JetLib News

Ses0nPass, the jailbreaking software for the Apple TV media center, has been updated. The new version now allows for the much-desired “untethered” jailbreak – meaning, the device does not have to be connected to a computer during startup. At present, the software is only available for Mac users, but a Windows version is said to be “coming soon.”

But why would you want to jailbreak your Apple TV? How about access to streaming music from Last.fm, an HDTV-optimized Web browser, RSS feeds, weather forecasts, Twitter, additional support for video file formats and more?

The Ses0nPass jailbreak from the fireCore development team builds on the work of the Chronic Dev Team, who were the first to put out the untethered jailbreak process used in this updated software. Those who have already jailbroken their Apple TVs with Dev Team’s GreenPois0n software do not need to re-jailbreak, as it contains the same components as in this new release.

Why Jailbreak Apple TV?

For those new to Apple TV jailbreaking, there’s a software suite from fireCore that may tempt you over to the dark side. The package known as “aTV Flash,” available for both the older and the newest generation of Apple TV products, includes a Web browser designed for HDTVs (Couch Surfer Pro), access to weather forecasts, Last.fm, and RSS feeds – the latter two provided by Apple TVs first jailbroken app NitoTV. Also included in the bundle is media center app XBMC.

With NitoTV, you can create playlists and play additional media file formats via your AppleTV beyond those supported by Apple. On newer Apple TV devices (the smaller, black units), this list now includes support for .m4v, .mp4, .move, HE-AAC, AAC, MP3, MP3 VBR, Audible, Apple Lossless, AIFF and WAV, with more on the way.

Older Apple TV devices can play even more formats: .avi, .divx, .eyetv, .flv, .m4v, .mkv, .mov, .mp4, .mpeg, .mpg, .ogg, .ogm, .rm, .rmvb, .wmv, .xvid, VIDEO_TS/VOB, ISO, AAC, AC3, DTS, FLAC, MPEG3, MPEG4, VBR MP3, WMA, SSA and SRT.

Meanwhile, with the Web browser provided by Couch Surfer Pro, you can access Google search on your Apple TV, save bookmarks, view your browser history and even use your Apple Remote, USB mouse or Loop pointer to navigate the Web.

aTV Flash for older Apple TV units also includes additional software programs in the bundle, like Keyboard Magic, AirControl, XBMC, Boxee, Sapphire and others.

The process for jailbreaking your Apple TV with Ses0npass is documented in detail here. Although those instructions still assume a tethered jailbreak, the overall process is similar.