use Gmail on your iPhone or iPad, if you want to get your emails immediately as it uses fetch, rather than Push. Push ensures that the emails are instantly delivered to your device when you get a new email, whereas fetch will check for new email either Manually or after every 15 minutes, 30 minutes or hourly. By default, it is set to manually, you can change the settings by going to Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendar > Fetch New Data and select the appropriate option under Fetch.

How use Google Sync via Microsoft Exchange to setup Gmail in the Mail app (PUSH – Google Apps only)

If you want to use Push for your Gmail account then you need to set it up using Google Sync via Microsoft Exchange. But this works with only Google Apps email addresses and does not work with Gmail as Google discontinued support for Google Sync on January 30th, 2013. If you had setup a Gmail account before January 30th, then Google Sync would work fine, but I doubt most of you fall in this category.
If use a Google Apps email address then you can use Google Sync via Microsoft Exchange by following these steps:
Note: Please don’t use this option with a Gmail account as it won’t sync your emails to your device due to discontinued support for Gmail accounts.

• Launch the Settings app.

• Scroll down, and tap on Mail, Contacts, Calendar.

• Tap Exchange from the list of options (not Google).

• Enter the full Google Apps email address and a password and tap Next.

Note: If you’ve enabled two-step verification for your Google Apps email address then you need to use an application-specific password instead of the regular password in the password field. You can generate the application-specific password by going to the Accounts section of your account, and clicking on App Passwords.

• In the next screen, enter m.google.com in the server field.

• Leave the Domain field blank.

• Enter the full Google Apps email address in the Username field.

• The password should be already populated in the Password field.

• After your Google Apps account is successfully verified, select the Google services you want to sync. Ensure the Mail option is enabled, and tap Save.

Your emails should now get synced automatically to your Mail app.

Use the official Gmail app

If you use Gmail, then the recommended option to instantly receive your mail on your iPhone and iPad is to use the official Gmail app that is available in the App Store.

• Download the Gmail app from the App Store using this direct iTunes link.

• Enter the Name, Email, password and a description for your Gmail or Google Apps email address, and tap on Sign in to login to your account. If you’ve already signed in to your Gmail account then you should ideally see the Gmail and Google Apps account. You can tap on the On/Off toggle against the respective accounts to access them in the Gmail app. You can setup up to 5 Gmail or Google Apps account.

Note: If you’ve enabled two-step verification, then you need to use your account password instead of the application specific password. You will be prompted to enter the verification code in the next step.

• You can either tap on Start Tour to go through a quick visual walkthrough on how to use the Gmail app, or tap on Go to Inbox to access your emails.

• You should also get an option to allow the Gmail app to send you notifications, tap on Yes to get notifications whenever you get a new email.

• By default, you will get notifications only for the Important Emails. If you want notifications for all emails then swipe to the right in the Inbox to access the menu, tap on the Gear icon, and then tap on All New Emails.

The other benefits of using the official app is that it allows you to use all the features that Gmail offers such as labels, see Inbox categories like Promotions, Social etc, ability to respond to Google Calendar apps right from the app, add scribbles to your email, edit email signature and vacation responses and more.
There are two things that I don’t like about the Gmail app, the first one is that it takes sometime for the emails to load when you tap on the incoming notifications. I am not sure if it Google needs to fix this or it is a limitation of iOS. The second one is the lack of Universal Inbox.
Battery Life considerations
While Push ensures that you get the email instantly, it can have an impact on your iPhone or iPad’s battery life. If you use multiple email accounts then you may want to use the Fetch option for email accounts where you don’t need to get an instant notification for new email, and switch to Fetch. The higher the fetch interval, the better it is for battery life, so you can set it appropriately based on the importance of the email account.
Conclusion
The best way to use Gmail on your iPhone or iPad is to use the official Gmail app, or use Google Sync via Microsoft Exchange if you’ve a Google Apps email address and prefer to use the Mail app. If you want to use the Mail app for your Gmail account then you should be aware that new mails will be retrieved only when you launch the Mail app, or based on the frequency set by you.
I hope this article gave you the necessary information to configure your Gmail or Google Apps email address correctly. Please feel free to drop me a line in the comments if you’ve any questions.

