Quick Solutions For Jailbreaking iOS 7.1

Hello everyone!

A big craze lately has been jailbreaking iPhone’s and it is great that so many people are seeing the benefits of this. Recently I have been helping my friends and family jailbreak their iPhone’s and I want to pass on this information to you with the best solutions to jailbreak iOS 7.1! It might sound like a complicated process but it really isn’t and the features you will unlock make it worthwhile. Some people think that you cannot jailbreak iOS 7.1 but I have successful completed the process for iOS 7, 7.0.2, 7.0.3, and 7.0.4 and 7.1 since the developers beta version was released.

Jailbreaking works

Some people are skeptical about jailbreaking and whether it works at all however I am here to tell you that it does. Even the newest version iOS 7.1 can be jailbroken by using the services I am going to list for you. It isn’t free because Apple has a tendency to fix the security issues that allow this process to happen so there are constant updates. I have personally checked many jailbreaking solutions and came up with the top 3.

The basics of jailbreaking

OK, we have been talking about jailbreaking but what actually is it? Basically it allows your iPhone to realize its full potential and it opens up many new features. With just the default iPhone software you can only access the regular apps on the App Store however with a jailbroken phone you have access to Cydia, a completely different store where most apps are free. Here you can find apps that are not approved by Apple but can really boost your iPhone’s capability such as allowing you to record phone calls, edit the overall design and improve multitasking.

My Top iOS 7.1 jailbreaking solutions

Jailbreaking is a straightforward process for someone who knows what they are doing. Learn from my mistakes: I thought I was smart and talented enough to do this process myself, terrible decision. I am good with technology but it requires someone really skilled to complete the process successfully.

I figured if I did it myself then I would save money. Basically I deleted all my apps, all my contacts and all my data and then had to have someone jailbreak my iPhone for me anyway. I was told I was very close to causing permanent damage to my phone!

Take my advice and have a professional do the work for you because you run a serious risk of causing a lot of harm to your Apple device.

1. iJailbreak Pro (The best iOS 7.1 jailbreaking service out there)

I’ve been using iJailbreak Pro for the last few months now and I have to say that I have been consistently impressed with both their service and customer support. I’d go as far to say that they are the best in the business at the minute!

I used them a lot for the iOS 7 betas and every time they jailbreak an iPhone for me it doesn’t take any longer than 5 minutes. Yes, that’s right, just 5 minutes. Also, if you aren’t happy with the process then they offer a 30 day, no questions asked, money back guarantee and the way in which the jailbreak iPhone’s means that it is completely reversible. You can change your iPhone back to the original settings without any problems.

Also included in their price for the jailbreak is an unlocking service. A lot of people want to be able to use their iPhone on a different network and by jailbreaking your phone with iJailbreak Pro they will also unlock it for you as well. This means you can simply pop in another network SIM card and use it right away.

Aside from the fact that their service is incredibly fast and effective, their customer support is fantastic as well. I am good with technology but because I tried to jailbreak an iPhone myself and completely messed it up I was understandably hesitant. No worries however as their support staff explained the process for me in easy to understand language and I felt reassured about the whole process.

I can’t recommend them enough and they get a full 10/10 for a jailbreaking solution that works for iOS 7.1 as well as having a fantastic staff that helps every step of the way. Check out their site here.

2. Apple Unlocker

Although I would recommend iJailbreak Pro first, I found that the service from Apple Unlocker was good as well. They do offer a workable jailbreaking solution for iPhone’s and iOS 7.1 and I can confirm this from personal experience. The downside is that you need to wait longer at around 20 minutes for the process to finish.

Another drawback from using these guys is that their customer support could definitely do with improvement. They aren’t the worst I have ever come across but because they don’t have a contactable phone number I had to email them. This would normally be fine but it took them over a day to respond which, in my opinion, is quite a long time for this service.

I would say that they offer the jailbreaking iOS 7.1 service at a reasonable price however the big downside is that they don’t have any of the extras (unlocking for example) included the same way iJailbreak Pro has.

Overall I would say they are a 7/10. I have used them in the past however that was before I knew of iJailbreak Pro but you can check them out with this link.

3. iJailbreak Tool

Before I recommend this solution I would say that you should only use it if iJailbreak Pro isn’t available. Their jailbreaking service works – I have tried it myself – but they are really let down by their customer service and lack of English.

You can phone them and speak to a member of staff however they are based in India. Basically their English isn’t great and understanding parts of the whole process or having simple queries answered can be difficult.

