pod2G Reveals Details About Corona Untether For iOS 5.0.1

iOS hacker pod2G has provided some more details about the Corona untether that has been used by the iPhone Dev team and Chronic Dev team in Redsn0w and Corona Untether jailbreak app for iOS 5.0.1. pod2G explains what he was … Continue reading →

Daily Tip: How to setup Emoji keyboard shortcuts in iOS 5

Curious about how to make it easier to insert Emoji icons into a text message, email or iMessage? Switching between the normal keyboard and the Emoji keyboard, navigating to the emoticon you’re looking for, then switching back to the normal keyboard to resume typing can be tiresome. Luckily, you can use Emoji much more efficiently thanks to keyboard shortcuts in iOS 5.

Before getting started, you’ll have to enable the Emoji keyboard from within the Settings app.

1. Tap the Settings app on your Home screen
2. Tap General settings
3. Scroll down and tap Keyboard
4. Next, tap International Keyboards
5. Tap Add New Keyboard
6. Now, just scroll down a bit until you see the option for Emoji and tap it

At this point, your keyboard setup will allow you to switch over to the Emoji keyboard by tapping the small globe next to the 123 button.

All you have to do next is setup your own custom keyboard shortcuts for emoticons now that you have the Emoji keyboard enabled.

1. Tap the Settings app on your Home screen
2. Tap General settings
3. Scroll down and tap Keyboard
4. At the very bottom of the Keyboard settings pane, tap Shortcuts
5. Tap the ‘+‘ button in the upper right-hand corner
6. In the Phrase field, call up the Emoji keyboard (see above for instructions) and select your desired emoticon
7. Input the specific shortcut you’d like to use for the corresponding emoticon

That’s it! This tip saves boatloads of time when trying to input Emoji and it’s a total no-brainer with the new keyboard shortcut feature in iOS 5.

Thanks @kcmon for the tip!

Daily Tips range from beginner-level 101 to advanced-level ninjary. If you already know this tip, keep the link handy as a quick way to help a friend. If you have a tip of your own you’d like to suggest, add them to the comments or send them in to dailytips@tipb.com.

2011 boasts record holiday season for online shopping, especially from mobile devices

2011 has only just ended, but I have a sneaking suspicion that even when we look back on it in another 12 months from now, we'll find a pretty revolutionary year in terms of the quality and quantity of our shopping. For example, UI expert and project leader Luke Wroblewski has compiled a list of facts about shopping during the holiday season last year, and the list provides a lot of solid insight on just how different 2011 was.

Online buying was up both on Christmas Day and during the holiday season as a whole, and a large percentage of that buying was done with mobile devices. Over 90 percent of mobile device shopping was done with iPads and iPhones, making 2011 a really landmark year in how we use these devices to make purchases and spend money.

Spending on these devices wasn't always for material goods, either. App downloads were up by 125 percent on Christmas Day last year, which makes it a record day not only for 2011, but for the history of both the iOS and Android marketplaces. The week ending December 18 and the last shopping weekend before Christmas were both record periods for spending overall.

In other words, this past holiday season was kind of a landmark in more than a few different ways. We'll have to see how the industry reacts to this next year; there will likely be an even bigger emphasis on spending and shopping from mobile devices in the future.

2011 boasts record holiday season for online shopping, especially from mobile devices originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 02 Jan 2012 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

2011 boasts record holiday season for online shopping, especially from mobile devices originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 02 Jan 2012 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumor: January Apple event to focus on iBooks and publishing

Adding support to an earlier rumor concerning a January Apple event, Alexia Tsotsis of TechCrunch claims it’s indeed happening and will focus on iBooks and publishing.

The event will unveil improvements to the iBooks platform, according to the same source, and is not “major.”

So yeah, no iPad 3 or Apple Television but perhaps something to make Apple’s ebooks offering more competitive with Amazon’s industry leading Kindle platform?

Source: TechCrunch

Apple’s January Event to Focus on Publishing and eBooks

A rumored Apple event to be located in New York City later this month was originally reported to be "media-related" and not about an Apple television or iPad update. TechCrunch now reports the event will be focused on publishing and the iBookstore.