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WhatsApp is now available in your web browser as long as you have Google Chrome

In November 2014, WhatsApp quietly unveiled an update to its mobile app that brought read receipts to the popular messaging service. Now, in a not so quiet fashion, the company has unveiled a long-requested feature.
And it has nothing to do with the mobile app. As announced by WhatsApp on Wednesday, the popular messaging service is now available as a web client, but only if you’re using Google Chrome. The web client, as WhatsApp puts it, is “an extension of your phone,” with the web-based version of the service mirroring conversations and individual messages that are present on the mobile app.
To access the web client, it’s all about going to a specific web address using Google Chrome, capture the QR Code presented there within the WhatsApp on your mobile device, and that will successfully link the web-based version to your mobile variant. Interestingly enough, WhatsApp also notes that the mobile phone needs to stay connected to the Internet for the web-based web client to keep working.

Of course, they also suggest having the latest version of WhatsApp installed on the phone, too. They also note that, “due to platform limitations,” the web client for WhatsApp will not be available for iOS users.

“To connect your web browser to your WhatsApp client, simply open https://web.whatsapp.com in your Google Chrome browser. You will see a QR code — scan the code inside of WhatsApp, and you’re ready to go. You have now paired WhatsApp on your phone with the WhatsApp web client. Your phone needs to stay connected to the internet for our web client to work, and please make sure to install the latest version of WhatsApp on your phone. Unfortunately for now, we will not be able to provide web client to our iOS users due to Apple platform limitations.“

What do you think of the way WhatsApp has implemented their web client? Better than nothing?
[via WhatsApp]

30 new tweaks to check out this weekend

After an incredibly prolific amount of releases last week, things seem to have calmed down again in Cydia, with 30 new tweaks released during the last 7 days. If you haven’t had time to launch Cydia lately, make sure to take a couple minutes to peruse this list of tweaks, and catch up on what’s new and interesting.
BannerBuddy: allows notification banners to be lowered with Reachability (free)
Better HUD: move the volume HUD around (free)
BimmerNotifierPro: shows all notifications on BMW iDrive (free)
CacheClearer: clear app caches from the Usage section of the stock Settings app 
CircleIcons: makes all icons in the Settings app round 
CleanLock: hide notifications on the Lock screen ($0.99)
Cobalia: places FlipSwitch toggles in the App Switcher 
Date In StatusBar: shows the date in the Status Bar (free)
Deepcove: replaces battery percentage with Roman numerals (free)
Disable Camera Grabber: hides the Camera grabber on the Lock screen (free)
Dynamics: brings new dynamic wallpaper options to the iPhone 
EasySpring2: adds Respring, Reboot, Shutdown, and more toggles (free)
EditPasteboard: edit your clipboard content from anywhere with an Activator gesture (free)
FaceTime Picker: pick what specific number or email address you want to FaceTime contacts at (free)
GIFPaper8: set animated GIFs as wallpaper ($1)
iCaughtU Pro: a great tweak to increase the security of your device ($2.50)
KeyCommands: execute Activator actions from keyboard shortcuts 
MagicColors: color and customize both the Lock and Home screens (free)
MEFacetimeiOS8: brings FaceTime to unsupported devices (free)
OopsLock: create a short timeframe where passcode won’t be necessary to unlock the device (free)
Sleeper: change the alarm snooze time ($0.99)
SphereView: replaced the Home screen with a 3D sphere ($3.99)
SpotlightGoogle: quickly search Google or Wikipedia from Spotlight Search (free)
Switcher Navigation Actions: offers Activator actions to mimic the iPad four finger swipes (free)
SwitcherDND: use the iPhone’s mute switch as a Do Not Disturb switch 
Tintch: colorize the toggle switches throughout iOS 
TitleHider: hides folder names (free)
Tweet Analytics: enable tweet analytics in the official Twitter app (free)
UninstallNever: locks specific apps from being accidentally deleted (free)
Wallmart: cycle through wallpaper on iOS 8 
As always, if you feel we forgot something, make sure to make a note of it in the comments.