The instructions that should easily outline the jailbreaking iOS 7.1 process and explain it in clear and concise language aren’t great as they were obviously written by someone who doesn’t have English as their native language.  It was frustrating to have to reread certain sections even though it should have been straightforward.

Finally, it takes a while for the process to actually work. Whenever I have used their service it takers about 30 minutes or even more before the phone is jailbroken. Really not ideal compared to iJailbreak Pro.

Even though their process works I have many reservations. I will give them a 5/10 however only use this service if the other two aren’t available. You can find them here.

Conclusions

I hope this provided you with some useful information. iJailbreak Pro are by far my preferred solution to use due to the many positive reasons I mentioned above.

The customer service and jailbreak time for the other two is not ideal although their service does work.

Good luck with whatever solution you choose!

Prepare For Your iOS 7.1 Jailbreak

One thing that many people do not do with their iPhone is prepare to have it jailbroken.

Jailbreaking itself is a very safe and reliable method of significantly enhancing your device however that does not mean that there is not some things that are required or at least advised to do before the jailbreak is carried out. If you are about to get a iOS 7.1 jailbreak for the iPhone then we have decided that this short guide will help you prepare your device to ensure that everything goes a smoothly as possible. Jailbreaking is safe if carried out by professionals however you can help the process along.

Backup Data

One of the most important things that you should do when you are preparing for a jailbreak is to backup your data.

No doubt you will have heard many stories about jailbreaking however most of the information online is misguided at best. This is why you should always look up blogs like ours to get the right info and we recommend doing a full back up of all your contacts, images, music and everything else before the jailbreak is performed.

Clear Unnecessary Data

Jailbreaks almost always go smoothly however something that you should do is clear the cache and get rid of any unnecessary files that are in the system.

You can do this easily by downloading one of the many apps from the Apple App Store that support this. It only takes a few minutes and it just means that there is less chance of anything going wrong with the jailbreak and also it will be a much smoother and quicker process as well.

Update To Latest iOS

It may sound like quite a strange thing to say however if you want an iOS 7.1 jailbreak then you need to ensure that your iPhone is actually running iOS 7.1.

Many people get this jailbreak and then realize that they haven’t fully updated their system yet to the correct version of the iPhone’s operating system and this can cause a lot of issue with the jailbreak itself. It is easy to update this and your iPhone should tell you anyway if there is an update available however it is worthwhile checking just to make sure that everything is OK.

Jaillbreaking the iPhone with iOS 7.1 is still very new to a lot of people and this is why you should use a trusted service and one which has vast experience in ensuring that everything goes correctly and as smoothly as possible. If jailbreaking posed any significant risk then it would simply be the case that people wouldn’t do it however the jailbreaking market is now huge given the amount of people that now benefit from jailbreaking itself.

Rather than being left with the basic iOS 7.1 which – even though is very good and the best update so far – still has some deficiencies. The best thing to do is to update your iPhone to the latest iOS and then jailbreak it to make your device as good as possible.

How to Preserve your iOS 7.1 Jailbreak Tweaks

For some people, the thought of the next iOS update patching the iOS 7.1 jailbreak strikes fear into their hearts.  For those who have installed a large number of jailbreak tweaks, even a new jailbreak utility can wipe them out.

For others who play around with their devices without really knowing what they are doing, they are running a risk of losing everything that they have spent time building up, of destroying the iOS 7.1 jailbreak and all the tweaks they have installed to get their device in tiptop order.

Luckily, there is a way to preserve your existing iOS 7.1 jailbreak tweaks:

Don’t Touch Your File System

In many cases, users who do not know what they are doing have gotten themselves into a mess by using tools such as iFile to delete files. This is because they have possibly deleted a system file and, if this happens, you will be forced to restore your device. As we all know, restoring means losing that iOS 7.1 jailbreak irretrievably.

Only Download what you Really Need from Cydia

When you jailbreak iOS 7.1 the temptation is there is to go a little tweak-crazy and download everything in sight. One wrong tweak could bring your whole system tumbling down and the only way out is restore.  Stick to what you really need and what you know does not interfere with anything else on your iPhone, iPad or iPod.

Get Rid of iOS 7.1 Jailbreak Tweaks you Don’t Use

There are tweaks in Cydia that are not compatible with others, especially if they are older tweaks.  Regularly go through all your iOS 7. Jailbreak tweaks and remove any that you do not need or never use.

Do Not Update or Restore to a Firmware that Cannot Be Jailbroken

So often people who don’t really know what they are doing update to the latest firmware. There is a good chance that, if it is a major update from apple, it will patch the exploits and you will lose your iOS 7.1 jailbreak.  There is no way to downgrade again either so, if you do this, you will just have to wait until the next jailbreak utility is released and accept that you have lost everything you worked for.

