New “iOS Blocks” Concept Video Imagines How Widgets Could Work On The iPhone And iPad

A new iOS concept video and extremely detailed explanation from UX and graphic designerJay Machalani imagines how Apple’s iOS operating system could have its own version of Android’s widgets or Windows Phone’s “Live Tiles,” by introducing a new interaction that’s sort of in between each. In a blog post titled “Pushing iOS” the designer demonstrates an idea he calls “iOS Blocks,” which allow you to use the pinching gesture to quickly expand default applications like Weather, Music, Calendar, Messages and more from an icon into a small square that sits on your iPhone or iPad’s homescreen.

The concept was built using Adobe Fireworks CS6 and rendered in Adobe After Effects CC, and is intriguing because it looks like a natural progression of the iOS interface – unlike some of those more futuristic concepts that show of things like transparent iPhones ordual-screened devices.

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Nokia Lumia 630 review: Windows Phone 8.1 shines, shame about the selfies

The Nokia Lumia 630 is the latest in the line that includes the Lumia 620 and 520 — two of the most popular Lumia handsets to date. And while the entry-level Lumia 630 lacks the hype, glamour and rich functionality (much of it often little-used) of a flagship smartphone, it packs in the elements most people — and certainly those upgrading from a feature phone — will need.

The Lumia 630 retails from £89.95 (inc. VAT) in the UK, which makes it one of an increasing number of handsets (like Motorola's Moto E) that promise a good-enough user experience without the wallet-emptying price tag of a high-end device.

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Six Clicks: Cool iPhone, iPad treasures buried in iOS 7.1

Introduction 

There's little doubt that the king and queen of the post-PC era are the iPad and the iPhone, and while these devices both started out life as content consumption devices, they've grown over several hardware and software iterations into formidable content creation devices.

In a follow in to last week's "Six Clicks: Cool stuff buried in OS X" I bring you a look at some cool stuff that's buried in iOS.

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Customize Windows Phone 8.1 notification quick actions

Windows Phone 8.1 introduced a brand-new notification shade. Similar to what's currently found onAndroid, the notification shade houses recent alerts and what Microsoft calls "Quick actions." These quick actions are simply shortcuts to common device settings.

Four buttons are displayed at the top of the notification shade. Tapping any of the buttons will toggle the current status of the setting, or in some cases (such as the brightness), multiple taps will cycle through the options.

Not a fan of the actions Microsoft puts in place by default? You're in luck. You can change the actions to suit your use, choosing among 11 total options.

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iOS 8: Will Your iPhone, iPad Or iPod Support The New OS?

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is all set to release the new mobile operating system iOS 8 at the WorldwideDevelopers Conference on June 2. The tech giant confirmed in its revised schedule that the two-hour keynote, which begins at 10 AM PST (1 PM EDT), will include details on the updates for the iOS and OS X. With the release date approaching, many existing iDevice users want to know whether the iOS 8 will support their device or they will have to upgrade their new hardware to make a software upgrade.

The current iOS 7 supports the iPhone 4 and later, iPod touch 5G and the iPad mini 1 and later. With each new OS update, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) drops support for one or two older models. So, let’s see which deviecs are likely to get the iOS 8 support.

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The top five free, paid, and trending Windows Phone apps as of May 25th

Let's take a look at the Windows Phone Store and see which apps are at the top of the charts when it comes to the free, paid, and trending categories. You might even discover your new favorite app! After all, the Windows Phone Store is home to over 250,000 apps worldwide. 

As of May 25th, the top-five free apps in the United States are OneDrive, Facebook, Messenger, Pandora, and Instagram Beta. The top-five paid apps are Dictaphone, Theme+, Movie Maker 8.1, Start Perfect, and Metrotube. The top-five trending apps are Black, MovieJax, Sticky Notes HD, Channel 9, and Zello.

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MacBook Air with Retina Display Release Date: Apple iOS 8 may Launch at WWDC 2014

If rumors are to be believed, the Macbook Air with Retina Display may soon see the light of day at WWDC 2014, less than two weeks away. Meanwhile, an Apple press release may have confirmed the launch date of the iOS 8 mobile software that will replace the current iOS 7.

 This week, Apple released the WWDC 2.0 app on a download page that has a screenshot of the schedule at the upcoming conference. Of interest is the Platforms State of the Union at 2:00pm, which is when Apple will likely be introducing its newest devices for 2014. The latest rumor from 9to5mac suggests that the Macbook Air with Retina Display will be making its first public appearance at this time, though this remains to be seen. Like many tech giants, Apple has always been characteristically tight-lipped about any internal-information prior to launch.

