Apple usually reserves appearances by Sir Jonathan Ive, their head of design, for polished videos shows at product introductions, but he spoke with The Sunday Times in the UK this week to discuss Apple's philosophy and contrast it with the competition. The full article is available on Time.com Jony Ive's comments can be read as cheerleading or trash talking, depending on the reader's perspective, but he makes some interesting points. For example "We’re surrounded by anonymous, poorly made objects. It’s tempting to think it’s because the people who use them don’t care—just like the people who make them."

Apple's iPhone marks a watershed in smartphone design. I owned many "smartphones" and PDAs before then, from Palm, Compaq, Nokia, and others. Before Apple, even the smartest phone used plastic to achieve a low price point. The internal technology was expensive enough that it was hard to justify spending money on the casing. After all, users weren't going to spend $400 on a phone. Apple, and specifically Sir Ive along with Steve Jobs, used specially designed glass (Corning's Gorilla Glass) and of course, Ive's favorite metal, aluminum or "aluminium" as he would say.

Now, post-iPhone introduction, all high-end smartphones use metal and Gorilla Glass. Apple is even working on Sapphire glass, which will be harder and more scratch resistant. Of course the iPhone 5s is available in gold... at least gold-colored aluminum. Apple changed the direction of the industry and proved that people want high-end materials and will pay for it. Indeed, Motorola, Samsung, HTC, and Microsoft/Nokia offer stunning devices in larger screen sizes and with more features such as NFC. As Steve Jobs said when he introduced iBooks, Apple was standing on the shoulders of those who came before (referring to but not naming Amazon.) Many Android and Windows phones are indeed high-end, high-quality well-designed pieces of equipment.

But Ive's comments in the article focus on the low-end of Android phones.  I've purchased several such phones because, as a cross-platform developer, I need to own all kinds of equipment.  The low-end Androids are the flip phones of today.  They offer just enough technology to run Android (a touchscreen, camera, and some buttons) but still use cheap plastic and feel disposable.

It's probably not fair for Ive to paint competitors with such a broad brush. Many of their products do feel cheap and underdesigned.  Clearly their higher-end offerings use solid components and show attention to detail.  Ive is deliberately focused on the weakest link.  

Ultimately, the difference may be that Apple tries to put high quality design into every item, even the lowest cost product. Their $20 Apple remote is still a thing of beauty and belongs in the Museum of Modern Art. That may be Ive's point. Any company can put high-quality materials and design into a $3,000 computer but the real test is when low-end items like the iPhone 5c share a design methodology and use high-quality materials.

There's really no limit to what you can do with your iPhone. In this interview, I get the opportunity to talk to Kristian Day, a filmmaker from Iowa who managed to shoot an entire TV show with his iPhone, and sell it to a local network. He talks about how he got started, the best apps for filming, and overcoming rejection. Check it out below!

Interview Transcript

(Transcription done by Speechpad.com)

If you have suggestions for people to interview, or ideas about making the interview series better, please shoot me an email at alex@iphonelife.com. 

Image copyright Goodluz, Shutterstock, Inc.

If your eyesight isn't what it used to be, you may find the small text on your iPhone or iPad hard to read. But there's no need to strain your eyes. And fortunately for you, I got my first pair of glasses at age six, so I'm way ahead of you on this being blind thing. Here are several tricks I use to make reading on an iPhone or iPad easier on the eyes:

1. Increase text size

Not every app supports dynamic type, but many do. To increase text size, go to Settings>General>Text Size. Adjust the slider to the right until you reach your preferred text size. If that's not big enough you can make the text even bigger in Accessibility settings

2. Bold the text

When iOS 7 first came out, many people complained that the lighter, thinner text was hard to read. The solution is simple; bold the text. go to Settings>General>Accessibility and toggle Bold Text on. Changing this setting will cause your phone to restart.

3. Invert the screen colors for low light viewing

If you like to use your iDevice in bed or in other low light settings, you may find that the bright light from your iPhone or iPad hurts your eyes. You can solve this problem by inverting the screen colors. Go to Settings>General>Accessibility and toggle Invert Colors on. Ahh. That's better.

Anyone can make a stylus, and with the popularity of touchscreen devices, just about everyone has. But they all pretty much look the same. Now, thanks to the good folks at Jaymo, you can leverage their personalization tools to make your stylus unique.

I've used their website before to customize iPhone and iPad cases, but at the recent Consumer Electronics Show, I got to see their latest product, the PixStylus. It's actually a combination pen and stylus, with different tips on each end. 

You can upload custom photos to fit into their templates, or select from their personalization tools, to type your name for example. The PixStylus is available in assorted colors and at $13, it makes a great gift that you can make as unique as the recipient!

There are a good many rugged, heavy-duty, protective cases on the market for our iDevices, and over the years I've tried out most of them. Again and again I am reminded that case maker Lifeproof consistently produces the most reliable, high-quality all-purpose protective case you can find. Not only do they manufacture some of the best waterproof iDevice cases on the market, they manage to do so while keeping their case designs in line with the Jobsian vision of a sleek, low-profile, and elegantly beautiful pocket computing device. Allowing full functionality and interactivity with your iDevice, the Lifeproof cases are, simply put, what the iPhone and iPad would look like, if Jobs had designed them to be shock proof, dirt proof, and liquid proof. No more, no less. Lifeproof just released their long anticipated line of cases for the iPad Air as well as the iPad mini. Continue reading to find out how these new cases deliver on their promise to provide total protection for life on the go.