The Reboot Loop Issue

If you are one of the unlucky ones who suffers from a reboot loop issue and you have go the iOS 7.1 jailbreaks, there are a few ways that you can recover form it without too much damage done:

• Hard Reboot

Hold down the home and Power buttons simultaneously for a few seconds. You should see the Apple logo appear. Let go and let the iPhone reboot naturally and your issues should be solved.

• Volume Up Button

The hard reboot won’t work for all. If it does not have any effect, it may be because you have a broken or incompatible iOS 7.1 jailbreak tweak.  In this case, reboot the device normally, while pressing down on the Volume Up button until you see the lock screen.

Unlock and enter Cydia. Now uninstall the problem jailbreak tweak.

• Install OpenSSH

And then install an iOS 7.1 jailbreak tweak called SemiRestore7.  This will allow you to get rid of broken or incompatible jailbreak tweaks without losing your jailbreak.  You do need OpenSSH for this to work and you must remember to change the default password when you install it.

When you jailbreak iOS 7.1, to avoid these issues from happening in the first place, make sure that any tweak you download is compatible with your system, your device and with any other jailbreak tweaks – before you install it.

Bring Swipe Gestures to the Lock Screen with the iOS 7.1 Jailbreak

Those of you have been in the jailbreak game for some time will more than likely be familiar with Stride. It is a lock screen tweak that is based on gestures and acts as an alternative to the passcode by letting users set a gesture to unlock their iPhone or iPad.

Stride is now back with iOS 7 support and, although it is similar in the way it works, it has been made a whole lot cleaner with the result that it is a very beautiful lock screen tweak now.

How to Use Stride

When you jailbreak iOS 7 you get access to Cydia and this is where you need to go to download Stride 2.  As soon as you have installed it, respring your device and open up your Settings app.

Locate the tweak and tap on it to change the settings. Set up your preferred lock screen gesture and save it and then set up a backup passcode – this is a requirement of the tweak.  Those of you with the iPhone 5S will be pleased to know support is there for anyone who has Touch ID enabled as well.

There are also options to disable and enable the tweak quickly or get rid of the green that appears on your lock screen to trace your gesture – that stops people seeing it and being able to copy it.

Stride 2 gets rid of the passcode screen and puts a blank canvas in place for you to draw on but if you want you can press on Cancel and go to the passcode screen.

This may be one of the more simple tweaks available in Cydia for the iOS 7 jailbreak but it is one of the more useful ones. Not only is it fun to use, it also adds an extra layer of security, protecting your data even further.

If you want to check it out, head over to Cydia and download Stride 2 from the BigBoss repository for just $2.99.

Double Your Battery Life with the iOS 7.1 Jailbreak

One of the biggest issues surrounding the iPhone or iPad is lack of battery life and, with each new iOS version, the problem gets worse. While it is great that Apple adds in new features all the time, the more there is the harder it is for the battery to cope.

The answer, believe it or not, lies in the iOS 7.1 jailbreak. It lies with an app called BattSaver and it can be found in Cydia.  The developer, Xvolks, claims that BattSaver can effectively double the life of your iOS device battery, sometimes even more.

How does BattSaver work?

To be fair, there are loads of iOS 7.1 jailbreak tweaks that claim to save battery life and, while some do work, quite a few of them are nothing more than scams. However, until tested, each one deserves a fair shot.

The first thing you should know about BattSaver is that there is nothing “magic” about it. It cannot physically add battery life, nothing can do that. It works by managing battery draining features on your device and makes them run more efficiently. BattSaver concentrates on the iPhone radios.

When you jailbreak iOS 7.1 there is a temptation to download every app and tweak you can think of, just to try it out. Many of these will have an impact on your battery life but the biggest culprits for draining batteries are Wi-Fi and Cellular connectivity.

BattSaver enables and disables these connections depending on the preset strategy you choose, thus stretching battery life out just a little bit further.  Many of us are guilty of having both Wi-Fi and Cellular switched on at the same time and then wonder why our batteries drain down so quickly.

BattSaver is a little different from many of the other iOS 7.1 jailbreak tweaks in that it has a number of different presets already built in to it – None, Normal, Aggressive, Ultimate and Custom.

If you have None set then there will be no battery optimization whatsoever.

Normal – when you put your iPhone into sleep mode, the radios will shut down and, when you wake it up, they switch back on. However, once every 5 minutes the iPhone radios will switch back on to retrieve your notifications and emails.