According to the source the event will not involve any hardware at and instead will focus on publishing and eBooks (sold through Apple’s iBooks platform) rather than iAds. Attendance also be more publishing industry-oriented than consumer.

One possible topic of the event is an expansion of the iBookstore to sell textbooks. In his biography of Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson said the textbook industry was one Jobs looking to revolutionize with the iPad.


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Forums: Positives and negatives about jailbreaking, Email security on WiFi

We’re now fully into 2012 and already, we’ve been hearing about some great things to come from Apple. Of course, we’ll have to wait and see what turns out to be true and what turns out to just be rumors but that’s part of the fun. Looking to discuss all things Apple? We’ve got a spot just for you in the TiPb forums, you can register now to get started today:

• iPhone 4S Forum: So.. I did a hard reset and…..
• iPhone 4 Forum: Getting control of auto sync activity
• iCloud Forum Calendars issue With iPhone 4S and iPad2
• iPad 2 Forum Email security in WiFi zones
• Jailbreak and Unlock Forum Positives and Negatives about JailBreaking your iPhone?

If you’re not already a member of the TiPb Forums, register now!

pod2g posts more details on Corona untether

pod2g has updated his blog with more details on how the Corona untether actually works. If the deep inner workings of exploits such as this interest you, it’s definitely something you’ll want to check out.

Using a fuzzer, I found after some hours of work that there’s a format string vulnerability in the racoon configuration parsing code! racoon is the IPsec IKE daemon (http://ipsec-tools.sourceforge.net/). It comes by default with iOS and is started when you setup an IPsec connection.

Now you got it, Corona is an anagram of racoon .

Corona will untether all current A4 devices that were previously tethered under iOS 5.0.1. Still no more news on when a jailbreak will be available for A5 devices, namely the iPhone 4S and iPad 2.

Source: pod2g

Rumor: Apple planning media event in New York later this month

According to All Things D, Apple is set to hold a media event in New York later this month. The news comes from sources close to the situation who told All Things D that the event is not related to the iPad 3 or a new Apple TV.

According to sources close to the situation, Apple is planning an important — but not large-scale — event to be held in New York at the end of this month that will focus on a media-related announcement.

The event will supposedly feature Apple’s SVP of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue who last attended an event when The Daily was launched last year. This could point to a similar announcement or it may even have something to do with the strange GameStore app that appeared in the App Store earlier today then vanished.

There is nothing official coming fom Apple just yet, but as soon as we hear more, we will let you know!

Source: AllThingsD

National Geographic Traveler Magazine arrives in Newsstand

The National Geographic Traveler Magazine has arrived in the App Store and it promises to bring some unique features to the iPad content. For starters, interactive photo galleries, 360 degree photos and detailed maps of areas covered.

Subscriptions to National Geographic Traveler magazine are now available! Download National Geographic Traveler magazine on iPad and you can get a sample issue for free!

The first paid issue available is January-February 2012 and it has some nice unique iPad features:-

• A Night at the Ball photo gallery — Swipe through images of lavishly costumed Carnevale celebrants in Venice.
• Expat Diary interactive— Tap to read the author’s reflections on a visit to Beijing based on advice from expats.
• Venice 360-degree photo — Pinch and zoom to experience a gondola ride along a canal while taking in a wide view of Venice.
• Short List interactive — Tap to see top events around the world.
• Ruaha National Park TravelWise — Swipe through essential information for visiting the wildlife in this Tanzanian park.
• Chandelier close-up —Tap to zoom in on the ceiling of the Royal Palace in Brussels and a chandelier made from Thai jewel beetles.
• Japan panoramic — Swipe to see extended views of Japan’s Shikoku island.
• Maps — Tap to view maps of Lisbon, Venice, Mexico, and a South African road trip.

The app will appear in the Newsstand app on your homescreen and not as a separate app like some other magazines. Once you load it, you can view a very short sample issue or subscribe to the magazine. An annual subscription will cost $15.99 for eight issues or you can pay $1.99 for a monthly subscription. If you just want to buy single issues, these will cost $3.99 each.

• App Store link

Have an app you’d love to see featured on TiPb? Email us at iosapps@tipb.com, tell us about your app (include an iTunes link), and we’ll take a look.