How to jailbreak iOS 8.1.2 using Mac OS X

It is now possible to jailbreak iOS 8.1.2 using a Mac, and this has been confirmed by iDownloadBlog. Up until this point, no Mac option existed for jailbreaking iOS 8.1.2, but that is no longer the case. A new tool entitled PP jailbreak for Mac has surfaced, allowing Mac users to enjoy what Windows users have been enjoying for some time now. Inside, we have a tutorial that shows how to jailbreak iOS 8.1.2 using OS X with the PP jailbreak for Mac.
Disclaimer: We’ve reached out to the normal people who comment about the safety of new jailbreak tools, but have yet to hear anything official from them. With this in mind, proceed with this jailbreak at your own risk.
Step 1: Restore your iPhone to iOS 8.1.2, and disable Find My iPhone, Passcode lock, and place your device into AirPlane mode.
Step 2: Ensure that your iPhone is connected directly to your Mac via USB cable
Step 3: Download the PP jailbreak for Mac tool and save it to your desktop
Step 4: Double click on the ppjailbreak.dmg on your desktop to mount the volume
Step 5: Drag the PP越狱.app file to the Applications folder
Step 6: Double click the PP越狱.app in the Applications folder to open it and make sure it recognizes your device
Step 7: Uncheck the pp checkmark box in the bottom left-hand corner.
Step 8: Click the jailbreak button in the middle of the screen
Step 9: Click the button in the bottom right-hand corner of the screen on the next page
Step 10: Wait until the jailbreak process completes. You’ll see a green checkmark once the tool has finished running. Wait until your device reboots and you should see Cydia. Disable AirPlane mode and then open Cydia to finish the setup

Google Calendar iOS app leaks out ahead of an official launch

Last year, during Google’s revamping of Android and many individual apps, the new Google Calendar was revealed with a ton of new features and a promise that, one day, it would launch for iOS.
The impending launch of a new Google stand-alone app isn’t that much of a surprise by itself, considering Google has a track record that extends quite far for launching these types of apps for Apple’s mobile operating system. That continues with the incoming Google Calendar, which, at least on Android, has plenty of worthwhile features like Schedule View and Assists.
Based on the leaked image, which was posted by The Next Web, it would appear that at least some of those features will make it into the new iOS app, which marks the first time a stand-alone Calendar app has launched from Google on iOS.

The new calendar app will pull photos and other information from Maps to populate entries with acquired information. Google has said that the new Calendar app is a bit smarter all around, and that it will all be a bit more automated. As far as a release date goes, that’s still up in the air as Google hasn’t made any announcements just yet.
[via TNW]

MagicColor lets you customize the Lock screen and Home screen on your iPhone [Jailbreak Tweak]

There are tons of tweaks on Cydia that give you more control over how the Lock screen or the Home screen looks on your iPhone. MagicColor falls in that category. It allows users to bring a new look to both the screens.
The tweak provides tons of customization options that it claims will set your device apart from others in terms of look. It allows you to colorize both the Lock screen and the Home screen as well as hide various UI elements.
Apart from this, you can also colorize some items of the Status Bar such as the signal, battery or text color as well as configure and hide them.

Once you install the tweak, you can take advantage of it by configuring the tweak from its preference pane. It is divided into two sections; one dedicated to the Status Bar and the other for both the Lock screen as well as the Home screen.
In the Status Bar section, you can colorize the signal, text, battery as well as the loading wheel color by altering their RGB values. The tweak also allows you to hide the clock, airplane and the loading wheel icon as well as always show the charging bolt in the Status Bar.

The next section is dedicated to Springboard and the Lock screen where you can choose the two tone colors of the labels and texts as well as hide the page dots and the icon labels in the Home screen or hide the following Lock screen elements:

• Notification Center grabber
• Control Center grabber
• Camera grabber
• Time
• Date
• Battery
• Slide to Unlock
• Status Bar

Once you’re done with the customization, all you have to do is to tap on the ‘Respring Changes’ button for the new changes to apply.
If you’re much into customizing the stock iOS elements and bring a new look and feel to your device, you should consider checking out this tweak. MagicColor is available for free on Cydia’s ModMyi repo and supports both iOS 7 and iOS 8.

AlternateControls brings Android-inspired software buttons to iOS

Although it might seem a little like blasphemy, a new jailbreak tweak is taking the risk and bringing Android trademarked software controls to iOS. That means that the famed back, home, and menu buttons are now available on your iPhone. Living up to its name, AlternateControls provides a new way to control your iOS device without using the Home button. But there’s a bit more to the story than what appears on the surface. Watch our full walkthrough video to see what I mean.
Once AlternateControls is installed, you’ll find a preference panel for the tweak that contains several switches. Besides the standard kill-switch toggle, you can switch up the appearance of AlternateControls via three options: Show Touches, Use Modern Icons, and Invert Colors. Though most of these options are self explanatory, the Use Modern Icons option stands out to me, because it allows you to toggle between the classic Android-inspired software buttons, and the new Android L-inspired software buttons.
Next on the list is Activation methods. You can use a simple swipe gesture from the bottom of the screen, or you can opt for an Activator gesture, which provides much more flexibility. Of course, I opt to use a double tap on the status bar gesture.

