The new school year is upon us which means it's time to hit the books. The good news for you is that the iPhone and iPad are excellent devices to accompany you when it's time to study and even in the classroom. From storing important files, to learn math and chemistry, to writing papers, to taking notes, and even staying safe, there are many apps in the App Store to assist you and iMore is here to narrow down some of your choices!

Dropbox for iPhone and iPad

Before we jump into the education-specific apps, we must bring up Dropbox for iPhone and iPad, the app that everyone should have and that many of the apps mentioned in this article will integrate with. Students these days have dozens of files that they have to save and reference throughout the semester, and Dropbox is the perfect app for keeping these files not only organized, but accessible from any device. A free Dropbox account offers 2 GB of storage which is more than enough for a student. Seriously, Dropbox is a must-have -- get it now.

• Free - Download Now

See also:

• SkyDrive vs. Dropbox vs. Google Drive: iPhone cloud storage app showdown!

iStudiez Pro for iPhone and iPad

iStudiez is an iPhone and iPad app that is perfect for keeping track of your class schedule, due dates, homework assignments, and more. As an important date approaches, iStudiez will send you notifications to remind you about the project or assignment that is due or when a class is going to start soon. iStudiez Pro will help you stay organized during the school year -- something that many students regularly struggle with.

The free version of iStudiez limits you to managing 1 semester, 3 courses, 5 classes per course, 7 assignments, 5 instructors, and 2 holiday periods.

• Free - Download Now
• $0.99 - Download Now

Khan Academy for iPad

Khan Academy is one of the best products of education and the internet, and with the Khan Academy app for the iPad, you will have free access to over 2700 videos on topics ranging from kindergarten, advanced science, humanities, history, and more. Even more, you can download the videos to watch offline, keep up with what the teach is saying with organized captions, and earn achievements as you learn.

• Free - Download Now

See also:

• Khan Archiver for iPhone - Free - Download Now

Flashcards+ for iPhone and iPad

With school comes lots of studying. One of the most common studying techniques is to use flashcards. With the free Flashcards+ app for iPhone and iPad, you can say goodbye to the stacks and stacks of flashcards that accumulate over the course of a semester and use electronic flashcards on your iPhone or iPad instead. The beauty of Flashcards+ is that you have your flash cards with you wherever you go, which means you'll likely squeeze in more mini study lessons throughout your day and end up with better grades as a result!

• Free - Download Now

See also:

• Evernote Peek for iPad - Free - Download Now

CaptureNotes 2 for iPad

CaptureNotes 2 is the iPad note-taking app that is designed specifically for students. In addition to the ability to take handwritten notes (most likely with a stylus), CaptuerNotes 2 also lets you record audio (to, say, record the lecture) and take photos that can directly added to your notes. You can also import PDF's and annotated them with your own handwriting or highlights. There are a lot of different note-taking a PDF-annotating apps out there, but CaptureNotes 2 is the best one for students because it lets you organize your work into custom notebooks and binders.

• $4.99 - Download Now

See also:

• Noteshelf - $5.99 - Download Now
• Notability - $0.99 - Download Now
• Remarks - $4.99 - Download Now
• Noteshelf vs. Remarks vs. Notability: iPad handwriting app shootout!

SparkNotes for iPhone

SparkNotes is one of the most popular study guides for literature, Shakespeare, poetry, philosophy, drama and short stories. With the free SparkNotes for iPhone app you can access 50 pre-installed study guides in your library and hundreds of study guides online. You can also check-in at the place you're studying and indicate what subject your studying which could then result in impromptu study sessions with other SparkNotes users studying the same subject at the same place at the same time.

• Free - Download Now

Pages for iPhone and iPad

With school, comes essays, and Pages is a great word processing app for iPhone and iPad to help you with those writing this essays. Even more, if you have Mac with OS X Mountain Lion, you can sync your work over iCloud -- start your essay on your iPad at school, make some changes with your iPhone while waiting for your drink at Starbucks, and finish up on your Mac at home!