If you are a regular reader of iPhone Life you may already know that I'm a big fan of Lifeproof cases. They are produced with integrity, and meticulous attention to detail is poured into every aspect of their development. They aren't usually the first to market with protective cases when the newest iDevices come out, but the extra time and attention Lifeproof pours into the design and testing of their cases is worth the wait and shows in the precision crafting of their product.

Lifeproof was the first case maker to hit the market with a full-time use iDevice case. Prior to that, if you wanted a waterproof case it would invariably be a huge, clunky affair which required a Herculean effort to lug around with you. With Lifeproof we saw for the first time, a line of cases that were not only form-fitting and aesthetically pleasing, but were also designed to be used all the time. Before Lifeproof revolutionized the rugged case industry it seemed like a case that was waterproof and rugged, yet also allowed you to fully interact with your touchscreen, and access your headphone and charging ports, were traits that would be impossible to find in one case. With the Lifeproof cases we were introduced to cases that were specifically designed to be left on all the time, whether charging, underwater, or in whatever occupation or pastime you happen to engage in.

Now, continuing this tradition of excellence, Lifeproof has improved on their design for the iPad 2-4 with the new Lifeproof frē case for Apple’s iPad Air ($109.99). One of the first attributes I noticed with the new iPad Air Lifeproof cases were their improved, slimmed-down design.

The original Lifeproof nüüd for the iPad 2–4 was a super-protective case, but it was also a hefty thing, especially considering it was a Lifeproof product. With the newer frē and nüüd models for the iPad mini, Lifeproof tweaked their design, slimming the case down and making it more form-fitting. This slimmed down design makes it way to the Lifeproof nüüd and frē iPad Air case. With the redesigned and refined style of the new iPad Air cases Lifeproof has developed what I’d consider to be their best iPad cases thus far.

Also new to the Lifeproof catalog are the just released Lifeproof frē ($99.99) and Lifeproof nüüd ($119.99) cases for the iPad mini with Retina display.

Unlike the iPad Air which was a complete redesign from the previous iPad versions 2–4, the iPad mini with Retina display kept (for the most part) basically the same specs as the original iPad mini. This means that the new Lifeproof iPad mini cases will fit both the original iPad mini as well as the new iPad mini with Retina.

The Lifeproof cases offer your new iPad the kind of protection that will give you the confidence to carry your iPad along with you wherever you may roam. Whether you primarily use your iPad around the house, on the job site, or while adventuring outdoors, the svelte, minimalistic Lifeproof cases will keep your iPad safe and sound without adding much in the way of bulk, or limiting your interaction or ease of use with your iPad. If you're looking for some serious waterproof and all around ruggedly dependable protection for your iPad, the Lifeproof nüüd and frē cases are in my opinion, your best options.

The Peterson Birds app, which regularly sells for $9.99, is currently available in the App Store for $0.99. This is a great deal on a great app. Having a bird app on your device is so much more convenient than schlepping a book, especially since you typically have your device with you. Plus, unlike books, birding apps also have recordings of their songs. You simply tap on the illustration to hear the song. The Peterson Birds app includes information from eight different Peterson Field Guide Books, such as the very popular Peterson Field Guide to North America, giving you details on over 800 species of North American birds. The app offers illustrations, range maps, bird songs, and nest photos, and claims to give you more detail than any other bird app. It also claims to be the only one that lets you compare similar species by sight, song, and range from one screen. The QuickFind index lets you go to information on a particular bird with a single tap—letting you avoid having to type in the bird's name. 

Other features include the ability to create and share lists, add your photos for each bird species, and access the Cornell University eBird database, which has lists of birds in your area and their frequency for each week of the year. This latter feature helps you narrow down which birds you're likely to see in your neighborhood.

Apple actually highlighted Peterson Birds in their keynote address when they introduced the iPad Air.

At a price of $0.99, I cant imagine anyone not taking advantage of this offer and grabbing this app. 

Several markets, including China, Europe, and Australia, are getting their hands on a lower cost 8GB iPhone 5c. The $99 (subsidized) 16GB model was apparently still priced too high for many users, and Apple would rather they don't embrace Android instead. With an 8GB model, Apple can hit price points below $50, or even free for subsidized customers and achieve lower no-contract pricing. This new model hasn't been announced in the United States, and that might not happen. In fact, some vendors like BestBuy have offered the 16GB iPhone 5c for free with a two year contract! Wal-Mart has the 16GB iPhone 5c for $29 with a two year contract.

While Apple just abandoned the iPad 2 in favor of the iPad 4 as their low-end, full-size iPad, the iPhone 4S remains on Apple's pricelist in the U.S. The iPhone 4S represents the last of Apple's 30-pin connected iOS devices and clearly its days are numbered. Apple wants to look forward and the iPhone 4S should be history by now.

