Apple iPod Touch

A new unlocking tool called iJailBreak allows third-party apps to run on the iPod Touch.

iJailBreak is an automated jailbreaker. It has a straight forward GUI so you do not have to be technically skilled to put games or an ebook reader on your iPod Touch. In fact you can put any number of third party programs now on the device. It can even add iPhone applications if you wish!

The only user interaction required is for you to restart the iPod Touch. In fact the whole process is simply to run iJailbreak, hook up your iPod Touch and then restart when prompted. Even my grandmother could do that!

This isn’t really that surprising. Given the iPhone hacks and the power of the underlying iPod Touch, it was really just a matter of time.

What is surprising is that this program was written by a 13 year old programmer named AriX. He used AppleScript and wrote it in 3 hours. The program has been licensed under the GNU General Public License v2 so it is available for free! Originally designed for Intel Macs, iJailBreak has since been updated to run on PowerPC Macs.

So if you own an Apple iPod Touch you can now install games, instant messengers, wi-fi locators, PDF readers, eBook readers and many more. And iJailbreak makes unlocking it a snap!

No Comments » Posted by Gregory / Applications and Device and Hacks

The Apple Core blog has a rundown of the winners and losers from the Apple iPod refresh. In their article I was excited to see that the iPod Touch appears to be a good e-book reader:

The iPod touch looks to be a fine e-book platform and unlike the E Ink screens of the competition, the iPod screen is in color and works in the dark under the blankets without requiring a flashlight. Oh, and it also plays music, games, videos and connects to the Web.

I love reading ebooks. Currently I am hanging on to a Palm T/X for my multimedia needs just for this reason. The T/X plays video, music, displays photos AND is a very good ebook reader.

My day job doesn’t require the PIM functions of the Palm so I really just use it mostly for entertainment. And when it comes to a pure entertainment device, the iPod Touch wins hands down. Being able to read e-books on it would finally enable me to shelve the Palm T/X.

E-books have not really taken off mainstream and I don’t understand why. Being able to read in the dark and not have to turn pages because of the auto scroll feature is great.

Furthermore I have several books on my T/X at any one time and the handheld fits in my pocket. At anytime if I find myself stuck in a line at the bank or waiting in a doctor’s office I can simply pull it out and pass the time.

Adopting ebooks doesn’t have to mean the death of print. I enjoyed curling up with the latest Harry Potter book and the experience of opening a brand new book like that with your hands can not be replaced electronically.

Here’s hoping Apple Core is right and the Apple iPod Touch e-book reader becomes a reality.

No Comments » Posted by Gregory / Applications and Features