• $9.99 - Download Now

See also:

• Keynote for iPhone and iPad - $9.99 - Download Now
• Numbers for iPhone and iPad - $9.99 - Download Now
• Quickoffice Pro for iPhone - $14.99 - Download Now
• Quickoffice Pro HD for iPad - $19.99 - Download Now

The Elements: A Visual Exploration for iPhone and iPad

Taking a Chemistry class? Then The Elements: A Visual Exploration for iPad is a must-have! This app not only provides you with The Periodic Table of Elements, but lets you experience it. The Elements is a living periodic table where every element is shown with a smoothly rotating sample that can be interacted with. The artwork and photography is phenomenal and contributes to making you want to learn about the elements. Seriously.

• $6.99 for iPhone - Download Now
• $6.99 for iPad - Download Now

See also:

• Chem Pro: Chemistry Tutor for iPad
• Elements App - Chemistry Periodic Table for iPad

Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED: Skeletal & Muscular for iPad

Are you taking a Biology class? The you probably want to check out Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED: Skeletal & Muscular for iPad. It will help you learn the skeletal and muscular systems of the human body and features a beautiful layered UI that is jam packed with over 5,000 anatomical structures, videos, and animations. You get to peel away layers of the human body to reveal all structures. You can also explore interactive slides to learn microscopic anatomy of cells and tissues, correlate dissected human anatomy with quality histology and radiologic images, and watch high quality videos and animations that demonstrate muscle actions, joint movements, and anatomical relationships, and the animations integrate physiologic function. When you're ready to test your knowledge, Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED will quiz your ability to identify anatomical structures.

• $12.99 - Download Now

Quick Graph for iPhone and iPad

If you're a student taking a math class, there's a good chance you could benefit from a graphing calculator. Unfortunately, such devices are very expensive, but the good news is that there are several app solutions for your iPhone and iPad -- the best being Quick Graph. It lets you graph multiple equations at the same time, change their color, trace along them, and more. Quick Graph supports both 2D and 3D graphing in rectangular and polar forms.

• Free - Download Now

See also:

• Calcbot review: The best scientific calculator for the iPad
• Top 5 math apps for iPhone and iPad

WolframAlpha for iPhone and iPad

Wolfram Alpha is one of the biggest educational resources available on the web. It's most commonly known for it's usefulness for math students, but it also features a lot of helpful information in other sciences, statistics, history, culture, media, medicine, technology, linguistics, engineering and much more. The WolframAlpha app for iPhone and iPad provides a great interface for searching this huge pool of information. In particular, the keyboard includes common mathematical symbols that would otherwise be very difficult or impossible to type out otherwise.

• $1.99 - Download Now

iHelpPlus for iPhone

Unfortunately, we live in an unsafe world and crimes on college campuses are not uncommon. iHelpPlus for iPhone is a personal alarm, panic button and ICE emergency contact information app that's filled with a lot of helpful tools to prioritize your safety, my favorite one being the delayed alarm. With the delayed alarm, you can set a custom alarm that will send a distress message to the contacts of your choice if it's not disable in time. For example, if you're taking a night class and it typically takes you 10 minutes to walk to your car, you can set an alarm that will alert your emergency contact in 15 minutes unless you turn it off by then. It's a minor inconvenience that could potentially save your life.

• $0.99 - Download Now

iBooks for iPhone and iPad

School and books go hand and in hand, and with iBooks for iPhone and iPad, you can carry more books than ever in your hand. If you're lucky, you may find some of your class textbooks in the new Textbook category of the iBookstore, but if not, there are plenty of educational books you can find to supplement the required materials of your courses. Most of the common literature that is required reading is also available in the iBookstore.

• Free - Download Now

See also:

• Kindle for iPhone and iPad - Free - Download Now
• Best free reading apps for iPad

iTunes U for iPhone and iPad

The free iTunes U app for iPhone and iPad gives you access to courses from universities and schools. These courses are completely free and even include assignments. iTunes U and the instructors provide course materials, including audio, video, books, documents & presentations, apps, and books. iTunes U includes over 500,000 free lectures, videos, books, and other resources on thousands of subjects from Algebra to Zoology.

• Free - Download Now

Your favorite back-to-school apps?

