Jailbreaking is not defunct yet, and that is expressed by the dedication jailbreak developers put in to pop out a new one once in a while. A team of developers along with CoolStar- the one who created the Electra jailbreak- have come up with a new jailbreak for iOS 11.3.1. The iOS 11.3.1 Electra jailbreak was long due, and developers in the team made sure that we got ultimate discretion from Apple’s impotence as soon as possible.

The iOS 11.3.1 jailbreak ships packaged with the Electra jailbreak utility. For earlier versions of the jailbreak, you’d have to use the older version of the utility as well. But with the fresh release for iOS 11.3.1, you’ll have to use the new Electra 1131 tool.

A new jailbreak means more public exposure to tweaks. However, whenever a jailbreak is released, tweak developers begin adding support for the latest jailbreak, if not produce new tweaks. This process usually takes time until most tweaks are made compatible. But, there are some tweaks that don’t utilize core features and are readily available right off the bat. We are gonna have a look at some of those tweaks so that you can enjoy your new jailbroken device to the utmost potential.

But, before we get to the tweak list, let’s see how to jailbreak iOS 11.3.1 with Electra on iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch.

Things you’ll need:

• iPhone, iPad, iPod, obviously!
• A PC or Mac
• Cydia Impactor
• Electra Jailbreak tool
• Patience

Steps:

1. According to iTweakz on YouTube, in order to ensure a smooth jailbreak process, grab your iPhone/iPad/iPod and turn off Siri altogether.
2. Turn off Find My iPhone
3. Then turn on Airplane mode and reboot your iDevice.
4. Further, turn on your iDevice (this will disable flight mode, so turn it on once again).
5. Hop on to your PC/Mac. Provided you have downloaded all the pre-requisites, open Cydia Impactor. Tip: Place all the downloaded files on the desktop for easy access.
6. Connect your iPhone/iPad/iPod to the PC/Mac, then, if prompted, tap on “Trust.”
7. Now, the steps involving Cydia Impactor are quite complex, and won’t work if not done right. So, here’s a video from iTweakz describing the Cydia Impactor Part:
8. Once you manage to get the Electra jailbreak tool on your iPhone, go to Settings- General- Profile, and tap on the new profile. Once in, tap Trust.
9. Now, open the Electra jailbreak app placed on the app drawer and then tap on Jailbreak.

Since this jailbreak is brand-new, the process could fail a couple of times. You’ll have to repeatedly try tapping the jailbreak button until you finally see the Cydia app in the app drawer. However, even after Cydia gets installed on your iDevice, you’ll have to enable the jailbreak by going into the Electra tool and tapping the Jailbreak button once again.

Update: Coolstar and his team have updated the Electra Jailbreak tool to fix problems experienced by users earlier. The success rate for the jailbreak has increased.

Now that we have Electra Installed, let’s take a look at what sources should you add to Cydia initially:

• http://rpetri.ch/repo/
• http://getdelta.co/
• https://repo.packix.com/
• http://beta.sparkservers.co.uk/
• http://tateu.net/repo/
• https://ib-soft.net/cydia/
• https://cydia.angelxwind.net/
• http://limneos.net/repo/
• https://apt.alfhaily.me/
• http://beta.unlimapps.com/
• http://cydia.ichitaso.com/
• https://repo.cpdigitaldarkroom.com/
• https://beta.cpdigitaldarkroom.com/
• http://coolstar.org/publicrepo/
• https://cydia.hbang.ws/
• http://repo.nullpixel.uk/
• https://midnightchip.github.io/repo/

Now, finally, let’s get to the best jailbreak tweaks for iOS 11.3.1. Note that these tweaks also work on previous versions of the jailbreak.

1. Anemone

A stellar theming engine concocted by keeping jailbreak users in mind. Most people already know about this tool. But for those who don’t, using Anemone, you’ll be able to install exquisite themes to make your iPhone not look like an iPhone and give it an altogether new feel.

Check out my series of the best Anemone themes:

• These are the best themes you can install on the Electra jailbreak.

• Best Cydia jailbreak themes for iOS 11- Part 2

Anemone is available from the official Electra repo on Cydia.

2. BetterPowerDown

As mentioned before, the initial stages of a jailbreak are deemed to be unstable. The iDevice would have to be rebooted once in a while to ensure smooth working. But, iPhones, iPads, and iPods do not support one-tap reboots right out of the box. This is when BetterPowerDown comes in handy.

