iPad New Tweak From Ryan Petrich

[BumpyFlatline]

Reyna Petrich released a new tweak today called SmartClose. Its a tweak which puts apps into a "deep freeze" state. It's pretty cool cause I'm in the camp that force closing apps is typically a useless action and can actually hurt battery life more than improve it. It can however improve lag. But that's a whole other debate that's been discussed ad nauseam.

Ironically Ryan Petrich also thinks force quitting apps should not be the default approach to using your device. This is why I am intrigued by this new tweak.

So far it seems to be working as expected. I've been using it for several hours now and I think I'm gonna keep this installed. When activated via an Activator gesture, the apps disappear from the task switcher. But sure enough, for the most part, when I reopen an app that's in this state, it picks up right where it left off. I kinda wish the app stayed in the task switcher but I'm sure over time this tweak will be expanded on given that Petrich is frequently updating his tweaks and adding features. Right now it's in beta so you'll have to add his repo if you don't already have it. I'll keep my eye on battery life and lag. If I experience anything unexpected I'll post it here.

What do you guys think? Something you'll use or do you prefer a tweak like InfinityTask? Or no backgrounding type tweaks at all?

 

[fizz7283]

Well I hide all of my apps so they're already removed from the app switcher anyway. I use cctoggles and it has a built in quick launch for killing all apps. If I didn't already have a tweak that could kill all backgrounder tweaks I would probably give it a try, but I don't mind them being completely closed.

I'd honestly rather have less tweaks than more than work more efficiently. Sounds kinda dumb, but I'm happy with the way I currently have it. Glad you're enjoying it though!

 

[XboxMySocks]

I'm in the camp that force closing apps is typically a useless action and can actually hurt battery life more than improve it.

Heh, it's not a camp but rather an undeniable, proven fact of life about the way iOS is written.

----------

Well I hide all of my apps so they're already removed from the app switcher anyway. I use cctoggles and it has a built in quick launch for killing all apps. If I didn't already have a tweak that could kill all backgrounder tweaks I would probably give it a try, but I don't mind them being completely closed.

I'd honestly rather have less tweaks than more than work more efficiently. Sounds kinda dumb, but I'm happy with the way I currently have it. Glad you're enjoying it though!

Andddddd this one doesn't get it.

 

[BumpyFlatline]

Heh, it's not a camp but rather an undeniable, proven fact of life about the way iOS is written.

----------


Andddddd this one doesn't get it.

Hahahaha

Indeed my friend. This is true.

 

[fizz7283]

Heh, it's not a camp but rather an undeniable, proven fact of life about the way iOS is written.

----------



Andddddd this one doesn't get it.

I might not "get it", but like I said, I'm fine with the way the kill all apps switch works in cctoggles anyway. How much does it negatively affect the battery life anyway? I can't see it affecting it that much. So I lose 10 or 15 minutes, big deal. And I'm not that worried about having to scroll back through Facebook or go back to the mac rumors forum on tapatalk. I'm not that obsessive about the way my kill all apps switch works, so the one that comes preloaded with cctoggles fits my needs.

And damn I just realized I had a million errors in my post earlier. That's what I get for posting while at work I guess. Trying to multitask and I failed.

 

[vha23]

I never knew there was a downside to force close apps in the switcher.

 

[XboxMySocks]

I never knew there was a downside to force close apps in the switcher.

Yes. It negatively affects battery life and screws over the hugely complex background system Apple has written and put into place.

 

[HankHowdy]

Yes. It negatively affects battery life and screws over the hugely complex background system Apple has written and put into place.

What if you close all the apps manually one by one? Does that also cause the same kind of battery drain that you're talking about?

 

[XboxMySocks]

What if you close all the apps manually one by one? Does that also cause the same kind of battery drain that you're talking about?

Yes. The way iOS works is that the list you close them from isn't an 'active applications' list, it's a 'last used' list. At any given time, probably only 1 of those applications in your list is backgrounding (that you can control, Apple Applications will run in the background regardless or not whether you quit them) and that backgrounding app is functioning at a VERY low level for a set period of time (10 minutes, maximum in iOS).

