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Rooting can be described as the Android version of a jailbreak since it aims to bypass protections put in place by manufacturers to install alternative mobile operating systems. Jailbreaking is sometimes used interchangeably with the terms “cracking” (in relation to software) and “rooting” (in relation to phones). Aside from the iPhone, jailbreaking can also refer to the iPad and iPod Touch.
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However, the term usually refers to Apple products.
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People sometimes use it to refer to installing custom software on mobiles or removing Digital Rights Management (DRM) restrictions on movies. Since the term first appeared, jailbreaking has also been used to refer to adapting the code on other devices, from phones to games consoles. Jailbreaking was – and remains – a way to install apps that Apple has not approved and a way to customize the interface. A key motivation of many jailbreakers is to make iOS more like Android. Watch this video about jailbreaking to learn if iPhone jailbreaking is worth it and how to fix the already jailbroken iPhone:Īpple’s ‘walled garden’ approach to its software has always been in contrast to the variety of options provided by the Android OS for customization. In the US, the first iteration of the iPhone was only on AT&T’s network and users who wanted to access other carriers were not able to unless they had a jailbroken iPhone. Early versions of the iPhone did not have an app store, and the iOS interface was considered more limited for users than it is today. The term jailbreaking is most often used in relation to the iPhone: it is considered the most ‘locked down’ mobile device currently on sale. It is called jailbreaking because it involves freeing users from the ‘jail’ of limitations that are perceived to exist. Jailbreaking allows the device owner to gain full access to the root of the operating system and access all the features. Jailbreaking is the process of exploiting the flaws of a locked-down electronic device to install software other than what the manufacturer has made available for that device.
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