The "Jailbreak" Mentality

I’m a BIG fan of jailbreaking my iPhone and iPod Touch.  I mainly like monkeying around with the GUI on the devices but there are tons of apps available through Cydia, Rock and Icy that, for whatever reason, are not “blessed” by the overlords at Apple.  I’ve found most of these to be reliable and safe, but there’s always the exception and I install them at my own risk.  I’ve been jailbreaking since the first jailbreak was available for the first-gen iPod Touch and have successfully jailbroken every iDevice I’ve owned including first and second generation iPod Touches, the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS.  Every device I own is now jailbroken running the latest OS, 3.1.2.

I find I can do so much more with a jailbroken device that it is always a quandary when Apple releases an OS update.  I have to decide if Apple’s new features outweigh the features I enjoy with a jailbroken device.  I usually wait until a jailbreak is available before upgrading, but it is still a pain in the ass.  Call me stubborn, but I have a big problem with Apple’s attitude.  After all, I paid for these devices (which are really computers) and I don’t like anybody telling me what I can and can’t do with them.

I love my Macs, but I can’t imagine a scenario where I would even consider buying one if Apple were as onerous with them as they are with the iPhone and iPod touch.  All you Mac owners out there:  Can you imagine a world where you couldn’t even change the wallpaper on your computer?  Or browse for files?  How f*%^ked-up is that?  Apple will void the warranty on my iPod Touch if I jailbreak it.  I get that.  They shouldn’t be responsible for things out of their control.  But what if my device is out of warranty or I choose to tell Apple to shove their warranty?  I paid for this damned thing.  Why can’t I install whatever I want on it?  ITS MY COMPUTER!

Obviously, I’m not alone.  The jailbreak community is alive and well with new, quality software released every day.  My iPhone has a cool theme complete with custom rotating wallpaper, a five-icon dock and a bunch of cool sounds to replace the tired offerings from Apple.  Oh yeah, they don’t let you change them either.  A^#holes.

The word from GeoHot is jailbreaking is getting tougher with each OS release.  It has gotten to the point that the latest devices require tethering to reboot after they’re jailbroken.  That sucks.  Thankfully, even my 3GS (purchased in early July) is not in that group or I’d seriously consider towing the Apple line like a good little sheep.  As much as I love jailbreaking my iPhone, an un-jailbroken iPhone is still better than any other smartphone available.  That won’t be the case for long.  These new Android devices are looking mighty tasty.  I admit to being somewhat of an Apple fanboy but I don’t live under anybody’s boot!  I strongly suspect there are many others who share my opinion.  It will be interesting to see if Apple can continue putting up phenomenal numbers when the iPhone isn’t the only smartphone game in town.