So can an 8GB model iPhone 5c work? With a larger screen and Retina display, it will be tempting to watch and record HD videos on it, which can eat up that space quickly. Fortunately, iCloud and iTunes Match can help offload storage needs. It has also been suggested by Apple Insider that Apple's iOS uses less space than comparable Android phones. For example, the 8GB iPhone 5c has 4.9GB available to the end user whereas the Samsung 16GB Galaxy S4 only has 8.56GB free. Almost half the memory is taken up by Android. Of course many Android phones can accept microSD cards.

It should also be noted that an iPhone 5c No-Contract phone can be had for as low as $360 from Virgin Mobile. If an 8GB model brought that closer to $300, it could take sales away from Apple's $300 iPod touch. While the touch has 32GB, many may prefer a phone. I could add phone service later and I'd rather my kids have a device that can dial 911 even if it's not activated. Or if my iPhone 5s were to break, it'd be nice to have a spare phone!

Ultimately, the 8GB iPhone 5c model can be a great way for Apple to get their foot in the door of the low-cost market and keep Android at bay. And when the iPhone 6 comes out, presumably in September, there may be even more room to get the price of the iPhone 5c even lower.

Lifedge is a relatively new company on the iDevice case manufacturing scene. Based in the UK, their products can be purchased both locally and abroad. Lifedge specializes in creating classy, low-profile, ruggedized waterproof cases for iDevices. Currently their catalog of cases consists of an iPhone 5 version, (which is compatible with the 5s, though without allowing Touch ID use) and an iPad 2–4 compatible case. As of yet, they do not offer a case option for the iPad mini or mini with Retina, nor do the have an iPad Air case, but hopefully we will see a wider case selection of iDevice cases from this fledgling company in the near future. Stay tuned to iPhone Life and I'll keep you posted as their product line continues to grow. In the meantime, let's take a closer look at some of the details and specifics of these waterproof and highly durable iDevice cases.

Lifedge iPhone Case ($119.99)

The Lifedge case for the iPhone 5 is an excellent entry into the ever more crowded field of waterproof iPhone cases. In fact I would be so bold as to say that out of the ones I've spent hands on time with, the Lifedge is definitely one of the best.

It has style and elegance and manages to provide your iPhone with a very high level of protection while maintaining a form factor that is sleek and slim, easy to grasp and very comfortable in the hand. It's refreshing to have such a stellar option for exceptional protection of our precious iPhones that don't add much in the way of weight or bulk.

All of the things that I look for in a top-level waterproof iPhone case are present in the Lifedge. From relatively crystal clear audio quality, to easy on/off and accessibility to all of the iPhone’s ports and functions (with the notable exception of Touch ID) the Lifedge iPhone case is indeed, the complete package.

The Good

• Great form-fitting case, with a low-profile, slimline design.
• Excellent acoustics; the speaker could be heard well and I could be heard well on the other end. Audio quality is among the best of any waterproof, ruggedized iPhone 5 case I've tested.
• Optical-quality lens over camera.
• Stylish and attractive, with its own understated and unique style.
• Silky, textured rubber of the shell provides traction and grip.
• Large, clearly defined volume-up button. Makes photography in muddy conditions, with gloves on, or underwater much easier. Obviously this also makes it easier to control the volume in the dark or in situations where you can't visually spot the buttons.
• Screw covering headphone jack is attached by a flexible, plastic arm, making it next to impossible to lose
• Even though this case was designed before the introduction of iOS 7, the low bezel around the touchscreen does not interfere with accessing Notifications or Control Center, unlike some other ruggedly protective cases on the market.

The Bad:

• Lanyard attachment point too close to camera, lanyard kept sneaking into the shot. I felt it would've been better if the attachment point was on the lower, bottom corners of the case.
• Hinged door covering lightning port seems to open rather easily, which of course would be disastrous if it accidentally popped open while submerged.
• No Touch ID support!

Verdict:

The Lifedge iPhone case can compete with the best of them. Its biggest drawback is its price, at $119.99 it's hard to recommend this case over equally good but lower priced options. Despite the fact that it is an excellent and versatile protective case, its steep price tag compared to some of my other favorite cases in this same category may turn otherwise potential customers away from this well-crafted case. The high price is the only thing standing between the Lifedge iPhone case and a full 5 Star rating. Nonetheless, despite the nearly $140.00 USD that this case will set you back when shipping is factored in, it still rates as a 4.5 Star accessory. I also expect the price to drop before long, as new Apple devices (and subsequently cases) hit the market later this year.

Lifedge iPad Case ($159.00)

The Lifedge iPad case is compatible with the iPads 2–4. While there are many things I absolutely loved about the Lifedge iPad case, the fact that the touchscreen protector bulged out a few millimeters from the actual glass surface of the iPad’s touchscreen canceled out the many great attributes of this potentially awesome iPad case.

I would love to see Lifedge tweak this one single but major design flaw. If not for this significant issue, this case would have catapulted to the top of my short list of the best waterproof, heavy-duty iPad cases, as everything else about this case is worthy of high regard.