These are just a few (yes, a few!) of our favorite apps to prepare for the new school year, but there are hundreds of other out there available in the App Store. Did we miss any of your favorites? If so, please let us know know which ones should be added to the list and why!

Rene Ritchie contributed photos to this article.

With iOS 6, Apple is replacing the previous, Google-powered Maps app on the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad, with a completely redesigned, re-rendered, and re-imagined Maps app. The data itself is supplied by TomTom, but Apple has draw all the maps, and while they've lost some features, like Street View, they're adding new ones, like turn-by-turn navigation

Rumor has it, Apple's been wanting to add turn-by-turn for a while now, but Google would only give it to them if Apple took the location-tracking Latitude feature as well. Apple declined. Now, in command of their own geo-destiny, Apple will soon be providing free navigation for one and all, and thanks to Siri on the iPhone 4S and future devices, it'll have full on voice directions as well.

Here's how Apple describes it:

Find your way to your destination using turn-by-turn spoken directions, a 3D view, and real-time traffic information. As you approach a turn, Maps speaks directions, so you can keep your eyes on the road. In addition, the screen turns into a 3D perspective view of the road ahead. Large signs and arrows superimposed over the image show you which way to go and how long it's going to take to get there — even if your screen is locked. As you approach a turn, the camera angle changes dynamically to show you where to go. If you miss a turn, don't worry. Maps automatically reroutes you and updates your ETA.

Based on what Apple's shown off so far, here are the features:

• From any location in the Maps app, tap on the Quick Route button to start turn-by-turn navigation.

• You can also just ask Siri to tell you how to get where you want to go, and it will launch you into Maps and turn-by-turn.

• Once Maps knows where you want to go, it will start navigating you there, with the Siri voice providing audio directions.

• You'll be able to monitor your estimated time of arrival (ETA) right from the navigation screen.

• Maps will monitor traffic and, if it slows down or a problem arrises, will try and re-route you around it.

• Turn-by-turn navigation will have access to the Lock screen, so you can keep getting directions even when out of the Maps app.

• Using Siri, you can also ask for point-of-interest information, like where gas stations and stores are located.

Apple's finely crafted, vector map tiles, exquisite turn-by-turn interface, and Siri powering it all, makes for an excellent, if online-only solution. Still, for quickly finding your way somewhere, and even more quickly finding places on the way, iOS 6 Maps should be just what the navigator ordered.

iOS 6 is scheduled for release this fall, perhaps as soon as September 19. For more on iOS 6 and Siri, check out:

• Siri: The ultimate guide
• Everything you need to know about iOS 6
• iOS 6 discussion forum

iMore Forums for iPhone and iPad is FREE in the App Store! Download now!

The official iMore Forums app is here! That's right -- the second part in our epic iMore app-ification has landed. It uses the awesome Tapatalk engine to give you access to the iMore forums, from reading to posting, from iPhone and iPod touch to iPad. That's right, it's a universal app!

We originally wanted to include this in the main iMore app but figured out early on that the forums deserved their own, dedicated app. We didn't want to compromise the experience of either app by shoe-horning them into one, least-of-both-worlds container. And with the iMore Forums app, I think it shows we made the right decision.

The amount of stuff you can do with the iMore Forums app is just stupendous. Powered by our incredible community, you can get help on any problem, with any device, in just a few taps. You can share your knowledge and help other members as well. You can trade wallpapers and ringtones, talk about how you use your iPhone or iPad for music or photography, for fitness or gaming. You can discuss all the latest rumors and share your visions for the future of iOS and the next generation iPhone. And you can enter all of the amazing contests we run (including iPad and iPhone giveaways!)

The iMore Forums app joins the Android Central Forums app and CrackBerry Forums app so no matter which device, no matter what platform, you can get your Mobile Nations community fix wherever you are and whenever you want!

So go grab the iMore Forums app now and get posting!

Free - Download now

Verizon is rumored to be blacking out vacation days starting Friday, September 21, 2012. If that date sounds familiar, it's because back in July iMore learned Apple was planning to announce the next iPhone on September 12 and launch it on September 21. Coincidence? Not according to Jordan Crook at TechCrunch.

