Review: IntelliScreen
Author: Jeff Noble | Posted under: Jailbreak, ReviewsTags: intellialert, intelliborn, intellidial, Jailbreak, lock screen, system, Utilities
IntelliScreen v2.02 | Published by Intelliborn | Via Cydia | $4.99-$49.99 | Released: 8-19-08
Update
9/04/08 - IntelliScreen v2.1 released.
Overview
At first glance you might wonder why IntelliScreen even exists. After using it for a while, you’ll discover you can’t live without it. It puts everything from your calendar, new mail, news feeds, and weather on your iPhone home screen for quick viewing.
Functionality
IntelliScreen installs from Cydia (yes, you’ll need a jailbroken iPhone) and just its name makes me feel smarter. I’m an IntelliScreen user… Oooo. Say it again. However, its name perhaps understates all that it does for the iPhone user. It is such a full-featured app that I think it could be customized to any desired user experience.
What it does is place what you want on your homescreen for quick glance viewing. No longer do you have to wake up your iPhone with a swipe, exit whatever program you left running and launch another app to get your information.
You wake up your iPhone - either with the home button or the power button, and IntelliScreen is just there. Ready to serve.
Upon first launch of the app, you’ll be brought to the preference window where you indicate what you’d like to have on your screen. It gives you the option of calendars, mail, SMS, weather, news and RSS feeds, and sports feeds.
It also allows the creation of 2 different screens. You choose what you want on each screen, the size of each module’s display (I have my calendar bigger than my email), and which screen - 1 or 2 - you want each module to display on.
In use, after you wake up your iPhone, a simple double tap on the time bar flips the screen (much like fast user switching on the Mac) to the second IntelliScreen.
IntelliScreen is so full-featured that it is one of the only apps I’m aware of to date that has three different price structures: $4.99, $19.99, and $49.99. You can review their website for what features are offered with each price. IntelliScreen in its basic version ($4.99) provides these features:
- View Calendar, Email, SMS Messages, News, Sports, and Weather from your “Slide To Unlock” screen
- Weather for 1 Location
- Email for 1 Account
- Tap To Refresh Email
- “Swipe Launch”
- News Feeds include Yahoo!, CNN, BBC Fox News, and Reuters
- Sports Feeds
- Customizing your IntelliScreen™ is easy! Choose which content you want to view and where
- Mail and Text Messages can be shown only if new items are available
- Taskbar Icons for Missed Email, SMS, and Phone calls
- Upgrades through version 2.x (bug fixes - no new functionality)
What the basic version doesn’t include is an amazing little sub-feature called IntelliDial. Essentially, it takes your favorites from your phone list, puts the contacts picture with it, and gives you an app-flow like contact list that allows you to press the contact’s picture for dialing.
Another amazing feature is IntelliAlert. It brings some fantastic preferences, including custom ringtones, to your alert. From its preference pane, you can set taskbar icons on or off, decide which alert reminders you want for missed SMS, missed calls, new mail, and repeat calendar alerts. You designate how often you want the app to pester you for these reminders. You can also set an “alert quiet time” which means that during the hours you set, your iPhone won’t be nagging you to return someone’s call. Nice. Wish I could apply IntelliAlert to some of my friends…
Review
I’ll be completely honest here… IntelliScreen was one of the main reasons that I jailbroke 2.0 on my iPhone. Intelliborn announced early on that it would not be offering their app through the App Store because it “does not conform to the restrictive terms of Apple’s SDK.”
I love the ability to see my calendar, weather, recent mail, etc. at a glance. Sometimes that all I need - just let me know what’s next and what’s in my inbox. It has an amazing feature that allows you to scroll through its modules on your lock screen that makes me feel un-IntelliScreen. How did they do that? Too cool.
The ability to resize and drag your modules into position is fantastic, although the implementation is still a little clunky and hit-or-miss. After multiple tries, I finally got things like I want them.
And I haven’t yet gotten into the habit of using IntelliDial. It really requires you to remember… “Oh yeah, just hit the home button from the lock screen,” and there’s my favorites in an iTunes-like cover art flow.
Overall, I simply love the app. As far as paying $49.99 just for “premium features with 6 months support” (the other options offer no support), I have one word - NOT. That’s ridiculous. Since when do you purchase anything and not get any level of support? If the app wasn’t so good, I’d be tempted to boycott it just for the attitude represented by Intelliborn with this price structure and business philosophy. It’s rather snarky.
For that matter, I think the app price structure should be $4.99 and $9.99, but they never asked me.
One major con for me is that every single change to your preferences is like pulling teeth. It sends the iPhone into a black screen with the spinning wheel of progress. This usually takes 20-25 seconds. Doesn’t sound like much, but it gets rather annoying… really quick.
Summary
What are you waiting for? Jailbreak your iPhone and download this app immediately. You get a 10-day trial before you have to decide between $4.99 and $19.99. No one in their right mind should pay the $49.99. The app is great for quick viewing and creating shortcuts on your iPhone. It will save you loads of clicking time, especially when all you want is a quick update from your calendar, email, or texts. Its ability to do quick-calling through IntelliDial and reminders is just icing on the cake.
Update: After completing this review, I received a note from Intelliborn in response to an email. Their release of a 2.1 upgrade for IntelliScreen is imminent, and they have provided AppleiPhoneApps.com with a beta. I will post an update to this review after testing it.
Usability: 4 / 5
Value: 4 / 5 (for $4.99) • 3 / 5 (for $19.99) • 1 / 5 (for $49.99)
Utility: 4 / 5
Aesthetics: 3 / 5
I just want the Home screen data to show up on my phone… Can they just make an app for that, and put it up on the App Store!!! C’mon developers, DO IT!!!! please…
Sean on August 29th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
@Sean: You will never see this type of app in the AppStore, at least not under Apple’s current Developer agreements. Apple doesn’t allow background processes or any software that modifies existing system screens. I hope in the future Apple relaxes these regulations, but I’m not optimistic. For now there is jailbreak
Nic Elder on August 30th, 2008 at 10:54 pm
Hi Guys,
Do not this is the place to ask this question but anyways i ll ask.
Once you jaibroke it through winpwn 2.5 and installed the programs from appstore and cydiaand installer how do you back up those programs if for some reason you have to restore it agian. Othewise you have to install the apps again. please help me.
brian on August 31st, 2008 at 5:36 pm
@Brian: I have no idea if this is possible. Let’s hope someone smarter chimes in and helps us both.
Jeff on August 31st, 2008 at 5:43 pm
I’ve been using intelliscreen on my iPhone 3G and I should say I’m very happy with it. I think the reviewer did a good job of describing the features. But I would like to see one more feature added to the list. Support seperate email accounts for the Screen 2 so that you don’t have to scroll down all the way to look at your email from the other account.
Hari on August 31st, 2008 at 11:23 pm
@ Brian + Jeff
Only way to change packages downloaded using Cydia is to use the “manage” tab and then select “packages” from the list. Once in, you’ll see a list of currently installed applications and you can modify them simply by touching the name of the app. You can uninstall, reinstall, and upgrade from this screen.
Brett on September 1st, 2008 at 12:02 pm
This is what I loved about SPB Mobile Shell on my 8125. I really may have to jailbreak my 3G now.
Mark on September 2nd, 2008 at 10:53 pm
@Mark: Exactly!! MobileShell was the only app I ever purchased for my Sync, and I couldn’t live w/out it, I’ve been waiting a long time for similar functionality on the iPhone. As a user of Intelliscreen I can tell you that you won’t be sorry, give it a try!
Nic Elder on September 3rd, 2008 at 3:58 pm
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