There are several more options to be found in the tweak’s preferences, such as how the software buttons are dismissed, and haptic feedback. The last option, an inclusion that may just be the tweak’s most redeeming feature, is a toggle that allows you to use the software buttons to instantly toggle between the two most recently used apps.
Once you have activated the AlternateControls interface, you can use the software buttons to duplicate Home button functionality. The right-most button invokes the App Switcher, the middle button mimics a single press of the Home button to get to the Home screen, and the left most button changes depending on how you have the tweak configured.


You can tap and hold on the left-most button to bring up a list of recently used tweaks, or, if you have the Toggle Two Apps option enabled in the settings, use it to switch between two apps. This switching function can be useful for gathering information between two apps, sort of like a pseudo-multitasking mode. You can actually use a tap and hold gesture on the right-most button to enable or disable the Toggle Two Apps mode as well.
If you keep the toggle option off, the left-most button performs like a back button, basically backtracking through all of the recently used apps until it reaches a stopping point. I should mention that you can also tap and hold on the middle (Home) button to invoke Siri, though you can’t use a double-tap gesture on that same button to open the App Switcher (odd).

I think AlternateControls could be a good idea for those of you with malfunctioning Home buttons, or for those of you who just want to try something new. Ultimately, the only truly compelling feature about this tweak is the ability to quickly toggle between two apps. That functionality, if I’m not mistaken, is not possible with many jailbreak tweaks on Cydia as it is implemented here.
AlternateControls is available right now on the BigBoss repo for $0.99. Yes, I know, it is a bit silly to have Android-inspired software controls on the iPhone, but that’s what makes jailbreaking so interesting. You just never know what may pop up on the Cydia store.

Photego: secure the stock Photos app with Touch ID

There are tweaks that exist on Cydia that allow you to secure an entire app, but to my knowledge, no tweak yet exists that allows you to secure specific aspects of the stock Photos app with Touch ID. That’s where Photego comes in, a new jailbreak tweak that allows you to prevent users from deleting photos, accessing albums, and more via Touch ID.
To set up Photego, venture over to the tweak’s preference panel in the stock Settings app. Unfortunately, Photego doesn’t feature an icon next to its preference panel, which makes it feel a bit unpolished. Hopefully, the developer will take the step to add an icon in a future update.
The settings for Photego consist of lots of switches. There’s a kill-switch for starters, a switch to protect the tweak’s preferences via Touch ID, and all sorts of security switches for protecting the Photos app.
Users can use Photego to prevent photo deletion, recovery, album perusal, sharing, and more. All of this is accomplished via Touch ID fingerprints, which should already be established in your iPhone’s Touch ID settings.
Obviously, given the nature of this tweak’s explicit reliance on Touch ID, you’ll need a Touch ID enabled device, like the iPhone 6 or 6 Plus, in order to enjoy its benefits. If you meet the criteria, and you’re interested in taking a granular approach when it comes to photo security, then you’ll want to look into Photego.
Head over to the BigBoss repo where you can download Photego for $0.99 if interested.

TaiG Jailbreak stuck at 30%? Here’s what you should do

A number of readers have complained that the TaiG jailbreak for iOS 8.1.1 and iOS 8.1.2 gets stuck at 30%.

Actually there isn’t anything you should do but be patient. According to saurik who also faced the problem while running it in Windows in a virtual machine on a Mac, TaiG “seems to be using a race condition as its core trick to install software on the device,” so the emulator running slower can result in the issue. So if you’re running TaiG in a virtual machine then it could take time depending on how many resources you’ve allocated to it. saurik and several users have confirmed that the process restarts after waiting for 20-30 minutes so you just have to be patient.

Some users have found that restarting their iOS device or even the computer seems to help resolve the problem.

If TaiG is stuck and does not respond even after 30 minutes or say an hour then you want to try using it on another computer.

Some of the other things you need to do if you’re facing a problem, but doesn’t seem to be related to this issue are as follows:

➤ Disable the passcode by going to Settings > Touch ID & Passcode.

