iPhone 3G finally unlocked by the Dev-Team!
By Joshua Topolsky 
posted Dec 16th 2008 8:43AM
posted Dec 16th 2008 8:43AM
Well this has been a long time coming. It seems that the iPhone Dev-Team has finally done the impossible -- they've gone and unlocked the iPhone 3G. The hack isn't out yet (the team says they're shooting for a December 31st release), and it requires that you've got a baseband of 2.11.07 or earlier, but when it drops, the crew seems fairly confident it will result in freedom from carrier oppression. The team is packaging the app -- formerly codenamed "yellowsn0w" -- into a user-friendly app a la PwnageTool and QuickPwn. Of course, you know how this cat and mouse game goes by now, so don't be surprised when Jobs and company come calling with an update that adds toast making to the official menu, but breaks your breaks all over again.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
now that was stupid in mor than just one way.
!!¡¡¡
epic pwnage.
It took me just 45 minutes to unlock mine.
@Flashpoint
my record 1 hour with 2.28
Crap Team dissapoint again and with 2.11 only it won't last long. As evil company will add new features to baseband soon, their crap "unlock" is pretty much obsolete already
the dev team is seriously amazing.
Thanks for removing the link engadget.
Now if you can edit comments, why the hell cant we?!!
I know, engadget, why can't we edit, its embarrassing to double post!
Great! Been waiting for this.
Tipping my hat to the Dev-Team.
A job well done =D
Exactly, me too! Only problem is, I've also been waiting to buy... and now, how can I be sure that the one I buy has that baseband?! Any tips, anyone? Is that a common baseband or only in earlier batches?
Give me jailbroken iPod Touch 2G please.
Ok so y u been waiting,.what u gonna do with ur new iPhone $600,use it on tmobile USA ? You'll be at crawling edge speeds on tmobilusa, with a 3g phone.
@Tonicboy I bought a 3g today. It had the right baseband. So go out and spend some money.
SWEET! Value of this puppy just upped by $100 on ebay!
Not that that is any way to gauge the value of your gadgets...
Naw. That's the perfect way.
finally...
Watch them release a new iPhone next month.
Ha! iRaped again...
+1. for the pic, at least.
iLick?
iBAMBAM
iWant!
iMotorboat....vrrrrmmmmmmmmmmm
Is CNN going to cover this?
I think the pleasure of watching footwear thrown at the Bushman has worn off.
Too bad the prez did not catch the second shoe and then toss it back at Random Task... that would have been truly inspiring and awesome ...
Obama ftw but Bush gets +1 Ninja Points for evading that shoe.
Next up, hopefully they'll start work on the iPod Touch v2!
We are going to have to wait as they already stated its not in their agenda. Anyone looking to trade a iPod Touch 2g for the 1st. LOL I bit the bullet
In all seriousness: This is good because then you can switch carriers? Isn't the 3G part a bit of an issue with other technologies?
Or is there more things that can be done with the OS/SW when it's unlocked than can be done today?
TIA
It's probably more useful to people in Europe and Asia, where all of the carriers have standardized on a set of frequencies.
For example, an unlocked iPhone 3G in the UK would work perfectly on 3-4 other networks.
In the US, it still won't work on Verizon or Sprint. It would work on T-Mobile USA but probably only in 2G mode.
If think this makes a point : Europe >> USA
@Félix
If you are only speaking of cellphone band interchangeability and having promiscuous sex with many anonymous partners without protection while at the same time experimenting with mind-expanding drugs in a consequence-free environment, then yes you are correct.
@rock99rock: thanks, that made me smile on a dreary tuesday morning!
@ aaron
yeah except the iPhone comes unlocked in Asia, you can just get it off the Apple store
and UK's consumer telecom service is so archaic I never understood it even after living a year in London
Amen!
Been waiting for this for months, and months. Now (or in the the damn near future) I can use Tmobile with out any sketchy sim adapters, or paying exorbitant costs for a factory unlocked 3G from overseas.
Best news of the month, period.
"Best news of the month, period."
That's what *she* said.
HAHAHAHAHA
But you'll still be stuck with EDGE, as the iPhone doesn't support the AWS frequencies.
Hello Apple, meet free world, liberty and justice for all.
remember... commie's like Job's don't believe in a free market... they'd rather control it.
makes the1984 Mac commercial all the more fitting...
In Soviet Russia, iPhone unlock you! Wait no... that didn't come out right :/
I'm suprised they got it out so fast, for awhile it looked bleak.
can u give all the benefits?????will this save us money?more apps?more 3g?gps?
