phone

iOS 7 looks great, but can it lure this Android user?

iOS 7 is still not quite the Droid I've been looking for in an iPhone.

I've been an Android devotee for about three years now, but ever since the introduction of the iPhone 4S and Siri -- something totally new running on a nice piece of hardware -- I've been considering making the switch to iOS. As intriguing and enticing as the 4S was, I balked due to the lack of LTE. The iPhone 5 fixed that, but by then iOS seemed stale to me, and the lack of any major new innovations kept me tapping away on my aging Droid Razr and led me to declare that the iPhone and the ascendant Apple of this century's first decade had peaked. (Actually, the phrase I used was "jumped the shark" -- I suggest reading the original post for an explanation.)

So I watched with great interest on Monday as Apple unveiled a reboot to its mobile operating system in the form of iOS 7, which is being hailed as beautiful and ambitious. CNET editors have dubbed it a "radical new look" and part of Apple's "quest for perfection and the devotion to creating objects of profound and enduring beauty," as our Dan Farber put it.

From what I've seen of the OS, you'll hear no disagreement from me, but I'm still left comparing Apples and Androids.… Read more

Use your iPhone to make anything levitate

I'm all for a little tomfoolery when it comes to quick-and-dirty photo-editing tricks on mobile devices. The latest app I can't get enough of that meets this criterion is Levitagram.

I first discovered the app on The Next Web, and it didn't take long after I first read the article to purchase the app for $1.99 from the App Store.

The app works like this: take a photo with you, or any random object, on top of a chair, box or whatever you have handy.

You then take an additional photo with both items removed. Levitagram … Read more

Four things iOS 7 tells us about Apple's next iPhone

Apple has played the game long enough to keep its secrets heavily guarded, but a close look at some of iOS 7's lesser-known features hints at a few hardware changes we should count on (or not) for the next iPhone -- and maybe for the next iPads, too.

Camera enhancements It doesn't take an OS upgrade to guess that Apple will improve its camera's still-life and video capture hardware. That's a given.

Now here's a little evidence: iOS 7 supports 60fps video capture, while 30fps is the smartphone standard.

That means that the next iPhone … Read more

Finally, iOS Control Center!

If you happened to watch Apple's WWDC keynote yesterday, you probably noticed that one of the biggest crowd responses -- the largest chorus of "oohs" and "ahhs" -- came when Tim Cook unveiled Control Center.

And no wonder: It took Apple six years to add a feature Android users have enjoyed since almost the beginning. If you wanted these capabilities on your iPhone, you'd have to jailbreak it and install SBSettings.

No more. Control Center has arrived -- or will arrive, anyway, once iOS 7 splashes down this fall -- bringing with it a … Read more

Five alternative apps to tide you over till iOS 7

Apple's WWDC announcement of the upcoming iOS 7 promised a slew of amazing, long-overdue updates. Unfortunately, however, if you are not a developer, you will have to wait until sometime in the fall for the official launch, like the rest of us. Owners of iOS 7-incompatible devices shouldn't fret, either. The good news is, you can get some of the functionality or at least similar features of iOS 7, in apps that currently exist on the App Store.

1. iOS Mail and Mailbox

The iOS Mail app is still the go-to place for e-mails among numerous users; with … Read more

Episode 41: Underwater iPhones and rugged cameras

Most of you are probably just gearing up for your summer vacations, but we here at Always On have already had ours. It's all for you, dear viewers; it's all for you. On this week's episode, we visited Hawaii's Big Island to road-test gadgets meant for sun and water fun. And not to be all lowest-common-denominator, but that last sentence basically translates to an entire episode filmed in swimsuits. Just saying.

First up, we went snorkeling with three underwater cases for the iPhone: the $20 Proporta BeachBuoy, the $89 Hitcase, and the $329 iGills SE-35, to … Read more

Take better selfies with CamMe

The smartphone self portrait -- the selfie -- is a part of today's modern world, whether you are using it for a social-media profile picture, want to show your friends yourself in an interesting location or having a particularly good time, or are simply experiencing a vain moment without a friend nearby to snap a shot of you.

Most selfies require you to hold out your phone as far as you can reach to snap the shot. If you'd like to lose the outstretched arm and snap your selfies with an iPhone, I encourage you to try out … Read more

Apple devices that aren't invited to the iOS 7 party

At today's WWDC keynote in San Francisco, Apple announced several new features for its updated mobile OS, iOS 7.

As is common with software updates, not every current device will be compatible, however. iOS 7 will be available only for the iPhone 4 and later, the iPad 2 and later, the iPad Mini, and lastly, the fifth generation of the iPod Touch.

Compared to the devices capable of running the last OS version (iOS 6), this leaves out the iPhone 3GS and the fourth-generation iPod Touch.

Furthermore, not all iOS 7 features will work with all of the aforementioned … Read more

Inside iOS 7's massive face-lift

SAN FRANCISCO -- To silence a growing chorus of discontent against an operating system design that's remained more or less static since 2007, Apple needed to go big. With iOS 7, it did. Apple's crisp, newly announced OS update gives the mobile operating system a radical new look and some first-for-Apple features for iPhone and iPad fans, like quick-access system controls, automatic app updates, and Apple's AirDrop file-sharing system.

The visual overhaul, which becomes available this fall, is a clean sweep that changes absolutely everything, from the typography and color schemes to the typical icon and button … Read more

Apple Stores: 1 million customers per day

Apple Stores receive more than 1 million customers per day, CEO Tim Cook revealed at the Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco on Monday.

The company now hosts 407 stores around the world across 14 different countries. Apple recently opened a store in Berlin, which is located in a 100-year-old building.