Jailbreaking iPhone 3.1.2

With the release of the iPhone Dev Team’s PwnageTool 3.1.4 it is now possible to jailbreak everything but the iPod touch 3rd generation on the Macintosh. Blackra1n for Windows is available to jailbreak any 3.1.2 device including the iPod Touch 3rd generation, so your choice is governed by your platform or device.

I tested PwnageTool 3.1.4 this morning and it worked flawlessly with my 3GS. The previous 3.1.3 version for jailbreaking 3.1 had caused me big problems with the phone being unable to connect to the network after installing the modified ipsw. Luckily I had a version 3.0 ECID SHSH on file with Cydia so it was possible (if convoluted) to restore back to 3.0 and try again. Second time round upgrading to the modified 3.1 worked fine, and I have been unable to figure out what went wrong the first time.

iPhone firmware 3.0.1 released, jailbreakable

Apple has released an updated iPhone firmware to fix a recently discovered critical SMS vulnerability. Version 3.0.1 doesn’t appear to offer any other fixes or changes, and the latest post on the iPhone Dev Team blog confirms that redsn0w 0.8 works fine with the new release, as long as you select firmware 3.0 as the base for the patching, NOT 3.0.1. I have confirmed this works with my own iPhone, and since this is a serious security flaw I would recommend everyone updates asap.

The media reaction to this flaw has been mixed, ranging from informed to hysterical. While some are screaming ‘iPhones are unsafe’ other sites have pointed out this appears to be a common flaw with a wide range of smartphone platforms including Google and Microsoft mobile operating systems.

Redsn0w 0.8 with iPhone 3GS

The iPhone Dev Team released version 0.8 of Redsn0w recently, adding compatibility with the latest iPhone 3GS hardware running firmware 3.0. I had previously jailbroken my 3GS using purplera1n but couldn’t pass an opportunity to play with the latest method. Below is a video for anyone thinking of trying the jailbreak but unsure of what is involved. It’s fairly straightforward, the only bit that requires manual intervention is putting the iPhone into recovery mode and even that is guided by the app. Another top tool from the iPhone Dev Team, many thanks for their continued work. Click the HD button to go to Vimeo and watch or download the full size version (bottom right corner of the page).

iPhone 3GS jailbreak tested

The iPhone Dev Team have commented in recent blog posts that although they have a working 3GS jailbreak, they are planning to wait for the 3.1 update to be issued before releasing it. Without getting into the politics of the situation, hacker George Hotz has decided to release a beta jailbreak app without waiting for the next software update. Please remember this is a beta release so may do horrible things to your shiny new iPhone. I took the risk since I’m a daring blogger (or an idiot, never quite sure which)

iPod Touch 1st Gen to iPhone 3GS

For the past (almost) two years I have used my iPod Touch every day as a web browser. email client, PDA, eBook reader and even a music and video player. It’s been reliable, flexible and even better once jailbroken. As a computer user who’s experiences started with a one kilobyte ZX81 29 years ago I have never ceased to be amazed at what such a small package could do. Even after all this time I still turn it sideways and wonder how so much power can fit in such a thin case. Just like most of the iPod’s that came before it, the Touch will be remembered as a design classic.

The one thing I have missed all this time was a permanent net connection. The iPhone is an expensive proposition in the UK but I finally succumbed on Tuesday and visited the Apple store at Lakeside Thurrock intent on a 32Gb 3GS. I had initially been contemplating a pay as you go contract for an eye watering £540. This initially sounded a good deal, you put £10 a month credit on the phone and get 500 free minutes. Unfortunately these free minutes are only to other O2 phones and landlines, so it’s not quite as good as it initially sounded.

iPod Touch 1st Gen with V3 software

The new V3 iPhone/iPod software from Apple offers a lot of improvements and additions, unfortunately the amount of these changes decreases the further back the family tree you go. Probably the least blessed by the V3 update is the first generation iPod Touch, the model I use. I’ve been looking through the software I use on my iPod for a couple of days to find what’s new, so here’s a list of the changes you get for your £5.99/$9.99

