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   ExtraBITS for 1 July 2013

   TidBITS Staff

   We're in the midst of the summer doldrums, so we have only a couple of
   ExtraBITS for you this week: a free iPhone repair kit and some thoughts
   on how Apple's tight integration will make iOS 7 a tough look to copy.

   [1]Liberate Your iPhone With a Free Repair Kit from iFixit -- To
   celebrate Independence Day in the United States, the folks at iFixit
   are offering free 'iPhone Liberation Kits' from 1 July until 5 July.
   The kits, which are being offered for the iPhone 4 and iPhone 5,
   include all the tools needed to replace Apple's proprietary pentalobe
   screws with standard Phillips screws. iFixit offered free shipping to
   the first 1,776 people who ordered, but they quickly sold those, so now
   you'll have to pay $5 shipping per order.

   [2]Read/post comments

   [3]Apple's Integration Makes iOS 7 Hard to Imitate -- Since the debut
   of the iPhone, everyone from competing smartphone makers to Web
   developers has wanted to copy its onscreen aesthetics. But developer
   Marco Arment argues that the forthcoming iOS 7 leverages Apple's
   hardware in such a way as to make it tough to copy. Specifically, he
   notes that since much of iOS 7's interface is dependent on the powerful
   graphics processors and high-resolution screens in iOS devices, it will
   be difficult to imitate on competing platforms with weaker specs.

   [4]Read/post comments

References

   1. http://www.ifixit.com/LiberationWeek
   2. http://tidbits.com/article/13880#comments
   3. http://www.marco.org/2013/06/27/ios7-as-defense
   4. http://tidbits.com/article/13881#comments

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