The only exception is Facebook, which has VOIP services which will let the app run 24/7 if it's in the switcher - this is because it has ties into the system, sadly.

 

[lucastatic]

When activated via an Activator gesture, the apps disappear from the task switcher. But sure enough, for the most part, when I reopen an app that's in this state, it picks up right where it left off. I kinda wish the app stayed in the task switcher but I'm sure over time this tweak will be expanded on given that Petrich is frequently updating his tweaks and adding features.

SmartClose feels pointless to me, with the main reason being above. What benefits does SmartClose provide other than hiding the app from the switcher and possibly preventing background activity (which is already heavily limited by iOS)? Things are frozen by default in iOS. "Kinda wish the app stayed in the task switcher" is like saying you kinda wish you hadn't installed SmartClose?

 

[darricksailo]

SmartClose feels pointless to me, with the main reason being above. What benefits does SmartClose provide other than hiding the app from the switcher and possibly preventing background activity (which is already heavily limited by iOS)? Things are frozen by default in iOS. "Kinda wish the app stayed in the task switcher" is like saying you kinda wish you hadn't installed SmartClose?

Everyone has different preferences but if you use the app switcher a lot, i can see it being more more troublesome to exit to the home screen and look for the app which might be in a folder before you can open that app again

Not quite sure how this tweak works as oppose to default iOS backgrounding yet

----------

Yes. The way iOS works is that the list you close them from isn't an 'active applications' list, it's a 'last used' list. At any given time, probably only 1 of those applications in your list is backgrounding (that you can control, Apple Applications will run in the background regardless or not whether you quit them) and that backgrounding app is functioning at a VERY low level for a set period of time (10 minutes, maximum in iOS).

The only exception is Facebook, which has VOIP services which will let the app run 24/7 if it's in the switcher - this is because it has ties into the system, sadly.

Does smartclose freeze Facebook too?

 

[lucastatic]

Not quite sure how this tweak works as oppose to default iOS backgrounding yet

I'm genuinely curious.

Does smartclose freeze Facebook too?

I have no idea as I've not tested this but I think this is where SmartClose actually matters. If it can background freeze an app (stock functionality) while ripping away the app's established background privileges (non-stock functionality) then I can see it the point of having it. Essentially it would make an app close like how it did pre-iOS 4, in which case having it visible in the switcher would indeed be beneficial. Truthfully though I can't see this providing much benefit over how iOS normally does things. It'd be a great alternative backgrounding mode in Backgrounnd Manager, in particular it seems like it'd be better than the "None" option. Hmm.

On the note of Facebook, keep in mind you can edit Facebook.app's Info.plist, removing the VoIP privilege entirely.

<key>UIBackgroundModes</key>
<array>
<string>voip</string>
<string>audio</string>
<string>location</string>
<string>fetch</string>
</array>

If you delete the VoIP line, save and respring so SpringBoard recognizes the new privileges, said app will no longer be able to hook into that backgrounding API.

 

[BumpyFlatline]

You guys make really good points. But for me, this is really helpful on my ipad mini. It is awful at keeping safari active in the background. If i do just about anything and then go back to safari, it has to reload tabs all over again. It's very annoying. But with SmartClose this annoyance is greatly limited.

The only annoying thing about this tweak at the moment is that the app is removed form the switcher. Would be much better if the apps stayed there. But aside from that, putting the apps that I don't want to close or refresh into this deep freeze state makes navigating back and forth much better now.

I haven't noticed any lag or battery issues yet. But mainly I use this tweak for safari (and other browsers and web based apps) so that they stay active in the background while I play a game of Threes! or to do something else.

Edit: Just realized that safari still refreshes. It's a little bit better but once you start using safari, the other tabs will release their ram and when you click back on them the they still reload at times. Man I rally hope the evaders release a jailbreak for 7.1. My iPad mini desperately needs Apple's improvement to safari and memory caching in their big 7.1 update. Here's to hoping!