With this tweak, you’ll be able to easily reboot, respring, and shut down your iDevice in one swipe.

3. NoLargeTitles

iOS 11 shipped with a lot of new changes. However, the introduction of large titles placed almost everywhere in the UI faced a lot of criticism from fellow users. Agree or not, large titles don’t look as good as they sound.

This tweak disables all the large titles throughout the UI and restores them with smaller titles- as present in iOS 10 and before. It’s a pretty simple one with no settings to configure. However, you’ll thank me later after installing this tweak.

4. Ventana

Ventana works more on the visual aid than proving to be useful. It enables a Windows 10-like lock-screen with info on already-enabled toggles, modified notifications, a re-arranged clock and better a better placement of music toggles.

As mentioned above, you won’t feel advantageous as this tweak doesn’t perform any tasks that ease your usage. However, a jailbreak doesn’t solely exist to enhance usability, it can also set a ground for ultimate customizations- the ones which are out of bounds. And Ventana is one of the many examples set by the jailbreak community in favor of customizing an iDevice.

5. Zeppelin

Credits: iDownloadBlog

A prime tweak that can be found on almost all jailbroken devices, Zeppelin is the tweak you can root for if you hate the carrier text in the status bar. The tweak basically allows replacing the carrier text with a custom logo/icon.

There are a plethora of inbuilt icons you can choose from (and many external packages available) that can stand in place of the carrier text. A Superman logo would look stunning, right? Maybe an Apple logo?

6. BrightVol

This is an Activator ridden tweak, which means that it requires the tweak- Activator- to work. BrightVol helps you decrease or increase the brightness of the device using the volume buttons- hence the name “BrightVol.” All you have to do is press both volume up and down buttons simultaneously, and the buttons will be remapped to control brightness instead of volume.

To get the volume controls back, press the volume buttons simultaneously once again.

7. Chrysalis

Enchanting name! But, the work it does is even better. Chrysalis tweaks the 3D app switcher on iPhones supporting 3D touch to look more minimalistic. Instead of showing full-sized app cards, the tweak displays a bunch of icons of apps running in the background.

With this tweak, you can jump to any app you want using 3D touch, which is one thing you can’t do without this tweak. Usually, you’ll get to jump back to the last app you were in- not any app in your background.

8. Cylinder

A legendary tweak. For those who don’t know what Cylinder is, it is a tweak which enables playful scroll animations for the app drawer. There are tons of animations to choose from. Cydia also hosts a number of external animation packages for Cylinder.

This tweak has been in the jailbreak community since the first jailbreak was launched. And yet, it never fails to amuse its users.

9. Opener

As obvious as it sounds, this tweak opens stuff. But, there’s a catch.

When you open a link from Safari or any other app, there’s always a default app to open the link. For example, when you tap on a link in WhatsApp, the default browser set to open the link in Safari. However, with this tweak you can change the app you would like to open the link in. So now If I wanna open a link from WhatsApp, I can reprogram it to open in Chrome.

10. Activator

Deemed as one of the most important tweaks of all time, Activator provides a base for several other tweaks to function on. With Activator, you can set specific action combinations to evoke a certain function. A tweak in our list- BrightVol uses Activator.

That is it for this time. However, there’ll be a part 2 when more interesting tweaks become compatible. Stay Tuned for best jailbreak tweaks for iOS 11.3.1 Electra Jailbreak Part 2!

Pursuant to the traditional manner, Apple has released the third iteration of its new iPhone operating system for developers. iOS 12 Developer Beta 3 brings a lot of tiny perks, while mostly focusing on bug fixes.

With iOS 12 Beta 3, Apple has finally set foot on the ground and has been listening to its users and developers. This wasn’t the case with iOS 11 as it was a ground for a plethora of bugs. Although, the tech giant is shifting its bubble towards proving iOS 12 to be worthy of installations. Instead of surprising users with perks, iOS 12 Beta 3 falls more on the bug-fixing part.

Here’s what new in the latest beta from Apple:

Redesigned Voice Memos on iPad

The iPad gained a voice memo app with the launch of iOS 12. Well, it seems that Apple is already working on improving the same. In Beta 2, the voice memo app for iPad had a squared design that appeared to be resembling an iOS 7 design- except there was a heavy application of the bold text.

