Pwn20wnd considers refining Substitute for the unc0ver jailbreak

Saurik delivered a Twitter-based Tropicana speech on Friday regarding the state of Cydia Substrate for A12(X) devices, and from what we can tell, its release is anything but imminent; in fact, there’s no telling if it’ll ever be released. Not only is Saurik getting tired of updating Cydia Substrate, but Apple made things more difficult in A12(X) by adding new logic and challenges.

Prominent members of the modern jailbreak community are now responding to Saurik’s words of wisdom, beginning with unc0ver lead developer Pwn20wnd:

Beginning with a heartfelt thank you, Pwn20wnd praises Saurik for the work he dedicated to the jailbreak community over the last decade. The hacker also notes that he isn’t in a rush to release an A12(X)-supported update for unc0ver, but that he will experiment with Substitute for the time being so that the jailbreak community will at least have something to work with during Saurik’s indefinite absence.

Pwn20wnd added in a follow-up Tweet that he aims to provide the best-possible jailbreak experience for the community, which ultimately drove him to move forward with this decision:

RootlessJB 3.0 developer Jake James also Tweeted in response to Saurik’s notes, adding that hounding Saurik to open source Cydia Substrate does more harm than good and that Saurik cares more about stability than issuing a simple hotfix:

As it would seem from their inspirational pep-talks, Pwn20wnd and Jake James aren’t about to let the jailbreak community crumble; in fact, they’re actively looking for ways to help A12(X) gain access to a stable and functioning jailbreak in the meantime, regardless of Cydia Substrate.

Pwn20wnd says he won’t rush to implement Substitute into the unc0ver jailbreak tool. Instead, he will try to improve Substitute with enhanced stability before officially implementing it, which could take more time.

It’s worth noting that the Electra Team already uses Substitute in place of Cydia Substrate, and that the upcoming Electra12 iOS 12 jailbreak will do the same. The Electra Team has long advocated for Substitute over Cydia Substrate, claiming that its open-source qualities make it future-proof for instances just like today’s.

If Pwn20wnd implements Substitute into the unc0ver jailbreak tool, then the choice between using Cydia or Sileo as the default package manager will be the primary difference between both tools. Cydia can be easily installed alongside Sileo on the Electra jailbreak by the end user, but the reverse can’t be said about unc0ver until Sileo is officially released for unc0ver, a project that iOS developer LaughingQuoll is purportedly working on.

Are you happy that Pwn20wnd isn’t giving up on A12(X) jailbreak development? Discuss in the comments section below.