Apple Blocking Non-Devloping iOS 5 Devices!

Apple are starting to hit back on companies / people selling spaces on their developer account so people can install beta firmwares.

There are hundreds of companies / people doing this, with some of them claiming to have registered more than 15,000 iOS devices since 2009. There is a reason why beta firmware is only accessible to developers and the main one is that there are problems with beta firmwares (thats why they are called beta), some of these firmwares stop important functions of the device working

Apple states that beta firmwares should not be installed on day to day devices and only used on developer devices.

According to KarthikK.net Apple are starting to send warning letters to those who have sold slots on the their accounts. For those that have their UDID to a linked to an account that Apple have flagged up as selling spaces the following is said to happen..

“Once Apple locks your iOS device, the phone will enter the initial setup mode asking you to connect to a WiFi network,” ….. “And nothing happens more than that.”

For those of you that don’t know when you sign up to Apple’s developer programme it allows you to register 99 iDevices to it. This however is not so that you can offer beta firmware for sale, these spaces are so that you can register devices so that they can test apps that that a developer has built.

iOS 5 is set to drop for the public this fall (Autumn) probably around the time the next gen iPhone is announced / released.  I would say that until then don’t be sucked in to these sites offering to register you for beta firmware you might just end up with a device you can’t use.