However, in beta 3, the app has gained more of Apple’s infamous rounded rectangles and blurriness. As Apple works towards making everything simple (so it says), the voice recorder, in fact, looks intelligible.

The Reddit user by the name- u/MMikolaj1 spotted it out first and posted the comparison.

[FEATURE] Redesigned voice memos on iPad in Beta 3 from iOSBeta

A lot of improvements in Maps

It is a proven fact that Apple maps are not one of the many options for a million users. Although, with iOS 12, Apple has promised to improve the Maps experience to an extent that it becomes the numero uno option for most users. iOS 12 Developer Beta 3 is just a medium for the subject’s improvement.

There are a bunch of enhancements that increase the chance of reliability on Apple Maps. Some of them are listed below

Maps in the San Francisco Bay area are more detailed

The Reddit user MMikolaj1 spotted this one as well. He posted a comparison showing a map of the San Francisco Bay area on beta 2 and beta 3. The map seems to be having more beacons and markings. And the terrain itself appears in-depth as new road markings have been added. The colors on the map itself are now a tad on the lighter shade.

[FEATURE] Maps in San Francisco and the Bay Area are more detailed in beta 3. from iOSBeta

More places are added

According to a Reddit user- u/seawanderer, the street where he/she resides wasn’t previously visible on Apple Maps. But, iOS 12 Developer Beta 3 fixed that with the correct name of the street. This advancement could be due to the acquisition claiming Apple to be rebuilding the Maps app from the ground up.

GPS has been fixed

The previous 2 betas had an awry issue that rendered the GPS of a lot of devices on iOS 12 useless. While most users didn’t report a problem with the GPS, it turns out that those with iDevices having an Intel modem were the prime sufferers. The problem has been since fixed, though, with the release of beta 3.

Battery section gets new low power mode indicated statistics

In the battery section, if at any point in time, the low power mode was enabled- the iOS device will now show a yellow colored bar graph. In previous betas, no matter if you had low power enabled, the device always showed a green bar graph indicating battery usage. This is a very subtle change among other new enhancements.

[Feature] when your iPhone has low power mode enabled it will show in a yellow color in the battery section. iOS 12 beta 3 from iOSBeta

New animation while 3D touching “Clear all” button on notifications

There is a new animation when 3D touching the “Clear all” button at the notification center. The new animation has a subtle ‘pop and bounce’ effect to the tab. iOS 12 Beta 2 shipped with new animations for 3D touching notifications, and the new animation on beta 3 looks exactly the same.

This new animation when 3D touching “clear all notifications” is 👌🏼 pic.twitter.com/3LbihFzYjd

— Matt (@ttam110) July 3, 2018

One Swipe gesture for clearing alerts is back

iOS 12 Developer Beta 3 brings back the old ‘one-swipe to clear alerts’ feature for notifications. In iOS 11, clearing notifications individually demanded a swipe to the left. But the gesture was removed in iOS 12 and replaced with another option to further manage notifications intuitively. However, Apple has brought back the one-swipe gesture.

3D touch toggle now works on iPad

You can now 3D touch on the notifications to intuitively handle them on an iPad. For the record, an iPad doesn’t house a 3D touch sensor by design, but you can now long press on software bits to make replicate 3D touch functionality.

[Feature] 3D Touch toggle now works on the iPad from iOSBeta

SIM Unlock screen shows up instantly after reboot

The SIM unlock screen now shows up almost instantly after a reboot, while this wasn’t the case with previous betas.

CarPlay doesn’t disconnect now when a rear-end camera is activated

Beta 1 and Beta 2 of iOS 12 had this problem where CarPlay would unwantedly disconnect when the rear-end camera was activated. However, this is now fixed with iOS 12 Developer Beta 3. However, some users report of the bug still appearing to be prominent for some car manufacturers.

Control center background intensity has been reduced

As mentioned before, Apple loves to blur out backgrounds- which is the case with the control center in the latest beta. The background on the control center looks more appealing owing to the fact that the intensity of the background blur has been reduced.

[FEATURE] The control center background. from iOSBeta

That is all for now. This post will be updated constantly as new features will be discovered. Here are Apple’s full Release notes for iOS 12 Developer Beta 3. Do check out!

