Jailbreak Tips

Apple Seeded OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion To Developers

admin — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 03:52:44 +0000

Apple seeded OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion for the developers today, the public release of the new OS is scheduled for this summer. The new version does not have as many massive changes under it’s hood like we saw in OS X 10.7 Lion. But that’s not to say OS X 10.8 isn’t a big deal.

Average users who already own other Apple products like iPhone, and iPad will appreciate the improvements Apple has introduced with OS X 10.8, Mountain Lion to bring OS X more closely in line with iOS.

[Source: MyGadgetNews]

Create Your Own Cydia Apps And Tweaks With iOSOpenDev

admin — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 02:31:02 +0000

One of the most common reasons why people jailbreak their iOS devices is to customize it with jailbreak tweaks that can perform amazing things when it comes to improving the functionality of your device and also increasing the overall user experience. A number of Cydia tweaks have been provided in the Cydia marketplace by Devs, both paid and free that help do this.

But there is however no better pleasure then creating a good idea for a jailbreak tweak and even making it yourself so as to have a very personalized customization experience on the jailbroken iOS device.

A free tool called iOSOpenDev was recently released for developers. Those with basic programming knowledge can use Xcode templates for creating jailbreak-style apps and tweaks that can be easily published to Cydia, the jailbreak version of the App Store.

What Does iOSOpenDev Do?

iOSOpenDev sets up a developing environment with Xcode and the iOS SDK for devs to make tweaks and plugins for prominent Cydia apps. Not only can those with programming skills make their own tweaks from scratch, but Xcode templates are provided for creating tweaks that work with popular apps like SBSettings and Activator. Once a dev has tested a creation, the package can be submitted to Cydia and made available to the public.

Filippo Bigarella, the developer of this great tool is a student from Italy. He’s been actively writing apps and tweaks for several years now, and he’s behind some of the most prominent tweaks and apps in Cydia, including the newly-released Springtomize 2 for iOS 5.

The idea behind iOSOpenDev is that this will either lead to more useful Cydia tweaks being created and released as a result of attracted new talent, or even will lead to a big wave of badly designed Cydia tweaks released by first time programmers.

Download iOSOpenDev

This is totally free and you can go to this link and download it right now.

Requirements

Mac OS X Snow Leopard (10.6) or Lion (10.7)
Xcode 4
dpkg — provides dpkg-deb for building Debian packages, install using MacPorts (http://www.macports.org)

Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below, and stay tuned for more info on the topic by following us on Facebook, Twitter, and/or subscribing to our RSS feed.

Cydia App “MyAssistant” Brings Plethora Of Enhancements To Siri

admin — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:16:35 +0000

Apple’s A5 chip serving iPhone 4s and iPad 2 received its first public jailbreak not too long ago and we’ve already seen several tweaks that expand Siri’s capabilities. SiriToggles allows you to open apps and change system settings, while AssistantExtensions offers a plug-in architecture allowing developers to extend Siri functionality (command and GUI snippets). This week we were given yet another fun Siri tweak in Cydia, and it just may be the best one yet.

MyAssistant is a 99 cent app in the BigBoss repo that adds a ton of customization to the virtual assistant. The biggest feature here may be the integration with Activator, the app that lets you pick an activation method for just about any task. When combined with Activator, Siri can be configured to use nearly any system function on your iPhone 4S that can be controlled by voice.

In addition to the Activator functions, My Assistant also adds plenty of core abilities of its own. Want to snap a photo with one voice command? Check. Feel like getting the lyrics of the song you’re listening to? Check. Decide that you want to free up some memory, and you don’t feel like picking up your phone? Check (as long as you also have an app called MemoryTap installed).

My Assistant also adds some functions that aren’t particularly practical, but that could add fun and aesthetic. It lets you customize Siri’s background image, and lets you create custom question/answer combinations for Siri.

Though it’s understandable why Apple doesn’t let Siri change system settings, jailbreakers can enjoy the greater customization that some of these early jailbreak enhancements provide. Even more impressive Siri-related Cydia apps will probably come later, but in the meantime, MyAssistant is a great start.

Share your thoughts in the comments section below and, stay tuned for more news and info on this topic by following us on Facebook, Twitter, and/or subscribing to our RSS feed.

Glowing USB Charger/Sync Cable For iOS Devices

admin — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 22:14:41 +0000

Apple fans tend to go a little above and beyond to get elegant looking accessories and items to go with their Apple products and this one might end up hot on the list. Dexim recently released Visible Smart chargers which are likely to bring the geek part of many people out.