The Good:

• Convenient hand and mounting strap on back.
• Easy on/off.
• Like its iPhone 5 cousin, the iPad case’s screw-in plug covering the headphone jack is attached by a flexible, plastic arm, making it next to impossible to lose.
• Compact size; less bulky than many "rugged" much less waterproof cases.

The Bad:

• Big complaint: the plastic touch screen protector bulged outward way too much, making interacting with the iPads screen a tedious and imprecise affair. This could be a deal breaker for many.
• The support arm that allows for propped up landscape or portrait orientation are convenient and work well, but they are far too easy to loose. At least they include two, in the event that one does happen to get lost.
• The price is prohibitive. The case costs $159.00 and with shipping included the case will run you $176.50. There are other cases that provide comparable protection and better user experience that are available for far less.

Verdict:

The Lifedge iPad case would easily get 4 or 5 stars from me if not for the significant problem of the bubbled screen protector which makes accurate and precise touchscreen interaction impossible. If your primary use of your iPad is watching videos or listening to streaming music then I reckon the lack of touchscreen responsiveness won't be an issue. But for data entry, gaming, drawing, or any other number of myriad uses that your iPad is capable of, the faulty screen protector will be a hindrance. Until this is remedied, I have to give the Lifedge iPad case a 1.5 out of 5 Star rating.

According to a survey by Intelligent Voice last fall, only 15 percent of iPhone users have used Siri in iOS7. If you're not already using Siri regularly, you should be. Why? Because Siri makes doing certain things on your iDevice so much faster.

For example, many of iPhone Life's Tips of the Day start by saying something like "Go to Settings>General>Accessibility." This requires you to open and scroll through two different menus. With Siri, all you have to do is say, "Siri, open Accessibility Settings." or Message Settings or Privacy Settings, you get the idea.

Other things that are much faster with Siri include:

Opening apps. This is especially true if you have a lot of apps and you want to open an app you don't use that often. Telling Siri to open the app saves you from thumbing through pages of apps or having to do a Spotlight search to find the app you want.

Setting alarms and reminders. With Siri there is no need to open an app and manually enter an appointment or reminder or alarm. Want to make sure you don't forget to call your sister? Ask Siri to remind you when you get home. Planning to start a new morning exercise routine? Ask Siri to set an alarm for 5 a.m. on weekdays. Later, you can tell Siri to turn it off and wake you at your normal time.

In place of typing. Long messages, emails, and Internet searches can all be done much faster by dictating to Siri. Just please don't be one of those people who does this in public all the time.

These are just some of the ways Siri can help you navigate your iPhone or iPad more quickly. Open Siri and tap on the '?' in the lower left corner for a longer list of ways Siri can make your life easier.

Do you have an idea for an app but lack the programming knowledge to begin building it? In this weekly blog series, I will take you, the beginner app developer, step by step through the process of creating apps for the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Join me each week on this adventure and you will experience how much fun turning your ideas into reality can be! This is part 39 of the series. If you are just getting started, check out the beginning of the series here. 

Are you proud of the code that you write? Are you using a set of best practices that allows you to develop well-designed, stable apps that can adapt to change?

As part of what my company does, I am often asked to evaluate software development teams as well as the apps that they have created. As you might imagine, I see the good, the bad, and the ugly. Unfortunately, most of what I have seen is definitely in the "ugly" category. Often, I need to change a company's software development culture to pull them out of a tailspin and get back them on track.

In this post, I'll share some of these basic principles that I instill in software development teams, because they can be used to elevate your craft as a developer and vastly improve the apps you create.

Step 1: Be an Architect

Earlier this year when I was speaking at the Apps World conference in San Francisco, I sat in on a session from one of the directors of mobile development at Twitter who was speaking on the subject of "Developing for Billions." In this session, he discussed, very frankly, the problems caused by the developers at Twitter not having a solid architecture that allowed them to scale to meet demand. The state of Twitter's software required a major overhaul in order to meet the demands of scale and to accommodate all of the change requests they received.

I find that that poor architecture is one of the problems that can have the most damaging effect on an app. If someone hands you a change request and you want to throw yourself off the roof of the building because the change requires you to completely rework your app, someone hasn't done their job as an architect. 

An app with a solid architecture keeps the main parts of the app (user interface, core logic, and data) separate, so that changing one part of the app doesn't require a rewrite of the other parts. For example, what would happen if you need to change your app from accessing data locally to accessing data in the cloud? If your app is designed well, this should be a relatively easy transition.

It really comes down to a question of "Where do you put your code?" Every member of an app development team has to wear an architect hat, understand these basic principles and apply them on a daily basis.

For more information on creating a solid architecture, check out my earlier post on the subject.

Step 2: Use Other People's Code (OPC)

A while back I was asked to settle a technology dispute among members of a development team (yes, it was as "fun" as it sounds.) There were four different camps within the team, each with their own ideologies. Each camp refused to use solutions developed by another one of the warring factions. As I examined their code base, I noticed that most of their solutions weren't that different from the others. They were just different ways of approaching the same problem. The owner of the company was not pleased to hear that he was paying for problems to be solved four different ways.

