Jailbroken Software Updates

One of iOS 5’s most anticipated feature is the over-the-air software update service that finally cuts the cord between iDevices and iTunes. But what if jailbreak devs took advantage of that?

That’s right. My idea here is that if somehow someone managed to modify the OTA firmware update feature, they could set up a repository for pre-jailbroken software updates, which would make updating a ton easier.

Now, there are some drawbacks to this. One is that you’ll still have to wait for a jailbreak to come out, next you have to get it working with the most recent software update, and then you have to test it extensively to make sure it doesn’t brick devices, or so to speak. That takes a lot of time and effort.

However, I don’t know for certain if iOS 5 OTA updates will really hurt a jailbreak, as I haven’t received one yet. But Apple has been pretty good at destroying exploits in a lot of updates, so we’ll see.