Aggressive – this works in the same way but when you connect to a Wi-Fi network, it will switch off Cellular automatically. However, the GSM radio that receives phone calls and messages is left on. When you put the device to sleep, the radios switch off and then wake up every 45 minutes to retrieve notifications.

Ultimate – this option disables all radios and will not connect them again until you manually turn them back on.

Custom – this is the  one most likely to be used as it lets you choose from a load of different options, allowing you to set up your iPhone for the most efficient use and best battery saving strategy that suits your personal requirements.

Should You Use BattSaver?

If you are concerned about your battery life then, for the princely sum of $2.99, it has to be worth a shot.  That is the beauty of the iOS 7.1 jailbreak – you really have little to lose by trying these things out.

When you jailbreak iOS 7.1, you open up a large hole in the fabric of the iOS, allowing you to do things that you would not normally be able to do.  One of the biggest battery saving techniques of all time is free and its simple – do not download everything in sight and do not have dozens of apps and processes running at the same time.

BattSaver is definitely one of the better iOS 7.1 jailbreak tweaks and it will save you some battery life. Even if it only manages to save you 10 or 20%, that can make all the difference.

Top Cydia Sources for the iOS 7.1 Jailbreak

No matter what version of the iOS you are running, it’s almost certain it can be jailbroken.  Just briefly, when you jailbreak iOS 7.1, you can download third party apps on to your iPhone, iPad or iPod via an unofficial app installer called Cydia.

There are tons of apps and tweaks to choose from in Cydia and knowing where to start can be a bit of a headache.  All apps, tweaks, mods and themes are stored in repositories in Cydia; these are like storage lockers for each developer.

When you jailbreak iOS 7.1, several repositories are downloaded as default. For those who are new to the iOS 7.1 jailbreak these repositories will have everything you need to customize and modify your iPad, iPhone or iPod.

Every now and again though, you will come across an iOS 7.1 jailbreak tweak that is not in one of these repositories and you will need to add a new one.  This is an easy process:

• Open Cydia
• Tap on manage
• Tap on Sources
• Tap on Edit
• Tap on Add
• Type in the URL – supplied with each of the repositories below
• Tap on Add Source

The ones listed here are not included as default repositories; however, they do contain a lot of very useful tweaks. Please do not be tempted to install all of these sources and then download tweaks from them all as this will have an adverse effect on your iOS device:

Ryan Petrich

Ryan Petrich is an extremely active developer who has come up with loads of really useful stuff for the iOS 7 and iOS 7.1 jailbreak.  Activator is one of his most popular along with the likes of DisplayRecorder and OverBoard.

Add his repo by typing in http://rpetri.ch/repo

BiteSMS

BiteSMS is one of the most popular Message app replacements and is still going strong on the iOS 7.1 jailbreak.  It’s a really useful app that gives you Quick Reply and Quick Compose features, allowing you to respond to messages from anywhere in the iOS. The app is available already in Cydia but the repository allows you to test new upcoming features.

Add the repo by typing in htto://test-cydia.bitesms.com

Couria

This is another messages tweak and, if you don’t want the full experience of BiteSMS, you can use Couria to make some subtle changes.

Add the repo by typing in http://cydia.Qusic.me

iCleaner Pro

The name says it all – iCleaner Pro gets rid of all unwanted rubbish off your device, freeing up some much needed space.

Add the repo by typing in http://exile90software.com/cydia

StatusBarFix2

One of the biggest annoyances in the last jailbreak was that the status bar started messing around.  This great tweak sorts that out for you, putting it right.

Add the repo by typing in http://repo.pnre.co.vu

teamXBMC

XBMC is one of the greatest open-source media streaming centers of all time and is a great choice for those of you who like watching TV shows or films on your iOS device.  XBMC has been fully updated for when you jailbreak iOS 7.1.

Add the repo by typing http://mirrors.xbmc.org

CoolStar

This is a good repository for those who are a bit more advanced as it contains a lot of command line tools.  It is kept very well up to date with new tweaks.

Add the repo by typing http://repo.coolstar.org

HASHBANG Productions

The HASHBANG repo is a great one, full off customization tweaks, all of which add something jst a little bit cool to your iPhone, iPod or iPad when you jailbreak iOS 7.1.

Add the repo by typing in http://cydia.hbang.ws

ParrotGeek Software

ParrotGeek Software has a lot of tweaks for the iOS 7.1 jailbreak that will make some subtle improvements.  You can find Siri Old Voice for iOS 7 and a handy one called Unauthorized Lightning Cable Enabler. A definite must have repo for those who choose to jailbreak iOS 7.1.

