What does it mean to jailbreak a phone, like an iPhone for ex., and how do you do it?

Are phones that have been jail broken better for some reason?
What is iPhone Jailbreak?



In short, Jailbreak is the process of hacking an iPhone to free it from Apple restrictions.



Because the iPhone is far from flawless as Apple created it, thousands of iPhone users have flocked to Jailbreak in search of iPhone changes and improvements. iPhone has been held back by limited customizability, text message privacy issues, and a lack of multitasking capabilities. But Jailbreak can solve all of these problems with apps and fixes available in Cydia and Installer.



Cydia and Installer are the unofficial App Stores of the Jailbreak world. Developers create apps and tweaks and different utilities and upload them to these package managers, which organize everything into categories. The differences between Cydia and the App Store are the lack of an app approval process, and the lack of access limits on the iPhone software i.e. you can do things Apple did not design the iPhone software to do.

Why Jailbreak iPhone?



1. No restrictions. Want a custom wallpaper on your home screen? Custom icons for your apps? Internet tethering? A category system for organizing your apps? The ability to hide native iPhone apps you dont use? You can do all of this and more with Jailbreak, as iSmashPhone describes in ten reasons to Jailbreak your iPhone. As one of my readers recently noted, Jailbreak can make all your iPhone wishes come true.



2. To join the subculture. Sick of Apples stranglehold on the iPhone? Those who Jailbreak iPhone belong to a movement of people who demand more from their iPhones. And theyre not gonna let Apple stop them. Beat the system: Jailbreak your iPhone.



3. Unlock iPhone. To unlock your iPhone and use it on any carrier, you must first Jailbreak your iPhone. Some of the Jailbreak solutions below also allow you to unlock the iPhone, though unlocking is generally beyond the scope of this tutorial.



Why NOT Jailbreak iPhone?



1. The folks at Apple know what they are doing. They have not enabled multasking the ability for apps to run in the background, simultaneously most likely because it is a huge battery drain. By controlling the user experience, Apple ensures that your iPhone just works, and you dont have to worry about managing battery life or any other technical details.



2. Jailbreak could (maybe?) brick your iPhone. When someone develops something for an Apple product and that development isnt sanctioned by Apple, you run the risk of it not working as it should, conflicting with the device itself, or just all-around bricking that iPhone, warns Chris Pirillo, who prefers not to Jailbreak his iPhone because my iPhone just works already. But I have never heard of Jailbreak completely ruining an iPhone. The consensus at this forum seems to be that the chance is extremely slim.



3. Every iPhone update from iTunes disables Jailbreak. Every time Apple comes out with an update for iPhone, they find a way to prevent hackers from cracking the code again. Hackers then scramble to Jailbreak the iPhone again and release the new methods. That means if you like to download Apples iPhone updates, you are going to have to figure out each time how to Jailbreak your iPhone yes again. Do you really want to play this cat and mouse game?



4. Jailbreak might increase your risk of getting a virus on your iPhone. The only two iPhone viruses ever reported have spread across iPhones that have been Jailbroken. Thats not to say the iPhone platform as Apple built it is totally secure. In fact, some say compromising an iPhones security is childs play (i.e. easy).



5. Jailbreak voids your iPhone warranty. If your iPhone is bricked because of Jailbreak, or if your iPhone has another problem and it happens to be Jailbreaked, your warranty becomes void. I once saw a sign at the Genius bar of The Falls, Miami Apple Store that warned customers not to Jailbreak iPhones or they would void their warranties. Harsh.
Jailbreaking an iPhone gives the user more freedom to use other apps that are not authorized in the app store and can give the iPhone some more capabilities to do more tasks. There are alot of ways to jailbreak one so look over the internet to find one that suits your needs. Some people say there is alot of risk of jailbreaking like voiding the warranty and such, but there is a workaround and by just restoring the iPhone via iTunes, you have a fresh iPhone that acts just before you jailbroke it and it is still under warranty.



Hope this helps!