Jun
19
2013
0
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Giveaway: Enter to Win an O’Hare iPad Sleeve

Posted by at 9:37 am

iPad_Lookbook

iFans is pleased to announce, in collaboration with stylish accessory maker Blue Claw Co., our giveaway of the O’Hare iPad Sleeve (valued at $75.00). To enter the giveaway, simply post a comment with the color sleeve you would prefer: black, tan, charcoal, navy or olive. Do make sure that you read the complete giveaway rules and details to ensure that you are eligible to enter.

The O’Hare iPad Sleeve is designed with premium materials, including 15 oz waxed canvas, full-grain leather, a signature blue cotton liner and brass hardware. The sleeve has a waterproof exterior that is accented with stitched edges and a leather slip for quick access. The sleeve is engineered to work with all four generations of iPad models, with or without a Smart Cover attached.  (more…)

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Jun
19
2013
11
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The Difference Between iOS and Android

Posted by at 7:55 am

The Difference Between iOS and Android

Android iOS LogosAndre Behrens at Medium:

The war between iOS and Android is a contest between two viewpoints — and between two economic systems. Android operates as something like a market, while Apple runs as a planned economy.

Consider keyboards. iOS ships with a keyboard. You can have any keyboard you want, as long as it’s that one. The advantage is that you can pick up any iPhone and know exactly how the keyboard works. You also can rest assured that no one has a better or worse keyboard than you.

The disadvantage is that the keyboard gets better at a pace Apple decides upon, and contains only the ideas Apple generates. Given my experience owning iOS and Android devices over the years, I have to question the value of Apple’s monopoly power over their system’s keyboard. Swiping has been a wonderful addition to mobile text entry, but Apple didn’t think it up, and if you own an iPhone, you can’t use it.

Google takes a different approach. Android comes with a default keyboard. It has steadily improved over the years, but in the old days, it was mediocre. This wasn’t a problem for the motivated user, because Android allows most of its components to be replaced. Download a new keyboard, turn it on, select it, and you’re on your way. It isn’t just easy, it’s possible.

Behrens is not advocating that either iOS or Android is better than the other, but does make a good point about how the ecosystems differ between the two platforms. iPhone users are forced to accept the changes that Apple makes — until a jailbreak comes out — while Android users have more flexibility and less consistency.

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Jun
18
2013
26
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7 Beautiful Alternatives to the Current iOS 7 Icons

Posted by at 6:42 pm

iOS 7 Icons 1

A week has passed since Apple seeded the first iOS 7 beta to developers, and the home icons remain one greatly debated area of the overhauled software platform. For those that can’t stand the look of the new icons, at least partially, we’ve put together a roundup of seven beautiful alternative icon sets that will make you wish these designers worked at Apple. Even if you do like the look of the current icons, it’s hard not to appreciate the quality design that follows ahead.  (more…)

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Jun
18
2013
14
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iOS 7 Beta Reveals That Apple is Testing LinkedIn Integration

Posted by at 4:24 pm

linkedin-logo

Apple continues to ramp up its integration of social networks on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, and new strings discovered by Hamza Sood within the iOS 7 beta reveal that Apple has been testing so-called “deep” LinkedIn integration across the platform.

As reported by Mark Gurman at 9to5Mac, the code suggests that there would be a single sign-on system for LinkedIn accounts, akin to how Facebook and Twitter are integrated in iOS.  (more…)

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Jun
18
2013
7
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Apple Extends OS X 10.9, iOS 7 Betas to Retail Employees and Locals

Posted by at 4:05 pm

OS X Mavericks

Apple announced the latest versions of iOS and OS X at its Worldwide Developers Conference keynote last week, and now it is looking for its retail employees and local Cupertino residents to provide feedback on the platforms. In addition to releasing new versions of the operating systems to engineers and registered developers, Mark Gurman for 9to5Mac reports that Apple is now seeding the pre-release software to its Genius Bar and on-floor retail employees for testing.  (more…)

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Jun
18
2013
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Cydia: ‘The Quick Brown Fox’ Enhances Your Stock iOS Keyboard

Posted by at 12:07 pm

Quick Brown Fox Jailbreak Tweak Cydia

The Quick Brown Fox is a new jailbreak tweak for iOS that adds a number of new features to the stock keyboard on iPhone and iPod touch. For starters, Auto Twins automatically inserts a closing pair of the sign you type. If you type an opening bracket or parentheses, for instance, this tweak will automatically insert the matching closing mark right next to it.