The iPhone has a great camera and the fact that it’s undebatable ignites the idea that it can be utilized much more professionally than most smartphone cameras. In fact, iPhone cameras have been in contiguous comparison with DSLRs. Still, a camera sensor on an iPhone is only capable to produce industry-standard pieces if paired with authentic accessories meant for enhancing the overall quality of an image/video. But, the question is: What are the options when it comes to the best iPhone camera accessories?

Illustrious directors like Steven Soderbergh and Sean Baker have proved with films like “Unsane” and “Tangerine” respectively that those little devices in your pockets are capable of giving birth to stellar movies. Although, just by observing the quality of the film, it can be easily made out that the piece was not shot on a professional device. Yet, the iPhone can outdo professional film cameras for a split second, if not the entire span of the movie.

1. DJI Osmo Mobile 2

The first thing a perfect snap or a video might need is a stabilized frame. Owing to the fact that smartphones, no matter what company, are incapable of capturing extremely stabilized shots, a gimble might help.

Usually, while recording a video on a smartphone, there’s plenty of shaky bits. Even though smartphone manufacturers do their best to reduce instability, they aren’t able to compete with industry grade tools produced specifically to reduce volatility. DJI’s Osmo Mobile 2 Gimbal, though, is one such product that will produce remarkably stable shots. Just clip the iPhone, or for that matter, any smartphone with a decent camera sensor. This gimbal’s controls are quite impressive. With just a click of the button situated on the handle, the mechanical part rotates to a preset position.

Besides, cinematic panning is also one of the options that DJI packs in, which is quite impressive owing to the fact that the only use of a gimbal was to stabilize stuff– not sport cinematic sequential tricks. The DJI Osmo Mobile 2’s handle is designed in a manner that resembles a helicopter joystick. It feels sturdy and solid; at the exact moment– it’s lightweight. You can also attach a tripod to the handle. Plus, DJI ups the ante by catering an application specifically designed to take advantage of the gimbal. Identifying a subject and stabilizing the gimbal while focused on the subject, for example, is one of the many impressive features.

Additionally, what’s the use of a gimbal if it can’t capture breathtaking panoramas? Well, the gimbal from DJI does that too! The DJI Osmo Mobile 2 is available on Amazon for $129.

2. Jopree 4-in-1 Camera Lens Kit

iPhone cameras aren’t just sought-after for video recordings, photos too, turn out to be fantastically vibrant. Although, there can be only so much the little lenses glued to the infamous unibody designs can do. For starters, they can’t click wide-angled shots. Macro shots are out of the question, and regular lens zoom grains the shot.

But, it seems technology today has revolutionized things in such a way, there are a million workarounds to a single problem. And the solution to this particular issue of iPhone camera lens’ limitations is a set of custom, detachable camera lenses. There are tons of them available on Amazon, while most of them being low-quality, cheap workarounds. There are some mid-priced kits as well, though. But Jopree is currently one of the best iPhone camera accessories.

The kit houses 4 lenses altogether– a 20X Macro lens, 2.0 X Zoom Telephoto lens, 120 Degree Wide-angle lens, and a 180 Degree Fisheye lens. While this kit is not necessarily intended towards an iPhone, it best fits with the same. You can use this kit even for a Samsung device, or for that matter, any smartphone– if at all it fits the design.

Jopree 4-in-1 Camera Lens Kit is available on Amazon for $50.

3. Manfrotto Pixi Mini Tripod

Taking shots at creating the best project ever- be it for college or an internship, sure requires stellar lenses and even spectacular sensors enhanced by stabilizing gear. But, sometimes, you need to extend your boundaries by adding maybe one or two time-lapse sequences.

Time–lapse photography is a technique whereby the frequency at which film frames are captured (the frame rate) is much lower than that used to view the sequence. Capturing one demands patience and grit, and the human mind, as well as its coordination with the hand, is far from the perfect condition to capture a unique time-lapse. Well, a tripod could ease things a bit. And the tripod we have in-sight is the Manfrotto Pixi Mini Tripod. Manfrotto has its base in Italy, which is also where all of its products are designed. The company is already prominent in stocking up tripods for DSLRs, so it is safe to say that it would perform just as well with smartphones.

