Sprint now offering up to $650 for new ‘Framily’ subscribers

Following in the footsteps of T-Mobile, Sprint announced this week that it is now offering up to $650 in equipment trade-in and early termination fee credits to new subscribers. The goal of the promo is to entice customers to switch over from their current carriers. 

Folks looking to cash in on the ‘Framily Switching Bonus’ offer must port their existing phone numbers from another company to Sprint. They must also trade-in their previous handsets for new smartphones, and subscribe to one of the carrier’s new Framily rate plans…  

What’s a Framily plan? Once you get past the horrible name, it’s actually not a bad deal. Customers can group together with up to 9 people, regardless of relationship, for discounted rates. Plans can run as low as $25 per month for unlimited talk, text and 1+GB of data.

From Sprint’s press release: 

The Framily Switching Bonus offer is available to new and current customers bringing a number to Sprint from another postpaid carrier and signing up on a Sprint Framily Plan. Customers will receive credit for their phone trade-in as a part of the initial transaction. Approximately 10-12 weeks after initial sign-up, customers who register and submit their final bill from their previous carrier and who are in good standing at the time of payment processing will receive a Visa® Prepaid card worth up to $350 to pay back Early Termination Fees or, if not on contract, their remaining Equipment Installment balance.
Sprint recognizes that “family” now includes everyone important to an individual, including friends, neighbors and relatives. It’s no longer just a family, it’s a Framily. With the Sprint Framily Plan, the more people added to the group, up to 10 phone lines, the greater the savings for everyone on the plan. Because each account can be billed separately, customers can invite friends, family and others to join their Framily.

Sprint finds itself in an interesting situation these days. While it still counts itself as the third largest carrier in the United States, it seems like an outcast with AT&T and Verizon duking it out for top dog, and T-Mobile making noise at the bottom with its Uncarrier campaign.

Rumors began bouncing around late last year that Sprint was actually looking to acquire T-Mobile, but we’ve heard little about the deal since.

Just Mobile AluBolt cradles iPhone and iPad mini

Docks are my favorite iPhone and iPad accessory. I am not exactly sure what about them is enticing, but having my iOS devices propped elegantly at my workstation has been alluring since I first purchased an iPhone. Apple’s products are not just devices for productivity. Apple’s products are works of carefully crafted art. 

In that nature, I would rather prop them up as a showcase. You wouldn’t buy a $600 piece of art and let it lay aimlessly around your home. You would place it prominently, making sure others can tell you have great taste. You own an iPhone, right? Apply the same concept…

Design and function

The AluBolt is an upright docking stand for iPhone and iPad mini. I did throw my iPad Air on there for a test run, agreeing with Just Mobile’s primary intentions to use only the mini. iPad Air was a little wobbly on the stand because of the larger form factor. AluBolt’s base is 10.3mm (4.05″) in diameter with a brushed aluminum top plate, which houses the curved upright arm and Lightning port. 

Below the aluminum plate is a black plastic base with a scratch resistant pad to protect desktops from unnecessary scratching. The bottom pad is not a micro-suction pad, however. Without an attachment point or adhesive, combined with a very light form factor, removing iPhone or iPad mini requires two hands. 

There are mixed opinions about whether a dock should require two hands for removal, but I pref to grab my device and go. Using two hands to remove my device is a time waster and often annoying. The nature of stands with chargers, however, is one that has some pull requirements. The Lightning connector, in contrast to the 30 pin, seems to stay connected more intently, requiring a stronger pull to separate the device and cable. As such, any dock with a built in Lightning port will require a harder tug for removal. Consequently, unless the dock is extremely heavy, about 3lbs, or uses an adhesive like 3M or micro-suction, it will require a two handed motion to spring the iOS device.   

As pictured, the black plastic housing for the Lightning pin allows movement fore and back. More dock makers seem to make this added detail a priority, which should have been included many years ago. Allowing the Lightning tip to move provides a safer connection. Most people, myself included, quickly grab their device and go, without thinking about damaging iPhone’s Lightning port. The pivoting head prevents damage both to the tip and the Lightning port located on the iOS device. Docking either the iPhone or iPad mini does not require the tip to be moved, however. 

I like the unit includes a built-in USB cable. Others may take a short cut and leave out the cable, requiring a user installed job. With the included cable, I am not forced to use an Apple OEM cable, which are still in short supply around my home, car, and office. 

