Just because the Kindle Touch isn't Android-based doesn't mean that it wouldn't be fun and potentially useful to gain root on it. Developer Yifan Lu has managed to do just that and has released the jailbreak tool for the e-reader in a format that might surprise you: an mp3 file. It turns out that the Kindle Touch's operating system is slightly different from previous Kindles in that it uses significantly more HTML in its UI instead of Java, which apparently means that — for now — it's much easier to exploit. Lu was able to put the rooting commands in the ID3 comment tag of an mp3 file, complete with a "jailbroken' splash screen.
What do you get for jailbreaking your Kindle Touch? Right now, little more than the deep satisfaction of knowing that you've done it and the hope that developers will being creating jailbreak apps — although Lu has provided a screensaver modification to get you started. Hit up the source link for the full breakdown of how the jailbreak was discovered.


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Cool.
Is there a Fire root yet?
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 12:11 PM EST via mobile reply Recommend Flag actions
The Kindle Fire was rooted basically the day it came out. I have the original Aneroid Market and Google apps installed on mine already.
Others have ported Cyanogen Mod and even Ice Cream Sandwhich, but of course they’re very buggy at the moment
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 12:22 PM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions
Could this be a way to remove ads from the ad-supported model?
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 12:11 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Just spend the $25…
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 12:28 PM EST reply Recommend (9) Flag actions
That’s already been done without root required. http://lifehacker.com/5864553/how-to-kill-the-kindle-special-offers-ads
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 12:36 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
you don’t need a hack to do that, as they’re saved in your device’s memory in system/.assets folder you can delete.
Posted on Dec 14, 2011 | 9:11 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Kindles still don’t read ePub right? Maybe ePub support will be possible with a jailbreak.
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 12:43 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Or just convert the ePubs to Mobi which is trivially easy?
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 12:52 PM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
I wonder if this enable epub support? Or am I mistaken all along?
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 12:56 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Unrelated: Has anybody circumvented the locked bootloader on the Nook Tablet?
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 1:07 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Nice OMNI magazine, I was a subscriber until from ’85 – ’92.
I can see this image triggering 3-4 hours of obsessive OMNI magazine hunting on eBay.
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 1:08 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Just bricked my kTouch, so maybe hold off on this one guys.
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 1:19 PM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
Update:
Just needed to be hard reset a few times…
So don’t freak out at first like I did.
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 2:02 PM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions
im thinking usb tethering with the 3g model
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 3:53 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
I’d love an actual Instapaper app that actually syncs back to the service. How about one of you whip that up?
Posted on Dec 11, 2011 | 4:26 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
Yifan states that ’The Kindle Touch has an accelerometer and proximity sensor (and a mic, but we know that) but they aren’t used in the software (yet)". Could this be true? The Kindle Touch really has an accelerometer?
Posted on Dec 12, 2011 | 7:43 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
I am wondering what real benefit will come from this.. I am kinda excited. Where is a site that will post jailbroken software so we can see whats to come and whats out?
Posted on Dec 12, 2011 | 9:41 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
How about writing a hack that speeds up the page turn refresh? Look at this video captured by Marco Arment showing the difference in page turn speed between the Kindle 4 and Kindle Touch: http://www.marco.org/media/2011/12/kindle-touch-vs-k4-responsiveness.m4v
Other things I’d like to see:
1. Progress bar returned to the bottom of reading screen (or at least an option to do so — some people like the gamification of reading, others don’t.)
2. Some more fucking sans-serif fonts that aren’t ugly as hell (H+FJ, where are you? Work with Amazon on this!)
Posted on Dec 12, 2011 | 12:38 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
I meant serif fonts. But both would be nice.
Posted on Dec 12, 2011 | 12:41 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions
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