If you are an iOS (Apple)device user then no doubt you have come across plenty of articles and YouTube tutorials showing you how to ios jailbreak / Jail-Breaking your iPhone/iPad. Whilst these guides may appear to be beneficial, it’s worth asking the question, ‘Is it worth it?’. Here I’m going to detail and explain the benefits and risks associated with jail-breaking your iOS device.
What is Jail-Breaking?
The first thing I would like to address is the term ‘jail-breaking‘. This phrase relates to the process of removing the limitations placed on the phone by Apple. This is done using custom kernels (kernels are the communication between the hardware and software on your device), and when completed, allows the user to gain access to extensions and themes not available through Apple – often for good reason!
What Are the Benefits?
Generally jailbreak for ios fall into two categories. Those who want to gain access to more features, and those who don’t like the Apple censorship. Both groups follow the same process to jail-break their iOS. Depending on which group you fall into, you may have different reasons or benefits for wanting to do so.
What Are the Risks?
Whilst jail-breaking may sound like a good thing, as it increases the functionality of your phone or tablet, you should think very carefully about it before you take the leap. There are a lot of risks associated with the process. The three I feel are the most important are identified below:
-
Security:
Jail-breaking your iPhone/iPad results in an increased security risk. You are no longer protected by Apples programmers. Security has always been a concern for iOS devices. You may remember back in 2009, a young Australian university student created the first worm for the iPhone. The reason he created this was to show a flaw in the security. This happened to Apple. Now imagine the risks you face without Apples support! Think about how much information is stored on your iOS. If this data was no longer protected you could find yourself in a whole world of pain.
-
Warranty:
As soon as you go through the process of jail-breaking, you void any warranty that you had with Apple. Now in your excitement to explore your devices limits, a warranty is probably pretty low down on your list of priorities, but as soon as you have a problem you are on your own! Definitely something to think about, unless you have the cash to flash.
-
Bricking:
Trust me. If you don’t know what bricking is, you really don’t want to find out the hard way. Bricking is when your iOS freezes and only shows the Apple Logo…expensive screensaver! Not cool. Basically, your phone will then run out of battery power and can never be used again. The only time this can happen is through the jail-breaking process so you have been warned. Now, some die-hards swear that there are ways around this, are you willing to take this risk? I’m certainly not!
Recommendations:
As I hope I have explained clearly, there are several benefits and many risks when it comes to jail breaking your Apple iPhone or iPad. Regardless of what your reasons for jail breaking are, the process and potential risks are still the same.
In my humble opinion, the risks far outweigh any of the potential benefits that may be offered. If things go wrong, you stand to ruin your phone, and potentially ruin your finances. If you’ve made up your mind already to mess around with an iOS device, at least wait until the warranty is up or until you have the money in your pocket to pay for the newest release. There are many options in Jail-Breaking like you can jailbreak 4.3 ios, jailbreak for ios 4.2 and so on.