 

[darricksailo]

You guys make really good points. But for me, this is really helpful on my ipad mini. It is awful at keeping safari active in the background. If i do just about anything and then go back to safari, it has to reload tabs all over again. It's very annoying. But with SmartClose this annoyance is greatly limited.

The only annoying thing about this tweak at the moment is that the app is removed form the switcher. Would be much better if the apps stayed there. But aside from that, putting the apps that I don't want to close or refresh into this deep freeze state makes navigating back and forth much better now.

I haven't noticed any lag or battery issues yet. But mainly I use this tweak for safari (and other browsers and web based apps) so that they stay active in the background while I play a game of Threes! or to do something else.

Edit: Just realized that safari still refreshes. It's a little bit better but once you start using safari, the other tabs will release their ram and when you click back on them the they still reload at times. Man I rally hope the evaders release a jailbreak for 7.1. My iPad mini desperately needs Apple's improvement to safari and memory caching in their big 7.1 update. Here's to hoping!

Do you have the first gen or the retina version?

 

[BumpyFlatline]

Do you have the first gen or the retina version?

Retina. Why do you know a solution?!?

 

[lucastatic]

You could always use Background Manager to force Safari to run as if it's in the foreground. I use Lock Button - Short Hold to toggle between BGM's Native / Forced modes.

Of course, Safari would probably be a much larger drain on your battery always running in the foreground. It'd be best if you used Forced mode only when you're jumping into and out of it regularly.

 

[BumpyFlatline]

You could always use Background Manager to force Safari to run as if it's in the foreground. I use Lock Button - Short Hold to toggle between BGM's Native / Forced modes.

Of course, Safari would probably be a much larger drain on your battery always running in the foreground. It'd be best if you used Forced mode only when you're jumping into and out of it regularly.

That's a good idea. I'll give it a try. Everyone with the new ipad mini are struggling with this safari reloading issue. I read it's related to the new 64 bit processor and how it's failing to properly save the app state in ram. Not sure how true that is though.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll give it a try. Safari is brutal right now haha. It's awesome on my 5s though so I'm happy about that.

 

[Supra Mac]

Looks like it will need some work. Had it setup to smart close when locking device. Can't receive emails, hear other can't receive text. Uninstalled for now.

 

[white4s]

Reyna Petrich released a new tweak today called SmartClose. Its a tweak which puts apps into a "deep freeze" state. It's pretty cool cause I'm in the camp that force closing apps is typically a useless action and can actually hurt battery life more than improve it. It can however improve lag. But that's a whole other debate that's been discussed ad nauseam.

Ironically Ryan Petrich also thinks force quitting apps should not be the default approach to using your device. This is why I am intrigued by this new tweak.

So far it seems to be working as expected. I've been using it for several hours now and I think I'm gonna keep this installed. When activated via an Activator gesture, the apps disappear from the task switcher. But sure enough, for the most part, when I reopen an app that's in this state, it picks up right where it left off. I kinda wish the app stayed in the task switcher but I'm sure over time this tweak will be expanded on given that Petrich is frequently updating his tweaks and adding features. Right now it's in beta so you'll have to add his repo if you don't already have it. I'll keep my eye on battery life and lag. If I experience anything unexpected I'll post it here.

What do you guys think? Something you'll use or do you prefer a tweak like InfinityTask? Or no backgrounding type tweaks at all?

which gesture do you have it set for?

 

[Menneisyys2]

That's a good idea. I'll give it a try. Everyone with the new ipad mini are struggling with this safari reloading issue. I read it's related to the new 64 bit processor and how it's failing to properly save the app state in ram. Not sure how true that is though.

It does properly save Safari app state, at least as of freshly restored 7.0.6. A Web page "only" consumes about 20-30% more memory than on a 32-bit device (I've compared it to an iPad 3) running the same 7.0.6. It does crash a bit more frequently than Safari on the iPad 3 but it's not that big an issue - say, two or three times a day (my experience).

That is, the "it completely sucks" reports are somewhat exaggerated - they may have been based on restored iDevices and/or with far earlier versions. As soon as I have some free time, I publish my benchmark results.