 

More hospitals using the iPad, iPhone to help increase efficiency

Hospitals are using the iPad more frequently to help improve employee efficiency, with the latest introduction being in the form of kiosks for doctors, nurses and staff.

The most appropriate “accessory” for this great tool is the iPad kiosk, a versatile frame that securely and conveniently holds the iPad in the most appropriate location for hospital staff use. In many instances, it is attached directly to a hospital’s diagnostic computer, where patient data can be integrated into an existing database for a more comprehensive picture of patient status.

Hospitals have been using the iPhone and iPad to help with communication and effectiveness just as airlines have adopted iOS devices for the same ultimate goal.

It is becoming more clear in the professional realm that Apple has products to help in virtually every field.

Source: Point of Sale via AppleInsider

Daily Apps: Commit, Calendarium, Affogato, Budget with Back in Black, FabuList

Commit: To really get good at something you need to do it everyday. Commit helps you form these habits in order to become fit, learn to draw, or learn a language.

• $0.99 for iPhone – App Store link

Calendarium: A new, easy to use calendar which gives you a new way to discover many interesting things about this day including historical events, times of sunrise/sunset, number of week, day, day length, moon phase and more.

• $0.99 for iPhone – App Store link

Affogato: Lets you browse through over 30 different types of coffee and get to grips with the daunting world of coffee-shop lingo as well as master the major brewing methods.

• $0.99 for iPhone – App Store link

Budget with Back in Black: Will help you understand and take control of your personal finances, one month at a time. It boils your finances down to the essentials: how much money you earn and spend every month, and where your money is going, to get you Back in the Black!

• $3.99 for iPhone – App Store link

FabuList: Free your mind from the endless mental notes and reminders of all the things you need to do. Clear your mind of those to-do things, and get them onto your device with ease.

• $4.99 for iPad – App Store link

Any other big app or game releases or updates today?

Have an app you’d love to see featured on TiPb? Email us at iosapps@tipb.com, tell us about your app (include an iTunes link), and we’ll take a look.

Apple gearing up for ‘media-related announcement’ later this month?

Leave it to Apple to completely avoid CES, yet be one of the largest stories surrounding its dates. Much like last year's invite to what would eventually be the introduction of Verizon's iPhone 4, All Things D has it on good authority that the folks in Cupertino are spending their first hours back on the job planning a "media-related announcement" for later this month. Contrary to earlier beliefs, we're told that this particular event won't be related to the next-gen iPad, and it's also "unlikely" to be connected to a "large-scale rethinking of its interactive television initiative."

So, knowing what it won't entail... what will be talked about? According to unnamed sources, Apple SVP of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue is reportedly involved. For those unaware, Cue is responsible for a sizable chunk of Apple's media units, not the least of which include the App Store, iBookstore, iTunes Store and iCloud. Sadly, details outside of that are few and far betwixt, but you can bet we'll be keeping an ear to the ground for more -- even if it's smack-dab in the middle of a Sony CES keynote. Cough.

Apple gearing up for 'media-related announcement' later this month? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Jan 2012 16:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple Planning ‘Media-Related’ Announcement in New York This Month?

AllThingsD reports that Apple is said to be planning a special event in New York for the end of this month. The event is reported to be for a "media-related announcement" and not for the iPad 3 or an Apple television set.

According to sources close to the situation, Apple is planning an important — but not large-scale — event to be held in New York at the end of this month that will focus on a media-related announcement.

Per the usual caveat, the tech giant is well known for moving around their public show-and-tells, so this could certainly change at any moment.

As the report notes, the New York location makes it likely that the announcement has something to do with advertising or publishing. Several of Apple's media and advertising units under senior vice president Eddy Cue have significant presences in New York City, and Cue is also said to be set to play a role in the event.

Apple participated in a pair of New York-based media events last year, although both of those were primarily hosted by other companies: the Verizon iPhone introduction and the launch of The Daily. The company had previously been a participant in Macworld Expo events held in New York, but that event ceased to exist a number of years ago and Apple has now pulled out of trade shows entirely.


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Engadget: now available in Google Currents!

