How to jailbreak iOS 8

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In this post, I show you how easy it is to jailbreak iOS 8. It took me less than 5 minutes and works with any iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch running iOS 8.

Before jailbreaking: back up the iPhone

Jailbreaking might be a piece of cake, but it doesn't mean that the process is error-proof. Better be safe than sorry, back up your iPhone or iPad with iTunes or iCloud before jailbreaking.

If you are not a fan of iTunes or simply wish to have an extra safety net, I'd advise you to also use the free CopyTrans Shelbee to back up the iPhone. CopyTrans Shelbee works without the need for iTunes and backs up iPhone apps, app information, iOS settings, messages, contacts, calendars and Camera Roll. Download CopyTrans Shelbee from the below link:

• http://www.copytrans.net/shelbee.php

Let's jailbreak!

1. Make sure you have the right iOS version on your iPhone by navigating to Settings > General > About and checking the "Version" line?

2. Turn off the iPhone passcode (if you have one) and your Touch ID

3. Disable Find My iPhone

4. Enable Airplane Mode

5. Download TaiG jailbreak utility

• http://www.taig.com/en/

6. Run TaiG as administrator

7. Plug in the iOS device to your PC. TaiG will recognize the device.

8. Hit that "Start" button!

9. Hang on for the jailbreak to finish up

10. Jailbreak is complete. Click on the Close button.

11. Back on your iPhone screen, click on the Cydia icon

12. Let Cydia start for the first time

12. You are in!

This is how to jailbreak any iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch running iOS 8.

Transfer SMS messages to new iPhone

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Got the new iPhone 6? It’s time to migrate some content from the old phone. This quick tutorial shows how to backup your old iPhone SMS messages including iMessages and WhatsApp and transfer them to a new iPhone.

For the purpose, you don’t need iCloud, iTunes, or any paid program.

• First backup the old iPhone
• Next, restore the backup to your new iPhone

First backup the old iPhone

iCloud backs up apps and app data, however, the iCloud back ups are encrypted. In addition, to restore the apps, you must effectuate a complete restore of the iPhone or iPad to a previous state. The steps below, on the other hand show how to back up iOS apps complete with preferences and documents without the need for iCloud. You can then restore the apps of your choice to another iPhone or iPad without having to bring the entire device to a previous state.

1. Download CopyTrans Shelbee which is a free utility dedicated to iPhone backup and restore:

• http://www.copytrans.net/shelbee.php

2. Run CopyTrans Shelbee, plug in your old iPhone and hit the “Backup” button

3. Choose “Full backup”

4. Click “Start”

5. The backup of your iPhone begins. CopyTrans Shelbee backs up your iPhone text messages including SMS, iMessage, WhatsApp and Viber as well as iPhone settings, app, app documents and camera roll

6. When the backup completes, click on “Done”

Next, restore the backup to your new iPhone

1. With CopyTrans Shelbee running, connect the new iPhone and click on the “Restore” button

2. Now, click “Change”

3. From the popup, select the backup you just made

4. Choose “Start” to begin the restore

5. The restore is under way

6. Once the restore completes, you will see all your previous iPhone SMS and iMessages on your new iPhone

You now know how to transfer iPhone SMS to new iPhone.

Get an iTunes card over the Halloween Weekend 2014 with CopyTrans Shelbee. Here's how

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What is CopyTrans Shelbee and how can I participate?

CopyTrans Shelbee is a free PC utility to backup iPhone without all the dreaded hassle and independently of iTunes. You benefit from having your iOS contacts, messages, app data, camera roll and settings safely backed up locally on your computer.

Download CopyTrans Shelbee Halloween Edition

☆ When?

Now and only! CopyTrans Shelbee Halloween Edition will hover around between Thursday, October 30th and Sunday, November 2nd. Use this special edition for the chance to win 1 out of 4 iTunes cards - $25 each. Here's how it works.

☆ How?

• Back up your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch with CopyTrans Shelbee Halloween Edition
• Upon the backup completing successfully, a Halloween pumpkin appears click on the speech bubble
  
• A new web-browser window opens. Click on the "Tweet" button!
  

☆ The winners

All 4 lucky iTunes-card winners will be randomly drawn on Monday, October 3rd. If you are among the winners, we will inform you via a private message on Twitter. Be sure to follow @ZorayaCopyTrans so that we can contact you directly!

 

☆ Good to Know:

• You need a Twitter account to participate. If you don't have one, signing-up hardly even takes 34 seconds: https://twitter.com/signup
• We will draw winners by searching for the #ShelbeeWin hash tag which is included in the Tweet

iPhone 6 Plus bends, iOS 8.0.1 fails

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Somebody is getting fired from Apple today.

Apple released an update to iOS 8 yesterday - iOS 8.0.1 and after a few hours, the update was withdrawn due to numerous critical issues. At the same time, many iPhone 6 Plus users have started noticing their devices bend irreversibly.

How to uninstall iOS 8.0.1 update?