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Eight tips to get you started with Windows Phone 8.1

Microsoft released an update to its Windows Phone operating system last month. The Windows Phone 8.1 update is currently available for developers and will roll out to current Windows Phone 8 users over the next few months, although there is a way to manually update your device now. These tips will help you navigate the revamped operating system and access all of the new features it has to offer.

Customize your device

Windows Phone users could previously add a custom background image to their lock screen, however they were stuck with a rather boring home screen. In Windows Phone 8.1, Microsoft has given users the ability to now set a background on the live tile Start screen. This can be done by going to the settings menu, selecting the "start+theme" option, and choosing a Start background. From here you can also add an extra row of live tiles, select a new accent color, and change the phone's overall color motif from light to dark.

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Apple iOS 7.1.1 Untethered Jailbreak: Which Developers Have A Jailbreaking Tool In The Works For iPhone 5S And iPad Air?

Several purported jailbreaks have surfaced over the past weekend, leaving the jailbreak community wondering who has one and when will it be released.

The possibility of an iOS 7.1.1 public jailbreak for the iPhone 5S, 5C, iPad Air and other iOS devices piqued the interest of Internet users over the weekend of May 16 after several developers revealed they possessed jailbroken iOS hardware running on the latest version of Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) mobile operating system. While the revelations reignited interest in an iOS 7.1.1 jailbreak, it also created much confusion as to who had a working jailbreak and whether or not one would be publicly released.

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iOS 7.1.1 Jailbroken Untethered by i0n1c and winocm

There is some good news for the jailbreak community: Apple's latest iOS 7.1.1 has been jailbroken.

Although at present there is no tool to jailbreak iOS 7.1 or, iOS 7.1.1 as Apple has patched several vulnerabilities in iOS 7.1, earlier this month pod2g from the evad3rs announced that he was working on a jailbreak for iOS 7.1.

Now, renowned hack, Stefan Esser, commonly known as i0n1c and p0sixspwn developer, winocm, has confirmed the iOS 7.1.1 jailbreak status on Twitter.

i0n1c has shared a photo, suggesting an iPhone 5c running iOS 7.1.1 has been jailbroken and running Cydia.

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Nokia Lumia 630 Dual SIM Review: A New Age for Windows Phone

It's a time of change: The Nokia we've known ever since mobile phones first appeared has finally been acquired by Microsoft and is now officially a subsidiary of Microsoft's Devices Group, which handles the Xbox and Surface product lines. The Lumia 630 is the first new phone out the door since the deal went through, but it's obviously been under development for quite a while. Still, it's obvious that things have changed - subtly but surely, this is the start of something new.

The dual-SIM version of the Lumia 630 has launched in India, and it's the first device to run the newWindows Phone 8.1 update. Interestingly, it isn't a clear replacement for the Lumia 620 - it's a bit cheaper than the 620 was at launch, but is also in a lower segment.

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IOS 8 MAY BRING SPLIT-SCREEN MULTITASKING TO IPAD

iPad users may be able to interact with two apps at once via a new split-screen multitasking feature that's rumoured to be in development for iOS 8.

According to 9 to 5 Mac's sources, the feature is being designed with the 9.7-inch iPad display in mind, and it's unclear if it will also work on the smaller iPad Mini. It will only work in landscape mode.

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Apple iOS 8 features 'leaked' ahead of conference

Apple is reportedly planning to include split-screen multitasking in its forthcoming iOS 8 operating system, as well as high-definition audio playback.

The split-screen multitasking rumour comes from Apple blog 9to5Mac, which cites 'sources with knowledge of the enhancement in development'.

This would allow iPad users to run and interact with two iPad applications side-by-side, much as Microsoft's Surface line of tablets allows users to “snap” applications next to each other on the screen.

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Is this LG’s first Windows Phone 8 device?

LG could be getting into the Windows Phone 8 game, if a new image popping online turns out to be the real deal.

An image posted by oft-accurate tipster Evleaks shows an LG phone with the traditional Windows Phone screen. Dubbed the LG Uni8, the device could see the light of day this year, according to Evleaks' tweet as it specifically lists 2014.

The Uni8 resembles a traditional Windows Phone handset with the tiled home screen and the familiar navigation keys at the bottom. But otherwise, the leak doesn't reveal any specs or details about the device.

