[Hot Theme] Buuf 2

Buuf 2 by axero is a painted-looking theme with a touch of brown. Get it here.

[Touch Mag] My Take On Vista Themes

This article is currently being featured in Touched Magazine, an up-and-coming e-magazine about the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Have you guys noticed how many Windows Vista based themes have been popping up, well, since Planetbeing released Summerboard? They were cool at first, but now every other theme you see is some type of Vista theme. Wouldn't you think more people would be making Leopard themes, especially since the iPod Touch and iPhone essentially run a mobile version of it? I don't know why, but these Vista themes seem to be getting worse every day, too! Lately I've been noticing people releasing vista themes at the iPTF Release forum that are just other themes with 2 more icons, or maybe a Leopard theme with a vista background that the creator calls "my vista theme." Its really starting to get old. Vista themes are okay when they are something new and innovative, such as Vista+ and Bob Vansteel's Vista Maximus, but what really annoys me is how many people are reposting the same ugly stuff over and over again. The problem with Vista themes is not that Vista has a bad interface, its that there are only so many ways you can make your iPod look like Windows Vista. I think that theme creators should ditch the whole concept of Vista and move on to new things that will impress us much more than Vista ever did. The bottom line here is that Vista themes are overused, overrated, and very un-original. If theme creators would realize that there is much more to Summerboard than making it look like Vista, then maybe we would have better themes and a better theming community.

[Hot Theme] Amana

Our latest Hot Theme is Amana, an elegantly original creation by *imrik at deviantART. Get it here.

[Hot Theme] Vienna

I usually wait until themes are released to feature them, but when I saw this I knew I had to blog it right away. Vienna is an amazing new theme by Jonttu that puts a completely new twist on Vista. It is one of the most gorgeous themes to surface in a long time, and even as a preview it is impresive. Check out one more screenshot and drool in anticipation here.

What do you want to see at SMB Heaven?

Well, the title says it all. What do you as a reader want to see here at Summerboard Heaven? Are you itching for more releases? Want us to start a contest? Do you feel like we need more featured themes? Whatever it is, sound off in the comments.

Check out our article in Touched Magazine!

For the past few weeks I've been helping out Touched Magazine, an iPhone and iPod Touch related e-magazine, launch. I will be doing a column entitled "Summerboard Spot" for each issue starting with the recently released February issue. You can read it online or download it from installer if you own an iPod Touch or iPhone.

[Hot Theme] Leather

Looking to add a bit of class to your springboard? Check out Leather, an awesome new theme by Davidkilljoy. You can get it from this source or at the creator's thread over at MacThemes.

[Preview] E P I P H A N Y

EPIPHANY

Did you think iBlood/iMilk was cool, but red/white isn't really your color? Then this is for you. Epiphany is an elegant black and blue style Summerboard theme that skins all of your other apps as well. Compliments? Constructive criticism? Sound off in the comments.
Note: The current dock is a placeholder.

[Hot Theme] Vista Maximus 2.0

Bob Vansteel over at iPTF just released version 2 of his great theme, Vista Maximus. Its basicly a total Vista theme complete with app skins and an unlock screen (similar to Ultimate Leopard.) I'll let him do the talking:

Announcing the release of Vista Mximus 2.0!!!!!!!!

theme includes:

-summerboard theme with 100+ icons and special statusbar
-categories icons and special categories background
-custom tap to login wallpaper for invisi tap bar
-custom other artwork with aero vista loading icons
-battery image
-carrier images
-NEW updtated MODIFIED wmp 11 music player skin(modified version of theappletrees)
-COMPLETE INSTALL GUIDE FOR NOOBS!!!
-fixed status bar music playing icon issue
-made the sub categories look as if they were opened in a new window!
-new directory like fso carrier icon!!
-added theappletrees calculator skin
-added hobbzey's edited taptologin walppapers and psd to make custom walls
-ADDED NEW START BUTTON AND START BAR LIKE DOCK!!!!
-TOATL SAFARI SKIN!!!!!!!that looks like Ie7

Get it here.

[Hot Theme] Burst Battery Charger

Tired of your boring battery charger? Want something a little more exciting? Well this is about as exciting as still pictures of a battery can get- the Burst Battery image set. It gets bigger as you charge it until it well, bursts. Get it here.

If you liked this post please comment.

[Hot Theme] Clear

Vipfreak's new theme lets you use almost any conceivable background and still look good. Besides that, every icon is the same, so making new ones is as easy as copying, pasting, and changing the name. Check it out here.

Ultimate Leopard Wins An Award!