This is an extreme example of developers who have the "not written by me" disease that causes them to write all of their code from scratch. This is not a best practice. There are lots of free and inexpensive high-quality code libraries that you can incorporate in your projects rather than writing everything yourself.

Whenever I begin the process of adding new functionality to an app, I always do a quick search to see if someone else has already written code that performs the functionality I need. It may not be exactly what I want, but I can often adapt what someone else has already spent many hours developing to get to my end goal faster. When checking out code, I recommend scrolling down to read other developers' comments before trying to implement it yourself. A great first place to look is Apple's code samples.

The StackOverflow web site is also a great source for code snippets and code library recommendations. Readers vote on answers, so it's easier to quickly see the suggestions that are worth your while.

Step 3: Stop Solving the Same Problems

When you solve a programming problem, whether it's big or small, you should also solve it for all future apps that you create. How do you do this? Rather than just documenting your solution, you should create an application framework that you can use in future projects.

An application framework is basically a set of classes you create that extend Apple's Cocoa Touch framework. Often these extensions take the form of Objective-C categories, which allow you to add methods to existing classes. If you haven't worked with categories before, you can find out more at this link.

For example, if you need to find the number of occurrences of one string in a second string (for example, the number of occurrences of the string "ain" in the phrase "the rain in Spain stays mainly on the plain"), you could create a category that extends the NSString class.

For a more complex example, if you want to add the ability to save entities asynchronously on a background thread, you could create a category that extends Core Data's ManagedObjectContext class.

Over time, you will create a framework of extensions that you can use in many different projects. This is a far better solution than what many developers do instead—copy and paste! This is one of the biggest sins I see repeated over and over again, even in large professional development shops. It takes just a few extra moments to create a category or another type of framework class that you can reuse rather than copying code from one method and pasting it into another method.

Why is duplicate code such a big problem? If that code has a bug in it, then you have repeated that bug in many different places. Also, if that code ever needs to change, then you have many places to change it rather than just one.

Step 4: Use Coding Conventions

Before I started my own software company, I worked for a company that had strict coding conventions. One of those conventions was providing meaningful comments for your code. One of the other developers I worked with insisted that he couldn't add comments to his code as he was writing it, but that he would come back later on and add the comments. Of course, he never went back in and added his comments, and when he left the company several months later, yours truly had to sift through his code to figure out how it worked. Coding conventions make it easier for yourself and others to look at code written several months ago and quickly understand how it works. 

If you haven't done so already, I highly recommend reading the book Code Complete by Steve McConnell. Not only does it talk about the need for coding conventions, but it also covers defensive programming techniques, building quality into your software, and many other software development practices that will vastly improve the way you design and write your apps.

Step 5: Be Able to Say "It's My Fault"

A few years back I was working with a software development shop that needed help making their apps more scalable. Over the desk of one of the senior developers was a sign that read "It's My Fault." When I asked him what it was about, he told me that none of the junior developers would ever take responsibility for their own bugs, and the development team's progress was mired down in finger pointing, rather than moving forward with bug fixes. He decided to set the example by being willing to say it was his fault.

I highly recommend reading the Time magazine article that talks about how the HealthCare.gov web site was restructured to become a successful, scalable web app. A lot of this had to do with the culture that was put in place that allowed developers to feel the freedom to admit their mistakes. I particularly enjoyed the story where Mike Dickerson of Google, who was helping fix the broken web site, demanded a round of applause for an engineer who called out from the back of the room that a brief outage had probably been a result of a mistake that he made.

Step 6 - Respect the Client

I have three basic requirements for all developers that work for me:

1. Keep up to date with the latest technologies
2. Know when to ask for help
3. Respect the client

Yes, as an app developer, you are smart. But just because a client doesn't know know how to write software, that doesn't make them dumb. Honestly, I find the most insecure app developers tend to have the largest egos. Those who are comfortable with their abilities don't need to constantly impress everyone else, and are able to give greater respect to the client's in-depth understanding of their particular business domain.

When you assume the client doesn't know what they're talking about, you end up writing the software you want, rather than the software the client needs.

Step 7 - Never Stop Learning

Apple's online store recently began selling factory-refurbished iPad Airs, with the 16GB starting at $419 and the 32GB starting at $509. That's $80 or $90 off the price of a new iPad Air and comes with a one-year warranty, a new battery, a new outer shell, manuals and accessories, and new packaging. I'm not sure what they mean by an outer shell, but it sounds like you can expect the iPad to be in new condition cosmetically. They also have a ton of other refurbished iPad models, including iPad minis and fourth-generation iPads. 9To5Mac points out that WalMart actually has a lower price on refurbished iPad Airs, with the 16GB model starting at $399. But they only offer a three-month warranty and are refurbished by a third party. However, the customer reviews are quite positive, with at least one saying that he actually received a new iPad Air.

And looking ahead to the next release of iPads, Know Your Mobile is reporting that the updated iPad Air coming out late this year will have the new A8 chip and Touch ID. No surprise there. But the post also says that it's unlikely that Apple will release an updated iPad mini with retina display. And it's again reporting what other websites have said: that the larger 12-inch iPad that had been rumored won't be coming out this year.