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iOS 8 Rumors Suggest No iPhone 4 Compatibility

Apple's upcoming mobile OS update, iOS 8, is not expected to be offered for the iPhone 4, Gotta Be Mobile reports.

The fourth-gen was discontinued in September in the U.S. and again this month in several other countries (including Brazil and India) and already experiences some issues with iOS 7 features, making it a likely candidate to be the next device too old to make the mobile OS update's list. Jailbreak hacker and developer i0n1c adds that the iPhone 4's discontinuation is "a good indicator for iOS 8 not supporting iPhone 4 anymore."

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iPhone 6 on 2014 Release Date Will Deliver These 5 Fresh iOS 8 Killer Features

How the iPhone 6 will look like on release date is the focus of recent spate of leaks about the device lately but there is little doubt that its behaviour will be dictated by the killer features packed with iOS 8.

Replacing iOS 7.1.1, iOS 8 is tipped for a grand preview on Apple's 2014 WWDC edition that will kick off in early June and on the same event, what the iPhone 6, which is true for both the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch models, is actually capable of will be displayed in full glory.

And five of these exciting device functions are briefly detailed below:

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Windows Phone 8.1 Support Starts On June 24th

After unveiling Windows Phone 8.1 at its BUILD 2014 conference Microsoft said that the update will be released over the summer. In April the company released Windows Phone 8.1 developer preview, which anyone with a supported WP device can download without any major problems. Still the general public release is awaited by those who don’t wish to go through that trouble. The company has now confirmed that it will start Windows Phone 8.1 support from June 24th.

This means that a public release may very well take place in June, as was recently rumored. Microsoft has already confirmed the end of support date for Windows Phone 8.1, which is July 11th 2017. During this time the company promises to release software updates for WP8.1. That doesn’t mean each update will bring something new, it may even be for incremental bug fixes.

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Out of control: why iOS games controllers aren't console killers...yet

When Apple announced official games controller support as part of iOS 7, it was thought that the world would be overrun with manufacturers looking take advantage of this gaming opportunity.

So far, though, there is just a handful of controllers on the market: the Logitech PowerShell, which is the simplified case controller; the MOGA Ace Power, an extended control case; and the SteelSeries Stratus is a wireless controller.

The reception for this first batch of controllers has been somewhat rocky. When you consider that these controllers are certified as part of the Made For iPhone (MFi) program – meaning that Apple has officially approved their quality – it's perhaps surprising to see such a difficult launch for what could be a key new area for Apple. So what's going on?

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Cydia Tweak: Circlet Offers An Interesting Take On iOS Status Bar Icons

Circlet is a recent addition to the Cydia Store which brings an interesting new design to iOS status bar icons. The new $0.99 package allows users to replace a handful of status bar icons with “informative and personalized circles,” according to the jailbreak tweak’s developer, and it can be downloaded now on the Cydia Store.

Once installed, users can configure Circlet from inside the Settings app. Here, Circlet adds a new preferences pane, and a selection of options are available.

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Nokia Lumia 630 Release Date, Price: Windows Phone 8.1-Powered Nokia Handset Goes Live In Italy, Costs Just $207, Shipping Begins May 20

Nokia Lumia 630 release date, price: It has just been over a month since Nokia unleashed its Windows Phone 8.1 handset, the high-end Lumia 930, and the midrange Lumia 630. And for those solid Nokia fans who are looking for a collector's item smartphone, then this midranger could be the best deal. 

Priced at only 149.99 euros or just about $207, the Nokia smartphone is already available in Italy for pre-orders. 

According to the report by GSM Arena, the smartphone would be shipped to customers and buyers on May 20. 

While the Lumia 630 is a great 'memorabilia' phone of the once great Nokia mobile company, it is by no means just a paperweight. The Windows Phone 8.1 powered handset packs decent specs that would surely give consumers a run for their money. 

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Microsoft trumpets Internet Explorer 11 for Windows Phone 8.1, but reviews vary

Microsoft crowed about advances in Internet Explorer 11 for Windows Phone 8.1 earlier this week, but so far reviews from users are mixed.

Microsoft detailed in a blog various security, privacy, speed and interface enhancements to the browser, but people aren’t completely happy with the way it works on the upcoming version of the smartphone OS--though the software is still in beta testing.

Windows Phone 8.1 is available in a developer’s preview version and is due to ship in final form in the coming months. Non-developers can install it as well by following these steps.

