iPod Touch
Full category list for displayed posts: News, iPhone, iPhone Apps, iPod Touch, iTunes
10:05 am, November 6th, 2009, Nicole Martinelli

Pssst: If you want to get in on the iPhone app business, there’s one for sale on eBay.
The starting bid for JBMJBM, LLC. — an app factory with 87 approved ones so far — is $100,000 and ends Saturday, Nov. 14
Top-selling titles include Friday Night Lights, iSpy Game, iReferee, iSexyRef (pictured above, which helps muddled sports fans remember the rules), iSexyRef2, Pro Rodeo Fan, Sit Up Counter and Shake 2 Count.
Buy the developer out and you get 87 applications currently listed on iTunes plus all application assets which include source code files, website files and all collateral.
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Posted by Nicole Martinelli in News, iPhone, iPhone Apps, iPod Touch, iTunes | 5 Comments »
6:28 am, November 5th, 2009, Nicole Martinelli

Virgin’s new Flying Without Fear app — an interactive guide to easing panic — left us with a few questions that we got answered by Mickey Beyer-Clausen, who co-developed the app for Mental Workout.
CoM: Can you use the app during take off and landing?
MBC: Unfortunately, passengers cannot use any electronic device – including the iPhone in airplane mode – during take-off and landing but the app is developed to prepare users for flight whereby making the brief “no electronics” period at the beginning and end of the flight more manageable.
The panic button is intended to be used during the flight when turbulence is encountered or other events occur which make the user uncomfortable.
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Posted by Nicole Martinelli in News, iPhone, iPhone Apps, iPod Touch | 11 Comments »
2:28 am, November 5th, 2009, Sayam Aggarwal

I really like Stacks on my Mac. Stacks makes it fast and easy to find files, folders and apps right from the Dock. It makes managing a Mac pretty slick with all sorts of little UI tricks. That’s why I recently gave MobileStack a go on my jailbroken iPhone.
I must say that it lives up to the challenge of making an interface that is intuitive and user friendly enough for the small iPhone screen. In fact, it’s definitely the best excuse to jailbreak.
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Posted by Sayam Aggarwal in Favorites, Top stories, iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3G S, iPhone Apps, iPod Touch | 1 Comment »
2:27 pm, November 3rd, 2009, Sayam Aggarwal

George Hotz a.k.a GeoHot has released blackra1n RC3, which is an update to a 1-click jailbreak that adds activation options and an add-on blacksn0w, which unlocks latest iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS baseband version 05.11.07. To use blacksn0w, make sure you have this new baseband (check under Settings –> General –> About –> Modem Firmware) and if not, then update to a stock 3.1.2 firmware.
It is pretty easy to use and worked perfectly with my iPhone 3G. Besides the tool, there’s a blackra1n application that gets automatically installed on the iPhone after jailbreak, which gives you option to install Cydia and some other alternatives like RockYourPhone and the ’sn0w’ option to use blacksn0w unlock solution as well.
Please note that if you have an iPhone 2G, you can still jailbreak using blackra1n but blacksn0w will not unlock for you. You must use BootNeuter available in Cydia for that purpose. Also, if you purchased an iPhone 3GS or iPod Touch (any capacity) in October or later, there is a high probability that you have a new model. Blackra1n currently performs only a tethered jailbreak for these new devices, which means you need to use blackra1n every time you boot the device, otherwise all your jailbreak data gets wiped.
Here’s see how it works.
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Posted by Sayam Aggarwal in How tos, How-To, OS X, Top stories, iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3G S, iPhone Apps, iPod Touch | 30 Comments »
12:01 pm, November 3rd, 2009, Sayam Aggarwal

GeoHot, creator of the famous blackra1n jailbreak tool has now released blacksn0w. Blacksn0w is a full fledged software unlock solution for iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS, having baseband version 05.11.07 found in firmware version 3.1.2. Unlocking the phone enables you to use it with any carrier in the world.
This means if you have older firmware, you can now upgrade to a stock 3.1.2 and still have the ability to remain unlocked. Blacksn0w also enables the tethering option on these iPhones for you to share the data connection with a laptop or desktop computer.