If you are one of the few users who updated to iOS 8.0.1 earlier today, you might have noticed that your iPhone cellular reception was severely diminished. This is not the only problem introduced with the iOS update. There are reports that iOS 8.0.1 disables the Touch ID sensor located at the iPhone Home button - in both cases, the affected device is iPhone 6.

Apple has since withdrawn the update (a first) and issued instructions on how to downgrade to iOS 8.

iPhone 6 Plus bends like an aluminum can

Apple managed to produce two big news in a day. The second being that many users found it unexpectedly easy to bend their iPhone 6 Plus devices - irreversibly. The bends vary from barely noticeable to the point of iPhone breaking. I'd strongly advise you NOT to try un-bend the phone but bring it directly to the Apple Store for repairs.

Here's a video of just how easy it is to bend iPhone 6 Plus:

#bendgate trending

The iPhone 6 Plus malleability produced a furor on Twitter. You can follow the story developing here.

This Twitter user took it to the next level with his response to the story!

Careful to NOT put your MacBook Pro in your back pocket... #bendgate pic.twitter.com/XG8hbXbInA

— Shaun Moynihan (@moynihan) September 24, 2014

Backup iPhone before udating to iOS 8: Here's How

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Now that iOS 8 and iPhone 6 are out, it is the right time to think about backing-up your iPhone data. Upgrading to iOS 8 from a a previous version of iOS will re-instate the iPhone or iPad. Follow this guide to backup iPhone data before updating to the new iOS or before migrating to the iPhone 6.

Before upgrading to iOS 8 backup iPhone data

There are two methods of iPhone backup Apple provides: iCloud and iTunes. You should use both in order to be sure that if one fails, the other kicks in. In addition, I'd recommend using a third tool to make a full iOS backup of your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch on your PC via using a free computer program called CopyTrans Shelbee.

1. Download CopyTrans Shelbee on your PC from the following page

• http://www.copytrans.net/shelbee.php

2. Start the program and connect the iPhone. Click on "Backup"

3. Read more...

How to use iPhone as a wireless hotspot

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This quick guide demonstrates how you can share your iPhone 3G, 4G or LTE Internet connection with the people around you via using the iPhone as a wireless hotspot.

Let's turn the iPhone into a wireless hotspot

1. On the iPhone go to Settings > Personal Hotspot

   

   Note that the Hotspot feature depends on whether your current carrier provides this functionality or not. You might not have the option

2. Turn the switch next to "Personal Hotspot" to the ON position

   

3. Set the preferred password for the connection. The people with whom you share the connection must know the password in order to connect

4. If asked, I'd advise you to turn on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth by tapping on the option seen below

   

   If you turn this option on, your iPhone will use both your Wi-Fi radion in combination with Bluetooth to share your data connection to the people around you. You can alternatively only share the data connection with your PC via your iPhone's USB cable. My experience shows that sharing the connection via the USB cable allows for quicker Internet. But it could be just me. :)

5. Once a connection is established, a blue banner will appear on top of the iPhone screen.

   

This is how to share the your data connection via using the iPhone's Personal Hotspot feature.

Problems updating iPhone to iOS 7.1.2: what to do?

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There has been a steady stream of folks out there who have experienced problems updating their iPhone, iPad or iPod to iOS 7.1.2. Here's what you need to know before upgrading to the latest iOS maintenance update by Apple.

Most widely reported upgrade problems with iOS 7.1.2

Soon after the release of the new iOS version, iMore reported that the update may freeze before completing. However, the problem seemed to be easily solvable by a cold restart of the iPhone or iPad.

On the other hand a more important issue has been occurring during update to 7.1.2. Both iPhone and iPad users saw their devices enter into Recovery Mode soon after initializing the update. The usual iTunes globe icon and a cable appear on the iPhone screen.

If this happens to you, be sure to follow this Apple troubleshooting guide on how to exit from the infamous Recovery Mode:

• http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1808

I'd also advise you to use iTunes when updating to iOS 7.1.2 rather than choosing the OTA (Over The Air) update provided directly from within your iPhone or iPad. Updating iOS via iTunes has shown in the past to be more stable than the OTA update.

It goes without saying that making a complete backup of your iPhone or iPad via at least iTunes or iCloud before updating is crucial. Using multiple backup methods is the most certain way to prevent data loss in case something goes very wrong with your iOS update.

The importance of multiple iPhone backups

Backing up your iOS device is nothing new. However, did you know that you can create simultaneous backups with both iTunes and iCloud and in fact, this is the recommended way to go? Don't only rely on one backup method as you risk loosing iPhone data. In the event your iPhone enters into Recovery Mode during the iOS update process, you need to restore the iPhone from factory settings via iTunes. At that point you will lose any non-backed up data on your phone.

I'd also recommend backing up via third-party utilities as yet another alternative method of preventing data loss. Here's a number of ways to backup iPhone messages, photos, music, and apps via third-party utilities:

• http://www.copytrans.net/support/how-to-backup-iphone/

Don't overlook backing up your iPhone or iPad. Updating to iOS 7.1.2 has proved to be tricky.

Amazon launches Fire Phone

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The first smartphone designed by Amazon is officially out in the wild. Amazon unveiled their new mobile device called Fire Phone yesterday in Seattle.