I would of never guessed that I or people in general might get excited about a USB cable but turns out I was wrong. The product is basically a cable that glows while the device you have plugged in is charging or syncing. It “visibly shows the electrical current through the cable.” What makes the cable even more interesting is the fact that the lights actually change speed based on the battery capacity of the iOS device attached. Faster animated lights which are moving quicker indicate that the battery has lower power and thus requires more charge. As the battery continues to charge, the lights will continue to move at a slower rate and once the device is fully charged, the motion of the lights will stop to indicate that the device is done charging.

As usual, reading about something is one thing and seeing it is another, you can watch the video of the cable in action below:

Is this something you would consider picking up or are you just going to pass? Share any thoughts and opinions below!

[Source: Gizmodo]

How To Jailbreak Your iOS Device Using Absinthe (Mac OS X)

Shay — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 06:08:48 +0000

This guide is for Mac only and will teach you how to jailbreak various iOS devices using the newly released tool, Absinthe. The current version of Absinthe is 0.3. It should be noted that this is an UNTETHERED JAILBREAK, meaning that you will be able to reboot your phone just like you normally would at any time.

This guide should be used with the following device/firmware combinations:

It should also be noted that the team that put this jailbreak together included both Saurik and MuscleNerd, both of which are core members of the iPhone Dev Team; three members of the Chronic Dev Team including posixninja, pod2g, and nikias; and the legendary planetbeing, who is the iOS hacker/developer who is responsible for initially porting both Android and Linux to the iPhone) is accepting donations. Feel free to donate via PayPal if you want to show some support.

PayPal Donation Link

PLEASE READ BEFORE CONTINUING:

Absinthe create a backup and restores it onto your device as part of the way it gets files on the device, so we recommend the device is mostly empty when you start the process. To do this, it is advised to create a backup in in iTunes first (connect to iTunes and sync). If you are using iCloud to backup, go to Settings > iCloud > Storage and Backup > Backup Now.

Once you have backed up, on your device go to Settings > General > Reset > Erase All Content and Settings. As mentioned, make sure you have a backup of your content first. You don’t need to Erase All Content and Settings if you don’t want to, but the jailbreak could take up to 20-30 minutes to complete if you don’t, depending on your device that is.

Follow the steps below to successfully jailbreak your iOS device:

Download the Windows version of Absinthe 0.3 from the following link (http://cache.greenpois0n.com/dl/absinthe-mac-0.3.zip)
Once downloaded, double click the zip file to unzip it if your browser didn’t already automatically unzip the file.
(Make sure your device is connected first) Double-click Absinthe to launch it and you will see the Absinthe home screen. Absinthe at this point should tell you what device and firmware version is detected.
Press the jailbreak button. Once you do this, Absinthe will go through a few status messages while it jailbreaks your device. It will stop for a bit at Waiting for reboot – not done yet, don’t unplug your device yet!
Once the device has finished rebooting, it will continue the jailbreak. During this process, do not touch or unplug your iOS device.
Once the process has finished in Absinthe, it will alert you to unlock the screen if necessary and tap “Absinthe” icon to finish the jailbreak. Remember, the icon may not be on the first pay, so you might have to scroll to find it.
Tapping the icon will bring up a webview with a white page, and then your device will restart. Just a quick note: If you see an “Error establishing database connection” error or a white screen, which lasts longer than 1 minute, please go to Settings and turn on VPN, and wait instead. The VPN connection will give an error (which is normal). At this point, a reboot should happen a few moments after the error.
You will see the Apple logo with a progress bar quickly as the device restarts and then your device will power back on. Just a quick note: The Set Up iPhone (or iPad) GUI you see when you restore an iOS Device will now appear. If you backed up with iCloud at the beginning of this tutorial, please choose Restore from iCloud Backup in the Set Up iPhone GUI, and restore from the backup you took at the beginning of this guide. The iDevice will then restore from backup, reboot, and you’re good to go.
Cydia is now on your device where the Absinthe icon was before!

Boom! You’re now holding a jailbreak iOS device!

If you have any questions feel free to leave them below or tweet us. We’ll help where we can!

How To Jailbreak Your iOS Device Using Absinthe (Windows)

Shay — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 03:19:35 +0000

This guide is for Windows only and will teach you how to jailbreak various iOS devices using the newly released tool, Absinthe. The current version of Absinthe is 0.3. It should be noted that this is an UNTETHERED JAILBREAK, meaning that you will be able to reboot your phone just like you normally would at any time.

