SwipeCam: swipe the camera icon to reveal Lock screen toggles

SwipeCam is an upcoming jailbreak tweak that allows you to use your Lock screen camera toggle as a gateway to more options.

SwipeCam only works with the old Lock screen camera interface, so that means devices below iOS 5.1.

Once the tweak is installed, simply enabled it, invoke your Lock screen camera shortcut, and swipe on the camera icon to reveal the additional toggles…

The tweak has yet to be released on Cydia, but as of this writing there were only two toggles available for use — Airplane Mode and WiFi.

At the tweak’s reported $1.49 asking price, I have to admit that it’s pretty steep considering the amount of options you get.

SwipeCam should be available for download tomorrow on Cydia. Be sure to share your thoughts about the tweak below.

Rockstar’s Max Payne to land on iOS April 12th

Attention iOS gamers, Rockstar — the makers of hit titles like Grand Theft Auto – has just announced that it will be bringing its popular third person shooter Max Payne to iOS this month.

The Payne franchise has had quite a run in the PC/console gaming realm, selling more than 7.5 million copies. And Rockstar is hoping that its popularity will transfer over into the iOS platform…
The premise of Max Payne is pretty easy to follow. The main character is essentially a rogue DEA (drug enforcement administration) agent who turns into a one-man-army vigilante after his wife and daughter are murdered by junkies high on a new drug.

According to the developers, the game has been completely optimized for iOS devices and will feature HD graphics, high-resolution textures, and user-customizable controls. It will support the iPhone 3GS, 4 and 4S, the iPod touch 4, and all three iPads.

Rockstar hasn’t announced prices yet, but judging by the company’s previous releases, we wouldn’t be surprised to see it priced at $4.99 when it hits the App Store next Thursday.

Are you excited to see Max Payne come to iOS?

Jobs’ biographer says the CEO’s disdain for Android was real

Yesterday, Google’s Larry Page sparked some controversy with some comments he made regarding Steve Jobs. In an interview with Businessweek, the CEO suggested that Jobs’ disdain for Android was more for show than anything else.

But Walter Isaacson, author of the Apple founder’s popular biography, tells a different story. Isaacson gave a lecture at the Royal Institution in the UK last night, and had no problem clearing the air about Jobs’ feelings on Google’s mobile OS…
The biographer said that Jobs felt like this was “history repeating itself,” and compared his feelings on Android to those he felt when he accused Microsoft of ripping off Apple’s Lisa GUI back in the early 1980s.

MacWorld UK, who was at the lecture, passes along some of Isaacson’s comments:

“He did the integrated system again, iPod, iPad, and it worked, “but what happens? Google rips it off.” Isaacson continued: “It’s almost copied verbatim by Android. And then they license it around promiscuously. And then Android starts surpassing Apple in market share, and this totally infuriated him. It wasn’t a matter of money. He said: ‘You can’t pay me off, I’m here to destroy’.”

Considering the onslaught of lawsuits we’ve seen Apple file against Android manufacturers over the past few years, this theory makes much more sense than Larry Page’s take on how Jobs felt about the Google’s operating system.

It’s also probably safe to say that Isaacson knew Jobs much better than Google’s CEO, as he spent an enormous amount of time with him while researching for his book

AppMosaic: an upcoming App Store discovery tool from Cydia

AppMosaic is an upcoming jailbreak app that brings App Store App discovery to your iDevice by means of Cydia.

I believe this is probably the first app of its kind on Cydia, and for that, AppMosaic gets major props for originality.

Upon opening the app, you’re presented with a two sided column that composes a full mosaic of app icons. The left side of the column is dedicated to the top 200 paid apps, and the right side is for the top 200 free apps.

Check out our full video walkthrough to see how AppMosaic can help you discover hidden gems on the App Store…

Tapping on one of the app icons featured on the mosaic will provide you with a few brief details about the app via a panel at the bottom of the screen. Tapping this panel will whisk you away to the App in question via the App Store app.

As it stands, AppMosaic is an interesting (if not ironic) jailbreak app that provides discovery for App Store apps that you may have overlooked. AppMosaic will be a free download, and should be available via Cydia in the near future.

Let us know what you think about AppMosaic in the comments below.


Does Apple have an obligation to create more American jobs?

At this point, it’s fairly common knowledge that Apple outsources its manufacturing work overseas. Labor is much cheaper in countries like China, where there are no minimum wage laws, so it’s a huge draw for companies looking to lower their costs.

But not everyone’s ok with this. CNN’s Clyde Prestowitz recently wrote an article entitled “Apple has an obligation to help solve America’s problems.” The piece is essentially about the company’s lack of job creation in the US, and what it should do about it…
Prestowitz writes:

“As a business, Apple has a right to fear that moving the assembly work from China to the United States will entail raising labor costs so high as to make the company less competitive and profitable. But for it to say that it has no obligation to help solve America’s problems is completely unacceptable.”

