One of the most substantial things to happen in the jailbreak community in the past decade was the release of @axi0mXā€™s hardware-based checkm8 bootrom exploit. This exploit canā€™t be patched by Apple in a software update, and it essentially guarantees the jailbreakability of several of Appleā€™s devices using the A5-A11 SoC for life.

While checkm8 is already being used in the checkra1n jailbreak for handsets ranging from the iPhone 5s to the iPhone X, itā€™s also true that the same exploit can be used to jailbreak compatible Apple TV units. The newest Apple TV, on the other hand, purportedly sports a hidden Lightning port that would necessitate a special adapter to utilize for such an exploit.

While it originally seemed far-fetched that someone would develop a third-party solution for pwning the Apple TV 4K, it now seems that there could be a light at the end of the tunnel. Gizmite Solutions now sells what is being called an ā€˜Apple TV Breakout Cable,ā€™ which with some decent soldering skills, can purportedly permit DFU entry on the newest Apple TV.

Retailing for $15 on the Gizmite Solutions website, and already on back-order, the Apple TV Breakout Cable ā€œis everything you need for easy access to the Apple TV 4Kā€™s internal USB port and a button to enter DFU.ā€ A step-by-step guide for installing the Breakout Cable is also available on a separate Gizmite Solutions page, and from what we can tell, this project necessitates a lot of soldering thatā€™s certain to void your factory warranty from Apple.

Obviously, this isnā€™t something weā€™d recommend to the average jailbreaker, and I personally wouldnā€™t want to run the risk of messing up my own hardware with my shaky hands, but those experienced in soldering just might consider giving this a try to enter DFU mode and jailbreak Appleā€™s newest Apple TV unit with checkra1n.

The checkra1n jailbreak tool recently added preliminary Apple TV 4K support in one of its latest updates with the expectation that a special cable would be released in the future.

Are you excited to see developments like this one by Gizmite Solutions now that the checkra1n jailbreak is a thing? Discuss in the comments.