Archive for 2011

Seas0nPass has been updated to perform an untethered jailbreak of the Apple TV running iOS 4.4.4.

Happy New Year! Today we are happy to release an updated version of Seas0nPass that supports an untethered jailbreak of the latest 4.4.4 (iOS 5.0.1) AppleTV software. Big thanks goes to the world famous @pod2g for doing the lion's share of the work to make this new version possible.

Most of the apps are working just fine:

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Market research company comScore published their latest estimates of market shares taken by the main players on the mobile market. Apple’s share continues to slowly move upward with 11.2 percent of all U.S. Mobile Subscribers.

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UPDATE: Apple released iOS 5.1 that is only tethered jailbreakable with redsn0w. Apple has stopped signing iOS 5.0.1, so you can NOT restore to 5.0.1 any more (both original and custom), unless you have saved your SHSH keys for 5.0.1. If you are on 5.0.1 you can jailbreak with redsn0w.

This is step-by-step instructions on how to perform untethered jailbreak of your iPad on iOS 5.0.1 firmware using RedSn0w 0.9.10 for Windows.

Untethered jailbreak means that each time you restart your device you will NOT need to connect it to a computer and run utilities.

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Like the controversial face unlock functionality in Google’s Galaxy Nexus, a new Apple’s patent application points out that the company is developing similar but more sofisticated face detection solution. As PatentlyApple reports, Apple said that these user detection system could be included in a future MacBook, iPad, iPod touch and iPhone.
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Kevin Rivette, managing partner at intellectual property firm 3LP Advisors LLC, said in an interview with Bloomberg that if Apple were to abandon its lawsuits against Android smartphone manufacturers and instead negotiate licensing fees for its patented technology, Apple could collect $10 for each Android device sold. But as far as we know Apple is not interested in licensing Apple's patented technology to Android manufacturers. Steve Jobs called the Android products as the “stolen” ones and wanted “to go thermonuclear war” against Android.

"A scorched-earth strategy is bad news because it doesn't optimize the value of their patents -- because people will get around them," Rivette told Bloomberg.

"It's like a dam. Using their patents to keep rivals out is like putting rocks in a stream. The stream is going to find a way around. Wouldn't it be better to direct where the water goes?"

Such approach makes mobile devices manufacturers to modify their infringing products and work around Apple's intellectual property. For example, earlier this month, the U.S. International Trade Commission found that HTC was in violation of an Apple patent related to "Data Detectors," but only a day later HTC said it was testing new devices that work around Apple's patent.

There have been a few attempts at releasing a physical game contrloller for Apple’s smartphone. ThinkGeek iCade has apparently been the most successful among them.

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Digitimes now claims that it has obtained new portion of information on the rumored Apple’s television. The main role in manufacturing and assembling of the new TVs is expected to be played by Foxconn, Apple's primary iOS device manufacturing partner.  The company is likely to win the contract for assembly of the television set products.

Following sources' claims that Samsung Electronics and Sharp will manufacture chips and displays, respectively, for the so-called Apple "iTV," others have suggested that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE) and Siliconware Precision Industries (SPIL) have the potential to win orders for Apple's smart TV.

Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai Precision Industry) likely will obtain assembly orders for the Apple smart TV, according to industry sources.

We have already reported that Apple is going to finalize Apple’s TV design by the end of the second quarter and launch the television sets by the end of the year. Moreover, the analyst Shaw Wu at Sterne Agee has suggested that Apple may be interested in disrupting the television industry on the content side by launching its own television services which, obviously, will be connected with Siri.

"This is obviously much more complicated (than current offerings) from a licensing standpoint," Wu wrote in a note to investors on Wednesday. "And in our view, would change the game for television and give AAPL a big leg-up against the competition."

Hardware and technology are not the issues holding back Apple from releasing a television set, he said. Instead, Apple must negotiate unique content deals that will allow the company to differentiate its product from other televisions on the market.

There have been many rumours about the iPad 3 which is expected to debut sometime in the beginning of 2012. DigiTimes is one of the main sources for these reports and now it claims that Apple is going to launch its next iPad at the Macworld|iWorld conference that will open on January 26th 2012.