Add the repo by typing http://parrotgeek.net/repo

Karen’s Pineapple

Last but by no means least, Karen’s Pineapple is a great repository for those who love their emulators.  Play the old Gameboy and Nintendo games to your heart’s content.

Add the repos by typing http://cydia.angelxwind.net

Adding one or two of these to the default repos in Cydia will make your iOS 7.1 jailbreak well worth installing. Each one of these repositories contains any number of apps, tweaks, themes, mods and emulators to help you experience exactly what jailbreaking is all about.

9 Top Touch ID Apps for the iOS 7 Jailbreak

When Apple released the iPhone 5S, it came with a whole host of brand new features. We got a new A7 processor, accompanied by 64-bit architecture, a first for any smartphone. We got an additional processor in the form of the M7 Motion Control processor and we got a dual LED True-Tone flash to boost the camera.

However, the biggest selling point and the one that people are still talking about now is Touch ID, the revolutionary new fingerprint sensor.  Designed as a new security measure, it works very well as a means of unlocking the iPhone 5S screen but surely, there are more uses for it.

That is what the developers thought and, especially for the iOS 7 and iOS 7.1 jailbreak, they came up with a number of very interesting Cydia tweaks that give Touch ID a new ease of life.  Here are nine of the best:

BioProtect

This is one tweak you should definitely think about downloading when you jailbreak iOS 7.1 on the iPhone 5S. BioProtect takes things a step further by allowing you to lock individual apps that you don’t want just anyone having access to.

iTouchSecure

Touch ID has been touted as the lazy way to unlock the iPhone 5S, negating the need to remember passcodes.  iTouchSecure lets you type in passwords that you use in different apps or in Safari Browser – once input they are added to a keychain, similar to OS X and, next time you need to input the password, you just put your finger on the fingerprint sensor and you have access!

iTouch Secure is not the cheapest iOS 7.1 jailbreak app, at $5, but it is worth a look and you can find it on the BigBoss repo.

UnlockID

Similar to iTouchSecure, this jailbreak app has an additional feature – you can unlock your mac computer using the Touch ID fingerprint sensor on the iPhone 5S.

UnlockID is available on the ModMYi repository.

BioLaunch

BioLaunch is a simple yet highly useful tweak. Pick your favorite app and you can use this tweak to open it using Touch ID.

BioLaunch costs $1 on the BigBoss repository.

Touchy

Touchy is a very cool tweak to download when you jailbreak iOS 7.1.  In much the same way as BioLaunch, you can use Touch ID to open an app but, rather than being limited to one app, you can use a different fingerprint for different apps. You can assign up to five prints for five apps and configure them all from the Settings app.

AppScan

Similar to a couple of the other Touch ID apps, AppScan is a tweak that lets you set protection for individual apps.  However, although it does work, be aware that those apps you choose can still be accessed from the Notification Center on the lock screen, multitasking or through Siri so it may only act as a deterrent for the mildly curious. It is free though.

BioLockdown

This app comes from Ryan Petrich, one of the most active developers with some very cool tweaks to his name. When you jailbreak iOS 7.1 give this one a look. BioLockdown is similar to BioProtect with a lot more functionality. You can lock individual apps, settings and your Control Center toggles.

It cost just $1.99 on the BigBoss repository.

AppLocker

As with all the Touch ID tweaks, this one is not really any different as it allows you tock certain apps. However, it has one additional feature in that you can also lock individual folders to keep your data safe.

Virtual Home

Virtual Home is rather a cool iOS 7.1 jailbreak tweak in that it lets you turn your Touch ID sensor into a virtual home button. This means you can save some of the wear and tear on the physical button by just tapping it instead of having to press down on it.

This will work from wherever you are in iOS, no matter which app you are in.

So, there are nine of the very best Touch ID tweaks for the iOS 7.1 jailbreak. They all work well and will give Touch ID more function and make it more useful.

However, a word of caution here – do not try to download too many of these in one hit. Because they all focus on Touch ID there are likely to be conflicts and could cause instability. Choose one and stay with it!

 

Best Lock Screen Cydia Apps – Part 3

Welcome back, this is part 3 of our best lock screen apps in Cydia for the iOS 7.1 jailbreak.

1.       NoBlur – Free – BigBoss Repo

Whenever a notification appears, the lock screen blurs. It happens when the passcode screen is there as well. While this is good for better focus, if you prefer it to stay clear, download this iOS 7.1 jailbreak app.  NoBlur stops the blurring and keeps everything clear.

