iOS 8 IPSW Direct Download Links

Apple has released iOS 8 update for all compatible devices, and while most users are best served by downloading the update through the Over-the-Air mechanism on their iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, another option is to install the update manually by means of IPSW firmware files. While not particularly difficult, updating with firmware is considered a bit more advanced, and it requires the download of a full firmware package file which is upwards of 6GB or so, which is considerably larger than the smaller delta update offered through OTA.

iOS 8 IPSW Direct Download Links

Regardless of using IPSW or OTA to update to iOS 8, it’s a good idea to prepare for the update by cleaning house on the target iPhone or iPad. At the very least, always back up your iOS device to iCloud and/or iTunes before installing new system software.

Below are direct download links to the appropriate IPSW files stored on Apple servers. Download the file that is relevant to the device you are going to update. You may want to choose to Right-Click and do a ‘Save As’ of the file in question, and be sure whatever you are saving has the “.ipsw” file extension. If you have never used firmware files before, be sure to update iTunes first to the latest version, and then go here to learn how to use IPSW files to update an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to the new release of iOS.

iOS 8 IPSW Firmware for iPhone

• iPhone 5S (6,1 CDMA)
• iPhone 5S (6,2 GSM)
• iPhone 5 (5,1 GSM)
• iPhone 5 (5,2 CDMA)
• iPhone 5C (GSM)
• iPhone 5C (CDMA)
• iPhone 6 (7,1)
• iPhone 6 Plus (7,2)
• iPhone 4S (Dualband GSM & CDMA)

iOS 8 IPSW Files for iPad

• iPad Air (5th gen Wi-Fi + Cellular)
• iPad Air (5th gen Wi-Fi)
• iPad 4 Wi-Fi & Cellular (CDMA)
• iPad 4 Wi-Fi & Cellular (GSM)
• iPad 4 Wi-Fi
• iPad Mini 2 with Retina (Wi-Fi + Cellular)
• iPad Mini with Retina (Wi-Fi)
• iPad Mini 2 with Retina (CDMA)
• iPad Mini (CDMA)
• iPad Mini (GSM)
• iPad Mini (Wi-Fi)
• iPad 3 Wi-Fi (3rd gen)
• iPad 3 Wi-Fi & Cellular (GSM)
• iPad 3 Wi-Fi & Cellular (CDMA)
• iPad 2 Wi-Fi (2,4)
• iPad 2 Wi-Fi (2,1)
• iPad 2 Wi-Fi & Cellular (GSM)
• iPad 2 Wi-Fi & Cellular (CDMA)

iOS 8 IPSW for iPod Touch

• iPod Touch (5th gen)

Users will need to have the latest version of iTunes available to install iOS 8 through ISPW, so be sure to update iTunes either though Software Update or the app itself before using the firmware.

iOS 8 Update Released for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch

Apple has released iOS 8 for all compatible iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices. The update offers significant improvements and many new features to prior versions of iOS and is recommended for all users to install on their devices. If you haven’t done so already, it’s a good idea to prepare for iOS 8 before updating the system software.

iOS 8 Update Released for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch

iOS 8 is supported by the following hardware; iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5S, iPhone 6, iPad Mini, iPad Mini Retina, iPad 3, iPad 4, iPad Air, and iPod touch 5th generation.

How to Update to iOS 8 with OTA

The simplest way to update to iOS 8 is to use the Over-the-Air update mechanism on the iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch:

• Go to Settings app, then to “General”, and then to “Software Update”
• Choose “Download & Install” when iOS 8 populates

The OTA download weighs in close to 1GB and requires nearly 5GB of free storage space on-device to install.

It’s always a good idea to back up your devices before installing an iOS update, at the very least make a quick backup to iCloud or, better yet, go all out and backup to both iTunes and iCloud before beginning.

How to Update to iOS 8 with iTunes

Users can also install the iOS 8 update through iTunes and a computer, though you’ll need to connect the iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to a Mac or Windows PC with the latest version of iTunes to do that.