Additionally, you get a smartphone mount capable of housing even the iPhone 8 Plus. Although, there’s not much assurance as to the fact that it couldn’t be used with cases. If you have a smaller iPhone with a case, you’ll have no issues. The Manfrotto Pixi Mini Tripod is available on Amazon for $30 (with the smartphone holder) and for $19.14 (just the stand).

4. Griffin Survivor Extreme

Being a photographer/videographer is difficult. You have to go to extreme lengths just to capture a single shot/video. However, while in haste, there’s a high chance of capturing instruments to deter. Cameras, usually, are very delicate and a single drop could end up them being dysfunctional; most of the times, even rainfall wrecks one thing or two internally.

The same effects can be expected on an iPhone. Sure, it’s water-resistant but it won’t manage to bear extreme conditions. There are indeed phones for extreme conditions, but they don’t have impressive cameras. The Griffin Survivor Extreme comes to the rescue- a case that protects an iPhone in the harshest conditions. It has a 3-meter drop protection onto concrete. Internal foam lining, shatter-resistant polycarbonate frame, and shock absorbing silicone are its highlighted features. And believe it or not, these are the only things that can protect the little masterpiece living in your pockets.

Griffin has also added an anti-scratch screen clamped along the case that stonewalls the original screen. But, a downside is the case doesn’t have a covering for the camera- which is a prominent issue when it comes to photo/video production. Yet, it does protect the phone from drops and harsh weather. And it’s available on Amazon for $40.91 for the iPhone X.

5. Hitcase Pro

The Hitcase Pro is another case constructed to provide durability in raucous conditions one meets when filming a video or capturing a shot. But there’s a reason it’s different from the Griffin Survivor Extreme- it is a case meant for photographers.

You can’t compare it with a GoPro, but it makes an iPhone appear as one. The case has a mount that can be clamped to almost anything compatible with a GoPro. In fact, it also comes with a wide lens. But, like the Griffin Survivor Extreme, the Hitcase Pro does not offer a 3-meter drop protection. But on the bright side, the latter is far more good-looking when compared to the former. Everything on the case works magically- more like magnetically. With an iPhone X, iPhone 8 (Plus), and iPhone 7 camera attachment that magnetically attaches to the case, this case could be highly considered one of the best iPhone camera accessories- as it covers almost every aspect of photography/videography.

The Hitcase Pro is available on Amazon for $180.52.

6. Manfrotto LED light

Even an entry-level photographer would know that photography is a game of lights. The correct manipulation of light entering the sensor could result in award-winning photos/videos.

But, there are numerous instances when an additional source of light is required to produce a grain-free photo or video. At times as such, the Manfrotto LED light might come in handy. A pocket-sized LED light that looks like a credit card (a little bloated), Manfrotto has surely gained a good grasp of the visual world. It’s not that the flashes on an iPhone wouldn’t help, but they are far from efficient in catering adequate lighting conditions.

A clamper is shipped pre-attached to the light which enables the LED to be placed on tripods, or even certain cameras. Although, it does not support clamping on smartphones. But, there is a flurry of tools out there for an iPhone that enables it to sport a dock- like a case etc.

The box comes with 2 lithium ion batteries included. And guess what? The Manfrotto LED Light could go hand-in-hand with the Manfrotto Pixi Mini Tripod– which is also described in this list. However, the LED is available on Amazon for $33.95.

7. Anker Powercore 20,100 mAh Portable Charger

A portable charger would be the least involved with photography, but its applicability is way more significant when it boils down to dealing with an iPhone.

An iPhone 8 has 1821 mAh battery which lasts for a day and a half tops if its obtained for regular usage. However, recording a video all day isn’t an instance of the term ‘regular iPhone usage’. Capturing photos and videos utilize almost every mechanism on an iPhone, or for that matter, any smartphone- which implies the battery would wear off soon. You wouldn’t want a dead iPhone while filming your most important frames. And the only way to save your battery is to bring extras. However, since the iPhone does not sport detachable batteries, portable chargers seem to be the only way to keep the roll going.

Anker’s Powercore portable charger is a reputable choice. It has a 20,100 mAh battery capacity which means that you can charge an iPhone 8, 12 times. A staggering 12 times. Not just that, Anker’s battery packs are known to usually last longer and are much less prone to relentless damages.

You can grab Anker’s Powercore Portable charger from Amazon for $47.99.

Let us know your picks in the comments below, and we might as well add it to the second part of this post.