A trusted Verizon employee has just confirmed to TechCrunch that the carrier is having an all-staff vacation blackout from the dates of Friday, September 21 to September 30. You know what that means, right? The next iPhone, whether it's called the iPhone 5 or simply the new iPhone, will almost certainly be available in stores (with lines wrapping around the back of them) starting Friday, September 21.

As mentioned earlier today, the iPhone 5 will be a really big deal for Verizon, as it will likely give them an LTE 4G device, which is lightyears ahead of the CDMA-bound one they have now.

So, if accurate, Verizon is absolutely going to want to have everything prepped and ready for what might just be their biggest phone launch ever.

Source: TechCrunch

If you've got a Verizon or Sprint iPhone 4 and the earpiece speaker has suddenly stopped working, or you're getting feedback and you're sure the issue isn't being caused by poor reception, a DIY repair can get it back in working order. Replacing the earpiece will cost you a lot less than an out of warranty replacement and it's not terribly difficult to fix on your own.

Follow along and we'll show you how.

Disclaimer: As with any repair, neither iMore nor PXLFIX can be held responsible for any damage you may do to your device. It's also worth considering that opening up your device to perform any repair or modification can and will void your Apple warranty. If you don't feel comfortable opening your device, don't. Use extreme care and caution when performing a repair on any device.

What you need for a Verizon or Sprint iPhone 4 earpiece replacement

PXLFIX recommends using only quality and genuine parts from a reputable supplier like eTech Parts. They have quality parts, tools, and much more for all your repair needs. You will find links to the specific parts you'll need for this repair in the list below.

• CDMA iPhone 4 (please note there ARE internal differences between the GSM and CDMA models)
• Replacement earpiece assembly - Link to part

You will also need the following tools which are also available via eTech Parts.

• #00 Phillips screwdriver
• Pry tool or spudger
• Tweezers
• Security screwdriver (for the 2 dock connector screws)

Power off your iPhone 4

Before performing any repair, always power off your device before removing any screws or parts.

Remove the back

1. First remove the bottom 2 dock connector screws in your iPhone 4. For all CDMA iPhone models you'll need to use the 5 point security screwdriver.

2. To remove the back simply slide the back upwards and lift it off gently.
3. Set the back and 2 dock connector screws aside.

Organize your screws

It's very important to make sure you remember where you are pulling screws from, so place them in an arrangement that you'll understand and remember. I normally lay them out the same way every time I disassemble a device so I remember where they came from and how they go back in. They're all different sizes so trying to figure out where they go if you get them mixed up probably won't be fun.

Remove the battery

1. To remove the battery you'll need to remove the #00 screw holding the battery clip in place. Remove this screw located to the bottom left of the battery.

2. The metal clip on the battery is what clips the battery to the logic board. You'll need to pop this clip up with your plastic pry tool. Simply stick the end of your pry tool underneath the clip and gently pull upwards until it unfastens from the logic board.

3. To remove the battery, I do not recommend using the plastic pull tab. There is quite a bit of adhesive underneath the battery and the tab will normally just rip off or you can bend the battery. Instead, run your pry tool along the right side of the battery and break the adhesive that way. Once the battery is free from the adhesive, you can pull the battery out of the phone. There are no other connectors holding it in.

4. I typically fold the plastic tab over while working on the iPhone 4 to keep it out of the way while I'm disassembling parts. It's not necessary but convenient.

Remove the grounding clip

To the left of where you disconnected the battery you'll see another screw holding in a grounding clip over the antenna. We'll need to remove it.

1. Unscrew the one screw holding the grounding clip in place with your #00 Phillips screwdriver.

2. Gently lift the grounding clip out of the device. It's very tiny as you can see above. Take care not to misplace it or lose it.

Remove the Dock connector shield and disconnect the cable

1. There is a shield held on with two screws covering the dock connector cable. Remove the two screws holding it in place and set the shield and screws aside, remembering where they came from.

2. Next, use your pry tool to pry up the actual dock connector cable. Be careful as there is adhesive holding the cable in place as well. Peel back the adhesive gently to free the cable.