New addition to Amazon's mobile devices

The Fire Phone is the latest in a line of "Fire" tablets and streaming devices. Being out in the wild is one thing. Standing-out in an arguably saturated market dominated by Apple and Samsung is a whole different matter.

The Fire Phone naturally is intended to work with Amazon's various services and online commerce out of the box.

For example, at a press of a button, you can let the Fire Phone recognize a physical object such as a can of Coke, or a piece of art such as a song or a picture. Once the phone recognizes the object, you can directly look for and purchase it on Amazon.com. This unique feature is aptly called "Firefly" and frankly it reminds me of Shazam's big brother. :)

Fire Phone tech specs and prices

The Fire Phone features a 4.7 inch display, 2 GB of RAM memory and a quad-core 2.2 Ghz CPU. The camera takes shots of up to 13 megapixels. But wait, there's five cameras on the phone in total - 4 at the front that pick up on your head's movements, and 1 at the back!

Fire Phone runs on Amazon-modified Android operating system called "Fire OS".

Price-wise, the 32 GB version of the phone costs USD 199 or USD 299 for the 64-GB version exclusively at AT&T.

Amazon Fire Phone Hands On - YouTube video

Just as the rest of the major mobile technology giants, the Fire Phone is clearly trying to bring Amazon users into a company-regulated ecosystem.

Flappy bird is back with a new season

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Flappy bird developer Dong Nguyen announced that he'll be releasing a new version of his popular game in August. The new version will include multiplayer and would be less addictive.

Back in February Dong Nguyen pulled out the increasingly popular game from the App Store claiming that it’s been overused and arguably was too addictive.

@misterlukeherb @kotaku Not because of them but because how people use my game. They are overusing it.

— Dong Nguyen (@dongatory) February 8, 2014

We are left to wait and see what the new Flappy Bird will look like with the multiplayer mode and “less addictive” features.

In the meantime, if you have the original Flappy Bird still installed on your iPhone, you can transfer it to other iOS devices conserving the game scores via using this method:

• http://www.copytrans.net/support/how-to-backup-iphone-games-and-transfer-game-scores-to-another-ios-device/

The game developer also Tweeted that Flappy Bird clone currently found on the App Store called "Flappy Bird: New Season” is has nothing to do with him.

'Flappy Bird: New Season' is not mine.

— Dong Nguyen (@dongatory) May 15, 2014

Apple has deemed to not authorize apps bearing the name “Flappy” for the moment. Is there a chance that they missed this one? In addition the “New Season” game is listed as developed by a person named Dong Nguyen…. We are left to see whether Apple takes action but for the moment you can download the unapologetic Flappy-Bird clone from the App Store:

• https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/flappy-bird-new-season/id830258023

iPhone lockscreen bypass by Siri on iOS 7.1.1

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Did you know that in iOS 7.1.1, you can easily bypass the iPhone lockscreen and gain access to the address book, place calls and send text messages? Here’s how to try bypassing the lockscreen for yourself.

Test the Siri lockscreen bypass for yourself

1. Make sure the iPhone is running iOS 7.1.1 and press the Sleep/Wake button on top

2. Slide to unlock

3. Don’t enter the pass code but long-press the Home button until Siri comes up

4. You can now inquire for specific contacts in your address book, send messages or even call them

Until Apple fixes this, I’d advise you to disable Siri from the iPhone lockscreen. To do so, go to Settings > Passcode Lock and switch Siri under “Allow access when locked” to OFF.

Here’s a video of the Siri lockscreen vulnerability in action:

Backup custom cloud contacts to PC

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Many people use a company, university or other custom cloud account (for example, hosted by ownCloud) to sync iPhone contacts and calendar events via the CardDAV or CalDAV protocols.

If you are looking to back up or extract such iPhone contacts and calendar events to your PC, follow the steps from the below demonstration.

Backing up contacts and calendars from custom CardDAV or CalDAV account

1. Download the following program on your computer

• http://www.copytrans.net/copytranscontacts.php

2. Start the program and connect your iPhone. Let the iPhone data load

3. Click on "More" (on the top right) then on “Cloud setup”

4. Now it’s time to connect your custom cloud account with the program in order to backup the contacts or calendars contained within the account. To do so, click “New connection” then click “Custom”

5. Enter the account username, password and server address as they appear on the account already set-up on your iPhone

Tip: You can find the account details such as the server address on the iPhone under Settings > Mail, Calendar, Contacts and then tapping on the respective cloud account you wish to connect

6. Ensure that the Contacts, Calendars and/or Reminders options are checked and then click “Add account” and exit from the “Cloud setup” window

7. Now that you connected your cloud account to the PC program, you can freely back up the contacts or calendars from the account to your computer. To back up the contacts, make sure you selected the Contacts icon from the pane on the left. Contacts synced via your custom cloud account will appear with a little globule icon to the right. Finally, click on the “Export selected” button.

You can do the same for calendars. Simply click on the Calendar icon on the left pane, select the cloud calendar and click “Export selected”.

This is the only way I know to backup custom cloud contacts and calendars synced via CardDAV or CalDAV to the computer.