Federico Viticci

10804 posts on MacStories since April 2009

Federico is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of MacStories, where he writes about Apple with a focus on apps, developers, iPad, and iOS productivity. He founded MacStories in April 2009 and has been writing about Apple since. Federico is also the co-host of AppStories, a weekly podcast exploring the world of apps, Unwind, a fun exploration of media and more, and NPC: Next Portable Console, a show about portable gaming and the handheld revolution.
@viticci@macstories.net
@viticci.macstories.net
viticci@macstories.net

PwnageTool 4.1 Is A Go, Jailbreaks Apple TV Too

Great news, jailbreakers: PwangeTool 4.1 is out. It jailbreaks the new Apple TV as well.

Through a combination of the recently released geohot limera1n exploit comex’s recently released pf exploit, and our original pwnage2 exploit, PwnageTool 4.1 works on these devices at firmware 4.1:

  • AppleTV 2G
  • iPad (firmware 3.2.2)
  • iPod touch 4G
  • iPod touch 3G
  • iPhone4
  • iPhone 3GS
  • iPhone 3G

PwnageTool allows you to restore to a custom IPSW file.  For instance, you can restore to a pre-jailbroken firmware while simultaneously maintaining your current baseband (and thus your ultrasn0w carrier unlock).  You can also add whatever packages you want in the “Expert” mode of PwnageTool, if you wish to pre-install Cydia packages.   iPhone 3G users get the additional benefit of selecting their own boot and recovery logos, and features like multitasking and battery charge percentage.

PwnageTool’s main advantage to ramdisk-based methods (limera1n, greenpois0n, redsn0w) is for unlockers — those that need to keep their current baseband and preserve their ultrasn0w unlock.  But in this new age of both bootrom- and userland-based exploits, its an excellent platform for continuing the jailbreak through all future firmwares.

Unlike previous rumors claimed, the iPad with 4.2 beta firmware is not supported. I guess the Dev Team will just wait for the GM release at this point.

Acer’s JT Wang Thinks iPad Users Will Eventually Return To Their Senses

Oh, Acer. It must be difficult to be cut out of a new market segment and not be able to come out with a product to compete with Apple’s iPad or the upcoming Samsung tablet.

Acer’s chairman JT Wang, at a recent summit in Taiwan, commented on the success of the iPad by stating it hasn’t got a “serious impact” on the notebook market, and consumers will eventually grow tired of the product. Tablets will be a new potential segment, according to Wang, but they won’t “eliminate” notebooks. Read more

Eleven Is A Dark, Sexy Growl Style

When it comes to Growl styles, my choice is one: Mono. Designed by Christopher Lobay, it’s been my default style for the past year and couldn’t be happier with it. For as much as a Growl style it’s just a style after all, I highly rely on Growl notifications during my day, and Mono happens to be a minimal, elegant, unobtrusive, beautiful solution to display Growl notifications on screen.

Now Christopher is back with a new Growl style. Called “Eleven”, it retains the minimalism and simplicity of Mono, it’s inspired by OS X and it’s got a subtle animation I can’t just stop looking at. Maybe this is wrong, I don’t need to look at a notification like this - but man this is some serious pixel lust. It has replaced Mono for now.

You can go download Eleven for free here. You’ve been warned, it’ll look hot on your Mac.

iHome iA100 for iPad Now Available

iHome unveiled its first iPad-compatible product in July, but many wondered when it would be available, and for how much. Today iHome finally introduces the iA100, a full-featured stereo / docking system for iDevices which, among other stuff, happens to support the iPad. The iA100 retails at $199, it’s got Bluetooth and an alaram clock on its front.

Full specs available here, and press release below. [via Engadget] Read more

Apple Forums Reveal iLife ’11, New MacBook Air, Mysterious Product

Spider Web dug through the Apple discussion boards and found out what we all imagined: confirmation of a new iLife, a MacBook Air and, wait, a “reserved” product to be announced today.

It turns out Apple has already set up some discussion boards for the new stuff as placeholders:

Category 277 - Reserved 10 20
Category 278 - iMovie ‘11
Category 279 - GarageBand ‘11
Category 280 - iPhoto ‘11
Category 281 - MBA (Need official name)

I have no idea what “reserved” could ever be, and it’s strange that the MacBook Air, which already has its own category, is getting another one.  [via MacRumors] Read more

Apple in Business Land→

Apple in Business Land

Rex Hammock:

I’ve watched closely (as both a customer and writer) as Apple has made attempts to better serve small business and corporate customers.

But I have a hard time believing Steve Jobs has ever obsessed over the B2B marketplace the way he’s obsessed over the materials that go into the glass staircases of major Apple Stores.

Perhaps because he has (in my opinion, brilliantly) focused the company’s products so much on great design that delights consumers, Apple’s varsity squad of product designers may have lacked the bandwidth to apply such attention to designing products that display such a deep understanding of how businesses use technology.

I just wonder if Jonathan Ive has ever sat in on a meeting where a discussion was taking place on how small business managers want to share contacts and calendars among their employees, for instance?

It’d be nice to see an update to this tomorrow, but I think the whole event will be focused on “OS X Lion Sneak Peek”.  Just for the sake of comparison, this is how Apple promotes the upcoming enterprise features in iOS 4.2 for iPad, business apps, iPhone in business and profiles.

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