1. Update iTunes if you haven’t done so already, then relaunch iTunes
2. Connect the iOS device to the computer with USB
3. Click on “Update” if the update option to install iOS 8 does not appear automatically

This updates to iOS 8 by downloading the update from Apple and using the computer to load it onto the iOS device, and it may or may not be faster to update your device this way, depending on a variety of conditions. One significant advantage to using iTunes is that it allows users to skip the “cannot install update” error due to storage capacity limitations on an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch.

 

If you’re going to update through iTunes, be sure to backup the device to the same computer with iTunes before beginning the actual update process – or again – back up to both icloud and iTunes if possible.

Related to iTunes, users also have the option to download IPSW firmware files for iOS 8and install that manually onto their devices. That route is generally considered a more advanced procedure and is best reserved for individuals who have a good reason to go with the IPSW method. You can find direct downloads to iOS 8 firmware here.

Apple TV Update Revamps Interface

Apple also released an update for Apple TV, which changes the interface and icons a bit to be more in line with the bright colors of iOS 7 and iOS 8, as this image from MacRumors shows:

The Apple TV update also adds support for iOS 8 features, making it a good idea to update for those users who have a third gen Apple TV.

Apple TV users can get the update from Settings > General > Software Update

Help Decide Which Size iPhone 6 to Buy with This Printable Guide

Deciding which size iPhone 6 to buy is no easy task, particularly if you’re going to pre-order this Friday and aren’t able to hold one of the devices in your hand before the big purchase. That’s where this little printable PDF file comes into play, which gives you an accurate idea of the physical size of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus against an existing iPhone 5 model.

Help Decide Which Size iPhone 6 to Buy with This Printable Guide

You’ll want to print this out to get the best idea, though loading it at full size on screen can also work to give a vaguer concept of size too. Either way, bbe sure to hold your iPhone 5 up to make sure that size is accurate. Whether you just look at it on screen or actually print it out as recommended, you’ll find that both models are certainly larger than existing iPhones, but really you should print it out if you’re going to use this to help guide your pre-order:

• Go here to load the iPhone 6 size file
• Print the file as usual (or use that cool print from desktop trick) – be sure the file is printed on 8.5″ x 11″ paper and it is set to 100% scale
• Grab some scissors and cut out the iPhone scale models and use your imagination

 

Help Decide Which Size iPhone 6 to Buy with This Printable Guide

You’ll find both sizes to be larger, where the iPhone 6 feels marginally bigger and mostly taller than iPhone 5 line, it’s the iPhone 6 Plus in particular that really stands out. With the Plus models larger screen and pixel dense display comes a stellar battery life, iPad-like landscape mode, and an optical image stabilization feature, making the larger physical size less of an issue if you find those features compelling, and I suspect the iPhone 6 Plus is going to be a very popular device, particular for those who want to merge an iPad and iPhone into a single carry-around item. On the other hand, if you’re more or less happy with the iPhone 5 lines size, you’ll find the standard iPhone 6 with 4.7″ display to be a notable upgrade on screen size and performance, while still being able to easily carry it in your pocket.

While I haven’t gotten my hands on a physical iPhone 6 yet (few have if you weren’t invited to the Apple press event), I’ve at least had the luxury of holding a third party cases built for the device, which offers a decent idea of what the phones will feel like. Of course, a case – even slim cases – add additional bulk to an iPhone, and if you like to use a cover or case on your iPhone you may want to consider that as well when you’re shopping and pre-ordering the iPhone. Otherwise, if you have enough patience to wait until you can use the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus in person, you may want to do that before buying, as they certainly aren’t cheap purchases.

Heads up to AppleInsider for the PDF and iPhoneInCanada for the great find.