There are several recurring complaints from commenters, many focused on the way IE 11 handles Web page tabs, which unhappy users described as erratic, confusing and inconvenient.

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Why your iOS device may be a better cable box than the Apple TV

When choosing which cable provider to sign a contract with, you will undoubtably check the channel guide to see which channels are included in the package to which you are about to subscribe. You may even go a bit further and check to see if includes the HD version of your favorite channels. What you likely will not do is check to see how many channels have allowed the cable provider to access their shows from within an app on the App Store.

Despite having a growing number of channels to choose from — 189 channels on average — Nielsen data shows that most homes view just 17 different channels. Using a list of broadcast networks, the 20 most watched cable networks of 2013, and some of the top premium channels, you will find that each and every one of the top 20 networks has an iOS app in the app store. The problem is that many of them may be of no use to you as some of your favorite channels’ content will not be accessible to you at all.

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Official Thai Airways application now in Windows Phone Store

They used to say the number of official applications from major companies was a sign that a mobile platform had finally arrived. If that’s still the case, then Windows Phone has truly arrived. The Windows Phone Store is now abound with a plethora of “Official Applications” of all sorts.

The latest to land in the Windows Phone Store is the Thai Airways official application. The application comes in the now familiar “modern” UI, mixed in with the airline’s mobile website features. It allows you do more-or-less everything you’d expect an airline’s application to do in viewing flight information, view bookings and checking in.

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Microsoft Details Features of Internet Explorer 11 for Windows Phone 8.1

Microsoft has finally detailed the features and improvements from IE10 in the debut version of Internet Explorer 11 for Windows Phone 8.1. The company had first announced IE11 for Windows Phone 8.1 at its Build 2014 conference in April, alongside the introduction of Windows Phone 8.1 itself.

The blog post details features for the current very limited number of Windows Phone 8.1 users.Microsoft notes that it will release separate posts for developers soon.

Primary change according to the company is the browser performance seen on IE11. The company has taken on two things, "First, you[user] need to tell the browser where you want to go, and second, the browser needs to get there as fast as possible."

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2048, Facebook and Minecraft were top Android and iOS apps in April 2014

Facebook and mobile game 2048 were the most downloaded apps for Android and iOS respectively in April 2014, according to a report released by app store analytics firm Distimo.

In fact, Facebook owned three of the five top free apps on Android's Google Play store last month – Facebook Messenger and Instagram being the others – and will soon own second-placed WhatsApp. Skype was the fifth most popular free Android app in April according to the chart.

On iOS, 2048 took top spot in the free rankings ahead of Piano Tiles, Trials Frontier, Boom Beach and YouTube. Ketchapp's number-sliding game has been controversial in some quarters due to its strong resemblance to another mobile game, Threes.

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Top changes in Internet Explorer 11 for Windows Phone 8.1

Microsoft officially announced Windows Phone 8.1 at the Build conference in early-April, and later released a preview build to developers and early adopters. The new iteration of the tiled smartphone operating system comes with important new features and improvements over its aging predecessor, among which being the much-awaited notification center and the Cortana personal assistant. The upgrade has yet to be rolled out to Windows Phone 8 smartphones.

As it is gearing up for the public availability of the OS, Microsoft has detailed some of the most important changes it introduced in Internet Explorer 11 for Windows Phone 8.1. By the looks of it, the browser is finally able to rival what the likes of Chrome offer on competing platforms.

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4 Major iPhone User Complaints Requiring a Fix; Can iOS 8 Address These?

At Worldwide Developers Conference 2014 (WWDC 2014), Apple is set to announce the iOS 8 update foriPhones and iPads and the new OS X 10.10 software for Mac users.

It is quite a routine that iOS updates usually come with a new iPhonehardware. If rumors were true, iOS 8 will be accompanied by the announcement of iPhone 6. Notably, the look of the upcoming iOS 8 will not be any different from that of iOS 7. The new update will bring a number of new features and fixes to iPhones and iPads.

Readers who are interested in knowing the full set of features expected from iOS 8 update - Click here.

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Turn Your iPad Into a Desktop with This iOS 7 Cydia Tweak

You might have dreamed in the past how you wish iOS was more like OS X, bringing a desktop-like experience to the iPad with the ability to have multiple windows open and work on two different apps side-by-side. A new iOS 7 Cydia tweak takes that dream and makes it a reality.