The blackra1n application for iPhone installed as a result of the blackra1n jailbreak process then allows you to run blacksn0w and finally unlock the phone. However, those who already have the old version of blackra1n application installed on the iPhone can upgrade to the latest version by selecting the new ‘ra1n’ option inside the application. After installing the updated version, tap ’sn0w’ in the application to unlock. For those who used the DevTeam’s PwnageTool to jailbreak, blacksn0w will soon be available on Cydia.
To accompany blacksn0w, there is a new hacktivation feature added to blackra1n, which activates the iPhone to be used without the iPhone specific plans from carriers like AT&T, O2 etc. But, if you have an officially activated phone already, this won’t interfere. The update to blackra1n tool also makes it a lot faster, enabling it to jailbreak the iPhone / iPod Touch in just 15 seconds. It also adds support for Mac OS X Tiger and PPC Macs along with the existing Windows and Intel Mac support.
Please note that if you have an iPhone 2G, you can still jailbreak using blackra1n but blacksn0w will not unlock for you. You must use BootNeuter available in Cydia for that purpose. Also, if you purchased an iPhone 3GS or iPod Touch (any capacity) in October or later, there is a high probability that you have a new model. Blackra1n currently performs only a tethered jailbreak for these new devices, which means you need to use blackra1n every time you boot the device, otherwise all your jailbreak data gets wiped.
The new version of blackra1n is available to download at blackra1n.com
Check out our guide on how to jailbreak and unlock using blackra1n and blacksn0w here.
Posted by Sayam Aggarwal in News, Top stories, iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3G S, iPhone Apps, iPod Touch | 6 Comments »
10:39 am, November 3rd, 2009, Nicole Martinelli

Virgin Atlantic Airways recently released an app for flying phobes. Called Flying Without Fear it’s modeled on the company’s brick and mortar course which they claim has a 98% success rate.
What do you get for $4.99? Well, a reassuring message from Mr. Hot Air Balloon
Sir Richard Branson himself, plus relaxation exercises, answers to fear-based questions, fear therapy and a handy inventory of on-board noises so you know everything’s ok.
Whoopie Goldberg recently got her wings back after an airplane hiatus of over 10 years thanks to the Virgin course:
“The program works, I was a skeptic. I hadn’t flown in 13 years but after doing their program, I understood that while my fear was real, there were many things I didn’t know or had misinformation about, which they were able to clear up. So what happened? I now fly. It’s that simple.”
While not everyone can attend Virgin’s £199 ($326) full day course, it’s worth wondering whether an iPod app can substitute the real thing.
I once had a co-worker for whom flying was a real drama — he ended up in such a state he regularly had to be taken off planes and usually booked multiple times before able to stay aloft in the friendly skies — and I don’t know if passengers more than a little discomfited by air travel would benefit by a few reassuring words and games.
Hearing his story, I also wonder if you’d be able to use the app during take off and landing, which seemed to be the critical moments.
Posted by Nicole Martinelli in News, iPhone Apps, iPod, iPod Touch | 2 Comments »
12:30 pm, October 27th, 2009, Sayam Aggarwal

I recently came across orbit, which is one of the best navigation options available for the iPhone and iPod Touch. I have an iPhone that has over 100 applications and it’s definitely a pain to get to the applications on the last page. I can always put the useful applications on the first page but at this point, I have just stopped arranging them. This is when Orbit enters the scene. Instead of swiping across all these pages, it lets me jump to a particular page quickly using simple tile view, saving me a lot of time. That’s the reason it’s one of my favorites.
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Posted by Sayam Aggarwal in Favorites, Reviews, iPhone, iPhone Apps, iPod Touch | No Comments »
2:02 am, October 26th, 2009, Sayam Aggarwal

Release Candidate 2 (RC2) for Blackra1n, iPhone hacker George Hotz’s software for 1-click jailbreaking, has been released for all existing iPhone and iPod Touch devices. It adds support for new iPhone 3GS and iPod Touch 8GB and fixes almost every bug present in the previous version. However, it will NOT unlock the device, enabling it to be used with different GSM carriers worldwide.
If you purchased an iPhone 3GS or iPod Touch 8GB within the last 3 weeks, there is a high probability that you have this new model. Blackra1n currently performs only a tethered jailbreak for these new devices, which means you need to use blackra1n every time you boot the device, otherwise all your jailbreak data gets wiped. Other bug fixes include an issue with 3G network and some issues with Icy, Ripdev’s installer tool. Also, there is no need to rerun the new version, if the old one worked for you.
For those who don’t already know, blackra1n jailbreaks your iPhone or iPod Touch (any generation) with a single click in merely 30 seconds, making it the easiest jailbreak solution that ever existed.
Blackra1n for Mac and Windows is available to download at blackra1n.com.
Cult of Mac ‘How To’ is available here.
Posted by Sayam Aggarwal in News, iPhone 3G S, iPod Touch, mac | 7 Comments »
11:59 pm, October 23rd, 2009, Leander Kahney

