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Broadband & Mobile Featured Article
August 27, 2007
Teen Unlocks iPhone
By Tim Gray TMCnet Web Editor
When a crafty New Jersey
George Hotz of Glen Rock, N.J., spent his summer break before entering the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) as a Freshman figuring out how to "unlock" the iPhone, releasing it from its current restriction to a single carrier, AT&T (News - Alert), according to a report from the Associated Press.
After spending hundreds of hours trying to unlock the iPhone’s secrets – along with some help from a few online friends and lots of Red Bull and Mountain Dew – Hotz eventually figured out how to bring the gadget to a much wider audience.
The operation, which the 17-year-old posted on his blog requires a good deal of savvy with soldering gun and software, takes about two hours to perform. And now that secret is out people who don't want AT&T service or can't get it — such as millions overseas clamoring for the phone —have a roadmap on how to do it themselves.
An AP reporter verified that the iPhone Hotz brought to the AP's headquarters on Friday had indeed been unlocked. Hotz was able to put the reporter's T-Mobile (News - Alert) SIM card in the iPhone and connect to T-Mobile's network.
Since the directions have been posted online, anyone with some skill and free time can perform the procedure.
That's exactly, like, what I don't want... people making money off this," he told AP.
Zippy Aima, an analyst with Frost and Sullivan, said it is unlikely Apple (News - Alert) would take measures to change the iPhone’s internal wiring giving the complex nature of the procedure hackers need to perform in order to permit the phone to work with other carriers but could do something to slow the process down.
“I am sure they will provide a patch to cover up before the problem escalates, or else renegotiate the terms of the contract with AT&T, which would be good news for iPhone lovers,” Aima told TMCnet.
Hotz says he spent approximately 500 hours trying to hack the phone.
"Some of my friends think I wasted my summer but I think it was worth it," he told The Record of Bergen County. Hotz arrived for college at RIT on Saturday and He plans to major in neuroscience.
Tim Gray is a Web Editor for TMCnet, covering news in the IP
communications, call center and customer relationship management industries. To see more of his articles, please visit Tim Gray’s columnist page.
George Hotz of Glen Rock, N.J., spent his summer break before entering the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) as a Freshman figuring out how to "unlock" the iPhone, releasing it from its current restriction to a single carrier, AT&T (News - Alert), according to a report from the Associated Press.
After spending hundreds of hours trying to unlock the iPhone’s secrets – along with some help from a few online friends and lots of Red Bull and Mountain Dew – Hotz eventually figured out how to bring the gadget to a much wider audience.
The operation, which the 17-year-old posted on his blog requires a good deal of savvy with soldering gun and software, takes about two hours to perform. And now that secret is out people who don't want AT&T service or can't get it — such as millions overseas clamoring for the phone —have a roadmap on how to do it themselves.
An AP reporter verified that the iPhone Hotz brought to the AP's headquarters on Friday had indeed been unlocked. Hotz was able to put the reporter's T-Mobile (News - Alert) SIM card in the iPhone and connect to T-Mobile's network.
Since the directions have been posted online, anyone with some skill and free time can perform the procedure.
That's exactly, like, what I don't want... people making money off this," he told AP.
Zippy Aima, an analyst with Frost and Sullivan, said it is unlikely Apple (News - Alert) would take measures to change the iPhone’s internal wiring giving the complex nature of the procedure hackers need to perform in order to permit the phone to work with other carriers but could do something to slow the process down.
“I am sure they will provide a patch to cover up before the problem escalates, or else renegotiate the terms of the contract with AT&T, which would be good news for iPhone lovers,” Aima told TMCnet.
Hotz says he spent approximately 500 hours trying to hack the phone.
"Some of my friends think I wasted my summer but I think it was worth it," he told The Record of Bergen County. Hotz arrived for college at RIT on Saturday and He plans to major in neuroscience.
Tim Gray is a Web Editor for TMCnet, covering news in the IP
communications, call center and customer relationship management industries. To see more of his articles, please visit Tim Gray’s columnist page. 