That’s a pretty outlandish claim — to say that because Apple has become extremely successful, and because it’s headquartered in America, that it should put domestic job creation ahead of its own business needs. I have to agree with The Loop‘s Jim Dalrymple here:

“The problems in the U.S. economy are not for Apple to resolve. They pay taxes — I’m sure they pay a lot of taxes — and they employ tens of thousands of Americans in high paying jobs. Apple is not a charity, nor should it make business decisions based on a country’s needs or wants. Apple has one financial responsibility — to make money for its shareholders.”

Apple has come under heavy fire during the past few months over its refusal to bring its manufacturing jobs into America. In fact, the criticism has prompted the company to create a new section on its website explaining its value to the US work force.

I’ll be the first to admit that it would awesome if Apple could find a way to create more jobs in the US — I’d say the same thing for any company. But to say that it’s obligated to do so is a bit ridiculous.

What’s your take on this? Does Apple have an obligation to create more American jobs?

How secure is your iCloud data?

To say that iCloud is a big deal for Apple is a bit of an understatement. The cloud-based storage and backup service was launched just 6 months ago, alongside the iPhone 4S and iOS 5, and has already garnered more than 100 million users.

But its quick rise in popularity and deep integration into Apple’s software has led to one major question: how secure is it? Well the folks over at ArsTechnica recently spoke with some software security experts to find out…
According to Robby Gulri, Echoworx’s vice president, iCloud uses the best security practices in the industry including SSL transmission and on-disk 128 bit encryption. He also commends Apple for its recent move to ban developer access to Unique Device IDs.

That’s the good news. The bad news, however, is that if Apple ever wanted to, it could view any and all of your iCloud data. Forensic data analysis expert Jonathan Zdziarski points out an interesting portion of iCloud’s Terms and Conditions:

“However, Apple reserves the right at all times to determine whether Content provided by others and has no duty to pre-screen such Content. However, Apple reserves the right at all times to determine whether Content is appropriate and in compliance with this Agreement, and may pre-screen, move, refuse, modify and/or remove Content at any time, without prior notice and in its sole discretion, if such Content is found to be in violation of this Agreement or is otherwise objectionable.”

So how does Apple access your information if its encrypted? Ars explains that the company “holds the master decryption key” which would enable it to essentially decrypt and review any user’s iCloud data if needed.

Should you be worried? No. The bottom line here is that your iCloud data is well-protected — well, from everyone outside of Apple. And it sounds like they will only access your files if it’s pertinent to a legal matter.

Do you use iCloud? Do you ever worry about security?

Popular Dolphin browser gets voice control, URL keyboard, night mode

Dolphin, a popular third-party Android browser, finally got ported to the iPhone last August. It’s seen more than ten million total downloads on both platforms since. Featuring custom gestures, a clever user interface design, advanced features and many customizable options, it’s the favorite non-Apple browser on my iPhone.

Developer MoboTap Inc. updated the iPhone version of Dolphin today with half a dozen nice-to-haves, including the all-new voice control capability dubbed Sonar. Just shake your device or tap the mic icon and tell Dolphin what to search for. Voice input works with any site that has search or text fields.

This lets you not only search for eBay items, but update your Facebook status, post a tweet and more – all just by using your voice. Sonar also lets you speak commands to bookmark your favorite website and control other features of the app.
Dolphin for iPhone is a free download from the App Store.

In addition to the Sonar feature, the new version also brings back the popular URL keyboard, four different search engine options, three font size choices and the new night mode that dims the screen with a touch of the button.

The app also brings the usual stability and performance improvements as well as the ability to save images directly to your camera roll, like Safari.

Here’s a promo clip highlighting Sonar.

nTelos lands the iPhone on April 20 with a $50 discount and unlimited everything

Regional carrier nTelos Wireless announced this morning via a press release that it will carry Apple’s iconic smartphone from Friday, April 20. The latest iPhone 4S will be priced at $149.99 for the 16GB model, $249.99 for the 32GB model and $349.99 for the 64GB model, the carrier said. The previous-generation 8GB iPhone 4 will be available for $49.99.

These prices entail a new 24-month contract. Unlike AT&T and Verizon Wireless, nTelos offers nationwide plans starting at $79 a month, with unlimited everything for $99 a month. They, however, throttle data after 5GB.

All iPhone models will be available in their retail and online stores and through telesales. nTelos stores will open early at 7am on the launch day. If you live in an area with nTelos covearge and are in the market for an iPhone, you can pre-register your interest starting today at their website.
nTelos is the second regional carrier to sell Apple’s popular handset. The first was C-Spire Wireless, a southeastern regional operator, which now offers the entry-level iPhone 4S for just $149.

The Waynesboro, Virginia-headquartered nTelos Wireless has over 400,00 customers and operates a CDMA PCS network in Virginia, West Virginia and portions of Maryland, Ohio, Kentucky and North Carolina. Currently, they offer 1XRTT and REV. A EVDO using Alcatel-Lucent technology.

Here, the plans they have on offer…

With a $50 hardware discount compared to the big three (Verizon, AT&T and Sprint) and the unlimited everything option, nTelos certainly has a tempting offering up their sleeve.

How do nTelos’ prices compare to your carrier’s deals?