Search Found to the left of the home screen, this offers similar functionality to the Mac’s Spotlight, searching most of the device’s built in applications. Icons for each application on the left identify where the match is so this is a very fast way of finding what you want. It’s also customisable from Settings>General>Home, as shown below. The home button can be assigned an action, and apps you don’t want to include can be deselected. It’s even possible to drag the apps around to change the order of the search results.

iPhoto/iPod import problem

I’ve been working my way through the iPod V3 firmware looking for new features, and got to the point where I wanted to copy the screenshots across into iPhoto. The problem was iPhoto gave an unrecognised file format error every time I tried copying the PNG files, and would show the iPod as docked even when it was disconnected.

A quick web search led to a page at the Apple support forums, and some advice to unmount the device in Image Capture. It’s not immediately obvious how to do this, so for anyone with the same problem here’s a few simple steps to the fix.

PwnageTool 3 released

Following hot on the heels of Apple’s firmware 3 for iPhone and iPod Touch is the release of PwnageTool 3 to jailbreak some of those devices. Available for Mac only at the moment, this software is capable of jailbreaking the iPhone 2G and first generation iPod Touch, as well as unlocking the iPhone 2G for any network. Support for later devices will follow soon with QuickPwn.

It’s worth mentioning that PwnageTool wiped my iPod Touch when I used it, where upgrading to firmware 3 using iTunes will leave the content on the iPod. This meant a long sync after using PwnageTool to replace all the music/video/photo’s. Not a problem, just remember to sync your iPhone/iPod using iTunes before upgrading to firmware 3 or using PwnageTool to create a custom firmware.

As ever, thanks to the iPhone Dev Team for their continued hard work bringing us the option to jailbreak and unlock our iDevices. Below is a video walkthrough, click on Read the rest of this entry for a screenshot gallery.

UK iPhone pricing

I had hoped O2 would be replacing the 8/16Gb iPhone 3G with the new 16/32Gb 3GS, but the AT&T pricing of $199/$299 made that look unlikely. O2 now have an iPhone 3GS pricing page and they’re not coming cheap.

The last generation iPhone 3G stays at £96.89/free, but the new 16Gb 3GS rises to £184.98 on cheap/shorter contracts, compared to £155.61 for the replaced 16Gb 3G. The 32Gb 3GS comes in at a wallet busting £274.23, or £175.19 if you are willing to sign up for a 24 month contract. That’s a TCO of £890.91 for a 16Gb model on the £35 tariff for 18 months, or £926.91 for 32Gb. The new 3GS is also available on pay as you go:

• iPhone 3G 8GB – £342.50
• iPhone 3G S 16GB – £440.40
• iPhone 3G S 32GB – £538.30

That’s an eye watering price for the 3GS, but since it includes 12 months of unlimited data it works out cheaper for anyone with light call and text usage.

The real issue here is the use of 18 and 24 month contracts, especially when Apple seem dedicated to a 12 month release cycle for its iPhone hardware. Macworld has some details for users looking to terminate their contracts to get the new model, and the bad news is that it looks like O2 will want the remainder of the contract paid in full. That means an iPhone 3G owner 12 months into their contract would have to pay £205.56 plus cost of new 3GS model, with the prospect of doing the same in 12 months when the next version is released.

Apple announces iPhone 3GS

As was fairly widely reported in the past 24 hours, Apple has announced a new version of the iPhone hardware. The 3GS improves on the current 3G model in a number of key areas:

• Speed improvements launching apps
• 7.2Mbps HSDPA for faster cellular data transfer
• 3 megapixel autofocus camera with macro down to 10cm
• 30fps VGA video capture
• Voice control for calls and iTunes
• Nike+ support built in
• Up to 5 hours 3G talk time, 9 hours WiFi internet use

Price at $199 for 16Gb and $299 for 32Gb the iPhone 3GS goes on sale in the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and UK on June 19th. The existing iPhone 3G will still be available as an 8Gb $99 option, so it looks like all the talk of an iPhone nano is redundant.