These days, to get me interested in your iPhone case, you gotta have a gimmick. I expect your case to offer protection, especially a raised lip that rises above the front glass. What else you got?

How about a kickstand to make it easy to view movies hands free? Maybe a way to redirect audio so instead of projecting sound down, it is projected towards me? And make sure you offer it in lots of colors.

How about all of the above? That's what Bandshell ($29.99) has done, with a nice case that also has an integrated kickstand, similar to my Microsoft Surface tablet and several Android phones. The Bandshell also has a novel (and patented) slide-down deflector that redirects audio to the user, as Apple should have done in the first place.

There have been other phone cases that redirect audio, but they tend to add bulk. The Bandshell's retractable design makes the case no bigger than most protective cases, and the deflector only adds to the length when in use. In fact, I've found phone calls were clearer to the recipient, as your own voice is redirected into the microphone, similar to the way it was with the old flip phones.

The Bandshell has been able to find a niche and fill it. If you want better audio out of your iPhone, and a case with decent protection, and a kickstand to boot, check out the Bandshell.

It's been a busy and exciting week in the world of Apple. From the “nonsense” of the new Apple tell-all book, to the introduction of some welcome but surprising entries into the Apple catalog, to Apple being acknowledged for their status as a global brand leader, there's been no shortage of interesting news concerning our favorite tech company. And of course, the rumors continue to swirl surrounding the upcoming 2014 iPhone, whatever it may end up being called (iPhone 6? iPhone Air?). It's been a week chock full of important developments, so read on for the full scoop!

Something Old, Something New

Never let it be said that Apple doesn't continue to surprise me. I typically scroll through the tech news headlines late at night, and this Tuesday, in the wee hours of the morning, the tech coverage websites that I follow lit up with the news that Apple had confirmed the introduction of a new iPhone 5c model in select countries (including China, Australia, and Europe), this one with 8GB of space, making it a perfect fit for emerging markets, mid-tier sales, and lower-priced options. The 5c it is by no means a slouch, coming with all of the innards and specs of the former iPhone 5 and likely costing under $300 whenever it becomes available free of contract. For the time being, the new 8GB iPhone 5c will be available for under $50 though a subsidized carrier plan, in those countries where it is available. Take heart fellow Yanks, Best Buy has offered the AT&T 16GB iPhone 5c fo free with a two-year contract, and Walmart has the Verizon 16GB iPhone 5c for as little as $29, so for now, we still have the best deals on the 5c right here in the U.S.

Another surprise that greeted me in the early hours of Tuesday morning was that Apple was reintroducing a previously discontinued iPad model! A rare occurrence indeed! Gone is the old classic iPad 2, to be replaced by none other than the iPad 4, which if you recall was nearly identical to the previous iPad 3, except of course, for the fact that the iPad 4 has the Lightning connection for charging and syncing. With this change to the iPad line up, Apple has finally phased out the old 30-pin connector throughout its entire iPad collection. In fact, with the exception of the aging antique iPod Classic ($249.00), and the relatively retro iPhone 4S, the 30-pin connection is a relic of the past.

As it stands now, the only remnant of the iPad 2 is in its shrunken down sibling, the iPad mini, which is literally the iPad 2 crammed into a smaller, arguably more attractive, Lightning enabled shell.

The iPad 4 is available in 16GB Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi/cellular models for $399.99 and $529.99 respectively.

The New iPhone 6: Leaks Coalesce Around a Central Theme

While nothing is even remotely confirmed, there are ample reliable rumors and leaked images swirling around the immanent release of a new iPhone later this year. One of the things that seems for certain is that, at long last, Apple will introduce one, if not two, larger-screened phones, something I've been advocating for years now. What these new phones will feature in terms of internal specs, cameras, and even touchscreens (will they be Sapphire, Gorilla Glass, or even IGZO displays?) is still very much a subject for debate among pundits. The one, most consistent bit of information we keep seeing is that the new iPhone will be a larger device with approximately a 4.7-inch screen size, and that a second model will possibly become available at the same time or slightly thereafter, sporting screen size somewhere in the neighborhood of 5.5-inches. Keep in mind, screen size is measured diagonally from upper left corner to lower right corner.

In the past I've written several articles on the importance of Apple introducing a larger sized iPhone to their product line, both to remain competitive in this ever evolving smartphone landscape, and also to satisfy the obvious consumer demand for increased touchscreen real estate. Look out Samsung.

Apple: Most Valuable Brand On The Planet

On Tuesday Apple was named most valuable "billion dollar brand" by brand consulting agency Brand Finance. According to their report, Apple sits comfortably atop a prestigious and profitable list of 500 companies. Apple's brand is reportedly valued at $104.6 billion and they are followed, albeit distantly, by Google at $68.6 billion, Microsoft at $62.8 billion, and Verizon at $53.5 billion.

It seems like despite the chatter and rumors concerning Apple's current "lack of innovation" or stagnation under post-Jobs management, that at least for the moment, things are going quite well for the tech titan. It's refreshing to see a company succeed and thrive on a business model built on quality, integrity, and commitment to ideals and principals instead of simply being concerned about their profit margin. I suspect Steve Jobs would be proud. Speaking of which...