Summerboard Heaven's own Ultimate Leopard just scored a place on Touch Podium's Top 20 Most Beautiful themes to date! What an honor. Jody Mitoma (owner of Touch Podium) says that he will be posting a new list every few weeks. What are you waiting for, hit up Touch Podium and check out Ultimate Leopard and the rest of the cool themes on the list.

[Hot Theme] Technologic

For a theme with only nine icons Technologic manages to be quite good looking. It has a very clean, abstract feel to it and can be used with different wallpapers. Get it here.

[Tutorial] Make Your Own Carrier Images

Want to change your carrier image, but you can't find one you like? Check out this cool tutorial by Shotgunfool. You can learn how to make your own custom carrier in either Photoshop or Fireworks MX. Enjoy!

Updated 1-28-07: This tutorial can also be found on the author's website, here.

[Hot Theme] Bright Acrylic

Check out this hot new theme by Whitneystcharles. It's basically a ton of new icons in the style of these ones by RuizDesign. I have to say, I'll be using this for quite a while. The icons are done very well and have such a clean feel to them. You can get it here.

[Update] Ultimate Leopard 1.1

Update 1-16-08: Introducing Ultimate Leopard 1.1! Here is what is new:

-More wallpapers (11 in all)
-More icons (113 in all)
-Old icons tweaked
-New, improved dock
-Sliders optimized
-iSolitaire theme

It also has all of the old stuff:

-2 Hot safari skins by Romeboard
-Trash bin hack
-Drawers hack for Stacks
-Psx4all skins

When I started working on this theme over a month ago, my goal was to create an exact replica of the Leopard operating system, and I have to say, I'm almost there. This theme now has an insane amount of icons and more skins and extra goodies than most Summerboard themes, and it will only get better. The next update (2.0) will have an improved Safari skin, a Calculator skin, an iTunes music skin, different docks with dividers, and more emphasis on Stacks. I hope you all enjoy this update while I prepare the next one!
[Download]

Upcoming stuff...

Sorry I haven't posted all week, I've been a little bit busy. I'd like to announce two upcoming themes-- Ultimate Litho and Project Simplicity. I don't have any previews yet as I'm in the early stages of making them. Ultimate Litho is a compilation of almost every single Litho icon from Icon Factory. It will have the most icons out of all Litho themes to date. Ultimate Litho is basically going to do for Litho what Ultimate Leopard did for Leopard themes. I can't say much about Project Simplicity at this point other than it will make your iPod/iPhone feel like a desktop computer. Sort of like Vista and Leopard themes, except this isn't based on any specific operating system. In other news, I'm probably going to be changing the theme of the week to a monthly, nominate and vote format. Also be sure to check out Touch Life's slick new layout.
-TMC

SMB Heaven Theme of the Week

Aloho everyone. Well, Alohosoft. SMB Heaven's first Theme of the Week is Aqwoah. Why? Because it has hundreds of icons that are updated often, a keyboard, a battery, a dialer, two calculators, and an iBlackjack skin. And they all look amazing.

Runner-up

The runner-up is READ MY MIND by FloProjek. The icons are beautiful and complement the background very well. The dialer is also an added bonus. The only problem is that it comes with a minuscule 30 icons and a kit for those with cluttered springboards to make their own.

Most likely I will have badges for the next winners to place on their theme's thread/homepage.

[RELEASE] Introducing Ultimate Leopard

[See more screenshots here]

Ultimate Leopard is a theme I've been working on for the past two weeks. It combines elements of Dualcorex's Leopard 10.5.1, Stereo's Leopard, and various icons I've found around the internet. Here is what is included:

-101 High-quality icons + 7 folders for your app launchers
-psx4all skin by Callapidae
-2 safari skins by romeboards
-Trash bin hack [a dummy app with a Leopard trash bin as the icon]
-Stack Drawers Hack [a dummy app that when applied properly gives your stack the look of a drawer]
-Sliders from Dualcorex's theme
-8 wallpapers from Duacorex's theme

[download]

I haven't had a chance to take a screenshot of the stacks hack. If someone does it why not post a pic?

Credits:
Stock look with third party applications installed on 1.1.1 - ModMyiFone.com - Apple iPhone forum, iPhone hacking, iPhone mods, and more
130 Leopard Icons by ~catalin-v on deviantART
XD
LEOPARD REFFLECTIVE ICONSET 5 by ~vsdigital on deviantART
Skin's Thread - Page 4 - iPod touch Fans forum
stereo's leopard theme - ModMyiFone.com - Apple iPhone forum, iPhone hacking, iPhone mods, and more
Leopard is Here!! - iPod touch Fans forum