Corona Exploit Reportedly Patched in iOS 5.1

After months of waiting, an untethered jailbreak compatible with iOS 5 was finally released in late December. Although it doesn’t work with A5 devices, the exploit is effective on a number of products, including both the iPad and the iPhone 4.

But it doesn’t look like it will be that way for much longer. Multiple jailbreak developers are reporting that Apple has patched the Corona exploit, used in the untethered jailbreak, in the latest version of its mobile operating system iOS 5.1…

Nadeem Ateyeh
@Nadeem97 So yeah, iOS 5.1 Beta 3 is NOT vulnerable to Corona. Update to 5.0.1 before it's too late.
13 Jan 12 ReplyRetweetFavoriteThe software is still in developer beta. But considering that there’s been three versions released, it can’t be long until iOS 5.1 goes public. And although this hasn’t been confirmed by MuscleNerd or any other prominent Dev Team member, if you have any intentions of keeping your jailbreak, you should probably stay away from it.

It’s also important for folks who are planning on jailbreaking their iPhone 4S or iPad 2 when the time comes to make sure that their device is on iOS 5.0.1 while Apple is still signing it. Once iOS 5.1 is released, you won’t have access to it.

Stay tuned to iDB for more on this and the status of the A5 jailbreak.


Verizon’s LTE Requirement Still a Ways Off

Yesterday, we passed on a report from CNET that claimed that Verizon would soon be enforcing a “hard requirement” that all future smartphones be LTE-compatible. The news made some sense considering the carrier has been leading the LTE movement.

But today, the Mac Observer is reporting that they’ve heard a different story. While Verizon might eventually start requiring manufacturers to incorporate LTE chips into their products, it doesn’t look like it’ll be happening anytime soon…
TMO has apparently talked to a number of Verizon employees who, according to them, have debunked the rumor:

“TMO spoke to several Verizon wireless representatives at CES and asked them the question [on hard LTE requirement]. The response was, first, they haven’t seen any corporate information to that effect. Or any imposed deadlines. Secondly, they said that while the goal is to have all of its customers on LTE, “that’s a long way off.”

Given that CNET’s report on Verizon’s commitment to LTE-only products started with the phrase “from now on,” you can see how folks would have mistakenly assumed that the requirement was effective immediately. But we have to agree with the Mac Observer here. Although LTE chip prices are coming down and coverage is expanding, we’re probably still a good two years away from seeing carriers with LTE-only product lineups (Verizon plans to have its LTE network completed by late 2013).

Regardless, as we mentioned yesterday, Verizon’s purposed LTE requirement has zero effect on Apple’s plans to incorporate the next-generation wireless technology into its products. Coincidentally, we’ve heard rumors today that both the company’s upcoming tablet and its next smartphone will both be compatible with LTE networks.


Rumor: LG and Samsung Tapped as iPad 3 Panel Suppliers

All eyes are on Apple and its supply chain this month as rumors regarding its upcoming iPad begin to ramp up. The company is expected to unveil its new tablet sometime between now and early March of this year.

The latest chatter to come out of overseas component manufacturers is that Apple is looking to order in upwards of 65 million iPad 3 displays in 2012. And a recent report suggests that LG and Samsung are going to be splitting the bounty…
Korea’s Electronic Times is reporting that LG and Samsung will be manufacturing the display panels for Apple’s upcoming iPad. The news directly contradicts an earlier report from Macotakara claiming that Sharp was set to be the tablet’s panel supplier.

Here’s an excerpt from the report:

“Sharp has competed with Samsung electronics and LGD Display over the development of display panels for the iPad 3, but reportedly failed to pass Apple’s approval process for mass production. Sharp has worked on developing high resolution panels on the basis of oxide semiconductor TFTs.”

For what it’s worth, Electronic Times maintains the rumor that the panels in question are of the XQGA variety with a hefty resolution of 2048 x 1546. It also echoes other chatter we’ve heard that the tablet is in production and set for a Q1 debut.

We’re obviously far more concerned with the tablet itself than who makes it, but you gotta feel for Sharp. If there’s any truth to this story, the Tokyo-based company just lost out on one of the biggest part orders of the year because it couldn’t get its act together. Ouch.

iPhone 4S and iPad 2 Jailbreak One Step Closer to Completion

We know, we know, the wait is killing us, but all we have to relieve the tension is a few tweets from the “Dream Team” of iOS hackers working on the jailbreak for A5 devices, namely the iPhone 4S and the iPad 2.

The latest update is a tweet from planetbeing revealing that the A5 jailbreak is out of the sandbox, which means we should see the jailbreak released very soon…

planetbeing
@planetbeing And we're out of the sandbox with @saurik's invaluable help! (well, at least there's a PoC) :D Turning out more complex than X-Gold 618.
11 Jan 12 ReplyRetweetFavoriteThe “X-Gold 618″ mention is a reference to the iPhone 4 baseband chip that planetbeing helped crack with MuscleNerd.

Separately, Joshua Hill (or p0sixninja) of the Chronic Dev Team has informed iDB that “All blocking issues have been solved. We just need to integrate things now.” He noted that this is a “very complicated jailbreak with lots of interworking parts.”

While older devices like the iPhone 4 and original iPad already have an untethered jailbreak for iOS 5.0.1, the iPhone 4S and the iPad 2 have proven more difficult to hack. It’s just a matter of time now.