Jailbreaking OTB 1.1.2 iPhone

Not terribly long ago I provided instructions for jailbreaking an iPhone that had been upgraded to iPhone software version 1.1.2. In short order the comments area was choked with questions regarding iPhones that shipped with 1.1.2. Could they also be jailbroken?

Seems likely to me, thought I, but am I or am I not the kind of guy who’s willing to put a few bucks on the line to find out for sure? Turns out I am. I purchased a new iPhone the other day to see exactly how easy it is to jailbreak it without also signing up for another AT&T account (after all, how many iPhones does one person need?). The procedure is not that difficult, but it requires a few extra steps not required of an iPhone that has been updated.

I could regurgitate what I’ve previously written and then include those extra steps but, quite honestly, I think you’ll gain the greatest benefit from visiting modmyifone.com to view its Getting Started iPhone Modding OS X guide. It’s a clearly illustrated, three-page guide that takes you from a boxed iPhone running iPhone software version 1.1.2 to an activated and jailbroken 1.1.2 iPhone. For all intents and purposes, what you wind up with is an 8GB iPod touch that bears a camera and speaker.

(By activated I mean only that the iPhone won’t bug you to activate it as, after you’ve followed this procedure, iTunes and the iPhone will believe that it’s activated. Of course it isn’t so you can’t use it to make calls unless you really activate it.)

I performed the operation on a MacBook Pro running Mac OS X 10.5.1 (Leopard) and iTunes 7.5. Worked like a charm.

The usual disclaimers: If you muck it up, you’re on your own. I performed the operation successfully twice but you may not be so lucky. Also note that this procedure will not unlock your iPhone for the purposes of using a different carrier. This procedure is useful only for installing third-party applications on your phone.

Category: Hacking

Posted by Christopher Breen on Dec 18 2007, 1:05 PM ET

Comments (10)

So, am I right in assuming that this means that there is currently no way to buy a new iphone from apple (with 1.1.2), and use it for both phone calls AND 3rd party apps?

Posted by John | December 24, 2007 4:36 PM

No, you can take an out of the box iPhone running 1.1.2, activate it for AT&T service (or another carrier in a different country), and jailbreak it for use with third-party applications. You'll wind up with a phone running 1.1.2 that can make calls as well.

Posted by Chris Breen | December 24, 2007 5:35 PM

I have an OTB 1.1.2 iphone from week 45. Can I Jailbreak it with your method using a PC, so I could use certain features of the iphone? When the unlock solution of OTB 1.1.2 comes out, can I then run it to activate the phone to use it with a carrier of my choice? (I live in Dominican Republic). Thanks for your help!

Posted by Francis | December 28, 2007 1:45 PM

I live in Mexico, and I do not (can not) activate with AT&T. However, I can not get trough the FIRST step : (With iTunes open and the iPhone connected, hold down the Sleep and Home buttons on the iPhone for roughly 15-20 seconds, until it displays a picture of the iTunes icon and a cable plugging into it. iTunes will now detect the iPhone in recovery mode and display the following message:).

When I turn on the iPhone, it is already showing the picture with iTunes and a cable. And iTunes NEVER displays the purported message.

What can I do?

Posted by CDC | January 3, 2008 6:03 PM

Please please please
I need help

I did all the setup for jailberakin and every thing was ok but after
all i cunect my iphone to iTunes its restart my iphone
and return it back to the funtery mode and I am
getting the same secreen now .
At the same time i tried to press the power and home
it dose not take me to recovery mode it shut down.

Please again I need some help and advice

Posted by Shadi | January 6, 2008 10:46 PM

You CANNOT jailbreak a OTB 1.1.2 iPhone. I've tried on many occasions and through several different methods with no avail. What you end up doing is trading your phone capability's for a few apps....not worth it. Your best bet is to wait for 1.1.3 to be released. While it may not have EVERYTHING a jailbroke version has, it will have some major improvements.

And to answer your question francis that is the image your looking for. OTB 1.1.2 iPhones display that image and not the yellow caution sign. I received the same image all 1000 times i jailbroke mine.

Posted by VTB | January 10, 2008 7:29 PM

VTB, I'm afraid you're mistaken. Though you may have tried and failed, I have tried and succeeded using the ModMyiFone instructions linked to in the article.

Posted by Chris Breen | January 10, 2008 7:38 PM

ok, my question is....... to use the method from modmyifone does the iphone 1.1.2 have to be from a specific week??

Posted by locoguy | January 17, 2008 10:06 AM

So all these terms are a bit confusing.

Just bought an iphone (4th and 5th digits of the serial # are 52) and I want to "unlock" it so that I can just swap in my current AT&T sim card from my nokia into the iphone and have the iphone work.

In other words, I want to skip the itunes activation process so that I don't have to sign up for a new contract with AT&T.

Is there a way to do this? I understand that unlocking OTB 1.1.2 iphones for OTHER SERVICES is not available yet but what about for AT&T?

Thanks so much.

Peter

Posted by Peter | January 17, 2008 10:46 AM

Chris:

Thanks for the note on jailbreaking an out of the box 1.1.2 iPhone, but, as I stated on my previous post, I can not get trough the first step, because iTunes never recognizes the iphone as a phone in recovery mode.

You said: "... takes you from a boxed iPhone running iPhone software version 1.1.2 to an activated and jailbroken 1.1.2 iPhone". However, the site you refered us to, starts talking about backing up all your photos and contacts, which is impossible, since you are taking the iphone out of the box for the first time.

Anyhow, how do we do this?

I could really use a hand here, please. Thanks in advance

Posted by CDC | January 21, 2008 1:38 AM

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