2.       iOS 7 Lock screen Weather – Free – MacCiti Repo

This jailbreak app is based on Cydget, which is another very nice lock screen app in Cydia. iOS 7 Lock Screen Weather is a beautiful app that shows you weather information right on the lock screen. It does rely on Cydget to work and it may conflict with other jailbreak apps but you will definitely love it.

3.       Concept LS – $2.99 – MacCiti Repo

This is another beautiful Cydget app, which even outshines JellyLock 7 in design terms.  It has a very nice WYSIWYG configuration meaning that what you see is what you get. There is no messing about with this one and it has quite a lot of configuration options as well.

4.       Lockify Pro – $0.99 – BigBoss Repo

When you jailbreak iOS 7.1 there are so many options for lock screen apps that it can be quite difficult to make up your mind. So, how about one app that incorporates several different ones? That is what Lockify Pro is and it has tons of customisation options to change just about every single part of the lock screen.

Change the dim delay, hide or enable different grabbers, change the text of your Slide to unlock Slider, change elements of the status bar and make the time and date display a different color. That is just for starters, there are too many options to list here.

5.       SlideWeather – $1.00 – BigBoss Repo

This iOS 7.1 jailbreak app replaces the Slide to Unlock text with information about the weather in your location.  There are few options to configure but, on the whole, it is a pretty simple app that relies on GPS Location services to give you the most accurate weather for wherever you happen to be.

6.       Reminders for Lock screen – $1.99 – BigBoss Repo

This one is for those of you who cannot be without your Reminders. Every Reminder you have set will appear on the lock screen so that, whenever you wake your iPhone or iPad up, they will be staring you in the face.

The reminders will only disappear when they have been actioned which is one way of making sure you never miss another appointment!  There are several options for customising this iOS 7.1 jailbreak app, changing looks, color, what reminders are visible, etc.

7.       BetterLS – $1.50 – BigBoss Repo

If you use CustomLS, you will love BetterLS. It’s a jailbreak app designed to let you change every part of the lock screen, including album art, grabbers, and the slider, everything you can think of to do.

8.       No Tint&Blur Lock screen – Free – BigBoss Repo

This one is very similar to NoBlur, the first jailbreak app we mentioned in this post.  It stops your lock screen from blurring out whenever you get a notification and it also stops dark tinting.

A couple of the apps we mentioned require Cydget to work properly. If you do not already have it, you need to add the following repo to Cydia before you can download it – http://patrickmuff.ch/repo/.

Be sure to check out the other neat apps in this repo as well and make it one of your must-have repos when you jailbreak iOS 7.1

//

Best Lock Screen Cydia Apps for the iOS 7.1 Jailbreak – Part 1

The lock screen has always been the target of jailbreak apps simply because Apple never did anything with it.  Until iOS 7 was released, it was always a blank, empty screen, crying out for a reason to live.

Even now that iOS 7 has given it a bit more functionality, it still has more to give than any other part of the iOS, and every day more and more apps appear in Cydia.  For those of you are planning to jailbreak iOS 7.1, here is part 1 of our series on the best Cydia lock careen apps for iOS 7.1:

Convergance

Convergance is a lock screen theme that is not just a theme. Included are widget add-ons, which change the way you use the lock screen on your jailbroken iPad or iPhone.  You get a selection of control toggles with a swipe left on the lock screen which allow you to change your system settings easily and quickly.

You can change the look of the lock screen and also, by swiping down, bring up some widgets that are built in to the app.

Convergance is not yet available on a public repository but you can preorder it for a minimum of a $2 donation here.

CustomLS

This is a very popular iOS 7.1 jailbreak app and has a ton of custom options for the lock screen. One of the best features is that you can change the text on the Slide to unlock slider, write whatever you want to see on there.  You can also hide the camera grabber, the icons for the Notification and Control Centers, the clock and a lot more besides.

CustomLS is free to download from the BigBoss repository on Cydia

Spectral

This app relates more to music but it does have an effect on your lock screen wallpaper whenever you are listening to music on your jailbroken iPhone or iPad. Spectral works to change your lock screen wallpaper to a blurred image of the album that the song you are playing comes from.

Spectral is free on the BigBoss repository.

AppBox

AppBox is a neat iOS 7.1 jailbreak app launcher.  It lets you create shortcuts for your favourite apps on your lock screen that has a very cool feature called Contextual Open.  When you tap and hold an app, instead of just opening the app it goes to a specific part of it – Playlists in the Music App, Compose in the Messages app, for example.

