iPhone 3G already unlocked

The iPhone 3G could soon be available to all
The iPhone 3G could soon be available to all

The iPhone 3G is a lot more open than the last iteration, which was locked up tight from unofficial third party applications.

Although the new model is as watertight, the new App Store should convince a few hackers to make money off development rather than work on jailbreaking the device.

But the iPhone Dev Team, the guys at the forefront of the original iPhone hacking, are in the final stages of a development tool that could open up the iPhone to new programmes and unlock it to other carriers.

Pwnage

The 'PwnageTool 2.0' is set for release soon, though the iPhone Dev Team is apparently waiting on releasing the unlocking programme in order to minimise the risk of bricking the new devices.

"The majority of iPhone users are not technical - they want an easy, one-stop, simple application that will allow them to quickly and painlessly unlock their phone," the iPhone Dev Team write on their official blog.

"Many many hours have gone into this and now it should be as easy enough for your grandmother to use."

There's no word on when the new tool will be released, though the expectation is within the next fortnight.

So it may be a matter of weeks rather than months when all those tied into long term contracts with other companies will start using an iPhone 3G.

Gareth Beavis
Formerly Global Editor in Chief

Gareth has been part of the consumer technology world in a career spanning three decades. He started life as a staff writer on the fledgling TechRadar, and has grown with the site (primarily as phones, tablets and wearables editor) until becoming Global Editor in Chief in 2018. Gareth has written over 4,000 articles for TechRadar, has contributed expert insight to a number of other publications, chaired panels on zeitgeist technologies, presented at the Gadget Show Live as well as representing the brand on TV and radio for multiple channels including Sky, BBC, ITV and Al-Jazeera. Passionate about fitness, he can bore anyone rigid about stress management, sleep tracking, heart rate variance as well as bemoaning something about the latest iPhone, Galaxy or OLED TV.