Nonsense or Not, Haunted Empire Stirs Things Up

With the release of her new book Haunted Empire: Apple After Steve Jobs, Yukari Iwatani Kane has effectively called out Apple and its upper level employees for stagnating and dropping the ball in terms of carrying the momentum of the late, great Steve Jobs.

From the Wall Street Journal online excerpt:

Cook proved a methodical and efficient CEO. Unlike Jobs, who seemed to operate on gut, Cook demanded hard numbers on projected cost and profits. Whereas Jobs had reveled in divisiveness, Cook valued collegiality and teamwork. Cook was also more visible and transparent with investors.

Not everyone was so enamored. The changes Cook made were perceived as signs of increasing stodginess. The yearning for more subversive days was also palpable. Skeptics soon began expressing doubts about Apple's future, especially after the rocky launch of Siri, its virtual personal-assistant feature.

'Without the arrival of a new charismatic leader, it will move from being a great company to being a good company,' George Colony, the CEO of technology research firm Forrester Research, wrote in a blog. 'Like Sony, Polaroid, Apple circa 1985, and Disney, Apple will coast and then decelerate.'

Above it all, the specter of Steve Jobs still hovered—somewhere beyond reproach and accountability, beyond the tangle of human fallibility. His successors remained stuck here on Earth."

You can read the full Wall Street Journal excerpt HERE.

In another surprising move, Apple CEO Tim Cook (who just this week was voted by Fortune as one of the world's best leaders) wasted no time in responding and denouncing this book as "nonsense". On the day of the book’s public release Cook had these choice words to say: "This nonsense belongs with some of the other books I’ve read about Apple. It fails to capture Apple, Steve, or anyone else in the company. Apple has over 85,000 employees that come to work each day to do their best work, to create the world’s best products, to put their mark in the universe, and leave it better than they found it. This has been the heart of Apple from day one and will remain at the heart for decades to come. I am very confident about our future. We have always had doubters in our history, they only make us stronger."

And as is the way of the world in this fast-paced internet society, the book’s author responded almost immediately to Cook’s denouncement of the book, with this thoughtful reply: "For Tim Cook to have such strong feelings about the book, it must have touched a nerve. Even I was surprised by my conclusions, so I understand the sentiment. I'm happy to speak with him or anyone at Apple in public or private."

Haunted Empire author, Yukari Kane

I myself, have voiced my opinions over the years on the current state of affairs with Apple, as they blaze a new trail in the wake of Jobs’ passing, but what do you think iPhone Lifers? How do you see the future of Apple unfolding in this Post-Jobs era? We invite you to tell us in the comment section below.

As new iOS apps flood the App Store every day—recently topping 1,000,000—we know it’s tough to tell which ones are worth their salt. But thanks to our Weekly Scoop, you can have the best for free! Here you’ll find a weekly roundup of the coolest apps free or at a discount for a limited-time only. Each week features the best and brightest from websites like Free App Report, AppsGoneFree, appsfire, and more.

Hurry! Get 'em while they’re hot!

1. Contacts Duster Pro (Free)

Does your contacts list need some housekeeping but you don’t have time go through and manually clean it up?  Let Contacts Duster Pro come in and check for duplicates, then merge and purge multiple entries. It couldn’t get any easier!  It’s also helpful if you have multiple iOS devices, are switching between carriers and when you upgrade to a new iPhone.

2. WeatherRun (Free from $1.99)

Being active outdoors is great, but sometimes the weather can put a real damper on your plans. There’s nothing worse than getting a few miles out and having the sky open up on you.  WeatherRun will not only keep track of the weather, altitude and humidity, but it will also help you track your speed, heart rate, distance, duration and route.

3. Hypnotron ($0.99 from $1.99)

As it says on the app store, Hypnotron “messes with your head.” This is an optical illusion app containing six different high-contrast black and white patterns that move while trippy music plays in the background. By staring into the center of the patterns for a few seconds, your mind will continue to process the motion, distorting what you see around you for a few seconds. Fun for parties or for when you just want to look at the world a little bit differently.

Lots of folks like to fall asleep to ambient sounds or soft music or to run to inspirational music. However, most earbuds and headphones aren't a great solution. Enter the doctor-created SleepPhones ($39.95) and RunPhones ($39.95). These devices embed small speakers in headbands and connect either via traditional wires, or flexible and strong wires, or even Bluetooth, depending on your needs.

They even have a free app with sleep inducing songs, and you can download them as MP3 files as well. Just don't mix them up and fall asleep while running!

Available in a variety of colors, the big difference between the RunPhones and SleepPhone models is the material, either a sweat wicking fabric for running or cozy fleece for sleeping. The price will let you sleep comfortably, too!

Photo Stream lets you see all your images on every iDevice you own and it lets you share pictures and videos with your friends and family. But what about sharing photos with friends and family who don't (gasp!) use an iDevice?

It's OK, every family has one or two deluded souls like this. And the good news is you can still share that video of Junior's 5th grade play with them.

