Have You Ever Rooted or Jailbroken a Smartphone? [Poll]
We pay a lot for smartphones, so it makes sense that we’d want to customize our devices to suit our specific needs. Unfortunately, many smartphone manufacturers place restrictions on their devices—restrictions that can only be bypassed by rooting or jailbreaking your phone. As glamorous as rooting or jailbreaking a phone may be, the process isn’t without risks.
Rooting or Jailbreaking a Smartphone Is Fairly Easy…
If you have no ideawhat rooting isor have never heard of jailbreaking, it’s probably not the smartest idea to root or jailbreak your smartphone, even if it looks cool. That said, you can spend time learning all thepros and cons of jailbreakingor rooting a phone and thoroughly watching how-to videos to see if it’s something that interests you.
The process for both jailbreaking and rooting appears pretty simple, but it’s not something you should try after reading one article or watching a single video. If you need somewhere to start, we have aguide to rooting an Android phoneas well as aguide to jailbreaking an iPhone.
The terms “rooted” and “jailbroken” can be applied to many devices, but when talking about smartphones, Android phones are rooted and iPhones are jailbroken. Both processes are similar, unlocking the ability to make major changes to your device and install apps that how more power to make changes.
However, rooting or jailbreaking a phone can go sideways quickly, especially if you’re not confident in what you’re doing. Trying to salvage a phone that malfunctioned as a result of rooting or jailbreaking can be incredibly difficult, and sometimes impossible.
…But You Run the Risk of a Bricked Phone or Voided Warranty
If it seems scary to root or jailbreak a phone, that’s because it can be. Often, you’ll have absolutely no issues, and it’s possible to tote around your neat rooted phone that caters to your needs without issue. But sometimes, a poorly timed update or some other small issue can completely shut down your phone, and in rare cases, you could end up with a bricked phone—or a phone that’s basically a paperweight.
If you accidentally brick your phone, there are still a few methods it’s possible to try tounbrick your Android device. But this risk is a real possibility you have to consider when you root your phone.
In many cases, rooting or jailbreaking a smartphone results in a voided warranty. With both processes, it’s possible to reverse what you’ve done and make the phone appear to have never been rooted or jailbroken. But if your smartphone manufacturer ever finds out, your warranty is instantly voided.
Have You Ever Rooted or Jailbroken Your Smartphone? Would You Do It Again?
Personally, I’ve never rooted or jailbroken a smartphone, but I have a Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra with a permanently locked bootloader so rooting is pretty much out of the question. I’ve had plenty of friends who have rooted or jailbroken their devices, and they absolutely love the experience.
If you’ve ever rooted or jailbroken a smartphone—whether it was a successful experience or not—let us know! Would you ever do it again with a new phone?
Have you ever rooted or jailbroken a smartphone?
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