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UPDATE: Apple released iOS 5.1 that is only tethered jailbreakable with redsn0w. Apple has stopped signing iOS 5.0.1, so you can NOT restore to 5.0.1 any more (both original and custom), unless you have saved your SHSH keys for 5.0.1. If you are on 5.0.1 you can jailbreak with redsn0w.

This is step-by-step instructions on how to perform untethered jailbreak of your iPod Touch 3G on iOS 5.0.1 firmware using RedSn0w 0.9.10 for Windows.

Untethered jailbreak means that each time you restart your device you will NOT need to connect it to a computer and run utilities.

Read the rest of this entry »

UPDATE: Apple released iOS 5.1 that is only tethered jailbreakable with redsn0w. Apple has stopped signing iOS 5.0.1, so you can NOT restore to 5.0.1 any more (both original and custom), unless you have saved your SHSH keys for 5.0.1. If you are on 5.0.1 you can jailbreak with redsn0w.

This is step-by-step instructions on how to perform untethered jailbreak of your iPod Touch 4G on iOS 5.0.1 firmware using RedSn0w 0.9.10 for Windows.

Untethered jailbreak means that each time you restart your device you will NOT need to connect it to a computer and run utilities.

Read the rest of this entry »

Apple is expected to build its own chips like in the iPhone and iPad for its anticipated television set, instead of utilizing third parties chips from a company such as Intel.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), Advanced Semiconductor Engineering and Siliconware Precision Industries are three companies expected by DigiTimes to bid on orders with Apple. The companies could build custom ARM-based chips to power an Apple television, much like the A4 CPU, first released in the iPad in 2010, is found in the current Apple TV set-top box.

Earlier this year we reported that Apple signed the agreement on the production of next-generation "A6" and "A7" processors for the iPhone and iPad with TSMC and would utilize its 28nm and 20nm process technologies. It is possible that Apple television set will use the same iPhone and iPad’s chips. The Apple TV is also expected to be assembled by Foxconn Electronics, which is the manufacture of most of Apple’s devices.

Apple will have finalized the hardware standards for its television set by the end of the second quarter of 2012, only after that, the company will begin placing orders for its customized chips. Apple already used such approach to build its iPad and iPhone lineups.

New version of iOs 5.0.1 untethered jailbreak utility was released - RedSn0w 0.9.10b3. New version fixes issues with launchctl and MobileSubstrate that many users experienced. The same fixes were integrated to Corona package.

So if you had any problems with Cydia apps or faced errors while jailbreaking - update Corona or rerun RedSn0w (remember to de-select the “Install Cydia” option if it’s already installed).

You can download RedSn0w 0.9.10b3 here. Corona update is available in Cydia.

Our step-by-step tutorials for untethered jailbreak using redsn0w 0.9.10:

• iPhone 4
• iPhone 3GS
• iPod Touch 4G
• iPod Touch 3G
• iPad 1

According to Bloomberg, Apple’s ongoing patent war with the manufacturers of Android-based devices has mixed results. Bloomberg wrote that Apple could cut its losses and earn 10$ per Android-based device sold if the company would reach settlements with its competitors.

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The United States Patent and Trademark Office published on Tuesday that Apple won a core multitouch patent that describes how touch events are recognized by a touchscreen device. The patent blog Patently Apple also noted that this patent was one of the "200+ Patents for new inventions" Jobs lauded when the iPhone first debuted in 2007.

The newly granted patent focuses on the oscillator signal and circuit of a touchscreen-equipped device, an integral invention directly related to how users interact with their multitouch products.

Apple states in the filing: "In general, multi-touch panels may be able to detect multiple touches (touch events or contact points) that occur at or about the same time, and identify and track their locations."

One way to record multiple touches is to generate an oscillating signal circuit that can power and clock inputs over a substrate as in a capacitive touchscreen display. But it is difficult to create a precise circuit-based oscillator. According to Apple's patent, the solution to capacitive touchscreen problem is to calibration logic circuitry which compares the signal oscillation against a reference signal and tunes the clock frequency accordingly. The invention provides for an accurate capacitive display that can not only sense multiple touches, but also detect hover or near touches which are also recognized as "touch events."

Early this month the rumors suggested that Intel’s next-generation Ivy Bridge processors would launch in May. Theses mobile processors are expected to be used in Mac mini, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air lines.

Now DigiTimes reports that new Ivy Bridge processors may debut in early April, with both desktop and mobile processors launching around the same time.

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