➤ Disable Find my iPhone by going to Settings > iCloud > Find my iPhone.

➤ Set Auto-Lock to Never by going to Settings > General > Auto-Lock.

➤ And also run as administrator by right clicking on TaiG’s exe file and clicking on“Run as Administrator”.

If you faced the problem, if this tip helped.

Download the best apps and games for free for a limited time (Jan 10)

We have some great apps for you today that have gone free for a short duration on the App Store, including Legend of Tell, Mujo, WriteRight and more.

Free Games:

• Legend of Tell: Play as Switzerland’s hero William Tell, and guide him through 21 different levels. $1.99 → Free
• MUJO: Stack three or more connected sword tiles by holding them down. The more tiles you stack, the more offensive power you obtain. $1.99 → Free
• Line Runner 2: Run through various tracks from easy to bone breaking, use different kind of boosts like a Shield, Head start, etc. and beat your friends scores within the integrated leader board. $1.99 → Free
• Stickman Ski Racer: Perform insane jumps and stunts while skiing down the hills trying to avoid deadly avalanches, rusty weak bridges or profound abysses $.99 → Free
• GREG: The main purpose of the game is to combine the numbers in the grid to match the given one. The more you go ahead, the more difficult the game will become. $.99 → Free

Free Apps:

• WriteRight: A markdown writing app with synonyms, antonyms and phraseology. $2.99 → Free
• Video Filters: Edit your videos, add effects, and more in real time. $4.99 → Free
• Translate Keyboard Pro: A native keyboard that allow you to type text in keyboard and instantly translate into other 90 target languages. $1.99 → Free
• Reverser: Use Reverser to quickly and easily make hilarious backward videos. $1.99 → Free

Game Price Drops:

• Sky Gamblers: Cold War: Go back in time with this great title and be part of unwritten history and covert operations. Enjoy the charm and power of the Jet Fighter domination race and master over a dozen airplane models. $4.99 → $.99
• Back to Bed: Back to Bed is a 3D indie puzzle game set in a unique and artistic dream world, wherein you guide the sleepwalker Bob to the safety of his bed. $3.99 → $1.99
• METAL SLUG X: $2.99 → $.99

If you like any of these apps, make sure you download them right away, since we don’t know when their prices could go up.

How to upload any file with Safari on your iPhone [Jailbreak Only]

One of my favorite tweaks on iOS 7 was Safari Upload Enabler, which as the name suggests, provided the ability to upload any type of file on a webpage, but the tweak hasn’t been updated for iOS 8 yet. Fortunately, Safari Uploader 8 was recently released on Cydia for iOS 8 that is as good as the latter tweak.

Normally, you’re only allowed to upload photos and videos using mobile Safari. Safari Uploader aims to get rid of this limitation by allowing you to upload any type of file that you wish, whether it’s a document, zip file or a photo.

After installing the tweak, when you want to upload a file to a webpage, a new option labeled “Choose File” will appear. Tapping on it will open the file system browser, just like iFile, where you can search for the file you’re looking for.

When you choose a file to upload, an action menu pops up where you can confirm the selection, take a look at the file before uploading or open it in a different app.

The tweak comes with no settings to configure so once you’ve installed it, you can just head to Safari and start uploading any file that you wish without any restrictions.

Safari Uploader 8 works perfectly as advertised. The only feature I wished the developer added is the ability to search for a particular file or folder just like iFile. This would definitely make it easier to locate a file than if you had to search the entire file system to find it.

In some webpages such as Hotmail, I noticed that you’ll have to switch to the Desktop version in order to get the option for uploading files. Ofcourse, the problem is not from the tweak’s side as some webpages don’t display the upload option when viewed on mobile.

If you’re interested to give this tweak a try, head to Cydia and download Safari Uploader 8 for free.

Apple may release iOS 8.1.3 software update next week

BGR very briefly reports that Apple is planning to release the iOS 8 software update sometime next week.

However, they are not sure if the software update will be a beta release or a public release.

MacRumors however speculates that based on the jump in traffic they are seeing from devices running iOS 8.1.3, it indicates that Apple may release iOS 8.1.3. We’re also seeing a jump in traffic from devices running iOS 8.1.3. These stats have proven to be reliable in the past, and while they can be faked easily, increasing iOS 8.1.3 traffic from Apple certainly lends authenticity to these numbers.