With an upright design, the curved plastic adds an interesting flair to the overall design, matching the circular base. I would prefer an aluminum support bar, but aluminum on the back of either iPhone 5s or c, could cause scratching without a barrier. Unfortunately, there is no way to adjust, bend, or move the support bar, eliminating the user’s ability to modify the viewing angle.  

As I mentioned, I am a pretty big fan of docks in general, making me predetermined to enjoy the AluBolt. Admittedly, I do like the AluBolt overall, but there are areas of improvement. Most notably, I really hate having to use two hands to remove my iOS device. This is picky and a personal preference, but that is a big sticking point for me. The plastic arm is also a little aggravating, including its inability to pivot, which is, again, a personal preference. 

The aluminum base matches my iMac completely and the pivoting Lightning tip is an excellent damage preventer. Including the installed Lightning cable is also a big plus. As I use a wooden desk, the scratch preventing pad is appreciated, but is an opportunity cost to forego a micro-suction option.   

AluBolt is available for $49.95, which is consistent with other certified MFi accessories, especially with included Lightning cables. I would be happy to pay a few extra dollars for a full aluminum design. 

Who else loves docks?

Atmospheric puzzle game Year Walk is now available on Mac OS X

Just in case you haven’t heard of the thought-provoking and innovative atmospheric puzzle survival game Year Walk, it was a hugely popular iOS title based on Swedish mythology that was impressive, to say the least. Its dark theme and bizarre characters stood out amongst the droves of Angry Bird clones that flooded the App Store. 

Simogo just launched a Mac OS X version of Year Walk that includes some big changes, including new puzzles, new areas to explore, and new graphics. It’s like getting to play the game for the first time, all over again… 

Year Walk for Mac is a lot like its iOS counterpart. Players take part in a Swedish mythological vision quest – going on “walkabout,” if you will. In the game, the protagonist meets a variety of folkloric creatures that he must outwit by solving puzzles.   

After the yearlong walk, the protagonist goes back to his home village. Without spoiling the story, stuff happens and you get to play the game a second time through. Be sure to read the companion guide for help. 

The Mac OS X version has been updated with new locations, new puzzles, and improved graphics. Additionally, the companion guide thatcomes as a separate download on iOSis integrated into the game for easier access. 

The development team at Simogo has also redesigned the game’s controls for laptop and desktop gaming. It is not just a port of the original title. It has been reworked to have its own feel on a computer screen. Players use the WASD keys on the keyboard to move around while controlling a cursor with the mouse. The cursor is used to interact with the environment.   

Some of the original puzzles in the iOS version were specific to the mobile device’s tilt and touch gestures. The OS X version has been updated with redesigned puzzles that fit the desktop mechanics (you won’t have to tilt your 27-inch screen). Plus, some puzzles have been replaced entirely with new ones. 

This version also has menus, maps, and a hint system to help get you through the adventure without feeling lost (which you might feel anyway as soon as you walk out of the cabin door).

Year Walk is available on Mac OS X 10.6.6 or later for $5.99. Download it in the App Store today.

Did you play Year Walk on iOS? Will you be getting it on your Mac?

How to add a respring widget to ProWidgets

EasySpring for ProWidgets is one of the first, if not the first, add-ons for the ProWidgets jailbreak tweak. As you might have heard, I’m a pretty big fan of ProWidgets, not only due to its great design and functionality, but also due to the potential it has for third-party developers.

Although this initial add-on isn’t very exciting, it does show off how easy it is for developers to create good looking widgets. Have a glance past the break as we showcase to you EasySpring—the add-on that allows you to have your own custom respring widget. 

Using EasySpring is a simple affair. You can invoke it by taking advantage of any of the activation methods available to ProWidgets. The activation methods range from Control Center, to Notification Center, and, of course, Activator.

In our video demo of EasySpring for ProWidgets, I decided to use an Activator gesture as a means to invoke the widget. Doing so will showcase a simple respring interface that allows you to choose from three different types of resprings.

The EasySpring widget is expandable to display the three different respring options. Users can choose to go into safe mode, perform a normal respring, or perform a UICache refresh + respring. You can then collapse the widget to find the respring button in its upper right-hand corner.

As stated, EasySpring is about as simple as it gets, but it’s a good indication of what developers will be able to do once more begin to tap into its ability. EasySpring for ProWidgets is available for free on Cydia’s BigBoss repo. Let me know what you think about it in the comments down below.

