Apple has just released iOS4: the highly anticipated operating system update for iPhone and iPod Touch. The update is free for both iPhone and iPod Touch. Some functionality is limited for some models. For example multitasking will not work on iPhone 3G.
You can download iOS 4 now by connecting your device to iTunes and hitting Check for Update. The other option is to download it directly. Here are the links:
If you just want to know about all new iOS4 features quickly here's a great video that introduces iOS4 in 10 minutes. iPhone 3GS is used in this video. If you have iPhone 3G or iPod Touch 2G you won’t get the multitasking.
iDongle is a new device that lets you to jailbreak your iPhone/iPod Touch or reboot it on the go. It is very easy to use - just plug it in and wait. The only problem is that it supports only iPod Touch 2G/3G and 3.1.2 iPhone 3GS.
At the moment there is only a dozen of this devices, but the developer says he collects money at the moment to build up a full-fledged production.
Today we will take a look at an interesting accessory - external microphone for iPods and iPhones. As for the iPod everything it is quite simple - in order to record something you need an external mic. iPhone has it's own internal microphone. However the quality of the recording would be better with external one.
We performed a simple test: recorded the iTunes radio using Voice Memo application on the iPhone. First we used internal microphone and later we attached the external one. The quality of the external is slightly better. It is more sensible and the level of noise is lower which is good. Here are the sample recordings (m4a format): Internal, External.
This external microphone is compatible with:
- iPhone 3G/3GS
- iPod Touch 2G/3G (you need to download and install some recording application from AppStore)
- iPod Nano 4G/5G (with pre-installed software)
- iPod Classic 120G (with pre-installed software)
You can buy one for $3.12 at BudgetGadgets. They have free shipping worldwide. Use the coupon name VM5OFF5 during checkout, it will give you additional 5% discount.
TruePower iV Pro is a backpack 3100 mAh battery for iPhone and 1G iPod Touch. Its main advantage is simplicity of use - just slip your device and it will automatically start charging. CultOfMac calculated iV Pro allows you to use your iPhone for 1,5 times more after the built-in battery is depleted. In turn it will take 1 h 20 min for recharging backpack battery to 3/4 full (and almost 11 hours for complete recharging).
TruePower claims the iV Pro improves performance of the iPhone's wifi and cellular radios. It also has USB port to charge other devices.
It is available now from Amazon for $99.99. More pictures are under the cut.
A new group of hackers claim they found a new exploit for the iPhone 3GS and iPod Touch with the new BootRom. This means that jailbreak for iPhone 3GS (late models) and iPod Touch 2G (MC) and iPod Touch 3G will be available.
We just found an amazing Exploit in the Boot-System of the 3GS with the new Bootrom! This Exploit works on ALL iPhone and iPod Touches!
The tool will be called Gull1hack. The operation is very simple and the code is sent when the device is in recovery mode, just like Blackra1n and Redsn0w do. This jailbreak tool has been neither confirmed by Geohot nor from the DevTeam. Many users think this is fake. We'll see.
The iPhone Dev-Team has released PwnageTool 3.1.5 for Mac OS X. It allows iPhone and iPod Touch users to safely upgrade to firmware 3.1.3. With PwnageTool you can preserve jailbreak and ultrasn0w unlock. But if you’re using the blacksn0w unlock with baseband 05.11.07 you will need to stay at firmware 3.1.2.
PwnageTool 3.1.5 creates a custom 3.1.3 IPSW for the following devices:
iPhone 2G
iPhone 3G
iPhone 3GS with early bootrom
iPod touch 1G
iPod touch 2G with early bootrom
Warning! Don't try to use this tool if you have iPhone 3GS with firmware 3.1.3 - it just won't work. If you have iPod Touch 1G, iPhone 2G or factory unlocked iPhone 3G , try to use redsn0w - is would be much easier.
H8sn0w has just released the new version of Sn0wbreeze 1.4. Sn0wbreeze is a jailbreak utility with functionality similar to PwnageTool. The new version supports firmware 3.1.3 jailbreak for the following devices:
iPhone 2G
iPhone 3G
iPhone 3GS - old bootrom
iPod Touch 1G
iPod Touch 2G - non MC
Sn0wbreeze is a Windows application, so Mac users have to wait for the upcoming release of PwnageTool by the DevTeam. Alternatively, both Mac and Windows users can use Redsn0w to run jailbreak (no custom firmware though).
You can download the new version of sn0wbreeze here.