My beloved truck used to be behind the times. The factory-installed stereo had a cassette deck. Remember them? No iPod/iPhone connection and worse, no hands-free cellphone.
But now its got a shiny Sony Xplod aftermarket stereo, which features both iPod and Bluetooth connectivity.
There’s a lot of replacement stereos, but the Xplod has the easiest Bluetooth setup ever, and it always makes a seamless connection with my iPhone. It just works, every time, period. Now I’m always chatting it up in while I’m driving, and I love streaming music via Bluetooth. I should have got one years ago.
Full review after the jump.
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Posted by Leander Kahney in Reviews, iPhone, iPod Accessories, iPod Touch | 9 Comments »
9:11 am, October 21st, 2009, Nicole Martinelli

Condé Nast announced that it will launch a digital version of men’s mag GQ on November 18 in tandem with the print issue.
The digital version available on iTunes will cost $2.99, half of the newsstand price, and there’s no word on whether snail mail subscribers get a discount. Condé says digital GQ be a perfect clone of the dead tree GQ, right down to the ads.

Our mock-up of what GQ might look like, from their online gallery.
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Posted by Nicole Martinelli in News, iPhone, iPhone Apps, iPod Touch, iTunes | 4 Comments »
12:35 pm, October 14th, 2009, Sayam Aggarwal

George Hotz a.k.a GeoHot has released the Mac version of blackra1n, his 1-click jailbreak solution. Just like the Windows version, it is pretty easy to use and worked perfectly with my iPod Touch 2G and iPhone 3G. Besides the tool, there’s a blackra1n application that gets automatically installed on the iPhone after jailbreak, which gives you option to install Cydia and some other alternatives like RockYourPhone and Icy.
Here’s see how it works.
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Posted by Sayam Aggarwal in How tos, How-To, iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3G S, iPod Touch | 91 Comments »
1:50 pm, October 13th, 2009, Sayam Aggarwal
PwnageTool for Mac has been updated to version 3.1.4 by the DevTeam. This new update basically adds firmware 3.1.2 jailbreak support. It currently supports jailbreaking all the devices except iPod Touch 3G.

PwnageTool is currently compatible with Intel Mac only. The reason some would prefer it to blackra1n is that it allows you to ‘hacktivate’ the phone (use it without AT&T’s iPhone data plan) and the unlock is preserved even through firmware updates. However, to unlock an iPhone 3G or iPhone 3GS, make sure that you have a firmware 3.0 (or 3.0.1) baseband on the phone.
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Posted by Sayam Aggarwal in News, iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3G S, iPod Touch | 2 Comments »
9:46 am, October 12th, 2009, Nicole Martinelli

@Brendan Fitterer/St. Petersberg Times
We’ve written a lot about the iPod Touch becoming a near-requirement at US universities, but iPod use may be on the uptick in North American grade schools, too.
One Florida elementary school has 80 iPods that some kids use to listen to audio books (instead of reading them, it seems) others do comprehension exercises and the wee ones watch videos teaching them about the five senses and then answer questions.
“It’s cool,” 11-year-old Devyn Cabral said, taking a break from Science Fair by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. “When you’re sitting at your desk and reading a book, it’s harder. It’s easier for me to comprehend by listening to it.”
Julianne Audino, 8, said she liked the iPods “better than reading, because we actually get to listen.”
Seven-year-old Dejah Staton wasn’t so thrilled.
“I’d rather read the book,” she said. “You can imagine it on your own. This is telling you.”
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Posted by Nicole Martinelli in News, iPod, iPod Touch | 3 Comments »
1:17 pm, October 11th, 2009, Sayam Aggarwal

Blackra1n, iPhone hacker George Hotz’s software for 1-click jailbreaking, has been released for all existing iPhone and iPod Touch devices. However, it will NOT unlock the device, enabling it to be used with different GSM carriers worldwide.
Blackra1n is currently compatible with Windows only — or “all Windows that matter,” in GeoHot’s words. I am supposing that means Windows XP, Windows Vista and hopefully Windows 7 RC. Currently, there is no word on a Mac version — but it should be released soon as well.
What blackra1n does is…
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Posted by Sayam Aggarwal in News, iPhone, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3G S, iPod Touch | 7 Comments »
11:59 pm, October 9th, 2009, Leander Kahney

The combination of an iPod Touch and a personal WiFi hotspot like Versizon's MiFi is almost ready to replace the iPhone, one CoM reader has found. Image: Wired.com
As more and more U.S. iPhone users become fed up with AT&T, some are seriously starting to consider using Apple’s iPod Touch as a full-time phone.
Trouble is, the Touch doesn’t have cell phone radio. But pair it with a personal WiFi router, like Verizon’s MiFi, and a service like Skype, and the Touch might be a viable full-time VOIP phone.
CoM reader Alex Bowles’ contract with AT&T expires in January, so he seriously looked into replacing his iPhone with an iPod Touch and Verizon’s MiFi. Here’s what he found.
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Posted by Leander Kahney in Apple, iPhone, iPod Touch | 20 Comments »