Comments on: Owners of unlocked iPhones hosed by software update

As warned, several owners of unlocked iPhones are reporting that the latest software update to the iPhone has rendered their phone essentially useless.

[cams0ft]

Microsoft wouldn't have done that....

First of all I have a Nokia E61i which in my opinion is just as good as an Iphone. It may not be as fashionable and it probably wont land me any hot women but it will play my MP3s, surf the web via WIFI and take photos... and obviously make phone calls, plus I get to use it on any network.

Now I don?t really like Apple, the products look cool but when it comes to actually achieving something I prefer to go down the open market as apposed to the closed one which is Apple.

As for the Iphone update which disables hacked phones, this is bad, real bad. Microsoft did try something like this with Windows Update however the backlash and legal intricacies of deleting/disabling peoples stuff was always going to ring bells and now update just gives you a nice message saying "this isn?t legal, get a legal copy?" this is what Apple should have done instead of going down the George Bush route.

CrApple indeed...

[Lee in San Diego]

Your right!

Did Apple give hacked iPhone user a warning that proceeding with
the update might break the device? What is that screenshot in the
story?

But your right in one respect. MicroSoft wouldn't have done that,
they would have to have a phone first. They seem to be doing well
with that game though.

[smSpillaz]

Apple is _not_ responsible

Huh?
I fail to see how apple should be held responsible if you apply a
standard update to a modified device. If you have modified the
device, then the update may not apply correctly, Apple is not
intentionally bricking phones :/

[sanenazok]

Just imagine

What would be happening if MSFT did anything like this...install an update to MSFT and if you don't have MS's preferred vendor for internet service your computer becomes useless. That's what Apple did here.

I guess given Apple's position in the market, they can do whatever they want.

[HartDev]

I won't update

I guess I don't fall into the category of people with phones that got messed up. But I know that Apple was gonna do something backhanded like this, and this time they did the honorable thing and gave us a heads up. I will probably keep the original firmware with the hacks for the entire time that I own the device or they create an alternative OS for the phone, I am really hoping to see some iPhone Linux in a year or two, until then I will continue rocking it with T-Mobile and NES games!

[inachu]

I just activated my iphone

My iphone is legit and was never hacked.

I just updated it and it now says:

WAITING FOR ACTIVATION

WHAT THE HELL!!!! Its been activated already by AT&T
So each update I have to wait to get it activated?

This is the last ever update I am doing if each time I have to activate my phone service.

[cams0ft]

Iphone? Problems? Nothing new here..

Its good to see that Apple, is normal. For a second i was starting to believe the hype. No virues, no failures, no errors, no crashed hardware... nothing ever goes wrong with an Apple... you know why? Because God, who also goes by the name of Steve Jobs, created it.

But the ice is finally starting to melt, its now fairly obvious that Steve Jobs is not God and that the Iphone will break just like the rest of the technological junk in your house. It will crash, reset, delete your numbers and all your girlfriends in one fell swoop...

[Vegaman_Dan]

You'll need to go back to AT&T

According to what's going on in the Apple forums currently, people who receive this message will need to go back to AT&T and get their SIM card replaced. Damage to the SIM card caused by an update is not covered by Apple's warranty. Replacement cards run typically $20, but you could probably convince the rep to replace it anyways if you are nice enough.

This isn't uncommon for cellphone firmware updates. It's just more pronounced on the iPhone.

[alegr]

Quod licet Jovi non licet bovi

"Microsoft quietly issued an update that intentionally rendered all Windows installation with a pirated key unuseable". No, this didn't happen.

But imagine what scream we would hear if that did happen. People even complain that one cannot install updates (other than security fixes) on the "non-WGA-verified" systems.

Apparently, Apple is exempt from these standards.
Its apologists (AKA fanboys) don't even mind that people actually BOUGHT the dang thing for $600, not just copied a CD.

[Vegaman_Dan]

CNET Listings of what is Most Discussed

Am I the only one that finds it odd that the Most Discussed listing on the right side of the main page has stories that are a week old and have low numbers of replies where as a story like this one has a high number of responses but doesn't even raise a blip on the radar?

I'm not sure a story about a person going from Windows Media Center to Linux with 20-30 replies is considered 'Most Discussed' when compared to this iPhone update story with 200 replies isn't listed at all.

Just curious what criteria is used to actually have stories listed since it isn't obvious.

[Tom Krazit]

Changing of the systems

We're sort of in the middle of changing between two different production systems--back-end stuff--and posts to this blog and a few others don't show up in that field yet.

Looks like it's ready to happen in the next few weeks, from what I hear.

[Vegaman_Dan]

Iiiiiiinteresting

It seems this story is so unimportant that the content and news is quickly vanishing from news sites. Apple's forum had a dozen plus long threads on it on Thursday night. Now it only has three and they only talk about minor issues with the patch.

CNET here moved the content to the CRAVE site and all our comments here are hidden away. I could only get to this by going to a saved bookmark since the search on CNET now points to the new stripped down version.

Appleinsider had several stories about the iPhone update on their main page for news but now all that is gone and the only information are glowing comments about the update and what great features it offers.

Macrumors- well, yeah.

I'm not sure why it's happening, but it sure is awfully coincidental that all these sites suddently are losing the content at the same time. And since the content isn't there anymore, you can't say that it was removed either. What content? I don't see any.

Hmm.

Veeeery interesting coincidence indeed.

[UrbanBard]

A flash in the pan, yes.

Because most iPhone customers could care less. They didn't buy it
to hack it. The only people interested in this story are Linux geeks
who want to violate their agreement with Apple. Who cares about
them?

[Louiewu]

Another Reason I skipped the IPhone

Ahhh yet another reason I am glad I decided to wait for a couple of years before I got an I phone. Let's see first Apple sells the 8 gig version for $599, then they **** of a lot of folks by dropping the price $200 BUT then in order to appease these folks they only offer a $100 prize/bonus/gift. Then they lock the phone to the WORST carrier out there (AT&T) who has the worst customer service department of them all (and none of them really care about you anyway they just want you to shut up and pay them $$$). And now to top it all off they break the phones of those who decided to get away from crappy service by unlocking their phones.

If Apple truely wants to make the IPhone become the next "motorola razr" they need to sell it unlocked and allowable to ANY carrier and let the purchaser decide which carrier to use. They need to resxolve the non-removable battery issue by making a removable battery version and they need to up the memory to something respectable like 16 to 32 gigs or make a slot available to use memory cards (ie SD or the like).

Until then the Iphone is just a very expensive Ipod (and I already have several of those laying around)

[vcaobest]

Apple has no liability to IDIOTS who bought the phone hoping to hack it morally or legally! YOU KNEW WHAT THE DEAL WAS WHEN YOU BOUGHT THE PHONE MORONS! http://www.vcao.net This isn't about Apple being a monopoly, or keeping people from making choices