Phone hacks for a noob

[ghettomedic]

There may already be an existing thread for this, and if there is I didn't see it.

I'm very new to the whole unlocked cellphone world. I currently have a 3g with the newest updates (2.2?). I'm considering canceling my ATT contract and switching back to my old provider since they have a better deal.

I'm confused about the differences between the terms "unlocked" "jailbreak" etc. Can someone explain them or all they are the same thing?

Secondly, what happens when a new firmware or OS (I'm not sure what the proper term is) comes out? If I'm on another provider will this re-lock or un-break my phone? Will it still function?

What features are actually unlocked? Someone said that unlocking or jailbreaking would allow MMS and video recording, but he didn't strike me as the most reliable source.

 

[megadon]

There may already be an existing thread for this, and if there is I didn't see it.

I'm very new to the whole unlocked cellphone world. I currently have a 3g with the newest updates (2.2?). I'm considering canceling my ATT contract and switching back to my old provider since they have a better deal.

I'm confused about the differences between the terms "unlocked" "jailbreak" etc. Can someone explain them or all they are the same thing?

Secondly, what happens when a new firmware or OS (I'm not sure what the proper term is) comes out? If I'm on another provider will this re-lock or un-break my phone? Will it still function?

What features are actually unlocked? Someone said that unlocking or jailbreaking would allow MMS and video recording, but he didn't strike me as the most reliable source.

sup..
well I'm new to this stuff too..and actually..I think one of the sticky notes at the top of the hack page should be there..

but you can not unlock the 3g iphone. not yet anyway..

and jailbreak just allows you to download apps that apple will not allow in the app store..

I did my reading on it, and I'm not a huge tech guy and jailbreak seems sketchy as it can brick your phone, and all that, and it drains you battery life, as if it wasn't horrible to begin with

read the sticky at the top

 

[Surely]

sup..
well I'm new to this stuff too..and actually..I think one of the sticky notes at the top of the hack page should be there..

but you can not unlock the 3g iphone. not yet anyway..

and jailbreak just allows you to download apps that apple will not allow in the app store..

I did my reading on it, and I'm not a huge tech guy and jailbreak seems sketchy as it can brick your phone, and all that, and it drains you battery life, as if it wasn't horrible to begin with

read the sticky at the top

No (except for the part about unlocking the 3G).

Jailbreaking these days is safe. Read about Quickpwn and Pwnage Tool. Jailbreaking allows you to do things that are not allowed by Apple, such as download apps and utilities and to change themes. It is reversible. It will not void your warranty. It will not brick your iPhone. My battery life has not changed since before I jailbroke (I've had my iPhone since Feb, and just jailbroke less than a month ago). If something happens, all you need to do is Restore, and there is no trace of it being jailbroken.

Check out:
http://blog.iphone-dev.org/
http://wikee.iphwn.org/
www.hackthatphone.com
Step by step to restore phone
http://iclarified.com/entry/index.php?enid=893

I used hackthatphone.com as my jailbreaking guide before, during and after the JB.

I can't believe I waited so long to jailbreak.

 

[Tastannin]

Amen, jailbreaking is the first thing a new iPhone owner should do. You get access to so much more than just the App Store. Cydia is a real blessing, and I could have not lived without PDAnet to tether my MBP for the three weeks when we had no internet in our new house. It tided me over until the ISP got our access set up.

 

[fireshot91]

If you cancel the AT&T Contract: you will have to pay 175$ for the EFT charge.
and 2) You can't use your iPhone 3G on that provider if you have 2.2 at all, no matter if they are GSM based
Jailbreaking puts 3rd party software that (mostly) got rejected by the App store.

Unlocking- Use of your phone on another GSM carrier.

 

[ViViDboarder]

Simple answer: You won't be able to use your iPhone 3G with another carrier.

Extended: If dev does unlock the 3G, you probably will still be out of luck for a while because 2.2 has a different base-band, unless you've been jailbroken since 2.0, you don't have the same-base band they are trying to unlock right now and will have to wait.

Jailbreaking was simple and I had no problems. My phone did not suffer any performance hits, but it does give you potential to. If you install a lot of apps that run in the background, yes. You will slow down the phone and drain your battery. Simply being Jailbroken has no effect on it. If you want proof, check out my thread on RAM usage.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/613846/