This guide should be used with the following device/firmware combinations:

PayPal Donation Link

PLEASE READ BEFORE CONTINUING:

Follow the steps below to successfully jailbreak your iOS device:

Download the Windows version of Absinthe 0.3 from the following link (http://cache.greenpois0n.com/dl/absinthe-win-0.3.zip)
Once downloaded, double click the zip file to unzip it if your browser didn’t already automatically unzip the file.
(Make sure your device is connected first) Double-click Absinthe to launch it and you will see the Absinthe home screen. Absinthe at this point should tell you what device and firmware version is detected.
Press the jailbreak button. Once you do this, Absinthe will go through a few status messages while it jailbreaks your device. It will stop for a bit at Waiting for reboot – not done yet, don’t unplug your device yet!
Once the device has finished rebooting, it will continue the jailbreak. During this process, do not touch or unplug your iOS device.
Once the process has finished in Absinthe, it will alert you to unlock the screen if necessary and tap “Absinthe” icon to finish the jailbreak. Remember, the icon may not be on the first pay, so you might have to scroll to find it.
Tapping the icon will bring up a webview with a white page, and then your device will restart. Just a quick note: If you see an “Error establishing database connection” error or a white screen, which lasts longer than 1 minute, please go to Settings and turn on VPN, and wait instead. The VPN connection will give an error (which is normal). At this point, a reboot should happen a few moments after the error.
You will see the Apple logo with a progress bar quickly as the device restarts and then your device will power back on. Just a quick note: The Set Up iPhone (or iPad) GUI you see when you restore an iOS Device will now appear. If you backed up with iCloud at the beginning of this tutorial, please choose Restore from iCloud Backup in the Set Up iPhone GUI, and restore from the backup you took at the beginning of this guide. The iDevice will then restore from backup, reboot, and you’re good to go.
Cydia is now on your device where the Absinthe icon was before!

Boom! You’re now holding a jailbreak iOS device!

If you have any questions feel free to leave them below or tweet us. We’ll help where we can!

Spire – Free and Legal Siri Port for all iOS 5 Devices Released

Shay — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 04:29:12 +0000

A trio of iOS developers: Grant Paul (Chpwn), Ryan Petrich, and Steven Troughton-Smith have recently released a new Siri port called Spire. This port mirrors all the iPhone 4S Siri functionality and works on the following iDevices: iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, iPod Touch 3G, iPod Touch 4G, and iPad (first generation).

According to a blog post from Chpwn, Spire comes in at around 100mb and the developers recommend connecting to a Wi-Fi network for downloading, not a standard cellular network because of its large file size. As of right now, there have been a few Siri ports which have gone public through Cydia but they were all deemed to be unsafe and illegal by the development community. This was a result of these ports distributing Apple copyrighted materials. According to Chpwn, “Spire uses a new method to obtain the files necessary for Siri, so it doesn’t have the copyright issues encountered by previous attempts.”

There still is a big caveat though – you still have to gain authorization through your own server and an iPhone 4S. Chpwn took the time to explain the caveat with a bit more detail:

However, Spire is not a complete solution. Apple still requires authorization to use Siri, so information from an iPhone 4S is still required. To insert this information, Spire allows you to enter your own proxy server address. By using this (ancient) SiriProxy fork, you can setup a proxy using your own iPhone 4S to insert the needed information reasonably easily. Other solutions for proxying Siri will be listed here as they are developed — perhaps that sort of proxy might be included in the main SiriProxy repository.

As of right now, Spire has been deemed to be the best Siri port to use until the iPhone 4S jailbreak is publicly released. According to Steven Troughton-Smith, “when the iPhone 4S is jailbroken, then we can avoid the proxy server issues. For those of you who are still interested in downloading Spire for your jailbroken iOS 5 devices, you can do so by hitting the link below:

Spire (direct iDevice download link)

Source: Chpwn’s Blog (1) (2), Steven Troughton-Smith (Twitter)

iFaith 1.4 Released – Downgrade From iOS 5.0.1 to iOS 5.0 (Requires iOS 5.0 APticket)

Shay — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 11:56:03 +0000

First and foremost, for those of you who are on iOS 5.0.1 already, you are out of luck. Now those of you who are still on iOS 5.0, you can now save not only your SHSH blobs but also your APtickets, which are used in Apple’s new firmware verification process. What exactly does this mean? It means that if you are on iOS 5.0 right now, and for some reason you need to restore (it updates to iOS 5.0.1) then you can have the option to downgrade back to iOS 5.0 granted you have used iFaith to save your APticket before you restored.

It should be noted that if you are on iOS 5.0.1 already, you CANNOT downgrade to iOS 5.0.

This is mainly for people who have saved their APtickets on iOS 5.0 as they will be the only ones who can downgrade back from iOS 5.0.1 to iOS 5.0.

Detailed Information

An APticket is a piece of information, almost like a screenshot. When you use Apple’s iOS 5.0 firmware, your device has an APticket saved for iOS 5.0. When you update to iOS 5.0.1, our APticket changes to an iOS 5.0.1 APticket. This is how Apple keeps you from downgrading.