Here at Engadget, we like to live in this wild, ever-changing world called "The Internet." Last month, Google launched yet another branch for internet dwellers to explore, and explore we have. We're happy to say that you can now find each and every Engadget post within Google Currents, a Flipboard-esque reader that nicely formats your favorite websites for magazine-style enjoyment. We'll be working on tweaking the experience based on feedback received, and we certainly hope you'll have a gander if you're already building out your subscriptions.

Currents is available for both iOS and Android platforms, and while Google's limiting the official downloads to accounts based in America, there's a decent chance you can use Google's own search engine to find an APK to sideload. Give it a look if you're clamoring for a more subtle design (just hit 'Add' and look in the Science & Tech category), and while you're at it, have a gander at Engadget Distro, too. Enjoy!

Engadget: now available in Google Currents! originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mac Pro Build-to-Order Ship Dates Slip as Future Remains Uncertain

Just before Christmas, shipping estimates for Apple's 12-core Mac Pro model increased to 1-3 weeks, and while that specific model does tend to occasionally see some extra lead time, the shipping delays were later noticed to have extended to nearly any customized Mac Pro order. Even as simple a customization as increasing the RAM on an "In Stock" standard Mac Pro configuration increases its shipping estimate to 1-3 weeks.


Quad-core Mac Pro shipping estimate bumped to 1-3 weeks by upgrading RAM
Increases in shipping estimates in Apple's online store can sometimes be indicative of an upcoming product refresh as the company draws down supplies ahead of launching the updated models. The Mac Pro is most certainly due for an update, and there are several indications that components may be coming together for a significant upgrade to the line.

Most importantly, Intel's Sandy Bridge E Xeon processors are due for launch during the first quarter of this year after having been delayed from a late 2011 debut. Rumors have suggested, however, that continued issues with the chipset portion of the "Romley" platform utilizing the Sandy Bridge E Xeon processors may see a release being held back until the beginning of March, still several months from now.

On the graphics front, evidence of support for AMD's "Tahiti" line of graphics cards has been showing up in developer builds of OS X 10.7.3, and just a week and half ago AMD officially unveiled the first Tahiti graphics card for a January launch.

But while the pieces seem to be coming together at the right time for a substantial Mac Pro upgrade, a bigger question is whether the line will even continue to survive long enough to see another update. A late October report claimed that Apple is "questioning" the future of the Mac Pro given declining sales as customers have continued a trend of shifting toward portable computers, and we've heard similar rumblings that even pinpointed a discontinuation date in January.

Consequently, it is difficult to speculate on whether increased shipping estimates for custom configurations might be due to Apple tightening supplies ahead of a refresh or if the company could be drawing down production entirely ahead of a discontinuation of the line.


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iOS ends 2011 with 52% of mobile Web browsing

iOS began 2011 by grabbing more than half of the mobile browser market share and ended 2011 equally strong. According to mobile web browsing data from Net Applications, which counts unique visitors to its network of websites, iOS accounted for 54.07% of the mobile browser market in January 2011 and dropped slightly to 52.10% by the end of the year.

The mobile platform stayed mostly steady in the intervening months, but there were a few fluctuations. Market share climbed to 61.50% in October 2011, presumably fueled by the launch of the iPhone 4S, and fell as low as 46.57% in February 2011. This dip might be the result of the iPad 2. Some original iPad owners may have sold their tablet in anticipation of the iPad 2, which was unveiled in early March.

Among its competitors, Android climbed from 12.75% to 16.29%, while Symbian fell from 7.40% to 5.76%. Other platforms remained about the same with only minor changes in market share.

These figures are interesting because they don't fit in with other metrics that show Android is the leading mobile OS. When you look at activations and handset sales, there are more Android handsets being sold than Apple iPhones. Consequently, you would expect Android to have a larger market share than it does. So why the discrepancy?

This difference is likely the result of mobile Safari which, in my opinion, offers a better browsing experience than Android. Mobile Safari is an excellent browser, which was made even better now that it supports tabs on the iPad. Safari for iOS also loads pages quickly and is very responsive to multitouch gestures like pinch to zoom.

Though Android's mobile browser is decent, it just isnt as smooth or polished as iOS. Scrolling can be choppy, copying text from pages is clunky and Adobe Flash seems to slow things down. It's a capable browser that'll serve up information, but it doesn't have the same enjoyable experience as iOS.