Remove the top logic board shield

1. There are 5 screws holding the logic board shield in place as labeled in the photo above. Remove the 5 screws holding it in place plus screw number 6 off to the right (we'll get to this one in a second). Just be sure to remember which holes they came out of as the screws are different sizes. I keep them arranged in the shape they came out of the logic board with the shield next to it. I find this to be the easiest way to keep them in order.

2. Next you'll need to remove the shield. There is a tiny clip built into the shield holding it in place. (Refer to the photo above.) Grab the shield by the top where the top screw came out and gently lift up and push down. The bottom notch will come out and you should be able to gently lift the shield out of the device.

Remove wifi antenna grounding clip

1. The number 6 screw we removed previously we're now returning to. There is a clip underneath it. Gently use your pry tool to remove it.

2. You'll find a cross head screw underneath it. We'll get back to that in just a minute.

Disconnect 7 cables from the logic board

1. Pop up all the cables labeled in the pictures above by gently lifting them with your pry tool or spudger..

2. Next gently lift the camera out of the device. You'll notice there is a tiny tab that is seated underneath the LCD and digitizer cables to the right.

3. Play close attention to the direction in which the cables pop up. The cable furthest to the right will pop up in the opposite direction of the others.

Remove the logic board

1. There are 5 screws you'll need to remove in order to remove the logic board. Three need to be removed with a flat blade screwdriver (flathead) while the other two will be removed with your #00 Phillips screwdriver.
2. Remove the screws numbered 1-3 in the image above using your flat blade screw driver. Make sure you remember which ones go where as the heads are a bit different.
3. Now remove screws 4 and 5 with your #00 screwdriver. Notice that the screw labeled number 5 will have a tiny gold grounding clip for the camera underneath it. Make sure you don't lose this and save it for re-assembly.

4. You should now be able to remove your logic board. Holding it at the bottom, gently pull it upwards. I use my other hand to lift up at the top where the rear facing camera used to be.

5. Take note that there is a small rubber piece that sits at the top of the logic board. You will need this for re-assembly so make sure it doesn't fall off. If you lose this, you could experience wifi or reception issues.

Remove the bad earpiece assembly

1. Carefully use your pry tool to pull up the earpiece assembly from the midframe. It is held in with a foam type of adhesive.

2. Once you've removed the earpiece assembly we can work on installing the replacement.

Install the new earpiece assembly

1. The new earpiece assembly should come with adhesive and foam already installed. Just peel the backing off of the adhesive.
2. Place the earpiece assembly carefully into the iPhone making sure you're placing it the correct way so the prongs are pointing in the right direction.
3. Gently push down on the earpiece to make sure that the adhesive has attached on the underside.

Reassemble your iPhone 4

To reassemble your Verizon or Sprint iPhone 4 you can either follow these instructions in reverse order or watch our reassembly video above. Since the video covers a complete reassembly you'll only need to watch from around the 4:40 mark on in order to finish putting your iPhone 4 back together.

And ...done!

Now that you've got your iPhone 4 put back together you can power it back on. Place a test call in order to make sure the earpiece is functioning properly again. If it isn't, make sure you've installed it correctly and that the prongs are going in the right direction. If you have and problems still persist, in rare occasions the lower mic in the dock connector or the noise canceling mic at the top can cause issues that make the earpiece not function properly.

If you're still having issues, you can check out our guides on those repairs as well:

• How to replace the dock connector and lower mic in a Verizon or Sprint iPhone 4
• How to replace the on/off button in a Verizon or Sprint iPhone 4

Want to know how to perform another type of iPhone repair or modification? Send me suggestions to ally.kazmucha@imore.com.

For questions or to inquire about mail-in repairs through PXLFIX, please follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook or e-mail us directly! Of course, you can like us and follow us just because you think we're cool too!