We first started seeing hits from devices running iOS 8.1.3 in early December. MacRumors reports that according to their source, the recent jump in traffic is because Apple has seeded iOS 8.1.3 build 12B460 to select retail employees for testing, which is also the reason they’re are seeing hits on their servers from outside Apple’s offices as well. Few days back it was reported that Apple was planning to expand its pre-release internal testing to select retail employees.

Visitors via Apple’s networks from devices running iOS 8.1.3

Overall visitors from devices running iOS 8.1.3

It is not clear what’s new in iOS 8.1.3, but since it is a minor update, it is likely to include some bug fixes and improvements. It remains to be seen if Apple patches the exploit used in the TaiG jailbreak to stay ahead of the cat and mouse game with jailbreakers. iOS 8.1.2 software update which was released on December 9th, included bug fixes and addressed a problem where ringtone purchased through iTunes Store may have been removed form your device.

Apple is also testing iOS 8.2, and has seeded three beta versions to developers. iOS 8.2 will be major software update, which includes WatchKit SDK, and is likely to be released with the launch of Apple Watch. Recent rumors suggest Apple Watch will go on sale in March.

[via BGR, MacRumors]

How to record your iPhone or iPad’s screen using your Mac

While the iOS has a screenshot feature built in since its early days, an official way to record your iPhone or iPad’s screen didn’t exist until iOS 8. Sure, you could use AirPlay mirroring in combination with a tool like Reflector or AirServer, but Apple’s own solution is way better.

To screen record your iPhone or iPad, you’ll need to be on iOS 8 or up, and you’ll need a Mac running OS X 10.10 Yosemite or up. Here are the step by step instructions:

• Connect your iPhone or iPad to your Mac with the Lightning cable.

• Open QuickTime on your Mac by searching for it in Spotlight (⌘ + Space), or opening it from the Applications folder.

• In QuickTime, go to File > New Movie Recording

• Now click on the down arrow next to the red record button to bring up all the camera sources.
• Here, you’ll see your iPhone or iPad listed. Click on that.

• You’ll now see your iPhone’s screen in the QuickTime window. Click on the record button to start recording, and the stop button when you’re done.

Note: To make your video look better, iOS overrides the status bar icon with its default time, battery and carrier.

Apple built this feature primarily for developers to create app preview videos for the App Store, but it can be quite useful for normal users too.

Photo Organizer 8 adds power-user features to the stock Photos app

Let’s face it; the stock Photos app in iOS 8 is severely lacking when it comes to power user features. Just to name one example, there’s no way to select a range of photos. Instead, you have to tap on each photo that you wish to select one by one. That’s really just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the lack of power-user features in the stock Photos app. Fortunately for jailbreakers, Photo Organizer 8 solves many of the stock app’s shortcomings.

After installing Photo Organizer 8, you won’t find any SpringBoard icons or preference panels in the stock Settings app. The tweak is wholly contained within the Photos app, which makes it simple, intuitive, and native feeling.

Photo Organizer 8 brings a whole host of new features to the table for the stock Photos app, and I’m going to run down the list and let you know some of my favorite features.

First and foremost, the ability to sort photos by name, size, or date in ascending or descending order is amazing to me. Why the stock Photos app doesn’t have this feature is mind-boggling, but this feature alone is enough to make one highly consider using Photo Organizer 8.

But it doesn’t stop there. The most amazing feature, in my opinion, provided by Photo Organizer 8 is the ability to select ranges of photos using a two finger tap gesture. I cannot stress how many times in the past I’ve wished to simply select a range of photos to no avail. Again, the fact that the stock Photos app lacks such a feature is just confusing and unacceptable.

Next, you can select and deselect all of the photos contained in an album using a single tap. Not as mind-blowing as the previous two strangely omitted features, but still fairly nice to have.

You can also do things like reorder the list of albums, move photos to new album, rename the Camera Roll, import and sync album without iTunes, and more.

True, it’s likely that you won’t use all of the features that Photo Organize 8 brings to the table, but I guarantee that if you take photos with your iPhone, you’ll benefit from and use at least some of the features that this tweak provides.

At $2.99, it trends on the more expensive range of the tweaks on Cydia, but there’s no doubt in my mind that it’s totally worth it. Photo Organizer 8 makes using the stock Photos app way more intuitive, less frustrating, and more like a desktop experience. If you’re in any way interested in taking and managing photos on your iPhone, you’d be hard-pressed to find a jailbreak tweak that provides more practical functionality than this one.