Yeah free world ,iPhone just went from 199$ to $738 ,dumb ass ,.not to mention all those features that won't work on non orange france carriers,no apps, no visual vmail,no mobilme,no gps, etc etc freedom yes ,cheap woodenteeth euros, get with the times .
When someone is voted down they really should leave the voting buttons and the rating visible rather than 'dimming' them as well...
Sadly for you, I can still see them.
Down you go!
Right around the holidays. This will bump the sales for iPhone. DevTeam has nothing to do with Apple! ...my ass. Anyway my respects for DevTeam and Apple for the evolution generated by the so called "war".
It was quite about time, wasn't it?
Yeah it's Christmas?
Nothing shows the lack of perspective (no pun intended) of you message board 'tards like the phrase "freedom from carrier oppression." Please.
when the lowest ranked comment hits rock bottom it should be removed, and the "contributor" should be signed up for 500 spam mails a day
If only it were true......if only.
Having something called "yellow snow" touch a mobile device just sounds... icky. I wish they had another name.
i think that was the point
Even while you low rank my above post (it's harder to read the blemish on my record! ha!) I do have to say that this is quite a feat by the dev team. Even if the name is weird, they deserve congratulations on a job well done. I should have stated that above.
Congrats to the DevTeam! I hate the concept of locked phones.
I could understand the concept of linking a phone to a service in the early days of cell phones, when they were a luxury. Now they are like cars -- everybody has one (or more). There's no reason to lock the phone to the carrier. Everybody who buys a phone needs service, and the carriers can all compete for the business of every cell phone owner. Locking a phone to a particular carrier is like locking a car to a particular brand of gasoline. People need the phones, and will pay what it costs to own them -- without the carrier subsidy. Then they have to buy the fuel (service) for them.
They lock phones to carriers so that the phone you buy doesn't cost the $800.00+++ full price when you get it from them and they have some way to pay them back a.k.a service plan.
You really think all these phones with GPS and such cost just $199?
Right! And Billy Gates is sending me a stocking for Christmas with Windows Mobile 7 and Windows 7!
You know? The ghost of Windows future!
They lock phones to carriers so that the phone you buy doesn't cost the $800.00+++ full price when you get it from them and they have some way to pay them back a.k.a service plan.
iSuppli has the 3G iphone at $173 to make. And the 2G iphone at $226.
$800+++? What are you talking about guy?
Those are just the components that make up the phone, don't be so naive to think thats how much the phone costs to make. They need to cover manufacturing and all their overhead costs too.
http://www.techspot.com/news/30642-isuppli-3g-iphone-costs-apple-173-to-make.html
Assembly is reported $9 per unit.
Why would Apple sell hardware at a loss instead of profit?
Still doesn't cover their overhead costs...think about how much Apple spends on advertising the iPhone.
Yes agreed.
But same can be said about the Nintendo with the Wii. They spend a bunch of money on marketing but doesn't change the fact that they are making a profit on each hardware sold because of production costs being low.
I see what you mean, but I believe marketing comes out of a whole different budget.
god job, now i'm thinking of getting one :)
his job is to answer my prayers.
@EI8HT
Apparently he should be fired for not showing up
if it was really a conspiracy, wouldn't the unlock have been released at least a month before christmas, rather than december 31st?
It's not a conspiracy. Apple can sell phones in larger amounts without a contract. Around holidays, given the free unlock solution waiting for release, will attract the other buyers that don't want a contract with a specific carrier. This will result in increased sales for Apple. I think Jobs is equally interested in phone sales and software sales. It's a good business to him to sell the phones at a lower price and to increase the sales for Appstore. From the logical point of view, Apple is related to Dev-Team. Of course, there is no evidence..:)
does this mean you can pick one up at wally world or sam's club next month, take it home and unlock it to use anywhere?
if so count me in.
i hate at&t!
Ok what sim 3g company will u use in the USA,.exactly dumb ass,wally world ,.u ready to pay $700 for it,?thought so .wake up ,.dude just stick to ur razor.,
Will it still work with the app store?
yeah, the app store has nothing to do with your carrier
Do you realize how crazy it is, that people have to go to such extremes to unlock a phone YOU paid for and OWN? It should come unlocked the day you buy it , but its just apples way of control.