While the UK is way ahead when it comes to angry chefs yelling at people on TV, so far their LTE deployment has been anything but speedy. However, Everything Everywhere, the company formed by the merger of Orange and T-Mobile, has been granted a license by Ofcom to start deploying LTE on 1800MHz -- this September. If that time frame sounds familiar, it's because it's also the rumored time frame for the iPhone 5 announcement. Coincidental? Maybe, but it would put Everything Everywhere well ahead of rivals O2 and Vodafone, who are still waiting on an oft-delayed spectrum auction before they can even begin their LTE rollouts. Alex Dobie from Android Central reports:

The change to its 1800MHz license puts it at a potential advantage over other UK carriers, which must wait for 800MHz and 2600MHz bands to be auctioned off next year before they can roll out their 4G services. EE is also reportedly in the late stages of talks with rival network Three regarding the sale of some of its 1800MHz spectrum to the fourth-largest network, potentially opening the door for Three to run 4G services on these bands, too.

So maybe, just maybe, folks in the UK won't have to wait until next year to get their hands on an LTE 4G powered iPhone 5. We just remarked on how big a deal LTE would be for Verizon in the US. Could it be just as big a deal for Everything Everywhere in the UK?

If Everything Everywhere gets and LTE iPhone -- and it's still a big, unannounced, if at this point -- would you switch networks for it?

Source: TechRadar via Android Central

If Apple ships the next iPhone with support for fast LTE 4G networks, as rumors have suggested for a while, Verizon will be one of the networks that benefits the most. The current iPhone 4S is a mixed bag for Verizon, the slowest iPhone on the fastest network, but the next one won't be, and that will make a huge difference.

It may seem like a distant memory now, but when the iPhone launched in 2007, it was AT&T only in the US. Verizon tried to counter-program it several times, including with the disastrous BlackBerry Storm, before it struck a cord with the bombastic Motorola Droid.

While the Droid sold well, it didn't sell iPhone well, and didn't drive iPhone-level customer interest or retention. Verizon tried again with the litigiously iPhone-like Samsung Facinate (née Galaxy S), and again, it sold well, but didn't need it to do what Verizon needed it to do in terms of customer acquisition, retention, or revenue generation.

So in February 2011, Verizon and Apple came to a deal to offer America's most popular phone on America's biggest network, and the Verizon iPhone 4 shipped.

But it wasn't as technologically good as the AT&T/GSM version. Instead of HSPA 7.2mbps speed and simultaneous voice and data, it was stuck on EVDO Rev A ~2.5mbps speed and could only do data when voice wasn't being used. The fragility of AT&T's network, and customer frustration with it, easily counterbalanced any technological inequities, but only for a while.

That's because, at around the same time, Verizon was launching the first LTE network in the US, a network that was well ahead of AT&T. In May of 2011, Verizon debuted the HTC Thunderbolt, their first LTE handset. The speeds weren't stunning by current LTE standards -- roughly 8mbps in Android Central's tests, and battery life was a joke, but Verizon had suddenly become not only the biggest network in the US, but the most advanced.

Yet all they had from Apple was a slow, CDMA iPhone, and since Apple wasn't about to make a gigantic phone with terrible battery life, that was all Verizon was going to get. Even in October of 2011, when Apple launched the iPhone 4S and gave AT&T (and other GSM carriers) HSPA 14.4mbps, Verizon stayed stuck on EVDO Rev A ~2.5mbps.

It didn't really hurt Verizon's sales -- they went on to move an enormous amount of iPhones, but I bet it hurt their pride. They'd spent years and billions building a big network and pushing out next generation technology faster than anyone, and their biggest rival still had a better iPhone. And who knows how many more iPhones they could have sold if they weren't limited by CDMA and EVDO?

Back in May of 2011, I joked that AT&T would invent a 4G iPhone before Apple did by using their BS "HSPA as 4G" marketing to claim they had a 4G iPhone, knowing Verizon couldn't use the same label since their, more proper, "LTE as 4G" wasn't supported yet by Apple.

Low and behold, in March of 2012 AT&T did just that, somehow getting Apple to go along with it to the extent that AT&T, and AT&T alone, got a 4G label plastered on their iPhone status bar.

Verizon didn't stand still. They offered the Samsung Galaxy Nexus and now the Samsung Galaxy S3. But when it came to America's most popular, most profitable single smartphone, America's biggest, most reliable, most advanced network, Verizon, was locked and labeled a generation behind AT&T.