[Via AppleInsider]

iOS ends 2011 with 52% of mobile Web browsing originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iOS ends 2011 with 52% of mobile Web browsing originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gizmon iCA Case Converts Your iPhone Into a Vintage Camera

There is something about wanting to give your gadget a vintage look, that fascinates a lot of people. We’ve seen cases that make your iPhone look like the Sony Walkman, Lego Bricks, Polaroids, NES controllers, gameboy, books, those giant phones back in the … Continue reading →

Japanese Apple Fans Line Up for Annual ‘Lucky Bag’ Discounts

Tech in Asia reports on the Japanese tradition of "lucky bags" in which retailers celebrate the new year by offering customers grab bags filled with unknown items at a substantial discount from their retail prices. In exchange for the substantial discounts, customers must simply accept whatever products are in the bags.


Apple lucky bag with iPad 2, Smart Cover, Camera Connection Kit, headphones, and more
Apple offers some of the most highly sought-after lucky bags, with customers paying hundreds of dollars for bags hoping to receive their favorite big-ticket items. This year's lucky bags from Apple were sold for 33,000 yen, or the equivalent of about $430.

I always considered myself a pretty big Apple fan, but this event seems to bring out the most hard-core fanboys. Back in 2010 I tried to queue for a lucky bag, arriving at the store at 5am only to find that overnight campers had filled all the spots. This year the bag cost 33000 yen (about $430), and most customers are hoping that there will be a big ticket item inside like an iPad 2 or a Macbook Air.

Japanese blog Macotakara posts a gallery of photos showing the contents of several lucky bags, with the biggest prize being an 11-inch MacBook Air bundled with a sleeve for the computer, a Magic Mouse, and a pair of headphones. Other lucky bags shown in the gallery offered either a 16 GB Wi-Fi iPad 2 or an 8 GB iPod touch as the main item.




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Apple Stores In Japan Participate In ‘Lucky Bag’ Tradition

‘Lucky bag’ or Fukubukuro is a Japanese New Year’s Day tradition, where bags with unknown merchandise are sold at huge discounts. Japanese Apple Stores prepare such lucky bags on every New Year’s Day since 2004, and they’re quite a hit with consumers. … Continue reading →

Bug: iOS 5 Newsstand icons out of place on iPhone and iPad Home screen

The other day I noticed an oddity on the Home screen of my iPad 2 One of the magazines that I’m subscribed to decided to jump out of the Newsstand folder and place itself on the Home screen.

I’m not exactly sure what caused this — maybe it’s the fact that I haven’t updated this specific subscription since I first downloaded it — but for whatever reason, after I performed a normal power cycle the magazine decided to randomly plop itself smack dab in the middle of my homescreen.

At first, I attempted to move the magazine icon back into the Newsstand folder, but that didn’t work because the icon refused to enter jiggly-mode. In addition, I couldn’t delete the subscription app because tap-and-hold wasn’t working at all. Another aspect of the bug is that one of my favorite apps, Bloomberg TV+, had been removed from the Home screen completely (although it was still accesible via Spotlight search).

What’s more, after performing a full restore of iOS 5.0.1, the same exact thing happened on my iPad, removing the Settings app from my iPhone Home screen not allowing it to to enter jiggly-mode in order to delete the magazine download.

Keep in mind, this bug is not incapacitating, but it is frustrating to see a big fat rectangular icon on your Home screen.

Issue

• Magazine and newspaper subscriptions from Newsstand place themselves on the Home screen after reboot or restore
• Upon attempting to remove the magazine/newspaper download, tap-and-hold as well as app deletion no longer works
• Depending on how many subscriptions have this bug, you will lose the same amount of app icons from your Home screen once the problem arises

Possible causes

• Failure to update effected subscription(s) over a certain threshold of time (unconfirmed)

Fix

• Perform an additional power cycle after you notice the issue on your iPhone or iPad, then tap-and-hold to remove the effected subscription(s)

We’ve decided to cross-post this in the TiPb bugs forum to see if anyone else might be running into the same issue. If you know of a simpler fix — or better yet, a confirmed explanation of what’s going on here — drop a comment in this post or jump into the forums to help other users who may be less fortunate if this specific fix doesn’t work out for them.