By TOMMY MCDONALD
After over five months of waiting, the new iOS jailbreak team Evad3rs released their jailbreak for iOS 6 that reached seven million downloads in four days.
Jailbreaking is a process that can be done on any device, but is known for it’s remarkable ability to make the capable, yet locked down iPhone more efficient and customizeable. Jailbreaking allows users to install third party packages not approved by Apple through an app called Cydia. These packages can be apps Apple did not approve, but the majority of them are tweaks that change how the OS works, rather than a stand alone application.
“It’s a personal thing. Some people love it; some people don’t. It gives you more freedom with your phone,” senior Remy Artavia said.
A tethered jailbreak released for iOS 6 on iOS 6’s initial release, but only on devices with an A4 processor which include the iPhone 4 and iPad 1. Because of the annoyance of a tethered jailbreak and the limited number of devices supported by it, the first jailbreak of iOS 6 was not widely adopted.
“I had my doubts [about an across the board iOS 6 jailbreak], but [the jailbreak hackers] always pull [find a security flaw to jailbreak the phone],” sophomore Matthew Torontali said.
Artavia cites that his main reason for jailbreaking is MiWi, a $20 unauthorized application used to circumvents AT&T’s $50 a month data plan that allows iPhones to tether and create a mobile hotspot for free. Other reasons to jailbreak include tweaks that automatically turn off the blue light that keeps one awake, quick replying to text messages on the lockscreen and within apps, quick access to settings and overall customization of iOS with themes that customize everything from the lockscreen to individual app icons.
The general rule of thumb for jailbreaking is that if you can’t figure out how to do it, you should not do it. Although it is a simple process, you can temporarily break the phone by doing it and it will occasionally black out for hours. Both Torontali and Artavia figured out how to jailbreak their phone with help from detailed tutorials on the Internet.
Jailbreaking can slow the phone down a bit according to Artavia, but this is usually more of an issue on older models. It also voids the warranty, but a simple restore will hide signs that the phone was once jailbroken. Though jailbreaking can add beneficial features, it’s drawbacks make the choice not for everyone.