That changes this September. If the rumors of an iPhone 5 with 4G LTE prove true, that changes in a big way. Suddenly Verizon has the fastest iPhone in the most places in the US. The carrier that takes incredible pride in their network can take incredible pride in their iPhone.

And customers who have stayed on AT&T only because of the data speed and simultaneous voice and data, suddenly have a potentially bigger, potentially better option.

The CMDA iPhone was the iPhone Verizon needed, even if it wasn't the iPhone they wanted. The LTE iPhone will be both.

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If you like quirky designs and love your iPhone then this particular Kickstarter project may be just up your street. Say hello to Bloombox, no that's not a typo, it's a play on words to pretty much describe exactly what this project is about. It's first and foremost a charging dock for your iPhone but also offers an acoustic amplifier through It's simplistic hollow square framed design along with a place to plant a few bits of greenery.

The Bloombox is made out of ceramic molds created at Mudshark Studios. Each Bloombox is painted with a light matte glaze in either white or black. The Bloombox was born out of the combination of my three driving passions and my own need for a dock. Design, ceramics and technology (namely Apple products) all culminated together to create a habitable environment and acoustics for iPhone and iPod docks out of one single piece of ceramic.

The design aesthetics are simple and compliment Apples iPhone & iPod devices. The Bloombox was designed to have enough room to create a functioning environment for most small plants and also amplify the audio from your device by 30 percent.

The Bloombox is certainly different and not something that I have seen before. It would certainly not look out of place in a smart apartment or luxury home. The thought of watering plants right under your iPhone makes me a little concerned; so you would have to make sure it was done very carefully.

If you like the idea of the Bloombox dock, you can become an early adopter with a pledge of $50 or more to secure one should they make it into production. The Bloombox currently has around $3,200 of pledges and it needs to hit over $5,000 to gain enough to be funded; it still has 32 days to go. As with all of these Kickstarter projects, just because a particular item reaches its funding total doesn't guarantee it will go into production.

Do you think the Bloombox is a good idea or is it a little bit over the top?

Source: Kickstarter

How much do you think Apple would change for an 8GB iPad mini? We've already had Chris Umiastowski weigh in with the investor perspective, but I'm all about the iMore nation -- I want to know what you think. The Amazon Kindle Fire and Google Nexus 7 are both $200 but both are also sold at break even or below, and Apple doesn't do that. Amazon and Google also have very different business models, and ones that don't require profitable hardware sales the way Apple's does.

Now Apple does sell the 8GB iPod touch for $200 already, but that hasn't been updated since 2010 and probably costs quite a bit less than that to make. Could Apple sell an iPad mini for the same price? If Apple keeps the entry-level iPod touch at $200, could Apple sell the iPad mini at $250? At $300?

The 16GB iPad 2 is currently $400. Could Apple get the entry-level iPad mini up anywhere near that? $350 maybe?

I don't think Apple could or would go lower than the current iPod touch, and I don't think they could (even if they would!) go any higher than the current iPad 2. So that leaves us with a range for about $200 to $350. Where do you see the iPad mini fitting in?

Check out all the info we put together on the iPad mini and then vote up top and tell me why you voted the way you did in the comments below!

I love the Brick Joysticks by GrayHaus. I was worried about them at first. I didn't think the little, tiny suction cups could stick to my iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad. But they do. Mostly. And they have a variation called the bend-type as well that uses an elasticized band as well as a suction cup and provides an incredible range of motion for iOS gaming.

They're made out of what GrayHaus describes as German liquid silicone rubber (LSR) technology, which hey say provides superior performance without scratching your precious iPhone or iPad screen, and is transparent to keep screen shading to a minimum. They've also tried to make them as ergonomic as possible so they stay comfortable even through really long gaming sessions.

Th stick-type Brick Joystick adhered to the glass screen of your iPhone or iPad using a suction cup and provides a capacitive connection so you get more of a traditional, thumbstick feel instead of the simulated multitouch d-pad we all know and loathe on iOS. Attach the stick-type Brick Joystick and you get all the up and down, left and right, action you need for classic gaming. I'm talking fighting games, adventure games, RPGs, and the like.

