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Reasons to Jailbreak your iPhone or iPad

I never would have guessed I'd become such a fan of the iPhone, I was never a big mobile phone enthusiast to begin with. I only decided to buy an iPhone because I work in Apple IT Support so needed one to stay up to speed with my clients who all seemed to be buying them. My iPhone served its purpose well as a phone and organiser and I was impressed by some cool apps available at the AppStore but I really wanted to use it in a way that was more akin to the way I use my computer. Of course my iPhone could use the Internet but it was restrictive and kind of clunky in the way it does so. After having my iPhone for about three months I realised I was frustrated with it. I was sure the device had the potential to provide much more, and so I started looking at options frowned upon by Apple.

On a lazy Saturday afternoon I decided to take the plunge and downloaded a popular Jailbreak software to run on my iPhone 3G. Since that day the device took on new meaning for me. I must make clear that after the jailbreak is completed the user's iPhone behaved and looks exactly as it did beforehand, the only difference being the addition of a new app called Cydia. It is then left to the user to discover over time the advantages of the jailbreak by experimenting with new software tweaks download via Cydia. Cydia, often referred to as the 'alternative AppStore', is a repository for all the apps and tweaks that have been rejected by Apple for inclusion within it's own official outlet. Cydia, the app loaded with the Jailbreak, includes a program called APT, the open source package manager familiar to all users of unix or unix-like operating systems like GNU/Linux. APT downloads and installs all the Cydia based software onto your device. In no particular order I have listed below the most obvious reasons why I would recommend iPhone users to break with Apple's directive and "Jailbreak" their iPhones.

