iOS 8

How to add pull-to-refresh to Safari in iOS 8

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

For a large screen device like the iPhone 6 Plus or even the iPhone 6, it takes some serious thought when designing apps. That's because it's much more difficult to reach certain part of the screen using one hand, so developers have to design their apps with one-handed users in mind.

But where such thought may be lacking, a jailbreak tweak can go a long way towards enhancing the usability of certain apps. That's definitely the case with this latest tweak called SafariRefresh. It adds a simple pull-to-refresh mechanism to Apple's stock web browsing app, and the result is a much more usable refresh function on large screen devices.

How to jailbreak iOS 8.1 with Pangu for Mac [video]

Sébastien Page ∙ November 9, 2014

The Pangu Team released their Pangu utility for Mac earlier today, so Mac users who were waiting for compatibility with their operating system have no excuse to not jailbreak any longer.

In this post, we will show you how to use Pangu for Mac to jailbreak iOS 8.1. This post was created for an iPhone, but note that the steps are exactly identical, no matter what device you want to jailbreak (ie. an iPad or iPod touch). Likewise, any iOS 8 firmware version can be jailbroken using this tool, including iOS 8, and iOS 8.0.2.

Pangu for Mac jailbreak for iOS 8 now available

Sébastien Page ∙ November 9, 2014

The Pangu Team has finally released Pangu for Mac, a utility to jailbreak iOS 8 to iOS 8.1 devices on Mac today. The tool comes roughly two weeks after the release of the Windows version of the tool.

The Pangu jailbreak utility has had its fair share of problems since it was released on October 22 but it's now stable enough to be given the green light by no less than saurik, the man behind the Cydia installer.

Fleksy Keyboard can now use iOS typing shortcuts

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated December 3, 2017

Despite not being an avid user of third-party keyboards in iOS 8, I'm always eager to try out any new soft-keyboard that hits the App Store.

Fleksy's recent update caught my attention by making me realize that I didn't know everything there is about the scope and limitations of third-party keyboards under iOS 8.

For example, did you know soft-keyboards are allowed to use your typing shortcuts defined in Settings > General > Keyboard > Shortcuts? Fleksy's latest update has implemented just that and it works like a charm.

Fleksy Keyboard costs $0.99 in the App Store.

Battlefield 4 tech demo shows off incredible power of Apple’s Metal graphics framework

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 6, 2014

Hands up who's sick and tired of hearing about “console-level graphics” every time an iPad game hits the App Store?

I know I am and it's high time developers stopped overusing the marketing buzzword in their blurbs, methinks. No tablet on the market has the oomph to take on consoles, plain and simple.

While the advent of Metal, Apple's new low-level graphics framework in iOS 8, clearly won't make iPad games any better than their console counterparts, it does provide more aesthetically pleasing experiences involving far more detailed objects, lush visual effects and richer environments.

Apple is highlighting Metal-powered games in a dedicated App Store section and today folks behind the Frostbite graphics engine are showing off a pair of great looking screenshots of the Battlefield 4 console game running on an iPad and powered by the Metal-drive Frostbite engine.

Slated keyboard for iOS 8 translates text in real time

Cody Lee ∙ November 6, 2014

The folks at Gist have added a new third party iOS 8 keyboard for your consideration, called Slated. Admittedly, this area is starting to become crowded, but unlike the other offerings that aim to add colors or new input methods to your keyboard, it has a more serious task.

Slated has the ability to translate what you type into more than 80 languages, in real time. Simply pick a language, start typing, and watch the evolving translation appear below the text entry field. It also translates backwards, so you can participate in complete conversations.

Saurik touts jailbreak and Cydia stability for iOS 8, enables Cydia purchases

Jeff Benjamin ∙ November 6, 2014

Another day, another milestone. Saurik, the man behind Cydia, has re-enabled purchases for paid Cydia apps and tweaks, which means that you can now purchase apps and tweaks that were, for a time, unobtainable for some.

He also made sure to lend credibility to the stability of both Cydia and the iOS 8 jailbreak via a pair of tweets—the first of such since the iOS 8 jailbreak arrived.

Google Drive gains Touch ID, iPhone 6/6 Plus support, Storage extension and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 6, 2014

After adding passcode protection to Google Drive for the iPhone and iPad half a year ago, Google on Thursday added more coolness to the software.

First and foremost, the app now includes full support for iOS 8 technologies and can finally lock itself behind Touch ID fingerprint authentication.

And should you happen to own one of the new 4.7-inch iPhone 6 or 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus devices, Google Drive will take full advantage of the increased resolutions to show more files and content.

They've also added a new option to save videos from Drive to your device and implemented a handy system-wide Storage extension allowing you to access your Drive in almost any iOS 8 app.

Google Drive is available at no cost in the App Store.

Filippo Bigarella teases Springtomize for iOS 8

Jeff Benjamin ∙ November 6, 2014

Is this enough to get you to take the plunge? I know it will be for Sebastien, and perhaps even Cody. Springtomize for iOS 8 was officially teased by well-known (and well-liked) developer, Filippo Bigarella.

Springtomize is the type of tweak that lets you customize virtually every aspect of your iPhone's SpringBoard, hence the name "Spring" (SpringBoard) and "tomize" (Customize). We've done extensive reviews of this extremely popular tweak in the past, so if you're not familiar with it, I advise you to get up to speed and review our Springtomize coverage.

If you've yet to jailbreak, will this be enough to push you over the edge?

Pangu team: Mac version of the iOS 8 jailbreak due in a couple of days

Jeff Benjamin ∙ November 5, 2014

Good news for Mac users who have been unable to jailbreak due to the lack of a native Mac jailbreak tool for iOS 8.x: The Pangu team has heard your cries, and is gearing up for an OS X release.

In a Twitter post just a few minutes ago, the PanguTeam Twitter account acknowledged the release of Cydia 1.1.16, and followed that acknowledgement up with some insight on the status of the Mac jailbreak. Have a look at the details inside...

Foursquare now lets you save, like and follow from iOS 8’s Interactive Notifications

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 5, 2014

Taking advantage of iOS 8's new Interactive Notifications, Foursquare, the popular local search and discovery service, on Wednesday refreshed its main iPhone client with the ability to ‘save,’ ‘like,’ and ‘follow’ from the notifications you get from the service.

As before, the new Foursquare 8.2 has native display support for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus resolutions and now comes with 1Password integration.

1Password integration allows fans of the popular password-management app to use their saved credentials when logging in to Foursquare, without having to paste the password manually.

A month ago, Foursquare's check-in app called Swarm received a similar update permitting users to check in to locations from the Lock screen or within iOS 8's Notification Center via a new Today widget.

Download Foursquare free in the App Store.

Expedia is now ready for iOS 8 and new iPhone 6 screen sizes

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

After redesigning its iPad app with combined flight and hotel search in early September, Expedia on Wednesday gave its iOS app some more love by issuing an update which makes the software compatible with iOS 8 and the latest iPhones.

Expedia now supports the new 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch screen sizes of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, respectively, so you'll see more content and scroll less.

Expedia Hotels & Flights is available at no cost in the App Store.