14 DAY TRIAL // It wasn’t long before those with the required experience would start spotting new device references in Apple’s iOS 4.1 firmware update / restore file for the new Apple TV.
And, sure enough, they did. The screenshot available to the left stands as evidence that Apple is messing around with not one, but two new iPhones, since the latest version of the handset - the iPhone 4 - is referenced in the company’s device configuration files as iPhone 3,1.
9to5mac speculates that these new iPhones may be set to accommodate the standards from wireless operators other than AT&T (such as Verizon).
Another suggestion is that Apple is testing iPhones with better antennas, but none of this can be confirmed at this point.
After reporting the availability of iOS 4.1 for the second-generation Apple TV, Softpedia spotted a blog update from the iPhone Dev Team which indicated that work had already commenced on jailbreaking the device.
“It’s looking like SHAtter is going to be the gift that keeps on giving,” the Team said. “Even though the new AppleTV isn’t yet in people’s homes, the firmware is available on Apple’s normal public distribution servers and SHAtter has been used to decrypt its keys!”
They added: “If you’re familiar with vfdecrypt, you can use that key to decrypt the image and mount it.”
Those who do so are also free to use their blog’s comments section to discuss what they discover, the Team said.
The iOS 4.1 firmware file for Apple TV has been made public with the purpose of enabling owners to restore to a default state of the device, should they ever need to do so.
The new Apple TV was already known to be running a variant of the operating system powering iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches, therefore it was logical to assume that it could be jailbroken, just like the portables.