1. Root Access - In a nutshell, jailbreaking your iPhone or iPad gives the user complete access and control over the file structure of their device, just as one would expect to have with a regular PC or Mac. Generally speaking, most users won't require all this power but it is there should it ever be needed. Having this amount of control could have negative consequences in the hands of somebody who doesn't understand what they're doing, however if the worst were to happen, they would simply be faced with restoring their device to its factory settings using iTunes. Just like on a regular PC, users who don't understand the operating system will rarely, if ever, venture into these unfamiliar areas.
2. Email Flexibility - What interests most people about jailbreaking is the possibility of adding extra features that Apple is never likely to include in an official iOS update. Take for instance restrictions on what you can or can't send via email from your iPhone. Apple only make it possible to send images and text via email. You cannot send any other type of file (or groups of files) as an attachments in the way you would using a computer. Apple only provide the facility to send multiple attachments in the case of images within the photo album app. Using iFile, an application that provides your iPhone with a complete file browser, like the Finder or Windows Explorer, you can attach what you like and send what you like.
3. Wireless Networking - With a jailbreak you can transfer data to and fro between an iPhone and a computer by using secure FTP. Additionally, with Apple computers you can connect using the local network using Netatalk, an open source version of Apple's network protocol AFP, whereby the iPhone will be displayed in the finder as a shared computer.
4. Browser Changer - Although there are several alternative browsers available from the AppStore, such as Mercury or Opera, you cannot configure your iPhone or iPad to use them as the default. Safari will remain the dominant browser, always being the one to launch whenever you click on a web address within any other application, such as Mail. Browser Changer adds a preference to the System Settings where the default can be changed to any other browser of your choosing.
5. biteSMS is an alternative SMS messaging app available from Cydia, which knocks the spots off the iPhone's in-built SMS program. biteSMS will let you continue to use your regular service if messages are free of charge but it will automatically switch to the bite service for international messages when it becomes the cheaper option. Texting to foreign locations using my O2 service here in the UK costs 20p per text compared to 7p from the bite service. The biteSMS app is packed with extra features including Quick Reply & Compose on the Lockscreen, smileys, privacy, scheduled SMS, passcode lock, delivery reports, signatures and more.
6. Custom Text Tones - Following directly on the heels of biteSMS's ability to manage text tones I am reminded of another restriction easily overcome by Jailbreaking - adding custom text tones! Although Apple permit you to add your own ringtones, they decided you cannot choose a custom text tone. Up until iOS 4.2.1 you had a choice of only six text sounds. Although that's been improved on with the addition of seventeen new ones, there's no provision for people who want to produce their own custom sounds?
7. Rotation Inhibitor - The ability to lock the rotation of the iPhone's screen has only just been included with iOS 4, however this feature has been available to jailbreakers for much longer. Reading emails lying in bed early in the morning is a pain when the page keeps flipping onto it's side. Apple's method to lock and unlock the screen requires double clicking the home button, which is fiddly and inconvenient to employ. On the other hand, the 'rotation inhibitor' toggle in the jailbreak tweak control "SB Settings", is almost perfect.
8. SB Settings from the BigBoss is a fabulously elegant solution to control many of the iPhone's background processes without the need to exit the app you're currently using so you can open the System Settings to make adjustments. With a swipe across the menu bar the SB Settings panel drops down like a roller blind displaying an array of toggle switches. Now, in seconds, you can switch on or off Wi-fi, 3G, Bluetooth, Airplane Mode, lock screen rotation, adjust screen brightness and all while staying within the app you're using. You can even quickly kill background process and free up your iPhone's memory, particularly useful for owners of earlier models with more limited memory. SB Settings doesn't stop there, it gives access to further tweaks such as hiding application icons on the Home Screen, it allows you to see your battery percentage and other information in your status bar and also provides a little dock onto which you can place specific apps you would rather weren't visible on the main pages. I don't want to go on further about SB Settings other than to say, there's more.
9. Music Controls Pro is a tweak that enhances the user experience when using a variety of music players available for the iPhone, whether it be the standard iPod app or another like Spotify. "Music Controls Pro" allows the user to engage with the player working in the background from within any other process being used or directly from the Lockscreen. Simply tap the screen or double click the home button and the music controls will appear onscreen and allow you to make changes with ease. Obviously this tweak is of most use to those who use the music player feature a lot. I, on the other hand, despite seeing the advantages, rarely use my iPhone for listening to music while travelling or a walking in the street, so I'm less likely to install this modification especially as it costs $5.99.
10. Winterboard. Frankly I'm not so mad about theming my iPhone as I am actually quite happy with the default look, nevertheless I can certainly appreciate why it is popular. To be completely honest I do run a small personalised theme on my iPhone but it's not dramatically different from the stock look. I started theming my iPhone before iOS 4, when there was practically no choice for personalisation. iOS 4 now provides separate user backgrounds for lock screen and home screen, which may be adequate for some people. However if you want say, a different icon set, lock screen slider or alternative system sounds then you're stuffed. The Winterboard app written by Jay Freeman, elegantly provides the means for you to make your iPhone look and feel just how you want it to.
11. Icon control - Of course there are some tweaks that I dislike or don't see a need for, like having five rows of icons on the Home Screen, it's just so ugly. However there is something to be said for having five icons in the dock or maybe the ability to have the dock itself scroll to include more icons. Infinidock and Infiniboard are a couple of tweaks from a developer called Grant Paul otherwise known as 'chpwn'. Check out his selection of apps at the Cydia Store and see how they add an extra twist to your user interface.
12. Fullscreen Safari. If you like using Safari and don't want to move to another browser you can enhance it with this worthwhile tweak. As I've said before you could always download Mercury, a more sophisticated browser by far and then define that as your default. You really can't get the best out of Mercury until you're jailbroken.
13. Safari Download Manager. Does the average iPhone user realise that apart from the means to save images to your camera roll when using Safari, you cannot download anything else. With this tweak you can download whatever you want - music, computer programs, anything. Save items to your iPhone's flash drive when you're out and about, then transfer them to your computer later on. This way you don't need to make a note to download something when you get back home. You know you'll only forget.
14. MxTube - On the subject of downloading, another thing that springs to mind is YouTube. As far as I know there is no app available on the App Store which allows you to download movies from YouTube which are saved on your iPhone. MxTube provides this ability and like many useful apps of this sort it's free. Mind you, you can donate via PayPal if you choose.
15. Freedom - an important point that shouldn't go without mention is that I simply enjoy having control over my own equipment. I understand the argument that when manufacturers lock down their OSs the risk that their products will be compromised by malware is removed or reduced. However I tend to agree with the viewpoint that while users have restrictions imposed upon them, technological innovation is stifled. When I hand over my hard earned cash in exchange for a device, I consider it to be mine, to do with as I please. The jailbreaking scene is fascinating and fun - it reminds me of the days when I began to use my first computer. I am amazed at the guys who do the work, who're often kids. They're dedicated to the challenge and want to produce the smartest tools possible for the job. Remember they run the same software on their own devices, so logic suggest they wouldn't want to damage their own iPhones any more than I would.

Some might think that these extra abilities don't really add up to anything significant but I would challenge anybody who has lived with a jailbroken iPhone for even a short time to return to the basic unit. I don't think they would last long.

All the Best, Charlie

Footnote -
Many articles appearing in the press or in the media, paint a picture of jailbreak enthusiasts as evil software pirates, only interested in stealing the bread from the mouths of struggling developers. I must make it clear that so called 'software piracy' is something I do not endorse or encourage, nor does any of the hard core of Jailbreakers. Although it is possible to use your Jailbreak to acquire cracked apps and run them on your iPhone, that is not the purpose of jailbreaking. There has always been and always will be a mind set that gets a thrill from cracking and redistributing licensed software. These activities cannot be stopped by imposing heavy handed laws that restrict everybody else's rights. The software industry always claim to be losing millions of dollars every year on account of software piracy but it is a mere fantasy to speculate that without piracy the manufacturers would have sold any more units than they already have. I don't see any reason to imagine that the people responsible for uploading and downloading cracked apps would automatically agree to buy expensive software titles if suddenly torrent and file sharing sites were removed. Those minds will always find a way to do what they do. Most right minded people understand that developers need to be paid if we expect them to continue producing the software we need to run our systems. Of course if someone does insist on free, open source software GNU/Linux provides everything you could want.