iPhone Carrier Editor - No Jailbreak (iOS 6)

A common misunderstanding among iPhone owners is that Jailbreaking is required to achieve any type of customization. While this was mostly true in earlier versions of iOS, the 6th release (iOS 6) has a nice handful of tweaks. CarrierEditor is one of my favorites; it allows the ability to stop advertising for you carrier, and chose your own logo as a replacement. As you can see pictured below, my phone is on BatSignal.

Install iOS 7 BETA for Free - EXPIRED

iOS 7 has Officially been released to the public. On you compatible device navigate Setting>General>Software Update to download and install the new operating system.

Compatible Devices

• iPhone 5
• iPhone 4S
• iPhone 4
• iPad 2,
• iPad Mini
• iPad w/ Retina display
• iPod Touch 5th gen.

Enjoy!

Removing Stock iOS Apps - No Jailbreak (iOS 6)

If you have upgraded to iOS 7, please use this updated post. If you are still using iOS 6, please continue reading.

At first glance, the iOS home screen looks nearly identical to the original release back in 2007. Though those experienced with the evolving iterations of iOS will tell you that the features have changed. Furthermore, with the App Store continuing to explode with (lets face it) better options than the stock software, these included applications are only causing clutter across the springboard.

The last two releases of iOS have included new applications. One of which, "Newsstand" is of particular annoyance as it cannot even be placed in a folder. There was a former fix for this, however Apple quickly patched that "bug". There is now however a new method for hiding Newsstand and most of the other stock iOS apps. The following will provide instruction and links to complete this on your own iOS device.

Quick Fix: iOS 6 Passbook (Eliminating App Store Error)

The recently released iOS 6 included a built-in app called Passbook. This feature for many has been a sore spot because of the lack of functionality. Upon opening the new application an introductory screen is shown with a button guiding the user to the App Store. However, the common reaction to the tap of the App Store button is a cannot connect error. 

While this feature is new and few app developers are supporting it currently, the "cannot connect" error limits the consumer market to even see what options are available. If you have encountered this error, there is a very easy fix to allow you access to the App Store through Passbook so that you may look at you option to take advantage of this new iOS feature.

This simple fix

The steps:

1. Open Settings>General>Date & Time. 
2. Turn off the "Set Automatically" feature.
3. Manually set you device's date to 2013.
4. Close the Settings app and navigate to the Passbook app.
5. Follow the link in the app to the App Store (A loading wheel should appear rather than the error).
6. Navigate back to setting and re-engage the "Set Automatically" feature for the Date & Time.
7. Hard reboot your device. This is accomplished by holding down the sleep/wake and home buttons at the same time until the screen goes black (ignoring the "Slide to power off").
8. Restart the device and open the multitasking tray.
9. Close from multitasking both the App Store and Passbook.
10. Done!

With these steps complete opening Passbook and navigating to the App Store through the provided button should be successful. At the time that I enabled this functionality there were only 6 apps supporting Passbook integration.

Let me know if this worked for you in the comments below. 

iSO 6 Live for Download

The much anticipated iOS 6 is now available for public download. Available either through iTunes with a connected device or over the "air" on you iDevice (Setting>General>Software Update).

Enjoy.

Apple's Naming Convention - The New iPhone

Since the release of the Millennial Mac, there have been many iterations of both hardware and software. Along the way we have seen Apple's products grow in leaps and bounds in the performance spec department while keeping the familiar names: iBook, MacBook, MacBook Pro, Mac Pro (okay, the latter hasn't seen much change). And since the release of OS X (the tenth Apple operating system) we have simply referred to it as the "big cat" names: Tiger, Leopard, Snow Leopard, Lion. All along the way, Apple has used a naming system that is both recognized and simple (unlike the Android phone names). There has however been an exception, specifically in the mobile device department.