hacksugar: iPhone 4 jailbreak accomplished but not ready for public release
When we talk about "jailbreaking" the iPhone, that means opening up the underlying file system on the phone for full read/write access; on a vanilla iPhone, only the 'userland' data is accessible to users and apps. The term is derived from Unix jargon, where a "chroot jail" is the limited section of the file system that an underprivileged app can access.A jailbreak allows third parties to install and run any software they want, rather than the subset of iPhone apps approved by Apple and distributed through the App Store. Before Apple's official SDK was released, jailbreak apps were the only native (non-web) apps on the platform aside from the built-in apps that shipped with the device.
As TUAW has posted about in the past, the jailbreak software community is a hotbed of innovation and creativity. Many iPhone technologies debuted first in the hobbyist jailbreak community before ever appearing in official Apple firmware. Jailbreak-first features included copy and paste, spell checking, application folders, rotation inhibition, multitasking, find-my-iPhone, and more. In terms of iPhone possibility and expression, the jailbreak community has led the way.
Over the weekend, Redmond Pie announced that the iPhone 4 was successfully jailbroken. This proof-of-concept jailbreak showed that the new iPhone model could be opened for general file access. It is not, however, a "production" jailbreak; because the proof-of-concept used proprietary Apple code, it will not be released to the public. There is no word yet as to when a more intellectual-property-friendly version will be finished, but one guesses "soon" -- with no rush for the all-volunteer development team.
Screen shots of the new jailbreak follow in the gallery below, to provide you with a sneak peek at what's coming up.
Share
Categories
When we talk about "jailbreaking" the iPhone, that means opening up the underlying file system on the phone for full read/write access; on...
Add a Comment
This pic is a fake it's from an iPad if u notice the rotation lock icon in the upper right corner
July 01 2010 at 1:15 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyThe iPhone 4 has the rotation lock as well. So this pic is probably not fake.
July 07 2010 at 12:28 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyWell for me, the main reason for jailbreaking is the awesome customizations and themes you get access to on a jailbroken iphone. the app store is terrible as far as phone themes and display customizations are concerned. they are virtually non-existent in the app store. i love hiding unused icons, i love using the clear tweak to wipe away the app icons from my home screens leaving just the names pasted against my home screen wallpaper. i love being able to put 5 icons on my dock if i want to. your iphone just looks so much better with the things you can do when it's jailbroken. not to mention the cool ringtones you can get. it is just so much more fun. there is just so much more you can do to personalize your phone when it is jailbroken. once you jailbreak going back to the stock OS is almost impossible to tolerate. i don't jailbreak to do a carrier unlock. AT&T works fine for me. i have my new iphone and i really gave ios4 a chance but it is so frigging boring in it's stock form, even with the new ability to do wallpaper. it's just not enough. i can't wait until a proper jailbreak is released.
June 29 2010 at 11:14 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyiPhone 3G jailbroken iOS 4 and unlocked. It just works! Thank you, iPhone Dev Team!
June 29 2010 at 2:06 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Replyi hope this works on 3GS new bootroom
June 29 2010 at 1:04 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyJailbreaking the 3G with ios4.0 also impressed me. Simple access to multitasking, home screen wallpaper, battery percentage, and rotation lock. You don't even have to install Cydia if you're worried about unapproved apps. Considering most 3G warranties are up now, there isn't much to lose by doing so.
June 28 2010 at 8:26 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyThree things for me, primarily.
1. MyWi - Awesome and I already paid $10 for the app. 2. biteSMS - Pics next to each SMS message makes identifying so much faster and easier. Sad but true. 3. SB Settings - Makes like so easy when trying to conserve battery, getting on a plane, etc.
JB can't come soon enough. I'd also like to see FaceTime work on 3G as I have unlimited data.
If it's one thing I hate is having to drill down the windows to enable WiFi. SBS takes care of that very nicely. Other than that you are correct the OS is getting more sophisticated.
June 28 2010 at 5:02 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI ran a checklist of what essential things do I need from a jailbreak that iOS4 doesn't already provide. Each year that list gets shorter and shorter. I think at this point, the only reason I would even bother jailbreaking the iPhone 4 is to enable wifi tethering, a feature not yet allowed even with the new DataPro plans. Other than that, iOS4 pretty much covers them all.
To be honest, I think a lot of people simply want the jailbreak to be able to run cracked versions of apps. Other than a few extreme use-cases, what reason is there to jailbreak outside of unlocking your phone?
Well my reason is I've been using my iphones on tmobile for the last 3 years. AT&T can suck it, I'll keep doing it this way until I have no other choice.
June 28 2010 at 5:07 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyThought I would give the Base OS a chance with the iPhone 4. Good God the base OS sux in comparison to a jailbroken OS.
The jailbreak can't come soon enough for me!
While it is true that many programs will not work (like Anyring and Intelliscreen)
other great apps like Winterboard, SB Settings and Installous work fine.
(Or so I've heard.)
Hot Apps on TUAW
Deals of the Day
more deals- Altec Lansing Octiv Duo iDock for $48 + free shipping
- Used Apple iMac 17" Core Duo 1.83GHz for $430 + $28 s&h
- Lounge Deluxe Stand for iPhone / iPod touch for $28 + $8 s&h
- Brookstone Surround-Sound Earbuds for $14 + $7 s&h
- Refurbished Skullcandy Tokidoki Smokin' Buds Mic'd Headset for $5 + $2 s&h
- Stitchway Backup Battery for iPod / iPhone for $5 + free shipping
Software Updates
more updates- EFI Firmware Update brings Lion Internet Recovery to 2010-model Macs
- OS X Lion 10.7.3 released with Safari 5.1.3, Wi-Fi bug fix
- Aperture updated to 3.2.2, addresses Photo Stream issue
- Apple updates Keynote to address Lion issues
- Google Search app gets new look on iPad
- Apple releases Apple TV Software Update 4.4.3



23 Comments