Apple to announce second quarter earnings on April 23

Folks wondering how Apple did during its quiet second quarter will have their answer in just a few short weeks. The Cupertino company has updated its Investor Relations page to note that it will be releasing its financial results for Q2 2014 on April 23rd. 

There were no new products announced during the 3-month period, but Apple did make some changes to its device lineup. In March, the company launched a new 8GB versionof its iPhone 5c in certain countries, and reintroduced its 4th generation iPad… 

Here’s Apple’s guidance for the quarter:

Apple is providing the following guidance for its fiscal 2014 second quarter:
- revenue between $42 billion and $44 billion
- gross margin between 37 percent and 38 percent
- operating expenses between $4.3 billion and $4.4 billion
- other income/(expense) of $200 million
- tax rate of 26.2 percent  

Of course, Apple never offers guidance regarding smartphone or tablet sales, but it’s safe to assume they are going to be on the lower side. Q2 and 3 are typically slow for the company, as they sit between the holidays andanticipated product refreshes in the fall. 

At any rate, the conference call is slated to begin on Wednesday, April 23 at 2pm PST. And as usual we will be providing full coverage of the call here on iDB, posting financial results and any other announcements or notable highlights. So make sure to tune in!

How to enable five additional dynamic wallpapers in iOS 7

Do you enjoy using iOS 7′s dynamic wallpaper feature? Would you like to get your hands on five additional wallpapers? If the answer to those questions was yes, then you definitely need to check out this jailbreak tweak. 

HiddenWallpapers is a jailbreak tweak that’s available free on Cydia, and it unlocks five additional dynamic wallpapers for your iOS 7 device. Three of the wallpapers are admittedly a bit pedestrian, but there are two that I think are quite special.  

Once you install HiddenWallpapers, go to Settings > Wallpapers & Brightness and select Dynamic wallpaper. Scroll to the bottom of the list of dynamic wallpaper to find the five additional wallpapers. 

The first three additional wallpapers are fairly average, but the last two make the tweak worth downloading. There’s a deep-red wallpaper and an even cooler dark dynamic wallpaper with different colored bubbles. The dark wallpaper is without a doubt the coolest looking dynamic wallpaper available, and I highly recommend you try it out for yourself.

It should be mentioned that HiddenWallpapers doesn’t require WinterBoard in order to work. Just install it, go to you wallpaper settings and enjoy your five new dynamic wallpapers.

HiddenWallpapers is free of charge on Cydia’s BigBoss repo. Download it today, and let us know what you think about it in the comments below.

The best calendar apps for iPhone

Calendar apps are like blue jeans. Everyone has a different idea of what makes them good, and oftentimes, they get more comfortable the more you use them. Especially when you haven’t washed them for a week. Different types of people have different needs from their calendar. Some want a simple design with very little clutter. Others want a productivity workhorse that will offer a wide variety of features. 

Whether you know what kind of calendar app you prefer or not, we’ve done some research to track down the best in this category. We came up with a list of what we believe are the best calendar apps for iPhone. No matter what you’re looking for in a calendar app, we think these are just the right fit for the wide variety of readers we have at iDB… 

Fantastical 2 is arguably the best calendar app for iPhone. Its clean and elegant design as well as its features make it an easy recommendation for anybody. With a smart input parser and Reminders integration, Fantastical 2 not only offers convenience but also simplicity. One of the little things people love about this app is the little colored dots that appear under each dated of the monthly view. You can see at a glance which calendars have an event that day. I color code my Google calendars and this makes it easy to see if I have band practice, something work related, or a family event. For more details about Fantastical 2,check out our review. This app is available for $4.99.   

This fifth update to one of our favorite calendar apps includes smart-type natural language input, easy-to-add new event pop outs. You can sync with your native Reminders app and task managing is incredibly simple. It displays day, week, month, and list views of your events with lots of additional productivity features. Check out our review. This app is available for $6.99. 

If you ever wondered whether your technology could read your mind, this might be the app that would make you believe it. It identifies places you are going and gives you an estimated travel time so you can schedule back-to-back appointments without being late due to traffic. You can also connect with business relationships, call into conference calls, and much more. This app is available for free. 

As you can see, there are quite a few different calendar apps available to suit your needs. Whether you want to have your iPhone tell you when to leave for your next appointment, just want to glance at the week’s schedule, or don’t even care what is happening tomorrow, at least one of these apps is probably a good fit for you.

What is your favorite calendar app?