The bend-type Brick Joystick is a lot of fun. Because the suction cup sticks at the back, and the elastic band wraps around your iPhone, the joystick itself is free to move around much more than the conventional joystick. It can be adjusted to fit anything from the iPhone to a 5.5 inch device, though sadly not the iPad. Still, on the iPhone is works really, really well for sports games and some combat games.

You can use two stick-type Brick Joysticks at the same time for double d-pad games, or mix a stick-type and a bend-type if that's what the game calls for.

Both types are really small, and I love that they don't block out any more screen than is absolutely necessary. Even though there's an elastic around the bend-type Brick Joystick, and it does cover the screen, it's still fabulous.

Now the suction cups do slip every once and a while. The Brick Joysticks come with extra, non-slip disks to stick on your screen, but the extra adherence isn't worth putting a sticker on my iPhone or iPad screen. At least not to me. I also worry that the elastic around the bend-type Brick Joystick might wear down and break eventually, but so far it's been remarkably reliable.

The good

• Minimal screen obstruction
• Suction cup sticks well
• Good capacitive connection

The bad

• Suction cup can slip a bit

The bottom line

if you love gaming on your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad, and the virtual d-pads have just never done it for you, the Brick Joysticks are a great option to consider. I'm really impressed with both the quality and utility of the Brick Joysticks, and I especially love the bend-type option. I only wish they were compatible with even more games!

The GrayHaus Brick Joystick is available now in two packages -- dual stick-type and one stick-type and one bend-type.

$24.99 - Buy now

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Lister is stylish new list app for the iPhone. It offers a nice, clean interface for shopping and to-do lists that can be password protected on a per-list basis. You can also add pricing to shopping list items so that you can quickly see the total cost associated with each list.

Lister supports two different types of lists: shopping and to-do. With both types, you can assign a unique password to each list if you desire to. From the List View, you can quickly see all your lists, how many items are in each list, the date it was created, and for shopping lists, the total cost associated with them.

When creating a shopping list, you can assign each item to a category so that they are nicely organized in your list. You can also add amounts such as 3 pieces, 7 boxes, 3 jars, and 10 packets. If you want to keep track of the monetary value of the items on your list, Lister also lets you enter dollar amounts for the item you are adding and keeps a running total for you.

To-do lists in Lister feature a much more stripped down user interface so that you can quickly and easily add items to these lists. You just type in your list item or select it from the list of previously used entries and move on. When you complete a task, simply check it off.

So far, I really like Lister. It's a nice compromise between a fully-featured list app and a stripped-down-to-just-the-basics list app. It does not have a reminders feature, so if that's something you rely on, Lister is not for you. If you're looking for a stylish way to keep traditional shopping and to-do lists, however, then you may want to give Lister a look!

$0.99 - Download Now

AT&T's restriction of iOS 6 FaceTime over cellular to shared data plans might cause them to run afoul of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). AT&T won't be charging extra for FaceTime over cellular, but will be requiring what for many could be more expensive plans. Since AT&T doesn't do that with other video calling services, like Skype. Brian X. Chen reports for the New York Times:

John Bergmayer, senior staff lawyer at Public Knowledge, said AT&T was violating the F.C.C.'s Open Internet Rules, which say that mobile providers shall not "block applications that compete with the provider's voice or video telephony services."

"There is no technical reason why one data plan should be able to access FaceTime and another not," Mr. Bergmayer said in a statement.

Following WWDC 2012, when Apple announced they'd finally -- finally! -- bring their video calling service, FaceTime to cellular with iOS 6, early beta versions running on AT&T iPhones showed signs that it might be restricted on that network. AT&T has a history of restricting services like tethering and MMS, so while disappointing, it was hardly a surprise.

The FCC is supposed to regulate the legal oligopolies enjoyed by telecommunication companies like AT&T. So lets see if the FCC does its job here and starts telling all the carriers that a bit is a bit, and once a customer has paid for tiered data, it's their business what they do with it.

Source: New York Times