If you jailbreak your iOS devices, there usually comes a point where you get stuck on an older firmware because the latest one hasn’t yet been hacked by the jailbreak community. When this time comes, it’s almost impossible to restore your device and start with a clean OS without losing your jailbreak.

But not anymore. A new app called Semi-Restore provides you with a clean install of your current firmware without updating your device and killing your jailbreak.

Semi-Restore is in beta testing at the moment, and it’s not yet clear when it’ll be officially available to the public. However, to quash doubts that the Semi-Restore was a fake, Dom over at AppAdvice decided to put it through its paces.

“As of today, I’m happy to report that Semi-Restore is definitely legitimate and we’ve got a video walk-through to prove it,” he writes. You can watch the walkthrough below to find out how to use Semi-Restore yourself.

If you prefer to follow written instructions, you can check out a rather lengthy step-by-step guide over at AppAdvice.

Semi-Restore doesn’t strictly restore your iOS device, but it’s the closest you’ll get to a clean install without updating your device. With that being the case, it’s going to be hugely popular among jailbreakers. I just wish it had arrived sooner.

A couple of weeks ago, my iPhone 5 started seeing a few performance issues, and I wanted to restore it and start with a fresh OS. The problem was, I didn’t want to update and lose my jailbreak. I was pretty much stuck.

In the end, I decided that I would just bite the bullet and give up my jailbreak for a clean and smooth OS install. Had Semi-Restore arrived a few weeks earlier, I wouldn’t have had to do that.

Once again, Semi-Restore is in beta testing at the moment, and there’s currently no word on when it’ll be made available to the public, so for now we’ll just have to wait. But as soon as it’s ready, we’ll let you know.

Source: Semi-Restore

This post was written by Killian Bell from Cult of Mac.
You can view the original post by clicking here.

Earlier this month, a hacked carrier update for the T-Mobile iPhone 5 that brought increased data speeds was released by Joe Brown and Sky Zangas, two developers behind iTweakiOS. Now the duo have released a similar hack for AT&T devices, only this time, it’s not just for the iPhone.

The hacked carrier update also supports the iPad and promises to improve data performance on both LTE and HSPA+.

“Just like with the T-Mobile hack, this hack does the same,” Brown writes. “Band preferences were set to limit you to a certain band rather than the band giving off the strongest signal, when available, both with LTE and HSPA+.”

“This hack enables Release 9 DC-HSPA+ on the iPhone 5 and iPad 3, 4, and mini as well as enhancing LTE data and signal. Though AT&T is limited to HSPA+ 21, the device itself becomes more open to an increased amount of bandwidth thus allowing for better throughput of data and data connection. This is very convinient [sic] for users in areas that don’t yet have LTE coverage.”

Brown has put together a quick step-by-step guide on installing the update on the iPhone 5, the third- and fourth-generation iPads, and the iPad mini. You don’t need to have a jailbroken device for this to work — it all happens through iTunes.

If you’re an iPhone 5 user, faster data speeds aren’t the only reason to get this update:

This hack also includes a fix to any and all iPhone 5 users who have experienced degraded/weakened signal over the past couple to few months on the PCS 1900MHz and/or CLR 850MHz bands for HSPA+ as well as the APT 700MHz and/or AWS 1700MHz band for LTE.

To download the hacked update and follow Brown’s installation guide, click the source link below.

Source: iTweakiOS

This post was written by Killian Bell from Cult of Mac.
You can view the original post by clicking here.

Filippo Bigarella is best known for being the developer of some of the most popular jailbreak tweaks for iOS, including Springtomize, LivelyIcons, and PasswordPilot Pro. But he’s just launched his first official iPhone app through the App Store.

It’s called Balances, and it’s a wonderfully simply finance app with a gorgeous interface that’ll help you keep track of the money you owe and the money owed to you.

When you leave your wallet at home and you have to borrow money from friends to pay for your movie ticket, take a couple of seconds — that’s literally all it takes — to enter it into Balances and you’ll remember to pay it back when you get home.

Do the same for money you lend out and you won’t forget who owes you cash.

When you’ve paid back the money you owe, or received money owed to you, simply swipe the balance off of your list and it’ll be added to your “completed balances” list, where you can keep track of all the money you’ve paid and received.

That’s pretty much all there is to Balances, which is why it’s super simply and easy to use. It also looks great — as you can see from the screenshots above — and it’s completely free. Check it out for yourself by downloading it from the App Store.

Source: App Store

This post was written by Killian Bell from Cult of Mac.
You can view the original post by clicking here.

iOS is a fantastic platform, but as it approaches its sixth birthday, it’s in desperate need of a lick of paint. If you jailbreak your devices, then you don’t need to sit and wait for Apple to administer that, because you can take the design refresh into your own hands by theming.

The only issue with that is finding a theme that’s as beautiful as the hardware it’s running on. There aren’t many out there that fit this description, but iMIUI from Xiaomi is one of them.

Xiaomi isn’t normally a company famous for its iOS themes; it actually develops a popular custom ROM for Android-powered devices called MIUI. But iMIUI is a Winterboard theme that aims to bring the MIUI look to your iPhone.

Xiaomi believes iMIUI could be the next Ayecon, a hugely popular theme for jailbroken iOS devices, and I’m inclined to agree. I don’t think it’s better than Ayecon, but it’s as good as.

As you can see from the screenshots below, iMIUI isn’t just a bunch of icons; it skins your lock screen, a number of your apps — including Phone, Messages, and Clock — as well as system menus, like those within the Settings app pictured below.

iDownloadBlog has been testing iMIUI and they say “the level of detail here is striking.” iMIUI is certainly worth checking out, then. To download it, you’ll need to add a new repository to Cydia. That repository is: http://cydia.myrepospace.com/imiui/.

Once you’ve downloaded the theme, you’ll be able to apply it using Winterboard. It’s iPhone only at the moment — there’s no iPad version — but it is completely free.

Via: DownloadBlog

This post was written by Killian Bell from Cult of Mac.
You can view the original post by clicking here.

There are some nifty tweaks for jailbroken iOS devices that allow you to add blank spaces to your home screen and arrange your app icons any way you like. Well now you don’t need to jailbreak to have this option, because a newly-discovered glitch in iOS lets you create blank spaces with a bit of trickery.

The glitch was discovered by Dom over at AppAdvice, who has put together a quick how-to video that explains how it works. You need to place apps and folders in certain places to do it properly, and it’s a little complex — until you get the hang of it — so I’ll let the video do the explaining:

As you can see, it’s a little tricky, but once you get the hang of it it’s not difficult at all. There are a few caveats you should remember — such as your spaces disappearing after a restart — but it’s certainly a handy trick.

If you want to add spaces to your home screen so that you can place apps wherever you want them, this is the best and only way to do so without jailbreaking.

Source: AppAdvice

This post was written by Killian Bell from Cult of Mac.
You can view the original post by clicking here.