Furthermore, enabling Auto Space will insert a space automatically following specific keys that you enable. This functionality is similar to the space that is automatically added after you finish a sentence with a period, but expanded for other characters such as exclamation marks, number signs or colons.  (more…)

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Jun
18
2013
8
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Apple: Promote Quality, Not Quantity, on the App Store

Posted by at 10:24 am

app store apps

Apple’s iOS App Store has skyrocketed in terms of the number of applications available. Everything, from fart apps to professional drawing suites, exists — and with that massive number comes a sort of digital clutter. Search for a broad term, and dozens upon dozens of results are returned. In order to stand out, developers have to make decisions: doesn’t it make sense to name an app with a term that is popular in searches (example: the rise of the “insta” prefix)? Shouldn’t a developer make their application free, and then use in-app purchases to monetize the program?

Both of those questions can justifiably be answered with a “yes,” but answering in the affirmative isn’t necessarily good for iOS or the App Store as an ecosystem. (more…)

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Jun
18
2013
22
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iOS 7 Hidden Settings Reveal Folders Within Folders, New Gestures and More

Posted by at 8:36 am

Hidden iOS 7 Settings 1 Hidden iOS 7 Settings 2

Apple seeded the first iOS 7 beta to developers last week, and users continue to discover lesser-known “easter egg” features throughout the new software. Hamza Sood was doing some prodding of his own, and managed to uncover hidden internal settings for animations, gestures, multitasking and more. He posted his findings on Twitter and shared the video below with Mark Gurman at 9to5Mac.

Before you get too excited, it’s important to note that these settings are not currently available to those running iOS 7 beta without some “unspecified tweaking.” Sood has not elaborated on how he gained access to these menus himself, or whether this discovery was made through the iOS Simulator or on an actual retail device.  (more…)

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Jun
17
2013
17
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HTC One Confirmed to Receive Android 4.2.2

Posted by at 7:21 pm

HTC One Stock Android

Taiwanese handset maker HTC on Monday confirmed that it will be seeding Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean to its flagship HTC One smartphone, although it did not provide a specific timeframe for the update. The HTC One, which currently runs Android 4.1 with HTC Sense on top, was released in late April alongside the Samsung Galaxy S4.

For those that would prefer not to wait, Google will be releasing an HTC One running stock Android on June 26th. The smartphone will initially launch in the United States, running on AT&T and T-Mobile, with the 32 GB model retailing for $599 through the Google Play online store. The handset will run Android 4.2.2 out of the box.

According to R.W. Baird’s William Power, speaking with Barron’s, the HTC One has positioned itself as the third-best selling smartphone in the United States on AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile, behind the iPhone and Galaxy S4. The device features a 4.7-inch display, 1.7 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 2 GB RAM and 4-megapixel UltraPixel camera.

Sources: Engadget, Barron’s

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Jun
17
2013
7
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Jonathan Ive’s Title at Apple Condensed to ‘SVP of Design’

Posted by at 6:56 pm

Jonathan IveJonathan Ive, the creative brainchild behind iOS 7 and the hardware design of iPhone, iPad, iPod and Mac, now has the shortened title of Senior Vice President of Design at Apple. Ive, an award-winning and world-famous designer, was previously known as the Senior Vice President of Industrial Design.

While his new title at Apple is condensed, it in no way means that Ive has been demoted to a lesser role at the Cupertino-based corporation. In fact, quite to the contrary, the change reflects his expanded responsibilities of overseeing both hardware and software design.  (more…)

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