Moving the goalposts on iPhone 1.1.3 jailbreaking and unlocking

It's been a busy few days in the iPhone 1.1.3 hackathon. After the Geohot software unlock, yesterday saw the release of the Zibri command-line and unlock.no Windows GUI versions of an all-in-one software jailbreak, activation and unlocking script for 1.1.3 iPhones. Just in the past few minutes, aCujo reminded us of the bootloader downgrade from 4.6 to 3.9, completely in software. Comments below also remind us that iJailbreak, the "bar mitzvah project" of iPhone utilities (both developers are 13 years old), has released both an automated jailbreak mobile tool and a Mac-compatible (Leopard-only for the moment) desktop utility for 1.1.3.

At this point, it seems that third-party application users are good to go on the new firmware, and overseas or non-AT&T iPhone owners are pretty well set for getting unlocked and rolling on native cell networks, noting as always that the hacks are not finished works and even the experienced few sometimes do themselves harm. (Wondering how to tell an unlock from a jailbreak? Check out Erica's iPhone hack glossary post from a while back.)

For those who consider themselves economically and intellectually distanced from the whole unseemly business of hacking iPhones and unlocking them from AT&T's network, consider thesetwo BusinessWeek stories on the iPhone gray market. Not only is the iPhone unlock a money-making engine for thousands of opportunity-minded retailers and middlemen all across the globe, but the status of a functional software unlock means feast or famine (both essentially unwanted) for the maker of the TurboSIM adapter that enables a hardware unlock when software is foiled. It's astonishing that one little device can cause so many ripples in a worldwide chain of commerce and underground innovation.

Thanks to everyone who sent these in.