It’s aptly called OS Experience and it allows users with a jailbroken iPad to bring a bit of OS X over to iOS by letting users switch between apps using an interface similar to OS X’s Mission Control, as well as snapping apps so that you can truly multi-task and use two apps at the same time side-by-side, similar to Windows 8 tablets and Samsung Galaxy tablets.

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Windows Phone 8.1 review: Decent upgrade, but we won’t get the best part

The latest Windows Phone 8.1 update has been making all the right noises, mostly because it has added a Siri-like personal assistant called Cortana, the popular artificial intelligence character in the Halo series of video games. Cortana is now available on Beta in the US and a handful of other countries, but is unlikely to come to India in the near future. So, when I got the opportunity to review the updated OS, I thought it would be better to focus on features that we will get to use here.

The live tiles that set apart Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 gets something extra in Windows Phone 8.1. You can now add a start background to the tiles in the form of an image that flows behind the apps. The entire effect really stands apart from the other OS as you are not changing the homescreen image, but the image behind the tiles. You can add a third column of tiles now, which means there is lesser scrolling to do. However, I would liked the option to have a tile that runs over the entire screen, which is not available at the moment. But the real personal touch for me was the ability to call images from Facebook albums on the lock screen. Every time there is a new image there that can bring a smile to your face or a flood of memories.

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iOS 8 rumors: Healthbook, wireless CarPlay, better Maps, and more

The next version of Apple’s mobile operating system, iOS 8, is expected to be revealed in June. Unlike iOS 7, which brought a total design overhaul, many new features, and a raft of functionality changes, rumors point to iOS 8 being more of an upgraded version of the previous generation.

Provided Apple doesn’t break with tradition, iOS 8 won’t be released until later this year, perhaps around September or October, along with the next generation iPhone. However, Apple usually gives us a preview of the more exciting new features at WWDC, which begins on June 2. Let’s take a look at what we’ve heard about iOS 8 so far.

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Apple iOS 8 Preview: Everything We’re Expecting

In less than a month, Apple will kick off its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in San Francisco. Apple typically uses this event to unveil new versions of its mobile and desktop operating systems, and WWDC 2014 should be no different.

At last year’s event, iOS 7 was easily the star of the show. The new version of Apple's mobile operating system was packed with the most striking visual and functional changes since the very first iPhone launched in 2007. iOS 7 was the first version of iOS directly managed by Apple’s lead designer, Sir Jony Ive, who took over “human interface” duties in late 2012 after longtime iOS chief Scott Forstall got the boot following the disastrous launch of the Apple Maps app as part of iOS 6.

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Windows Phone 8.1 hands-on: The good, the bad, and the ugly

Windows Phone has had a troubled history sinceits disappointing debut in 2010. Each version has suffered major functional gaps, making it clearly inferior to the iPhone and to the Android smartphone versions available, despite its very slick user interface. There was no cut and paste, for example, in the first version -- and no business-security features until the third version, 8.0, in 2012.

Windows Phone 8.1, which is slowly rolling out throughout the world this spring and summer, closes more of the gaps but continues the unfortunate tradition at Microsoft of lagging behind the competition. Based on my use of the beta version of Windows Phone 8.1 that Microsoft made available to InfoWorld, Microsoft still hasn't caught up, much less pulled ahead. Yet Windows Phone 8.1 is the first version I would suggest you at least consider as an option. You'll probably still choose an iPhone or an Android smartphone, but some users will find Windows Phone a surprisingly pleasant choice.

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Evad3rs Asks to “Stay Away From” iOS 7.1 Jailbreak for iPhone

Popular hacking group Evad3rs has asked fellow hackers who jailbreak iPhone that they should not update to the iOS 7.1. In fact, it has asked them to avoid it completely. The hacking group, on the other hand, did not mention any reason why people should stay away from the update.

According to Air Herald, Evad3rs may not work on the iOS 7.1 update any more. While it tweeted on February 23 that its support for iOS 7.0.6 was live at its official Web site, it was unclear if it would work on the iOS 7.1 anymore. @MuscleNerd, one of the members of the hacking group, tweeted exactly two months later on April 23 that jailbreakers should "stay away from" the update. Several users apparently failed to understand why such appeal was made. @Fernando_Mejiaa asked him to "promise a jailbreak" for the iOS 7.1 update. @shadowbottle wondered if there was "any possibility of a 7.1.x Jailbreak" before the iOS 8.x hit the market.

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