MuscleNerd continues to argue that we should not use sn0wbreeze. Especially users who have unlocked their iPhone with blacksn0w utility:
So this is a minor update, which fixing only the accuracy of the 3GS battery meter and the stability of some third-party app launches. This update is avaliable via iTunes.
New firmware 3.1.3 also introduces a new version of the baseband, the 05.12.01. So if you need unlock do not update! DevTeam also warns us:
If you care about your jailbreak and unlock, don’t update your device - 3G and 3G(S) owners should pay particular attention to this warning.
PwnageTool and redsn0w are not yet compatible with 3.1.3
Experimenters show that the latest version of redsn0w 0.9.2 is able to jailbreak iPhone 2G, iPhone 3G and iPod touch 1G. Just point it at the 3.1.2 IPSW (download here) after doing update or restore to firmware 3.1.3. Sounds like DevTeam will release an updated version of redsn0w that will handle firmware 3.1.3 officially. They say iPod touch 2G with firmware 3.1.3 is also jailbreakable.
Users report that unlock software, blacksn0w and ultrasn0w, doesn;t work with the new baseband.
Redsn0w is a cross-platform jailbreaking tool for iPhone and iPod Touch. New version redsn0w 0.9.2 supports the latest firmware 3.1.2.
redsn0w 0.9.2 supports:
All iPhones and iPod touches
Windows and Mac OSX (x86)
Apple firmwares 3.0 and 3.1.2
We expect to see Linux version quite soon.
If you need a carrier unlock, redsn0w will handle iPhone 2G by itself (by installing the BootNeuter utility). For the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS use Cydia after you're jailbroken to install ultrasn0w (baseband 04.26) or blacksn0w (baseband 05.11).
If you have a late-model iPhone 3GS, or if you have an iPod touch 2G whose serial number begins with “MC” (newer than week 40 of last year), or any iPod touch 3G, you can use redsn0w to jailbreak but you are currently restricted to “tethered” rebooting. That means you need to connect your device to a computer each time you boot it - so just try no to reboot.
Redsn0w is a cross-platform jailbreaking, unlocking, and customizing tool for iPhone and iPod Touch. New version redsn0w 0.9b3 supports the latest firmware 3.1.2. The most recent release before this one was redsn0w 0.8, which targeted Apple firmware 3.0/3.0.1.
redsn0w 0.9 beta3 supports:
All iPhones and iPod touches except the iPod touch 3G
Windows and Mac OSX (x86)
Apple firmwares 3.0-3.1.2
When it's out of beta, it will support the iPod touch 3G, PPC OSX, and Linux.
If you need a carrier unlock, redsn0w will handle iPhone 2G by itself (by installing the BootNeuter utility). For the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS use Cydia after you're jailbroken to install ultrasn0w (baseband 04.26) or blacksn0w (baseband 05.11).
If you have a late-model iPhone 3GS, or if you have an iPod touch 2G whose serial number begins with “MC” (newer than week 40 of last year), you can use redsn0w to jailbreak but you are currently restricted to “tethered” rebooting. That means you need to connect your device to a computer each time you boot it - so just try no to reboot.
DevTeam just released PwnageTool 3.1.4. It allows users to jailbreak firmware 3.1.2 on iPhone 2G/3G/3GS and iPod Touch 1G/2G. It also supports OTB iPhone 3GS with firmware 3.1.x. We remind you that if you need unlock, do not update on regular 3.1.x firmware, use Pwnagetool to create custom firmware to preserve old baseband.
Here is a quick howto:
Factory Unlocked iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS: You do not need unlock, just use PwnageTool to create an ipsw and then use this to update and jailbreak your phone.
iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS: if you need unlock, use PwnageTool to create a custom firmware with an old baseband. Then update using created custom firmware and install ultrasw0w via Cydia to unlock.
iPhone 2G: Use PwnageTool to do the magic and then restore with iTunes using your newly created .ipsw.The baseband will be unlocked, the phone jailbroken.
iPod Touch 1G: Use PwnageTool to create a firmware image and restore with that .ipsw using iTunes.
iPod Touch 2G: You must already be jailbroken in order to use PwnageTool. If so, create a firmware image and restore with that .ipsw using iTunes.
MuscleNerd, a member of the Dev-Team, has announced via twitter the release of the new version of PwnageTool.
The software will be able to create a custom firmware 3.1.2 to jailbreak and unlock iPhone 2G, iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, iPod Touch and iPod Touch 2G. As stated everything would be ready soon and the tests performed were positive.