iPhone News

Apple stops signing iOS 10.1.1

Apple has stopped signing iOS 10.1 and 10.1.1 on Tuesday in a move that's sure to choke the jailbreak community a little bit further. It's typical of Apple to follow this kind of behavior after a new firmware release, so it's not surprising this would happen as iOS 10.2 was released just over a week ago.

With the firmware no longer being signed, downgrades to iOS 10.1.1 are currently no longer possible, so if you've upgraded to iOS 10.2 recently or need to do a fresh restore of iOS 10.1.1 in iTunes, then you're out of luck.

Bring your padlocks up to the 21st century with the Dog & Bone LockSmart Mini

Chances are you have a thing or two that you like to keep locked away with a padlock of some sort.

Whether you need it for a locker at school or work, or to keep a gate or shed closed at home, you can bring your padlocks up to the 21st century with the Dog and Bone LockSmart Mini, which utilizes wireless Bluetooth connectivity so you can unlock the padlock with your smartphone.

First wave of second-gen Pokémon now hatch from eggs as wild Pikachus start wearing Santa hats

Pokémon GO players are in for some goodies this week as Niantic is rolling out some of the first of the game’s second-generation Pokémon to players, with more than 100 additional monsters coming within the next few months.

The introduction of these new Pokémon is expected to renew player interest and give existing players something new to hunt after.

Pokémon GO update lets trainers transfer Pokémon in bulk and fixes bugs

Niantic has launched an update (version 1.19.1) for the popular Pokémon GO game on both the Android and iOS platforms on Thursday that addresses several bugs, as well as a highly-requested game improvement.

Those who catch many Pokémon know the struggle of having to transfer out the ones they don’t need to Professor Willow, one by one, but Thursday’s update now allows players to transfer a handful of unwanted Pokémon to the professor all at once.

Starbucks teams up with Pokémon GO as an official partner and adds more Pokéstops and gyms

Just yesterday, Niantic announced a partnership with Sprint to bring as many as 10,500 more Pokéstops and gyms to Pokémon GO, and today a similar partnership appears to be expanding to Starbucks coffee shops.

The announcement is a move to give players more flexibility in collecting necessary items to play the game, as well as to battle other players. Starbucks benefits out of the deal because it attracts potential customers to their locations.

How to convert any barcode into a pass for your Wallet with Pass2U Wallet

Based on the continuous growth of Wallet for ticketing services and Apple Pay, Apple’s bid to render cards and printouts a memory of the past has come a long way. Wallet makes handling and storing any type of ticket considerably simpler, which is why it is easy to get irritated today when presented with no other delivery option but an old-school paper pass. Thankfully Apple and other retailers are increasingly swinging towards the digital platform, but there are still countless cases where you just cannot add a ticket or voucher to your Wallet - even though it would make life so much easier.

Pass2U Wallet, a free app for iOS, taps into that need and conveniently bridges the gap. Just like Wallet itself it offers to scan hard copy barcodes in order to convert them to Wallet passes, however contrary to Apple’s Wallet it will practically work with any piece of paper imaginable. As such, Pass2U Wallet complements and enriches the stock Wallet app nicely, making sure you will be able to add anything you like to your iPhone’s Wallet. Find out more about the app in our review below.

Sprint partners up with Pokémon GO to add new Pokéstops and Gyms

Sprint is partnering up with Niantic to increase the amount of Pokéstops and gyms that you can access in Pokémon GO.

The goal of the collaboration is to give players more access points to stock up on Pokémon item necessities and to battle other players for experience and team gym domination, but clearly Sprint gets some positive press out of the deal too.

Hacker Luca Todesco advises jailbreakers to avoid updating to iOS 10.2

While there’s still no public jailbreak for iOS 10 to date, there have been some very convincing demos of personal jailbreaks for it, most of which have come out of the woodwork from none other than well-known iOS hacker Luca Todesco.

Amid the current jailbreak situation, Todesco is now seen warning netizens that if they have any intention of jailbreaking iOS 10 in the future, they should stay on iOS 10.1.1 and refrain from updating to iOS 10.2 when it comes out.

Niantic hosts another double XP event for Pokémon GO during Thanksgiving week

Pokémon GO players had a chance to participate in the Halloween event last month, in which ghost Pokémon spawns were increased, distances to hatch eggs were decreased, and double candies was rewarded for the entire week the event ran for.

Now, Niantic has announced a second event coming to the game in celebration of the Thanksgiving holiday this week, but this time the rewards are a little different.

Check out “Bulb,” Apple’s first TV ad for the new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar

The new MacBook Pro hasn't even shipped to everyone who have pre-ordered it, but on Thursday Apple began airing its very inaugural television commercial. Aptly titled "Bulb," the video runs one minute and 37 seconds long and frames the expensive notebook as a tool "for ideas to come".

"Ideas have always pushed the world forward," Apple says in the ad. "Introducing a tool for all the ideas to come. The new MacBook Pro."

Review: PDF Viewer does not stand out from the pack, but delivers on its promise

When iOS 8 and its slew of extensibility features arrived, facilitating a much simpler experience importing or exporting your files, third-party productivity apps finally became well-rounded products and viable alternatives to Apple’s in-house range. Since then, more file storage and document editor apps than ever inhabit the depths of the App Store and chances are you have settled on your day-to-day favorite for the handling of PDFs a while back.

Enter PDF Viewer, a new and free app available for iPhone and iPad, which sets out to make you question your previous app choices. As the name suggests, PDF Viewer aims to deliver you an all-encompassing assistant for PDF file management including document edits, file dissection and the creation of new files from scratch. PDF Viewer gets a lot right at the first go but will also have to slowly grow its offering in depth and breadth. Find out if its an application fitting your life style below.

Apple Stores start selling Will.i.am’s i.am+ Buttons wireless headphones

Opening their doors this Wednesday morning, Apple Stores across the US will be stocking a new pair of wireless earphones named i.am+ Buttons, conceived by musician and part-time tech enthusiast Will.i.am. The full product name of the earphones is i.am+ Buttons and they will reportedly be offered in four colors, matching Apple's black, silver, gold and rose gold iPhone range.

While the timing of the i.am+ launch could not have been more savory with the AirPods suffering heavy delays, it remains to be seen if will.i.am's product will be able to capitalize on the door left wide open by Apple. Until now, most i.am+ products have largely been frowned upon for putting fashion center stage. They also come at a hefty $229 price point.