You can do this by creating a view-only website. Go to the Photos app and open the photo stream you want to share. Tap the People tab along the bottom, and toggle the Public Website option to On.

From there, press Share Link to text, email, or tweet your URL to friends and family. Now the whole family can enjoy that picture of your youngest asleep face down in his dinner.

Don't forget to enter this weekend's Giveaway Contest! 

Here's how it works: Every other weekend we raffle off tons of great apps and accessories for FREE then announce the winners through iphonelife.com, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+. To enter, go to iPhoneLife.com/giveaways. If you win an app, we will email you the promo code. If you win an accessory, we will ask you for your mailing address.

This weeks featured items are:

1. PerfectFit iPhone 5 Screen Protector: Retail Price $19.95

This precision pre-cut ScreenShield provides the best, most durable protection you will find and covers the maximum amount of the device surface. Transparent and ultra thin, this Screen Shield provides unbeatable device scratch protection.

2. Whoosh! Screen Shine Pocket: Retail Price $5.99

This little guy holds about 100 shots and is totally stashable so you can keep your phone clean and shining like new; ’cuz dirty phones are gross. Includes:

Questions or comments? Email Brian@iphonelife.com. Good luck and remember to visit iphonelife.com/giveaways to enter! Also check out our other contests at iphonelife.com/contests. The next contest drawing is March 24th!

Fuse Chicken, the folks behind the Une Bobine iPhone stand, are at it again with the TogoDock. Having surpassed their $20,000 funding goal on the crowdfunding platform Indiegogo, it looks like the company's latest product will be available to the masses and it's not too late to make a contribution in order to get your own.

The TogoDock is a pocket-sized dock for any Lightning-enabled iPhones that can be attached to any magnetic surface thanks to embedded magnets within the product. The dock itself features a reel to keep your cord wrapped depending on how far your charging source is and a backstop to support your device. Want do use TogoDock in the car or somewhere else without a magnetic surface? Disc mounts are included for additional mounting options.

A minimum $30 pledge will get you a single TogoDock, which features the following:

• MFI Certified Lightning Connector: for iPhone 5s, 5c, 5
• Embedded Magnets: strong enough to hold iPhone as a dock
• Built-in Backstop: for stability and support
• Cable Wrap: to keep your cord tidy while on the go
• Disc Mount: create a mounting surface anywhere. Includes two mounts
• Car Adapter: includes USB car adapter
• Standard USB: use it worldwide with any USB charge port

Back in college, at Carnegie Mellon University, one of my professors posed the question, who was richer? Our choices were historical figures like King Louis, Julius Caesar, Andrew Carnegie, Napoleon, George Washington... and ourselves. The answer was each of us... None of those ancient figures could access any movie on demand via NetFlix or iTunes. None of them could communicate instantly with someone across the world, by video no less. They couldn't "see" star systems and planets as we can with apps like StarWalk. Modern technology makes our lives richer than the wealthiest people long since gone.

The iPad hadn't been invented yet... This was thirty years ago, and we were lucky to have the internet, although it was called the ARPAnet back then! Such a device would blow the minds of those "rich" leaders from long ago. Even industrialist Andrew Carnegie, who roamed the very halls I was taking that class in, could not have foreseen iPads. And now kids use them. To play Flappy Bird!

The point is, we should stop and think about how "rich" we are to have such technology, and we should appreciate it and care for it. That's why I keep my iPad Air in a case from Piel Frama. The luxurious leather reminds me that I'm using something special. I opted for the crocodile print, but many options and colors exist.

I like that the case accommodates several typing positions (I'm typing on it right now) and has built in magnets that ensure a reliable closing each time. Other cases let the flap open and close on its own. Of course, the Piel Frama case supports Apple's automatic wake/sleep function.

Now, every time I pickup my iPad Air, I appreciate it that much more. This device is my tricorder, my communicator, my deep space telescope. If Caesar had an iPad, you know he would have commissioned a case made from the highest quality materials, so why shouldn't you?

With the success of independent game apps such as Flappy Bird, it was past time for Apple to highlight independent developers and small firms creating some terrific games. Now, iTunes has a button that takes you to a curated list of such developers, labeled Indie Game Showcase. As Apple says, "Often made up of just a few dedicated members, independent studios prove that what really matters is the size of your dream. In each Indie Game Showcase, we celebrate a popular game and its creative team, highlighting the developer's titles along with their favorite games from other studios."

The current developer Apple is featuring is Simogo and specifically their Device 6 app.  It's a $3.99 app, which is on the high-end, especially for indie developers, but reasonable given the care that went into this stylish and interactive update to the traditional text adventure game.

It's not clear how often Apple will rotate the showcase to reveal a new developer and their games. If they update the showcase weekly, Apple would still only highlight 52 developers per year, and even then, just game developers.Bbut it's a good start. Large firms like Electronic Arts have huge marketing budgets and can strike deals with Apple and other vendors that make it hard for the independent developer to compete. Apple's efforts to help out the little guy is welcome. Not only will the showcase give exposure to worthy developers, but it will help customers find hidden gems.