Latest news on jailbreaking the iphone.  Check it here.

And as always, if anyone thinks they know of something better then what I have here, I’m open to input.

Number 10 …. (drum roll)

10. WinterBoard iPhone pimping made easy. The is normally the first thing people install and spend HOURS playing with. As for me, with exception to a few small changes, I do not bother with it since many of the changes can slow the phone down a touch.
9. 3G Unrestrictor 3G Unrestrictor allows you to go around the iPhone’s limitations and restrictions of not being able to use some applications like FaceTime, iCloud Backup, Photo Stream or high quality YouTube videos while on a mobile internet connection like 3G or EDGE as well as many other things. It allows those things by tricking applications into believing they are on WiFi, even though they are on 3G or EDGE.
8. DriveSave.ly This is a cool little app that you can get on all other phones, just not the iphone, without jailbreak. This app will listen for new SMS messages and convert those messages to voice.  Great when driving or REALLY great when motorcycling. I’ve been messing with PHP code to extend this to support email. I’ll update when I get it done. More on drivesafe.ly here.
7. VoiceActivatorJust as it sounds.  Near full command of your iphone through voice commands.  That includes ipod control, dialing people, opening web pages, even getting the time. I have not messed with this that much, but I’m trying to get map search to work.	http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrVgvTgyUs8&feature=player_embedded
6. CyntactThis is pretty useful, at least for me. A simple hack, you get images of people next to their name.  Really I cannot understand why this is not part of the OS
5. Backgrounder Backgrounder is nothing but coolness.  In fact, the only reason I do not have this lower then 5 is that I do not use it THAT much.. But LOVE it when I do.  Multithreading is something that is new and only for iOS4 users.  Yea right?  Nope. its not true multithreading AND its only for those apps that implemented it.  So what about that cool game you have been playing?  Nope, unless its been updated recently, most likely multithreading on iOS4 will not work. You can read more on iOS4 and backgrounder here. Bollocks to that.  With Backgrounder you can use for any app , and I do.

4. IntelliScreenX 6 As much as I like this app, I’m still not 100% sure I’m going to keep it. It seems to have issues now and again.. Interfering with screen init(), slowing the iphone down, not working at times.. We’ll see. I still need to update to 6.
3. PdaNet If you are ever in need of interwebs access for your laptop and there is no free wifi is site, well, use the iPhone! Its not fast, but handy when you need it.I also have this selected over MiWi because MiWi does not work on the latest iOS builds.  PDANet, works great.  Great for connecting my ipad.More here..
2. Categories A must have if you have lots if junk on your iPhone. Basically its folders for your icons! Clear and simple.yea, I know, iphone4 has this… too little to late pal.
1. SBSetting I could not go one day without this. (this is a older pic, its even better) This perfect little app provides a short cut to your most used settings and aps. I turn 3G on and off quite often, and going through all the menus within settings is a royal pain. With SBSetting, I simply swipe across the top of the screen and there they are.. ready for toggles. Sweeeettt.. More here..

Now, the following did not make the top 10, but I thought I would mention them anyway..

Quake. Yup ID’s Quake from the old days.  I do not play it much, just glad that its there.

VideoRecorder. If this worked properly I would place it over CyCorder because I love the fact you can change setting on both voice and sound.  More here.

Retro Phone Dialer.. What can I say??  Is just plain cool.

Revisions:

Dec ’08

10. Qik

9. Unix Tools

8. WinterBoard

7. IntelliScreen

6. PdaNet

5. QuickUnlock

4. QuickGold

3. Cycoder

2. Categories

1. SBSetting

http://www.3gunrestrictor.com/depiction/

Cycoder: This is a pretty good app with a very simple UI. Start and stop. That’s it. The video is compiled on the fly and saved as a .mov file. If you used cycoder when it first came out, it did not have sound. Well, we have sound now.

I took the movie below using Cycoder, and given how much action there is in the scene, its not that bad.  Lets keep in mind this is a phone not spec’ed for taking movies after all.

VideoRecorder: I like this product because of all the ways I can customize how the recording is done, sound compression, video compression. HOWEVER, I cannot get this thing to work on my 2.1. I’ve followed the instructions and SSH’ed into the file system and created folders and set permissions.. no go. There are two more things I can try, manual install and turning intelliscreen off. I’ll try those another time.

Qik: I was using this for awhile until Cycoder got sound and improved performance. QIk is more for broadcast video then just video. Qik will take your video stream and feed it (real time if the connection is good enough) to a web site where others can view the video. There are times live feed, or direct phone to website feeds can be useful, especially if you want to shoot and share and do not have the time to get to a machine with your iphone cable, transfer to disk and then post the .mov somewhere.

Flixwagon: This app is a lot like Qik. I think the video quality it a bit better, but given how both companies are constantly updating their apps, this may not hold all that long. I like the website a bit better, but again, small difference. Basically between Qik and Flixwagon, its more taste then anything IMHO.

Ok, now lets talk about tips to take the best video you can…

First, light is everything. Just as with taking pictures with the iphone, the more light you have, the better the quality of the image. Also, movement.  The more you move, the more blurry the rendering. So your best bet for a good video is abundant light and a very steady hand. So, knowing this, we can make better decisions as to when and how to film:

1) Always try to have the strongest light source just off your shoulder. Also, try to avoid any light source in your shot at all. Even a weak light source will wash out your shot.

2) Keep the phone steady. The fewer the changes in the scene, the better the compression. The better the compression, the faster the upload speed if you are using a broadcast app.

3) Keep your voice down. You will be suprised just how load you will sounds relative to all other sound sources. Experiment with recording the TV and talking. Get a feel for a good balance.  If you have to talk, make sure you have the camera away from your face as best you can.

4) Get close to your subject.  The iPhone does not have zoom, so you will always be shooting wide. Also, the resolution is low, cycoder is 385×288 if I remember correctly and Qik is 320×240. So the closer the better.

..and the final tip.  Keep the lens clean and don’t put your thumb over the lens. I have seen this happen.