Apple design chief Jonathan Ive calls iPhone 6 and Apple Watch its ‘best work yet

In a pair of interviews with ABC News following Tuesday’s big hardware debut, Apple CEO Tim Cook and SVP of Design Jony Ive discussed the trials and tribulations of designing the company’s first wearable device.  Apple design chief Jonathan Ive calls iPhone 6 and Apple Watch its ‘best work yet

Apple design chief Jonathan Ive calls iPhone 6 and Apple Watch its ‘best work yet

Speaking with ABC News’ David Muir, Cook said Apple Watch came about after the death of company cofounder Steve Jobs, meaning the wearable is the first product category to be developed under Cook’s watch.  When asked what Jobs would think of the iPhone 6 and Apple Watch, Cook made it a point to mention the tech guru’s influence is being felt even now, nearly three years after his passing.

“I think he would be smiling today,” Cook said. “I think he would be so proud that he left a company that continued after him where he could clearly see his DNA at the foundation of it. You can see Steve written all over the products we did today.” Cook also handled questions related to Apple Watch security, a valid concern given the wearable will have access to sensitive information that, in some cases, could include payment information. Along with the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, Apple Watch has NFC built in to conduct touch-less Apple Pay payments.

The Apple chief said the wearable is the most secure solution on the market, noting credit card information is translated into a Device Account Number that is used in conjunction with a dynamically generated security transaction code. Apple Pay technology was first discovered in an Apple patent filing from 2012.

A final question from Muir asked about Apple’s “Made in America” initiative, to which Cook said parts, services and machinery from 22 states are being used in the production of Apple Watch and the latest iPhone product lines. As for Ive, Apple’s design chief said his team took years to get the Apple Watch right. One of the hardest issues to address was making a very personal device attractive to a wide swath of consumers. “We’ve always tried to make products that people don’t begrudgingly use, but that they want to use,” Ive said. “I think that the bar for that is very high when it’s something that you wear. And it’s something that you’re going to wear all day, every day.”

 

Apple Watch is expected to go on sale in early 2015 at a starting price of $349.

iOS 8 GM Download Available for Developers

Apple has released the final version of iOS 8, known as the Golden Master (GM) build, to those registered with the iOS Developer program. The final build is 12A365, and is notably unavailable as an OTA download from existing iOS 8 beta releases.

Developers can gain access to and download the appropriate iOS 8 GM IPSW files through the iOS Developer Center. The supported hardware remains the same as the earliest beta builds, including iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPad 2, iPad Air, iPad with Retina display, iPod touch 5th gen, and both iPad Mini models. New iPhone 6 models will ship with iOS 8 preinstalled.

iOS 8 GM Download Available for Developers

 

Because of the inability to use Over-The-Air update from an existing beta version, the best thing to do is to install iOS 8 GM fresh, or to update over an existing iOS 7 installation. As most developers know by now, that’s good practice for updating from beta software anyway.

The final release of iOS 8 will be September 17 for the wider public, making now an excellent time to prepare your iPhones and iPads for the iOS 8 update before it becomes available. With that said, technically anyone can install the iOS 8 GM builds as long as they have iTunes 11.4 installed on their Mac, so if you have a friend in the developer program and you’re antsy to get your hands on iOS 8, you could head over to their house and install it – and no, we’re not recommending anyone do that.

iOS 8 Release Date Set for September 17

Apple has announced that iOS 8 will be released on Wednesday, September 17, two days prior to the release of iPhone 6. As usual with iOS, the major software update will arrive as a free download from the Over-the-Air update mechanism, or through iTunes.

iOS 8 is compatible with iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5C, iPhone 5S, iPad 2, iPad 3, iPad 4, iPad Air, iPad Mini, iPod touch 5th gen, and iPad Mini with Retina display. The new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus will ship with iOS 8 pre-installed.

iOS 8 Release Date Set for September 17

iOS 8 includes many new features and enhancements to the mobile operating system, making it a must-have update for all iPhone and iPad users. With the update appearing next week, now is a great time to prepare for the iOS 8 update by doing some house cleaning and backing up your devices.

Mac users also have extra incentive to install iOS 8 on their devices thanks to the Handoff feature of OS X Yosemite, which allows users to pass sessions from their iOS devices to their Macs, and vice versa. Presumably, iOS 8 will be required for compatibility with the Apple Watch and it’s slew of new features as well.