Swiping left on your lock screen will bring up a page full of the apps you have chosen to place shortcuts for, making them easy to access.

AppBox costs $0.99 and is available on the BigBoss repository on Cydia.

AndroidLock

This one is self-explanatory. There are a lot of iOS users who like the lock screen features on Android and developers play to that by bringing out Android based apps.  This one gives you the popular lock screen unlocker from Android.  It has a number of options, including letting you use patterns as a passcode.

AndroidLock costs $1.49 and can be downloaded from the ModMyi repository.

Tabless

Another excellent app for those who jailbreak iOS 7.1 is Tabless. It works by itself and is similar to CustomLS. It lets you hide the grabbers for the Control and notification Centers from the lock screen although, unless you actually disable the feature, you can still access both from the screen.

Tabless is free to download from the ModMyi repository.

GroovyLock

GroovyLock is a jailbreak app that lets you make use of add-ons that are HTML based directly on your lock screen.  There are not that many add-ons available of the app at the moment but those that are, make the app pretty amazing.

GroovyLock lets you change the theme of your lock screen without having to touch WinterBoard and is free to download from the ModMyi repository on Cydia.

SubtleLock

Last but not least, in part 1 of our series is the iOS 7.1 jailbreak app, SubtleLock.  This one simply tones the locks screen down and gives it more a minimalistic look. It removes some parts of the lock screen, like the grabbers for Notification and control center and will set you back $1 in the BigBoss repository.

That concludes part 1 of our series on lock screen apps for the iOS 7.1 jailbreak. Check back with us next week for more.

7 Things to Know Before You Update to iOS 7.1

iOS 7.1 was released on 10^th March, pretty quietly.  Normally an update such as this would be accompanied by a bit of a fanfare and a countdown but it seems that developers and Apple alike are keeping quiet about their updates these days.

If you already have the iOS 7 jailbreak on your iPhone, iPad or iPod, you might be wondering if you should update to iOS 7.1. Before you go ahead and do it, here are some things you should know:

1.  Beware of fake jailbreaks

There are a number of fake jailbreak sites appearing at the moment, as they always do after any major or semi-major iOS update.  Knowing how to tell if the jailbreak site you choose is real or not is important:

• Avoid free jailbreaks. Not all of them are fake but they will more than likely cause you a problem
• Some jailbreak sites will keep flashing up ads every time you click on something – these are fake
• Some will require you to complete a survey or download a free app first – these are most definitely fake jailbreaks and should be avoided
• Back to the free jailbreaks – one or two free iOS 7 jailbreaks caused a lot of stability issues on the devices they were downloaded on, making the jailbreak unworthy.

If you take the time out to do your homework and are prepared to pay – not a lot – you will get a genuine iOS 7. Jailbreak.

2.  iOS 7.1 or an already jailbroken iPhone?

If you have already paid to jailbreak iOS 7 you could be wondering if it is worth all the hassle of updating to iOS 7.1. After all, you are only going to have to jailbreak it again!  iOS 7.1 isn’t that big an update when all is said and done.

There are one or two new features but, unless you are going to be buying a brand new Ferrari or Mercedes-Benz this year, you won’t miss CarPlay. The additions to Siri can be got easily enough when you jailbreak iOS 7 as can many of the other minor UI changes.

3.  Clean up Your Jailbreak Tweaks

If you decide to update to iOS 7.1 and intend to jailbreak, you won’t want to lose all of your good jailbreak tweaks. You can back these up using an iOS 7 jailbreak app called PKGBackup. Before you do that, have a bit of a spring clean – not all iOS 7 jailbreak apps will be compatible with iOS 7.1 and may cause crashing or instability problems.

4.  Be Careful What Apps you Download

If you decide to keep your iOS 7 jailbreak, be careful about what you download from Cydia. Too many apps or the wring ones can cause a major crash and you will need to restore your iOS device.

That means you will lose everything and will end up on iOS 7.1 anyway.

5.  2 Apps you Must Download

You have a choice to make – keep your iOS 7 jailbreak, update to iOS 7.1 and go through it all again or jailbreak iOS 7 if you haven’t already done so.  No matter what you choose, always back up your jailbreak apps and then download these apps BEFORE you update if that’s what you are doing.

The first one is OpenSSH and is an app that any self-respecting jailbreakers would download straightaway.  Then download Semirestore7.  These 2 apps can get you out of a sticky situation in that, if you do have to restore your ISO device you can do it without losing your jailbreak apps.

Remember, when you have downloaded OpenSSH, change your root password to stop any unauthorised use.

