How to jailbreak OS 3.0 using redsn0w

Today the unlock software from Dev Team, redsn0w, was released. Redsn0w enables every iPhone 3G owner (not 3GS) to jailbreak the phone.

The installation is actually simple. I downloaded the firmware (iPhone1,2_3.0_7A341_Restore.ipsw) and upgraded my phone from OS 2.2.1 to OS 3.0 through iTunes.

After downloading the iPhone1,2_3.0_7A341_Restore.zip file, rename the file to iPhone1,2_3.0_7A341_Restore.ipsw.

Connect your iPhone to your computer and start iTunes. Select "restore" and then select the firmware that you downloaded on the website mentioned above. Do nothing during the upgrade untill its finished.

When the iPhone is upgraded, start the redsn0w application (see dev team blog for download mirrors). Clearly read the instructions on the screen. First you will be asked to completely switch off the phone while it is still connected to your computer. Switch off the phone by holding in the power button for a couple of seconds and then slide the power off widget in the screen. After clicking next, the phone restarts and you will be asked to hold the power button, then the power and home button and finally only the home button. Then the jailbreak procedure will start, just wait until it completes.

When you see "done" in the screen, the iPhone will complete the jailbreak and your phone is jailbroken.

Note: NOW YOUR IPHONE IS UNLOCKED YOU CAN UNLOCK BY INSTALLING ULTRASN0W .

New Iphone Purchase at Manhattan, NYC

The process of buying my new unlocked iPhone

Since a few weeks now, I have been the happy owner of an Iphone 3G. After 4 years of old school calling and text messaging with my Sony Ericsson S700, my social network urged me to purchase a decent phone.

During a visit to Manhattan, New York City last month I started my "iPhone hunt" together with my girlfriend. It turned out that buying an unlocked iPhone is not the easiest task in the Big Apple. The Apple store and licensed resellers only sold the gadget with an AT&T plan. Because I am currently living at Aruba, this option would not be the most convenient one. I needed a phone that I could use worldwide, not to be limited to 1 network provider.

After visiting many, though not very fancy looking "dealers", near Times Square we found out that many iPhones 3G's were supposed to be unlocked but did not work when we inserted our own sim-card. (Might you consider buying an unlocked Iphone, make sure to try it with the sim card installed). Eventually we ended up in a store on 55th street and 6th Avenue. The price of the phone was $800, unlocked and instantly ready to use. I bought the phone and speeded back to the hotel to charge it right away. After charging the phone worked excellent and brought me intense happiness :-)

When I woke up the next morning, I was frightened: my phone did not work any more. The network status icon indicated "No Service". I figured that the easiest way to resolve this issue was either to reboot the phone or to re-insert the sim-card. Unfortunately both did not work. Although the phone was unlocked with the Yellowsn0w app, I was unable to use my phone and I was close to becoming desperate.

After an hour of searching the net I finally found the resolution: my sim card had the 4 digit password enabled. After disabling the sim password, the phone recognized the sim card and started "searching" for a network. Within seconds my Iphone was ready to use again and I have not experienced any malfunctionings since...