Developers can get access to iOS 8 today with the freshly released GM build.

Live video from our special event will be right here. And so will a whole lot more.

http://www.apple.com/live

Join us at Apple.com on September 9 at 10 a.m. PDT to follow every moment.

Live video from our special event will be right here. And so will a whole lot more.

Apple’s WWDC banners show iOS 8, next OS X are coming

A better look at the 8 banner, which is both above and under water.

A better look at the 8 banner, which is both above and under water.

A better look at the 8 banner, which is both above and under water.

 

WWDC 2014

Apple begins putting up a banner for the next OS X, which looks like Yosemite national park in California.

 

iOS 7.1.1 Released with Bug Fixes [IPSW Download Links]

Apple has released iOS 7.1.1, a bug fix update aimed at resolving several issues with the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. The update is said to fix keyboard responsiveness – presumably addressing the keyboard lag issue that has annoyed some users – improves fingerprint recognition for devices with Touch ID, and also resolves a problem when using Bluetooth keyboards with VoiceOver enabled. Other minor bug fixes and improvements may be included as well.

The iOS 7.1.1 build number is 11D201, and the update is compatible with all devices running iOS 7+, including the iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5C, iPhone 5S, iPad 2, iPad 3, iPad 4, iPad Air, iPad Mini, and iPod touch 5th gen.

iOS 7.1.1 Update

Downloading & Installing iOS 7.1.1 Update
Always backup your iOS devices before updating system software. The easiest way for most users to download iOS 7.1.1 is to install through OTA (Over The Air) update. This is done on the device by doing the following:

Open “Settings” and go to “Software Update”
Choose “Download & Install”
The update is quite small, but as usual with iOS updates, requires a fairly hefty amount of available storage space to install. If you see an error message stating “This update cannot be installed because it requires at least ***MB of storage.” you will need to manually clear out apps, media, and data from the device before installing it through OTA, otherwise you can update through iTunes using a Mac or Windows PC instead.

Users can also install iOS 7.1.1 through iTunes Update by tethering their device to a computer, launching iTunes, and checking for updates. Another option reserved for more advanced users is to go about using IPSW firmware files as downloaded from the links below.

iOS 7.1.1 IPSW Direct Download Links

Right-click and choose “Save As” to download the appropriate firmware file directly from Apple’s servers:

• iPhone 5S (GSM)
• iPhone 5S (CDMA)
• iPhone 5 (GSM)
• iPhone 5 (CDMA)
• iPhone 5C (CDMA)
• iPhone 5C (GSM)
• iPhone 4S (GSM & CDMA dualband)
• iPhone 4 (GSM Rev A)
• iPhone 4 (GSM)
• iPhone 4 (CDMA)
• iPad Air (Wi-Fi + Cellular)
• iPad Air (Wi-Fi)
• iPad 4 CDMA)
• iPad 4 GSM)
• iPad 4 Wi-Fi)
• iPad 3 Wi-Fi (3rd gen)
• iPad 3 Wi-Fi + Cellular (GSM)
• iPad 3 Wi-Fi + Cellular (CDMA)
• iPad 2 Wi-Fi (Rev A)
• iPad 2 Wi-Fi
• iPad 2 Wi-Fi + 3G (GSM)
• iPad 2 Wi-Fi + 3G (CDMA)
• iPad Mini (CDMA)
• iPad Mini (GSM)
• iPad Mini (Wi-Fi)
• iPad Mini Retina (Wi-Fi + Cellular)
• iPad Mini Retina (Wi-Fi)
• iPod Touch (5th gen)

iOS 7.1.1 Release Notes

The brief release notes included alongside the OTA update for iOS 7.1.1 are as follows:

This update contains improvements, bug fixes and security updates, including:

• Further improvements to Touch ID fingerprint recognition
• Fixes a bug that could impact keyboard responsiveness
• Fixes an issue when using Bluetooth keyboards with VoiceOver enabled

Full release notes will be available soon.

Separately, a new update for Apple TV is available, versioned as Apple TV 6.1.1 with build 11D201c.