So it doesn't come unlocked, and no easy code to enter to unlock it
No MMS
Restricted Bluetooth
Poor Camera quality
Unable to shoot video
Tell me again why anyone would want this device?
name me an all in one cell phone device better than the iphone (and i'm also talking about the ease of use of the os) and i'll name you a good uwe bole movie!
i've played around with all kinds of different phones (yes, even the storm) and there still isn't one out there that is better in my opinion. and all of these iphone killer phones set out to do just that, copy and try to be better than the iphone (which came out a very long time ago so it's not like they haven't had their time to try) and still no one is up to par.
please, stop your douche baggetry.
Actually, unless you've somehow found a way to pay $600 upfront for the phone, you do not own it until the end of the contract. The iPhone 3G is sold at $199 because AT&T subsidise the price of the phone (they pay anything over $199). So, for every phone they sell, theoretically, AT&T are paying $401 for. Until they make that money back from you, the phone is theirs.
A **CELLPHONE*** better than a iphone?. There are plenty, mainly those that have better signal,size, sound volume and battery life.
Remember, the mail goal of every cellphone is to be and act as one.
@ Magallanes
the key words were "all in one" (phone, apps, mp3 player, movies, ease of use). do yourself a favor and go back to skoulle!
i love dev team
God Bless them!
Did they sneeze? :P
Great, this just more people to do fraud at AT&T. Enough is enough! People need to learn to cope with the fact that AT&T has a 5 year contract with Apple and if they are so fixated on getting one that's "Free of provider oppression" they should consider getting one from Europe.
Why does this get a "Digg it" while other Engadget posts usually don't?
Hmmm. I wonder where all those Engadget posts went about other SIM locked phones being unlocked went... Oh wait. THEY DIDN'T MAKE THEM.
So why is this so special?
Anyone noticed the digg.its next to anything iPhone related? What's the point?
Would this let you use all of the features (gps, etc) on a jailbroken version?
wow everyone celebrating. ThAt iPhone will now be sold at a nonsubsidized price $600,.,.you'll be able to use it on tmobil on edge only,.wow a 3g phone thAt can be used on edge,.some comments R as if it will now be free, will u still be able to get all those free apps ?will gps work?tmobil visual vmail?0
Nice, thats some pretty cool stuff.
How does one know which baseband he or she has?
Sim locked phones -- evil. I would like to see Justice take this on. I should be able to take any phone I want and use it with any service provider that I want.
Sounds like u ready to pay $700 for iPhone .,storm,.g1,.
Boom baby !!!
I guess this is still useless for me since I accidentally upgraded my firmware to 2.2 and I'm only using sim solution. Too bad for me. I hope dev-team can make a way to downgrade the baseband... My iphone 3g is just laying in my room, getting more useless everyday...
Thank god. Sure, I'm on a contract in Australia and already got them to unlock it for me, but still, thank god they've finally done it. Although, I also fail to see how this is any real help. As it is, you can get the iPhone 2 ways anywhere in the world. Buy it on a contract and you're locked in, an unlock would be pointless as you're already paying for the plan; or, you can buy it on pre-paid for $850 AUD plus, and then spend around $50 getting the provider to unlock it for you. This being the case, the only real help that this unlock could provide is saving you the $50 AUD unlocking fee that the providers charge you.
So I can Buy an Iphone Today ...And Not worry bout being locked
Regards
Gabs
Dev- Team lost my sympathy when they produced that horrible iPhone tombstone: even if people are willing to pay to be buried in such a fashion I think that a line must be drawn somewhere (somehow?)
Kilgore Trout? From the allentown area? You get around on this here interweb it seems.
does this mean that the second gen ipod touches are also cracked?
no,
it means that..
the IPHONE 3G WITH 2.11.00 OR LOWER BASEBAND VERSION CAN BE UNLOCKED WITH SOME PRE-REQUIREMENTS..
I don't get it. While is good news that a software solution is almost ready, cracking the phone from software means that the baseband will not be updated and also software updates will be hard to put on the phone. So why not use a sim proxy chip. This are easy to update when a new software versions is out and normally work very well. So what do I miss? Is the wait for a software solution worth saving the 15 USD that a Sim proxy costs ?
Well, that is really good newz for most people, but for for those of us who were just stupid enough to use quickpwn, WE JUST HAVE TO, LITERALLY, SUCK ON IT!!!
and keep sucking...
and keep sucking...
and keep sucking...
and just keep sucking on it...
untill someone figures out a way to downgrade the baseband or unlock the 2.28.00 baseband...
and i think i saw somewhere that you could erase the baseband and change it, but it was risky... can someone confirm this??
now what do i do with this damn 2 year contract i signed! smh...