‘ColorFill’ makes the Reachability background color match the current app

Tired of the dark Reachability background color? Looking for something that matches the look and feel of the app you’re currently using? You may want to open Cydia and download a new jailbreak tweak called ColorFill. It purposes to color the empty Reachability view space with colors based on the dominant hue of the current screen.

Using ColorFill means that if you’re using an app that’s dominated by the color blue, your Reachability view will contain a blue hue. The color of the Reachability view will largely be influenced by the color of the current app.

Once you install ColorFill, you’ll find a single switch in the root of the stock Settings app for activating the tweak. You can toggle ColorFill on or off without needing a respring.

Since I find that many apps stick with drab neutral gray colors, your likely to find that most apps result in a boring Reachability view. But every so often, you’ll find an app with a daring color scheme, and the Reachability view compliments that color scheme accordingly.

If you’d like to give your Reachability view some much-needed variety, then try ColorFill. You’ll find it free of charge on Cydia.

Interactive Apple Watch demo gives a nice glimpse of the future

Leading up to the launch of the Apple Watch, which is rumored to start shipping by the end of March, anticipation and excitement for Apple’s wearable will continue to rise.

The biggest question on many potential buyers’ minds will be how the Watch will actually work once it’s strapped to their wrist. While Apple showcased the Watch’s features way back in September when it was initially unveiled, the end result will be much different in the real world application. Which is why a nice interactive demonstration is a nice way to get a glimpse of the future.

Developers that created Pipes, a news app for iOS, have gone out of their way to build an interactive demonstration of the Apple Watch and a few of the apps that owners will be able to access on the wearable. That includes apps like the bulit-in Weather app, see what a phone call will look like, and even what a popular game might look like on the device. The Music app will actually open up “A Sky Full of Stars” by Coldplay and start playing.

The demo is pretty straightforward, but it does a really great job of showcasing just how the Watch will work when it releases soon. You can check out the demo here.

[via 9to5Mac; Demo Apple Watch]

Apple informing developers in Canada, EU and other countries of incoming app price changes

While change can sometimes mean good things, it’s often met with some form or another of speculation. Apple has just informed developers in some countries of an impending change to some app prices.

According to a report published by 9to5Mac based on an email shown to the publication, Apple is informing developers of an incoming price change to applications within the App Store. These changes will go into effect in countries including Canada, those within the European Union, Iceland, Russia, and Norway. The prices will show up shortly, starting at the end of this week.

As for the reason behind the changes, Apple says that the alteration is due to reflect changes that are hitting currency rates and exchange rates. The prices will go up in all of the aforementioned countries, except Iceland. In that select region, prices are actually going to go down. As for Russia, it’s still up in the air what the price changes will mean, exactly, as there isn’t any additional information at this time.

“Dear [Developer],

Within the next 36 hours, prices on the App Store will increase for all territories in the European Union as well as in Canada and Norway, decrease in Iceland, and change in Russia. These changes are being made to account for adjustments in value-added tax (VAT) rates and foreign exchange rates.“

What do you think of these changes?

[via 9to5Mac]

iPod shuffle supplies shortened for ‘unspecified period of time’ according to report

While the holiday shopping season may have wrapped up a bit of time ago, for anyone looking to get their hands on a new iPod shuffle around this time may be running into some issues.

According to a report published by 9to5Mac, and citing several different sources, supplies for the iPod shuffle are apparently a bit constrained for unspecified reasons. The report states that supplies for the low-cost iPod shuffle are starting to shrink at physical retail stores across the country. Indeed, Apple seems to be informing retail employees that the iPod shuffle will be facing a shortened supply list for “an unspecified period of time,” and that employees should be directing potential buyers to Apple’s online store.

Unfortunately, as noted in the report, buying an iPod shuffle online is going to be just as difficult, apparently. Or, more specifically, getting the device after the purchase is made. While Apple is still selling the device in its varying color schemes, shipping times for the shuffle have been set back to 7 to 10 business days. To compare, the iPod touch and iPod nano are listed as shipping in about 24 hours after the purchase is made.

What’s actually causing the supply shortage is unknown at this time. It could mean that the iPod shuffle is facing some components constraints, or maybe the device that was introduced in 2010 is reaching the end of its line. What do you think is causing the shortage?

[via 9to5Mac; Apple]