By using iFaith, you can not only save your SHSH blobs, but also your current iOS 5.0 APticket. This allows you to use the APticket you had for iOS 5.0 to downgrade back to iOS 5.0 from iOS 5.0.1 since your iOS 5.0 APticket is still valid. Now if you don’t save your APticket when you are on iOS 5.0, ten your new APticket is the one given to you by iOS 5.0.1, which means that you don’t have an APticket for iOS 5.0. Since you don’t have one, you cannot downgrade back to iOS 5.0 from iOS 5.0.1. In this case, iOS 5.0.1 would be the lowest you could go.

Currently, iFaith only supports Windows, as iH8sn0w is a Windows user himself. He is also the famous developer behind Sn0wbreeze, which is the Windows-only jailbreak tool. At this point in time, there isn’t any information regarding a Mac version and its release.

Download iFaith 1.4 for Windows

iFaith 1.4 for Windows

iFaith release notes:

iFaith v1.4 Release notes: ====================================== * Now dumps iOS 4.4.x (Apple TV 2)/5.0.x apticket + SHSH blobs! * Dumping is MUCH faster. * Full Windows XP support. * Major code improvements. * Bug fixes.

**************************************
** DOES NOT SUPPORT A5 DEVICES YET! **
**************************************

======================================
Now available at: http://iH8sn0w.com
======================================
// iH8sn0w

“You gotta believe in the voltage that lives inside us,
So lets buckle up and break our walls down. (Whooooaahhoo)”
– @Skrillex

We recommend dumping your SHSH and APtickets if you’re on iOS 5.0. It will give you the option to downgrade back to iOS 5.0 anytime after you have used the software utility.

Sources: iH8sn0w

Bypass Jailbreak Detection Found in Apps With xCon

Shay — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 07:50:55 +0000

Since Apple introduced an API in iOS that detects jailbroken iOS devices, developers have been using it to prevent users who have jailbroken their iOS devices, developers have been using it to prevent users who have jailbroken their iOS devices from using their apps. Typically these users are greeted with the following error message: “Jailbreak detected. App cannot run on a jailbroken device” when they launch such apps.

The jailbreak detection has been found in apps such as Bloomberg Anywhere, Cablevision, Cisco M-Learning, DirecTV for iPad, Grimm’s Fairy Tales, Time Warner Cable, Verizon On Demand /FlexView etc. Cable companies such as Cablevision and Time Warner that allow their apps to be used only over home Wi-Fi network are paranoid that users who have jailbroken their iOS device could use their jailbreak tweaks such as My3G that enable 3G for “Wi-Fi Only” apps and use their apps while on the go. This is what has lead them to have taken the extreme step of preventing jailbroken iOS device users from using their apps.

This is going to be harder though since the iOS hacker, n00neimp0rtant recently created a jailbreak tweak called xCon which bypasses jailbreak detection in apps. It allows you to use the apps that currently prevent jailbroken iOS device users from using. The tweak apparently works by sandboxing the apps into its own memory space allowing you to use them without a jailbreak being detected.

If you want any other app to be supported then send an email to the developer at the following email address: n00neimp0rtant@me.com. The jailbreak tweak is available in Cydia for free.

iPhone Dev Team Working on Promising Unlock For iPhone 4S

Shay — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 09:09:00 +0000

The Chronic Dev Team recently sought out help in identifying iOS 5 vulnerabilities with their C-Dev Reporter tool. The news disappointed many people which had been waiting for the release of a jailbreak for their iPhone 4S. MuscleNerd of the dependable iPhone Dev Team did recently tweet some good news for iPhone 4S users though. He said the following:

Crazy Thanksgiving weekend! Very promising 4S unlock (http://twitpic.com/7kku4t) is in the works (Not i4, just 4S..that’s crazy part)

What this means that they have discovered an exploit in the A5 processor that powers the iPhone 4S and iPad 2, allowing them to unlock an iPhon 4S so that they can use it with any other GSM carrier. MuscleNerd even ported the following image to confirm the unlock for the iPhone 4S:

The other thing to think about is the fact that you need to jailbreak the iPhone to be able to unlock it, so this means that the iPhone Dev Team must be gearing up for the launch of a jailbreak as well. Let’s hope that the jailbreak is untethered and possibly available for the iPhoen 4, iPhone 3GS, alongside with the iPhone 4S where the unlock will be exclusive.

The iPhone Dev Team has NOT provided an ETA for when it will be releasing the jailbreak and unlock, but we’ll keep you posted regarding any released information as usual!

Source: @MuscleNerd