6.  There Won’t Be Any More Updates for the iPhone 4

iOS 7.1 is the absolute last update there will be for the iPhone 4 so, if this is the device you are using, you must keep this in mind.  The hardware just isn’t up to the extra strain that the updates and features place in it.

If you have an iPhone 4 with an iOS 7 jailbreak, you might be better off staying with it, especially if it works to your satisfaction.

7.  Ask yourself If You Really need to Update

Do you need the new features that iOS 7.1 brings? Bear in mind that many of the apps in Cydia may not be supported straight away, leaving you with very little to go on.  If you are happy with that then by all means, update to iOS 7.1 and buy a new jailbreak – makes sure you use the same genuine source you used last time!

Or are you happy to stay as you are and jailbreak iOS 7 if you haven’t yet? The choice is yours and it all comes down to personal choice

Top 12 Best iOS 7.1 WinterBoard Themes on Cydia

Jailbreaking is growing, both in size and in statue. As each year passes and as Apple releases newer iOS software, more and more people come on board.  Cydia is gradually filling up with new apps that support iOS 7.1 jailbroken iPhones and one of the most popular type is theme apps.

WinterBoard apps in particular are proving to be number one amongst jailbreakers and so, just for you, we have the top 12 WinterBoard themes on Cydia for iOS 7.

1.      Enkelt Neue – $2.99

Enkelt Neue is a colourful iOS 7.1 jailbreak theme, with a flatter look but giving the icons a little bit of much-needed depth.  It is a simple jailbreak app that does not detract much from iOS 7.1 itself.

2.      Anode – Free

Anode is a neat jailbreak theme that plays on the colors the iPhone 5S was released in. There are themes in Gold, Silver and Space Grey, each designed to fit in with color of the iPhone 5S you purchased.

3.      iRa – $2.00

iRa is one of the top WinterBoard themes for content. If you have jailbroken your iOS 7.1 iPhone, iPad or iPod, you will love iRa. There are more than 100 different icons included along with indicators for both Wi-Fi and Cellular.  It’s a very high-contrast jailbreak theme but you will need to add a repo into Cydia first:

• Open Cydia
• Tap on Manage>Sources>Edit>Add
• Type in http://repo.ifans.com

 

4.      UltraFlat for iOS 7 – Free

Another flat but highly colored theme, this jailbreak app has a bit of a cartoon appearance to it.  The icons on your jailbroken iOS 7.1 device look larger and the same color palette has been used for the app as was used for iOS 7.1.

5.      Radiance for iOS 7 – Free

The icons in this jailbreak app look similar to the original iOS 7.1 icons although there is a little bit more color and the icons have been simplified.

6.      Mojo for iOS 7 – Free

The color scheme on Mojo is a little more muted than other but there are pockets of color that make it nice and easy to look at, a great theme for any iOS 7.1 jailbroken iPhone or iPad.

7.      3 4 All – Free

This is one of those iOS 7.1 jailbreak themes that really stands out and has a lot more detail than many.  It looks good on iOS 7.1 and has a dark theme that draws you to it without being put off.

8.      Toast – $2.50

Toast is a nice iOS 7.1 jailbreak theme with faded colors that are soft, and a minimalistic look.

9.      Carla – $2.99

Carla is one of the more popular WinterBoard themes that has recently been given support for the iOS 7.1 jailbreak.  The icons look as if they were part of different themes but, all together, they complement each other perfectly.

10.  Flawless HD – $2.99

This iOS 7.1 Jailbreak theme is mostly white and orange/red.  Everything has been toned and scaled down and the icons have been rounded off with a great deal of attention given to detail.

11.  Ayecon – $2.99

Ayecon was originally released back in the iOS 6 days and has now been given the support for the iOS 7.1 jailbreak.  It is full of details and is possibly one of the more popular themes available on Cydia

12.  Aura – Free

Aura has more than 200 different icons for the iPhone, iPad and iPad that has been jailbroken on iOS 7.1.  Icon masks are included and, if you add the following repo to Cydia, you can get it for free:  http:// Cydia/myrepospace.com/iApexthemes

BONUS WINTERBOARD THEME

NextGen UI

This is one of those themes that takes your breath away.  It completely transforms your device and you will wonder if you are still using your original iOS 7.1 jailbroken iPhone or iPad.  

It has one main downfall in that it is a real battery drain theme and, if you are using an older iPhone jailbroken on IOS 7.1 you may find it lags a little.

That is it for this week. We will be back next week with more news of the enthusiast who has or who is planning on jailbreaking iOS 7.1.