It's awesome on my 5s though so I'm happy about that.

Yup, Safari / UIWebView has far lower memory usage on the significantly lower-resolution iPhones, both 32- and 64-bit models. This is why 7.0.x allows for keeping more pages in memory on iPhones. (And 7.1 significantly imrpoves this, also according to my benchmarks.)

 

[BumpyFlatline]

It does properly save Safari app state, at least as of freshly restored 7.0.6. A Web page "only" consumes about 20-30% more memory than on a 32-bit device (I've compared it to an iPad 3) running the same 7.0.6. It does crash a bit more frequently than Safari on the iPad 3 but it's not that big an issue - say, two or three times a day (my experience).

That is, the "it completely sucks" reports are somewhat exaggerated - they may have been based on restored iDevices and/or with far earlier versions. As soon as I have some free time, I publish my benchmark results.



Yup, Safari / UIWebView has far lower memory usage on the significantly lower-resolution iPhones, both 32- and 64-bit models. This is why 7.0.x allows for keeping more pages in memory on iPhones. (And 7.1 significantly imrpoves this, also according to my benchmarks.)

Awesome input Mike. I always like your insight. My iPad mini 2 is CONSTANTLY refreshing tabs while I'm using safari. It's so frustrating. I just updated to 7.0.6 but for the first time ever in my iOS life I did not restore as new. I always do it on my iphone just because my iphone being stable on a jailbreak (when signing windows close) is wayyyyy more valuable than an iPad jailbroken mainly because I don't even really use many jailbreak tweaks on my iPad.

In sharing this because I have question. Safari on 7.0.6 on my iPad mini 2 is no better than 7.0.4 but I restored my iCloud backup (first time I've ever done that). So do you think I should retire the iPad as new and see if that works any better?

 

[Menneisyys2]

In sharing this because I have question. Safari on 7.0.6 on my iPad mini 2 is no better than 7.0.4 but I restored my iCloud backup (first time I've ever done that). So do you think I should retire the iPad as new and see if that works any better?

Frankly, dunno. I haven't upgraded my iPad 2 from 6.1.0 and don't have other XGA / 512M iPads to properly test (only upgraded from 6.x my iPad 3's / iPad 4 and, of course, the rMini).

Nevertheless, I never restore any kind of backup, not even those of non-JB'n systems. I've read too many "my battery life sucks" posts, most of them directly caused by restoring earlier backups.

 

[Samanosuke]

Smart Close causes my iPhone 5s to freeze on 7.1 Beta 3. It works, but when it doesn't it requires a hard reboot to get the phone to come back and be useful again.

Just mentioning.

 

[BumpyFlatline]

Frankly, dunno. I haven't upgraded my iPad 2 from 6.1.0 and don't have other XGA / 512M iPads to properly test (only upgraded from 6.x my iPad 3's / iPad 4 and, of course, the rMini).

Nevertheless, I never restore any kind of backup, not even those of non-JB'n systems. I've read too many "my battery life sucks" posts, most of them directly caused by restoring earlier backups.

Exactly. Me too. This is the first time I've ever restored NOT as new. Either way, when I get home I'll restore my rMini to 7.0.6 as NEW and see if that has any improvements.

Thanks for your input!

 

[HankHowdy]

Awesome input Mike. I always like your insight. My iPad mini 2 is CONSTANTLY refreshing tabs while I'm using safari. It's so frustrating. I just updated to 7.0.6 but for the first time ever in my iOS life I did not restore as new. I always do it on my iphone just because my iphone being stable on a jailbreak (when signing windows close) is wayyyyy more valuable than an iPad jailbroken mainly because I don't even really use many jailbreak tweaks on my iPad.



In sharing this because I have question. Safari on 7.0.6 on my iPad mini 2 is no better than 7.0.4 but I restored my iCloud backup (first time I've ever done that). So do you think I should retire the iPad as new and see if that works any better?

I don't have issue with tabs reloading on my mini 2. That's weird. Have you tried a device replacement?