RIM posts BlackBerry Mobile Fusion server with enterprise support for iOS devices

The ailing BlackBerry maker Research In Motion today released the BlackBerry Mobile Fusion enterprise server software, first announced last November.

Among the features is built-in support for tablets and smartphones running Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android software.

This is the first time RIM comprehensively supported iOS mobile devices in a major corporate enterprise server software.
So that’s what this job vacancy was all about…

According to a company blog post, iPhones, iPads and iPod touches are supported, as well as Android-drive smartphones and tablets. In addition, the new tool works with RIM’s own BlackBerry 7 and earlier smartphones (including BlackBerry 10 smartphones in the future) and the PlayBook family of tablets.

Among the list of features aimed at IT managers is the ability to detect jailbreak exploits and roots, deploy apps, enable access to enterprise services, activate and configure devices and profiles for various phones and more.

Here’s a nice video showcasing the BlackBeerry Mobile Fusion tool.

Chronic: Two-minute iPhone crack valid only if passcode is 0000

Remember that two-minute passcode lock exploit we told you about last week? The one by Swedish security firm Micro Systemation behind the XRY app that can get to your data, including contacts, messages and call logs? Well, prominent hacker Chronic has proved them wrong. In an effort to set the record straight, the hacker posted a clarification on his website that pretty much debunks their claim.

Though the XYR tool taps a popular jailbreak exploit, Chronic is adamant the two minutes it takes to crack your passcode is only valid if you set your passcode to ’000′. Conspicuously, that’s the passcode the firm showed in their demo clip. Interesting enough, the original video of the exploit in action is no longer available on YouTube.
The two-minute passcode crack is a “linkbait”, explains the prominent hacker who goes by his real name Will Strafach. According to his blog post from yesterday, the Micro Systemation exploit only holds true if your passcode is set to ’0000′, adding:

The only “special” thing XRY has done is create a tool that is simple enough to be utilized by LE personnel.

Furthermore, it won’t work on the iPhone 4S, iPad 2 and the new iPad.

The simpliest way to “thwart” the use of this software on your phone would be to get the latest model, because (as people who are farmilliar with jailbreaking know) the limera1n exploit is fixed in the bootrom of the A5 (iPad 2 and iPhone 4S) as well as the A5X (iPad 3) chip.

He’s also saying people unwilling to upgrade their device to the latest model can protect themselves from passcode-cracking tools such as Micro Systemation’s XYR app by setting a lengthier password.

Just open open Settings on your device, tap General, then Passcode Lock and disable the Simple Passcode toggle. This will help better secure your device as it takes “much longer than two minutes” to crack a lengthy passcode.

I must admit, I have my device protected with a simple four-digit passcode. I’m just not fond of long passwords as these take much longer to type in each time I unlock my device.

How about you? Do you use a simple passcode or a lengthier one?

Saurik pushes out Cydia update to remove April Fools’ joke

Those of you that appreciate a good prank might not want to install the new Cydia update. Saurik just announced that he has pushed out Cydia 1.1.6 to remove last year’s Twitter-inspired “dickbar” April Fools’ Day joke.

For those of you unfamiliar with the holiday, April Fools’ Day falls on the first day of April and is celebrated around the world with good-natured pranks and hoaxes. But apparently not everyone has a sense of humor…
Saurik explains:

“For April Fools’ 2011, I did a Twitter-inspired “dickbar” in Cydia; I apparently never removed the code and it just checks for “April 1″.  As many users just get confused and angry regarding Cydia’s April Fools’ jokes, I have pushed Cydia 1.1.6 (which removes the obsolete code).”

The move makes sense given that not everyone enjoys a practical joke as much as the next person. In fact, that’s the exact sentiment that keeps us from doing any kind of April Fools’ day posts here on iDB.

The bottom line here is that if you don’t install the new update, you’ll likely see an annoying scrolling ad-like banner in Cydia starting tomorrow. But it will disappear the following day.


Apple and publishers nearing eBooks settlement with DOJ

It appears that Apple may avoid going head to head with the Department of Justice over possible eBook price fixing, with the news from Reuters that the company behind iBooks and publishers may be close to coming to an agreement with the DOJ.

Earlier this month it was suggested that Apple and book publishers had been colluding in order to fix the price of electronic books, and with Apple already in so many court rooms it is clear that the firm could do without having to fight on yet another front.

Even Apple can’t take on everyone…
The situation revolves around how Apple’s distribution model works with publishers – Apple currently takes 30% of revenues, with publishers themselves setting the prices of individual books. Contrast this with Amazon’s own Kindle store, where the company had been buying books wholesale from publishers and then sets its own prices.

Apple’s move into the market, and with the new sales model, saw things change across the board, preventing Amazon from selling books as loss-leaders, and increasing the price of books at the same time.

Obviously publishers prefer the model where it gets the most money, and with talks still not completed, there is no saying where this will finish. With both Amazon and Apple having huge buying power, as well as clout with those that matter, it will be interesting to see how the situation concludes.

We’ll keep an eye on proceedings.