6.15.0 BaseBand Side Affects?

[Neil64]

Hello All,

I am newbie and need some help. I currently have a 2 + year old jail broken and unlocked 3GS 16gb running IOS 4.0 BB 5.13.04 using T-Mobile. My battery is losing its stamina and AppleCare warranty is running out. I was under the impression Apple would just replace the battery but they say they only replace the whole phone and not components. They are willing to give me a new 3GS on 4.3.3 with 5.16.02 which I know is not unlockable with out going to BB 6.15.00. They also tell me that my 2+ year old 3GS won't last much longer - avg. life is 2 years.

Now I have done a fair amount of reading and think I understand the risks on upgrading to 6.15.02 - losing GPS and maybe never being able to downgrade to a true iPhone baseband and maybe not be able to install IOS updates. I also know Apple will void the warranty. I am OK with that.

My questions are: is the 3GS also affected by the battery drain issue I find reported about the 3G? Other than losing GPS, are there any other phone use side affects of upgrading to 6.15.00? Any negative performance issues with 6.15.0 on the 3GS?

Also, I have a friend in a similar situation who is moving from AT&T to T-Mobile and is running 4.0 and 5.16.02. He would also like answers to the above questions before he leaps into the abyss. He has one additional question: Any pro or cons on upgrading from 4.1 to 4.3.3 and keeping 5.16.02 before he jailbreaks and unlocks?

By the way, we are only jailbreaking to unlock and not prirate.



Thanks...

Neil

 

[eastercat]

Thanks for mentioning that you're not here to pirate.
As far as side effects, you won't be able to use upgrade the normal way in iTunes. You'll have to use pwnage or snowbreeze to create a custom firmware. This custom iOS is what you install in iTunes.

 

[eastercat]

Double post

 

[Menneisyys2]

If I were you, I wouldn't upgrade. The biggest problem is that you'll never be able to downgrade the baseband (to, among other things, regain GPS) and any kind of further (e.g., iOS5) firmware upgrades will be a pain in the back as you won't be able to use stock firmwares, only hacked ones.

I'm suffering from the same fate: before it has become widely known that the iPad baseband has the above problems (e.g., the inability to downgrade), I upgraded; now, I spent orders of magnitude more time with upgrading or even completley wiping(!) my phone.

 

[Xb0xGuru]

If I were you, I wouldn't upgrade. The biggest problem is that you'll never be able to downgrade the baseband (to, among other things, regain GPS) and any kind of further (e.g., iOS5) firmware upgrades will be a pain in the back as you won't be able to use stock firmwares, only hacked ones.

I'm suffering from the same fate: before it has become widely known that the iPad baseband has the above problems (e.g., the inability to downgrade), I upgraded; now, I spent orders of magnitude more time with upgrading or even completley wiping(!) my phone.

I just upgrade via iTunes and when the 1015 error is displayed, I use iReb to kick it out of recovery mode. Has worked every time for me so far. I did have one phone where it wouldn't work until I jailbroke it, but I didn't have to build a custom IPSW.

 

[sbddude]

how about a battery case?

http://www.amazon.com/Mophie-Juice-Rechargeable-Battery-iPhone/dp/B002BDU7U2

 

[Neil64]

6.15.0

I understand the GPS issue and the not being able to downgrade and install standard IOS upgrades. I can live without all of that but need a reliable iPhone that will work on T-Mobile for a couple years.

Other than the above, are there other issues that effect the 3GS after the upgrade to 6.15.0 bb? Is there a battery issue on the 3GS or any other performance issues other than the GPS issue?

If one is upgrading the baseband to 6.15.0. is it better to be on IOS 4.1 or upgrade to 4.3.3?

Also, other than the battery, is there anything on the 3GS that usually fails around the 2 year mark? Maybe I should consider keeping my 3GS in IOS 4.0 and having the battery replaced by a 3rd party??????

Thanks...

 

[labman]

there are people still using 1st gen iphones and Ipods and still happy with the battery life and performance. So I wouldn't worry to much about that until it happens. Like others have mentioned there are battery packs. If you are happy with the performance then that's what matters.

 

[awadeee]

Just keep your 3Gs with the unlockable baseband and replace any parts manually that may go bad. 6.15.00 is not worth the hassle if you've got a perfectly good unlockable phone.

 

[Neil64]

Got it

OK, it seems you guys believe I should keep my old unlocked 4.0 3GS vs. trading it in a brand new one locked on 4.3.3 and 5.16.02 which will have to be upgraded to 6.15.0. Thanks, I will keep the old

Any reason my friend shouldn't upgrade from 4.1 to 4.3.3 if he is stuck on 5.16.02 anyway?

Thanks..

 

[eastercat]

As long as your friend understands the gps limitations, warranty exclusions, custom firmware requirements and the rest, your friend will be fine.

Any reason my friend shouldn't upgrade from 4.1 to 4.3.3 if he is stuck on 5.16.02 anyway?

Thanks..

 

[Neil64]

4.1 or 4.3.3

His question is the differences between 4.1 and 4.3.3?

Also, should the Dev-Team ever create a bb downgrade path for 6.15.0, would having 4.1 or 4.3.3 be more beneficial?

Thanks...

 

[awadeee]

His question is the differences between 4.1 and 4.3.3?

Also, should the Dev-Team ever create a bb downgrade path for 6.15.0, would having 4.1 or 4.3.3 be more beneficial?

Thanks...

The only differences that I've experienced between the two firmwares are the double vibrate for text messages as well as the personal hotspot ability but I don't believe that he'll have it on T-Mo since I don't think that PH supports 2G data. I use two different iPhones on 4.3.3 and I like it just as much as I liked 4.2.1, which was the last really stable iOS update.

If the Dev Team ever creates that tool, it will most likely support all the 3Gs basebands that aren't currently unlockable. I wouldn't hold my breath for it though.

 

[Neil64]

Info

Thanks everyone for advice. I am keeping my unlocked 4.0 3GS and will pay to replace the battery when the time comes. I guess my friend upgrade to 4.3.3 and then do the 6.15.0 baseband to unlock. Hopefully the Dev-Team will work their magic and create a unlock for 5.16.02 and a baseband rollback for 6.15.0 in the very near future.

Thanks again.

 

[Menneisyys2]

Hopefully the Dev-Team will work their magic and create ... a baseband rollback for 6.15.0 in the very near future.

Highly unlikely. They (and a lot other folks) have been working on this for quite long. It seems impossible right now. That is, currently, it seems if you ever upgrade to 6.15.0, there's no way back. Except for replacing the entire BB chip for around US$ 100 (done by a Chinese company, where you need to ship your phone's motherboard).