Unlocking Iphone 3G

[bl00dmaster]

I have recently bought an Iphone 3G and have a problem with doing an unlock. I noticed it is on the baseband 5.15.04. I'm not sure if it is possible to updated the baseband to 6.15.00 (ipad baseband) and then downgrade that to a baseband which is possible to unlock. If this is possible can someone give me a guide to doing it or tell me it is possible?

[Mes]

To unlock 5.15.04 baseband, one (1) solution exists .. upgrade to 6.15.00. Warning: This will break your GPS, require a custom firmware for all future upgrades/downgrades, and it is permanent !!.

To load/restore any 4.x (4.0, 4.01, 4.02, 4.1, 4.2.1) SHSH blobs are required.

Before starting the tutorial below, download & run Tiny Umbrella, get your SHSH blobs, verify you have 4.2.1, and then start TSS Server and verify it's running. See Tiny Umbrella (link below).

The following tutorial assumes you want to upgrade to 4.2.1 iOS, install 6.15.00, and unlock: iClarified - iPhone - How to Jailbreak and Unlock Your iPhone 3G Using RedSn0w (Windows) [4.2.1] (Comments)

Note1: The tutorial works for both Mac and PC
Note2: SHSH blobs are not required for any 3.x iOS on a 3G

[bl00dmaster]

I found out if I did have bootloader 5.8 I could downgrade but sadly mine is 5.9. If I do this I heard wifi can break, is this true in all cases?

[Mes]

I didn't mention bootloader 5.8 because sooooo few of these exist. .... but I'm glad you checked anyway
WiFi is not a problem. A few users have report problems w/WiFi ... but most (maybe all) were solved by reloading / restoring again.

[bl00dmaster]

Ok well thank you, hopefully will do this without any problems. Quite annoying it has to be the ipad way for now. Hopefully they make it so can downgrade 5.15.04 with bootloader 5.9 soon.

[Mes]

... Hopefully they make it so can downgrade 5.15.04 with bootloader 5.9 soon.

Sorry to say, it's not going to happen

[bl00dmaster]

Why is that?

[Mes]

The 3G is old. With the amount of work required on the latest devices + new iOS versions .... the likely-hood of any work on this is slim to none.

[bl00dmaster]

How about the battery drain issues? Is it a problem with my firmware and the baseband? Or does it not really exist due to the baseband?

[Mes]

The battery issue can be completely solved by activating with an official SIM. If you don't have one, borrow a friends, or buy one off eBay, or ..... It's a very cheap and smart investment. An alternative solution exists: SAM. It works for some but frequently continues to plague users after it's installed.

[bl00dmaster]

How does activating it with an official sim change the whole battery issue?

[Poseidon79]

SAM is the cure to continual internet pinging that iOSes 4.1 and 4.2.1 do for 'activation certificates' on hacktivated phones. And its this continual pinging that drains the battery fast.

Activating with an official SIM card gives you valid activation certificates rather than fake ones.

[Mes]

How much detail to you want? Dev-Team Blog
Let's just say all the Apple required certificates are properly created and satisfied.

[bl00dmaster]

Ah right thanks. One more question (haha) is there anyway to double check tinyumbrella saved the shsh. I clicked the button and it finished but is there a way to check it fully worked?

[Mes]

Download iSHSHit (via Cydia). Get your SHSH blobs with it . EMail to yourself for safety
They should be the same as Tiny Umbrella.

[bl00dmaster]

Does it save it to a folder somewhere then (tinyumbrella). That way I can then send them right now to make sure it's safe.

[Mes]

Email to yourself within iSHSHit

[bl00dmaster]

I may just get an O2 sim and use that instead of forcing myself to get a dodgy baseband. Also just to check if I jailbreak it normally without changing my original baseband, I can just unjailbreak the iphone at any time through itunes back to factory settings?

[Mes]

...Also just to check if I jailbreak it normally without changing my original baseband, I can just unjailbreak the iphone at any time through itunes back to factory settings?

You can revert to 'factory' as long as you have not installed the iPad 6.15.x baseband.

[bl00dmaster]

Yeah that's what I thought. What is the best jailbreak for 4.2.1 or is it worth me getting newer firmware and jailbreak?